[Congressional Record Volume 149, Number 141 (Wednesday, October 8, 2003)]
[House]
[Pages H9358-H9363]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
TROUBLING DEVELOPMENTS IN MIDDLE EAST PEACE PROCESS
The SPEAKER pro tempore. Under the Speaker's announced policy of
January 7, 2003, the gentleman from Indiana (Mr. Hill) is recognized
for 60 minutes as the designee of the minority leader.
General Leave
Mr. HILL. Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members may
have 5 legislative days within which to revise and extend their remarks
on the subject of this Special Order.
The SPEAKER pro tempore. Is there objection to the request of the
gentleman from Indiana?
There was no objection.
Mr. HILL. Mr. Speaker, in the August break, several Members had the
opportunity to take a trip to Israel. As a matter of fact, there were
28 Members. It was lead by the minority whip, the gentleman from
Maryland (Mr. Hoyer). This evening we would like to offer Members who
went on that trip the opportunity to share their experiences and to
give their opinions and give their support for the State of Israel.
Mr. Speaker, as the only democracy in the Middle East, Israel has
been a strong and important ally to the United States for over 50
years. Maintaining that relationship is imperative to the strength and
security of the United States.
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When I was approached several months ago about joining a
congressional delegation to Israel, I welcomed the opportunity. Though
I had been to Israel once before in the early 1990s, it was during a
very different time, a time when peace seemed near.
Given the events over the last several years in both Israel and the
United States, I felt it was my duty as a Member of Congress to gain a
better understanding of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict and how it
relates to the security of the United States.
One of the most important aspects of this congressional delegation
trip were our meetings with Israeli and Palestinian leaders. We were
greeted by both leaders with optimism regarding the peace process.
These meetings shed light on the challenges that both sides face in
beginning meaningful peace negotiations, and they highlighted the
importance of U.S. involvement in the peace process. Unfortunately,
that optimism has turned to violence, as the road map to peace has
crumbled. Israel has been forced to defend herself against terrorist
attacks much like the United States did in the wake of September 11. I
continue to strongly support Israel in its stand against terrorism.
However, I am hopeful that all parties will exercise restraint so that
they may, once again, focus on the process of achieving peace.
Mr. Speaker, when we were over there, both the at-that-time
Palestinian leader, Mahmoud Abbas, and Mr. Sharon, the Prime Minister
of Israel, were very optimistic about the chances for peace in Israel.
They believed that they could achieve it. But, once again, we have
negotiations breaking down. Our thoughts and our prayers are with both
Israel and the Palestinian people, that they will try to reach out to
one another in a peaceful way and bring peace to the area.
Mr. Speaker, I yield to the gentleman from New Jersey (Mr. Pallone).
Mr. PALLONE. Mr. Speaker, I want to thank my colleague from Indiana
for organizing this Special Order and also the gentleman from Maryland
(Mr. Hoyer) for organizing the trip to Israel which, as was mentioned,
so many of us on the Democratic side of the aisle went together. I
think it was actually the largest number of House Members ever that
traveled to Israel, at least in anyone's memory.
I wanted to discuss the trip but, in particular, discuss the
troubling developments in the Middle East peace process that have
occurred since the trip when we were there in early August. I have to
admit that for myself and probably all of my colleagues on the trip, we
were hoping to return from Israel with stories of remarkable steps
being taken towards peace in the region. I wanted to be able to return
and tell my constituents that progress was being made, that things were
getting better, and that families were safer.
However, many of us returned from Israel, and I know I did, uneasy
about what we saw and concerned about the future of the peace
negotiations. In our meetings with Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon
and then Palestinian Prime Minister Abbas, they both expressed a
willingness to work towards a peace settlement. But while the talk was
positive, there seemed to be no action on the part of the Palestinian
Authority to eliminate Hamas and the other violent factions of the
organization, despite concessions by Israel on political prisoners and
the control of territories.
Even more troubling to us was the overriding concern that Prime
Minister Abbas did not have the ability to negotiate peace with Israel
or the power to reign in the Palestinian terrorist factions. At every
turn, it seemed, Yasir Arafat worked to undermine the Abbas government.
