Fanatics Maim Middle East Peace

Pity poor George, the desperate fugitive described in your piece about a return to the Church of the Nativity in Bethlehem (Dec. 25). A modern-day Jean Valjean is he, a romantic hero pursued mercilessly by the mighty Israeli war machine. He’s also apparently a dutiful and loving husband and father and, no doubt, kind to animals.

But missing from the article is that our poor George might also be responsible for the deaths and maiming of numbers of innocent Jews who were walking to the market, eating pizza or on their way to school. The indescribable agony he might have caused to his victims before they died in the street or for months as they lay in the hospital doesn’t seem to belong in the picture. The irreparable destruction to the lives of his victims’ families is not to be considered.

Pity poor George, who, because he is hunted, was able to meet with his wife and child for only a short time before having to go underground again. I wonder if he ever thinks of the widows and the widowers, the now-childless parents and the orphans he and his comrades have left behind. Probably not; nor, apparently, does The Times.

Joel Levin

Valley Village

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Re your Dec. 24 article on the settlement of Ofra in the West Bank: It would seem these illegal settlers, as well as those of other illegal settlements, always fall back on claiming God gave the land to them. Until some voice booms out from the skies saying so, it would seem the illegal settlers are just trying to steal land that doesn’t belong to them.

When I hear of settlers getting attacked and killed in Gaza or the West Bank, I have absolutely no sympathy for them; they deserve what happens to them. Unfortunately, our government continues to support Israel, giving terrorist fanatics a justification, in their minds, to attack us. It’s time to cut Israel loose. Israelis are quite capable of defending themselves; let them defend their illegal settlements, as well, until they wise up and realize the settlements aren’t worth it. They sure aren’t worth the risk to America.

Mike Kirwan

Venice

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American Jews have the same right to criticize Israel’s government as Israelis do (“Is Unity Good for the Jews?” Opinion, Dec. 22). But we shouldn’t. The reason is simple: Only Israelis vote in Israeli elections and have to live with the consequences of their choices. It is arrogant for American Jews to urge Israel to take “risks for peace” that Israelis judge to be too dangerous.

At the same time, American Jews must not be willing to fight to the last Israeli. Diversity is not the issue. The Peace Now/Oslo approach has not been censored -- it has been rejected as a failure (at least for now), both in Israel and here. American Jews must unite in expecting continued U.S. support for Israel because the Jewish state continues to face existential threats.

The only position that American Jewry can conceivably agree on is to support the policies of the democratically elected government of Israel, whatever they may be.

Paul Kujawsky

Los Angeles