NEW YORK- In the wake of the latest massacre of 23 Israelis by Yasir Arafat’s Fatah movement, the Zionist Organization of America (ZOA) is proposing a ten-step plan for the Bush administration to help combat Palestinian Arab terrorism:
1. Cancel U.S. Support for Creation of a Palestinian Arab State: The Bush administration should acknowledge that the Palestinian Arabs have not met any of the conditions for statehood that President Bush outlined in his June 24 speech. The administration should therefore announce that it is formally withdrawing its offer to support creation of such a state.
2. Declare that the Palestinian Authority is a Terrorist Regime: The Bush administration should acknowledge that the Palestinian Authority, which orders, pays for, and glorifies the mass murder of Jews, is a terrorist regime, and end all relations between the U.S. and the PA.
3. End the $100-Million in Annual U.S. Aid to the Palestinian Arabs: The U.S. has been giving the Palestinian Arabs $100-million in aid each year, and the Bush administration recently increased it to $150-million—a total of nearly $1-billion since 1994. This aid has greatly strengthened the terrorist PA regime. It must be halted.
4. Stop Pressuring Israel to Make Concessions to the PA: The Bush administration should immediately stop pressuring Israel to make concessions to the PA such as providing the PA with funds or permitting Palestinian Arab workers to enter Israel. Such concessions are, in effect, a reward for terrorism and they strengthen the terrorist PA regime.
5. Stop Condemning Israel’s Anti-Terror Actions: The Bush administration should end its policy of publicly condemning Israeli counter-terror tactics such as the targeted elimination of terrorist leaders and the dismantling of buildings and homes used by terrorists. These tactics are no different from the tactics used by the U.S. in its own war on terror, yet as recently as January 3, 2002, the State Department again publicly condemned Israel for removing houses that were being used by terrorists as shelters from which to shoot at Israelis.
6. Pressure Allies to Stop Giving Them Aid: The Bush administration should use the full weight of its diplomatic and financial leverage to pressure its allies to stop providing funds to the PA.
7. Cut off Aid to Arab Regimes That Fund Palestinian Arab Terror: The Bush administration should inform all Arab regime which assist the PA that they will no longer receive any U.S. military or financial assistance if they continue providing funds to the PA.
8. Shut Down PLO Offices in the U.S.: The Bush administration should immediately shut down all PLO and PA offices in the United States.
9. Move the Embassy to Jerusalem: The Bush administration should immediately fulfill the U.S. law requiring moving the American embassy in Israel from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem. This will send a powerful message to Arab terrorists that their threats will no longer succeed in shaping U.S. policy in the Middle East.
10. Pressure the PA to Surrender Murderers of Americans: The Bush administration should demand that the PA surrender, to the U.S., all Palestinian Arabs involved in attacks in which American citizens have been harmed. If the PA refuses to comply, the Bush administration should use all means at its disposal to apprehend the suspects, including sending FBI agents to PA-controlled areas to arrest them.