So it came as no surprise that only a month after we returned from
Israel, Abbas resigned as Prime Minister, citing his inability to
effectively do his job in the shadow of Yasir Arafat. It was even less
a surprise that a member of Arafat's inner circle was then tapped to
step into the position.
Mr. Speaker, since our trip, as we all know, violence has once again
escalated in the region. Just this past weekend on the eve of Yom
Kippur, another suicide bomber stepped into another crowded Israeli
seaside restaurant and killed another 19 people. Mr. Speaker, since the
start of this year, over 100 people have been killed in Israel as a
result of suicide attacks. This is not a combined total of several
years; this is over 100 people killed in the last 9\1/2\ months alone.
In response to this weekend's bombing, Israel conducted an air strike
inside Syria in a terrorist camp believed to be used by Hamas and its
Islamic Jihad.
{time} 1900
This was a measured response by the Israeli government against the
groups who carried out the attack.
As a side note, Mr. Speaker, I have spoken several times on the House
floor regarding the need for Congress and the President to implement
sanctions against Syria. I am a cosponsor of legislation that was
approved today by the House Committee on International Relations that
would place economic sanctions against Syria and hold Syria accountable
for their actions. Syria has long been known to support and sponsor
terrorist organizations. It is on the State Department list of
terrorist nations. This Congress and the President must show to Syria
that there are consequences for their actions. So I would urge that
this bill come to the floor of the House and be passed as soon as
possible.
Not surprisingly, Arafat has used Israel's strike against Syria to
his advantage. Arafat has taken the attack as an opportunity to declare
a ``state of emergency,'' passing a presidential decree that institutes
his chosen group as the new prime minister and cabinet.
This step by Arafat only confirms my fears that Arafat continues to
exert enormous influence over the Palestinian government. Israel has to
come to grips with Arafat's ability to derail the peace process and has
faced serious international opposition when the Israeli government
issued a decision to take steps to remove Arafat from power.
Recent actions by Arafat make it painfully clear that Arafat
continues to be a roadblock to peace. When one government does not
follow his orders, he undermines that government until its leaders
resign, and he puts his own people in charge. Peace cannot be achieved,
in my opinion, as long as Arafat is in power.
Mr. Speaker, I am sure I can speak for many of my colleagues on the
trip when I say that we all want nothing more than to see peace
negotiations move forward. So, for now, the Palestinian Authority has a
new prime minister. However, many of the same questions remain: Will
steps be taken to dismantle the terrorist networks? Will the new prime
minister be able to govern or will Arafat continue to pull the strings?
I guess only time will tell the answers to those questions.
In closing, I just want to urge all of my colleagues in Congress to
visit Israel and meet with government officials and see the region
firsthand. I want to thank the gentleman from Maryland (Mr. Hoyer) for
organizing this trip, giving us the ability tonight, through the
gentleman from Indiana (Mr. Hill), to discuss our trip. It was a
wonderful trip. It was at a time when peace seemed possible. I know it
does not seem very possible right now, but I am still hopeful that
again we will see peace in the Middle East.
Mr. HILL. Mr. Speaker, it was a pleasure to have the gentleman from
New Jersey (Mr. Pallone) on the trip. He contributed a great deal to
the success of the trip.
Mr. Speaker, I yield to the gentlewoman from California (Ms. Linda T.
Sanchez) who is a new Member in Congress but is really doing an
outstanding job.
Ms. LINDA T. SANCHEZ of California. Mr. Speaker, I rise today and
join my colleagues in our continuing desire to establish peace in the
Middle East. I joined several of my Democratic colleagues this past
August in a trip to Israel to see firsthand the impact that violence
has had on the people of the Middle East.
It seems that almost daily we turn on our television sets and read
newspapers and learn about another bombing or missile attack in the
Middle East. Just this past Saturday 19 people were killed and 50
people were injured when a suicide bomber set off an explosion in a
packed restaurant in Israel.
My trip to Israel in August impacted me profoundly. One cannot begin
to understand what it is like for the people of Israel to try to live
under such conditions until one have traveled to the
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country and has seen it firsthand. There is a difference between
understanding their situation by reading about it in the newspaper and
actually being there, living it and seeing it with your own eyes.
Israel is a tiny country and is practically surrounded by countries
that consider Israel and Western-style democracy an enemy. Israel lives
with the fear of attack every day, and Israeli citizens need to protect
themselves and defend their homes. There are many regions of the
country that the Israeli government holds on to simply because they
improve the security and safety of their citizens.
While I was in Israel I and my colleagues saw firsthand the
construction of an enormous security fence to prevent violent attacks.
Once completed, this barrier will stretch for approximately 150 miles.
It is a combination of ditches, barbed wire, and electric sensors. Many
people have spoken out against the fence and say that it is an obstacle
to achieving peace in the region. But until you have been to Israel,
you cannot possibly understand what that fence means in terms of the
safety and security of women and children and civilians.
I also recall during our trip being taken to border regions and being
shown security footage of people trespassing over the security barriers
and entering Israel without authorization. These constant dangers
impact the people of Israel every day, and I was impressed with how
committed the Israeli people were to protecting their country and their
families in the face of so many threats. In fact, many citizens carried
guns with them, ready to defend their country at a moment's notice.
It is easy for people outside of Israel to criticize them for
carrying guns and constructing a security fence. But the fear and the
danger that faces the people of Israel is real, and they must be
allowed to protect themselves. Because of this danger, they alone know
the best way to protect their citizens and secure their communities.
Mr. Speaker, I hope that our country continues to support the
government and the people of Israel. I hope that we recognize Israel's
right to be a sovereign nation and Israel's right to protect itself.
Most of all, I hope that peace comes to the people of Israel and all of
the citizens of the Middle East.
Mr. HILL. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.
The gentlewoman from California (Ms. Linda T. Sanchez) spoke about
the fence. The fence takes on symbolic proportions just by the idea
that we are putting up a wall, some people like to call it. But this
fence is not designed to keep the Israeli people out of Israel like the
East Germans tried to do in East Germany trying to keep their people
in. This is to protect the Israeli people.
As the gentlelady from California (Ms. Linda T. Sanchez) so
eloquently said, until you have been there and seen if for yourself,
you really do not have a great appreciation for it.
Mr. Speaker, at this time, I yield to the gentlewoman from Guam (Ms.
Bordallo).
(Ms. BORDALLO asked and was given permission to revise and extend her
remarks.)
Ms. BORDALLO. Mr. Speaker, as a Member of the House Committee on
Armed Services, I have worked to further my understanding of the
threats posed to our national security by state sponsors of terrorism
and the role of our allies in countering this growing threat; and I am
well aware that Guam's neighbor, North Korea, exports missile
technology to Iran and other nations that seek to acquire both weapons
of mass destruction and the means to deliver them.
The people of Guam have a keen interest, Mr. Speaker, in developments
in the Middle East where so many of our sons and daughters are proudly
serving. Mr. Speaker, you may be interested to know that Guam is
actually the closest American soil to the Middle East region.
I, too, Mr. Speaker had the opportunity to visit Israel with my
colleagues, and I thank the gentleman from Indiana (Mr. Hill) for this
opportunity to speak tonight.
I was very pleased to join my colleagues on this recent mission to
Israel. The State of Israel has come a long way since my last visit
there over 20 years ago. The people have maintained the ancient
heritage of the Holy Land and its sacred sites, while bringing economic
development and opportunity to a very young nation. They have worked at
bringing peace with their neighbors, Egypt and Jordan, and stand ready
to negotiate a final settlement with the Palestinians.
What I saw in Israel confirmed my belief that our assistance to
Israel has been an important investment in regional security, for much
has been achieved with our assistance from the leadership of President
Carter to President Bush's efforts today.
In prosecuting the war on terrorism globally, we should never forget
our steadfast ally Israel and the responsibility we have to engage
there. In Israel, I saw a people who share our democratic values in and
long for peace being forced to live with the ongoing threat of
terrorism. All too often, we focus our attention on CNN footage of a
burning bus or a shattered restaurant. We must not forget these people
after the cameras have moved on.
For the women and the children that took the number 2 bus in
Jerusalem, we must not delay in moving our embassy to Israel's capital.
For the families who sat down to lunch at the Maxim Cafe, we must
demand accountability from nations such as Syria that sponsor terrorism
against Israel. To prevent future victims of terrorism, we must support
increased defense cooperation with Israel; and, above all, we should
encourage President Bush to continue the U.S.-led effort to facilitate
the negotiations between Israel and the Palestinians that are crucial
to our peace in the Middle East.
The decisions of the 108th Congress will have a historic impact on
our foreign policy and the security of our nation, and I look forward
to sharing in those decisions with the understanding that I have gained
from visiting Israel.
So, Mr. Speaker, I would like to go on record to thank my colleagues
who participated with me on this delegation and especially to the
gentleman from Maryland (Mr. Hoyer) who led our group and for providing
me with such a valuable opportunity.
Mr. HILL. Mr. Speaker, I thank the gentlewoman from Guam (Ms.
Bordallo) for her kind remarks. It was an opportunity for us to get to
know one another a whole lot better in our trip to Israel. I have a
great amount of respect for the gentlewoman from Guam.
Mr. Speaker, at this time, I yield to my colleague from California
who I sit on the Committee on Armed Services with, the gentlewoman from
California (Mrs. Davis of California).
Mrs. DAVIS of California. Mr. Speaker, I would like to thank the
gentleman from Maryland (Mr. Hoyer), the distinguished minority whip,
for leading this trip and also for tonight's opportunity to share our
thoughts with our colleagues and the American people.
It was my third trip since I had lived on a kibbutz in 1965 during
what was then the infancy of the State of Israel. Each time I set foot
there I am reminded of the rich history of the land. The way you drift
from present to past and back again is simply indescribable. One is
constantly reminded of the biblical origins.
It is a place where time is measured in millennia, not decades, which
helps me keep a perspective on everyday headlines.
On this trip, I had the opportunity to go to the Golan Heights. As
our bus climbed the corkscrew roads I looked down upon the kibbutz
where I had lived 38 years ago, and I was struck by its proximity. It
was much closer than I ever thought. That geography reminds me of my
own City of San Diego. There people live on bluffs, on mesas
overlooking valleys, yet no one in the valley is concerned about being
shot by their neighbors above.
This highlights the stark differences in everyday life in the U.S.
compared with everyday life in Israel. In Israel, normalcy is a
challenge. But it is achieved every day. Life continues, but not
without adjustments. Families have learned to live with the prospect of
violence. Just like here, parents worry about getting their kids to
school. Adult and youth join their friends at coffee houses, and
families go shopping. Though it may look normal, there is much going on
that one cannot see.
Just take the example of going to the store. Here we might be
thinking about
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the traffic and the availability of parking. In Israel, one would worry
about security at the store, about which routes to take, and about the
wisdom of taking public transportation.
On recreation choices, I am reminded of the accomplished physician,
the Israeli-American who went to the coffee house with his daughter the
night before her wedding. A suicide bomber went also.
When I learned of the 19 people killed in an Arab-managed restaurant
in Haifa, I recalled the afternoon that we all lunched at an Arab-owned
restaurant feeling safe.
The differences extend beyond such day-to-day choices. As diverse as
this body is, the Knesset's diversity impressed me. Though Democrats
and Republicans joust in a war of priorities, our experiences are
nothing like those of Jews and Arabs serving together in a Knesset
while their brothers and sisters might be fighting one another.
{time} 1915
And while the challenges we face are important and the problems we
address are critical, again, they seem shadowed by the complexity of
those in the Knesset.
Finally, despite the grave security situation in Israel, I observed a
free and open press. The plight of those living in the West Bank and
Gaza was discussed and important questions were asked of the
government. Surely the freedom to debate such sensitive issues is
symbolic of the great potential for understanding and cooperation that
exists in Israel. A free and open press underpins a free and open
society. Israel is a democracy, a democracy that refuses to be
handicapped by its dangers and a democracy that needs our continued
attention and our support.
Mr. HILL. Mr. Speaker, I thank the gentlewoman from California (Mrs.
Davis). I am always impressed at her presentation and her ability to
ask the tough questions in such a nice way.
Mr. Speaker, how much time remains?
The SPEAKER pro tempore (Mr. Murphy). The gentleman from Indiana (Mr.
Hill) has approximately 39 minutes remaining.
Mr. HILL. Mr. Speaker, I yield to the gentleman from New York (Mr.
Nadler).
Mr. NADLER. Mr. Speaker, I thank the gentleman.
Mr. Speaker, I was very much pleased to participate along with my
wife on this trip to Israel, and I appreciate the efforts of the
gentleman from Maryland (Mr. Hoyer) in organizing this trip. It is not
my first trip. It is probably my 7th or 8th trip to Israel. And as
always, I was impressed by looking at different facets of Israeli
society and seeing a vibrant, free, democratic, modern country, so
different from so many other countries in the Middle East.
I had many experiences there, but one of the things I always do when
I go someplace else is read the local newspapers. Reading the
newspapers in Israel, you are struck by the debates on politics and on
policy, on peace, you are struck on the political give and take, by the
criticism in the newspapers of the government and its leaders, by the
debate of the members of the various political parties, all of this so
reminiscent of the democracy in our own country, in the United States.
In the debates in the press, in talking to the people, one could feel
the palpable yearning for peace that Israel is so desperate for. One
could not escape the fact that Israel is a country fighting a war on
terrorism alongside the United States. One could never escape the fact
that Israel is targeted by hostile neighbors, by hostile terrorists who
have had over 100 suicide bombings, homicide bombings, really, targeted
at civilians, men, women and children.
Sometimes we read in the papers here that in the last 3 years since
violence began in September of 2000, about 800 Israelis have been
killed and countless more wounded, maimed. And Palestinians were also
killed. But what you do not read all the time is that most of the
Israelis who were killed and maimed were children and old people and
women, children simply at a pizza parlor or teenagers at a dance hall
or people at a wedding or a Bar Mitzvah or just going about their
business, on their way to work on a bus. Most of the Palestinians who
were killed were armed people engaged in attacking someone engaged in
terrorism.
One is also struck when visiting Israel, in going around Israel, by
how small the country actually is. It is one thing to look at a map and
talk about Israel and the territories, the West Bank and Gaza and the
Sinai and Egypt and what territories should constitute a new
Palestinian state, what territorial concessions or compromises Israel
should make. It is all very academic on a piece of paper; until you are
there, and you see how small this country is. When you go to a place, a
hill on a farm, and you can look and see on one side, the Jordan River,
the boundary between the West Bank and Jordan, and on the other side,
you can see from the same hill the Mediterranean, how narrow the
country is and how remarkable, in those terms, is the willingness of
Israel to give up so much territory to form an independent Palestinian
state, as Israel offered to do at Camp David and at Taba in 2000.
We saw the monitoring station in the north of the country. We visited
a station, really a couple of trailers, a few hundred feet from the
Lebanese border. We saw the balloon. It looked like a barrage balloon,
tethered a couple of hundred feet up, but it did not hold weapons. It
held cameras. And sitting in this monitoring station were young girls,
18-year-old girls in army uniforms looking at the monitors to try to
prevent terrorists from coming over the border to attack and killing at
random, to kill men, women and children at random. And this is what the
army has to occupy itself with.
We saw also part of where the fence is going to be. The fence has
been the object of some controversy. But the Gaza Strip has a fence
around it. People go through the fence, through check points, but not
one homicide bomber has come from Gaza. A million and a half people in
Gaza, not one homicide bombing has come from Gaza into Israel
successfully. Plenty have tried, but not one has succeeded to wreak
mayhem and murder on civilians. Unfortunately, that is not the case
with the West Bank.
Someone once said that good fences make good neighbors. Well, you
need a lot more than good fences to make good neighbors, but one might
say that good fences are very important to make good neighbors. And no
one can deny the necessity for Israel to try to prevent people from
crossing over to attack villages and towns in Kibbutzim and just plain
people going about their business.
The United States is erecting a fence between at various places
between the United States and Mexico to prevent illegal immigration.
No, we do not have a problem, thank God, with people trying to cross
from Mexico into San Diego to commit murder. If we have a problem, it
is because people want to cross to get jobs. But the Israelis have that
problem. And we saw where we were how narrow the place was. How there
was an Israeli town and not 200 yards away an Arab-Palestinian village,
which was not in Israel but was in the West Bank, and in between them
simply a depression in the ground and nothing to stop people from
walking across.
That is why we need the fence. That is why Israel needs the fence, to
protect the lives of men, women and children. And it ill-behooves
anyone to criticize a defensive fence against terrorism.
I must say, Mr. Speaker, that I believe in the necessity of a
Palestinian state. Some people ask me, do I believe that the
Palestinians have a right to a state? My answer is no, I do not think
so. I do not see why the Palestinians have any more right to an
independent state than the Baaths or the Kurds. On the other hand, if
Israel is going to be a safe state and is going to achieve peace and is
going to remain a Jewish democratic state, then there has to be a
Palestinian state, because there is no alternative.
The question, of course, is, can you have a Palestinian state with
peace and security for Israel? Is there someone you can deal with to
negotiate that, and that is what Israel tried to do. And if you read
what Dennis Ross, President Clinton's chief negotiator at Camp David,
or what some of the others have said, they offered, the Israelis
offered a Palestinian state in 100 percent of Gaza, 97 percent of the
West
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Bank, plus territory from Israel proper so that the Palestinians could
say they got the equivalent of acreage of 100 percent and Arafat turned
it down. And Arafat then started a war which is what we have had for
the last almost 3 years, 3 years and a couple of weeks.
So we hope and pray for peace. This trip showed us just how small
Israel is; how necessary the fence is, how necessary the Israeli
defense measures are; how important Israel's part in the war on
terrorism is; and how, when people say that the main problem is the
Israeli occupation, how wrong that is. The Israeli occupation will end
when there is an ability to have a peaceful solution for Israel and to
have security for Israel without Israel having to occupy the land for
security purposes. We saw that very clearly and that is what we have to
understand. And the United States must engage to continue our alliance
with Israel, the only free democratic people in the area, the only
reliable ally for the United States in the area, and the moral
necessity of defending that freedom and democracy, and the political
necessity of allying in the war on terrorism with our only reliable
ally in the war on terrorism in the Middle East, Israel.
Mr. LARSEN of Washington. Mr. Speaker, the resignation of Mahmoud
Abbas and the appointment of Ahmed Queria as his replacement as the
Prime Minister of the Palestinian Authority has fully thrown off course
the Road Map to Peace.
Two months ago I traveled to Israel as a member of the largest
Congressional delegation to ever visit Israel. While there, I had an
opportunity to meet with both then Prime Minister Abbas and Prime
Minister Ariel Sharon. At the time, both Israel and the Palestinian
Authority were struggling to implement the Road Map requirements.
Abbas's humble welcome to the delegation belied a history of being
one of Yasser Arafat's right hand men in the Palestinian Liberation
Organization's past terror campaigns. This history makes it all the
more interesting that Silvan Shalom, Israel's Minister of Foreign
Affairs, told us that it was official Israeli policy to take actions to
enhance the credibility of Abbas within the Palestinian Authority.
Abbas's message to us was a recounting of key issues that impact the
Road Map peace process. He argued that the security fence, which he
referred to as a wall, should be dismantled. However, when pressed on
this issue, he conceded that the fence might be less of an issue if
Israel built it on non-West Bank lands. He argued that Israel's
announcement that they would release 545 political prisoners, in
addition to those 248 released before the Akaba summit, was inadequate.
His sentiment echoed Arafat's claim that the release was a fraud.
What Abbas failed to explain is that the Israeli government's
difficult decision to release prisoners was not a required element of
the Road Map peace process. The Israeli government took this step
unilaterally and specifically as a confidence-building measure for the
peace process and to help enhance Abbas's credibility.
Abbas's third issue was the continued presence of Israeli forces in
Palestinian settlements and cities in the West Bank. Recent suicide
bombers have come from these cities. The Israeli government's position
is that, short of a Palestinian Authority effort to dismantle all
terrorist infrastructure, Israeli troops will be present in the West
Bank.
Finally, the issue of terrorist infrastructure hung out there. The
most important action that Abbas could have taken to silence all of his
critics is the step necessary during the now dead temporary ceasefire
to dismantle the infrastructure supporting terrorist groups like Hamas
and others. The number one obstacle to that step was Yasser Arafat, a
picture of whom hung over the meeting as a constant reminder of who was
really in charge.
We drove back to the bus for the 90-minute ride back to Jerusalem for
our meeting with Prime Minister Ariel Sharon. Sharon met us in his
office within the large government complex located on one of the many
hills in Israel's capital.
Sharon's message was simple: For real peace, Israel is ready to make
painful compromises. He noted that Israel is a small country but has a
determined people.
He went on to echo Minister Shalom's earlier comments that Israeli
policy is to enhance Abbas's credibility, and he went on to point out
recent changes the Palestinian Authority have implemented. He noted
that incitements, or the agitating of anti-Israeli opinion, have
decreased. He emphasized that, except for the recent shooting north of
Bethlehem, the temporary ceasefire had held.
Sharon cautioned, however, that the Road Map peace process would not
move forward to the next phase without completing the current phase in
full. What he emphasized the most was a full cessation of terror.
Sharon noted that Arafat's strategy of terror has not changed, and
Arafat continues to undermine every step that Abbas takes.
Thinking back to the Abbas meeting, the Palestinian Authority's Prime
Minister expressed his sincere belief in two main goals for his
government. First, a rule of law must exist for all Palestinian people.
Second, it is his goal to have one security force. This was important
because there are currently 13 separate security forces, ten of which
Arafat controls.
I bring this up because two things strike me most about this pair of
meetings. Both men have a vision for their people. Sharon's vision is a
vision that most Jews have, an Israel for the Jewish people with secure
borders living in peace with its neighbors. Abbas's vision was not
expressed as clearly but was still there: a state for Palestinians
living securely under the rule of law.
Abbas's resignation and the seeming resurrection of Arafat now mean
these visions are on hold. If the Palestinian Authority cannot have
leadership that is willing to wrest itself from the hold of Arafat and
terrorist groups, then Israel must continue to defend itself from
suicide bombers. As a strong supporter of Israel, however, I believe
the United States has a responsibility to help Israel take steps
forward--not backward--including improving the average Palestinian's
quality of life. I am no supporter of Arafat. But, honestly, hints at
efforts to assassinate Arafat took the peace process backward in the
eyes of many. I applaud the foreign minister's efforts to back away
from the statement made by the deputy prime minister.
I am much less hopeful now than I was just two months ago about the
short-term prospects for peace and resolution to the Israeli-
Palestinian conflict. However, I am more certain now than ever that the
United States must stay involved for there to be any success of the
Road Map or any long-term future peace process. The ground rules may
have changed with Abbas's resignation but our interests have not.
Mrs. MALONEY. Mr. Speaker, until you actually spend time in Israel,
it is hard to truly understand what it is like to live with the daily
reality of terrorism.
The horrific explosion this weekend makes it hard to remember that
this summer was a time of relative quiet.
People on both sides of the conflict were able to venture out of
their houses. Palestinians went to the beach for the first time in
years. Israeli cafes and restaurants were crowded. Tourism was up. But,
unfortunately, in many ways that quiet was more illusion than reality.
During the Hudna, 27 civilians were killed, and 133 were injured.
Over 180 terrorist attacks, including 120 shooting attacks, were
launched against Israeli citizens. At the same time, Israeli security
forces prevented more than 40 attacks, including suicide bombers.
Given the volume of attacks, perhaps we shouldn't have been surprised
that during our brief one week visit this summer our lives were touched
by two separate terrorist incidents. But, we believed in the ceasefire
and the possibilities it seemed to offer.
One incident occurred after we visited an area along the border
between Israel and Lebanon.
The very next day, a sixteen year old boy was murdered by a missile
fired over the Lebanese border, close to the place we had strolled the
previous day. A day earlier, a few yards in a different direction and
the missile could just as easily have hit one of us.
A few days later, we visited Hadassah Hospital and met a doctor who
had been up all night saving the life of a woman. She had been driving
on a highway with her family when a sniper's bullet pierced her car.
The doctor's expertise gave her another chance at life, but she will
spend years recovering from her wounds.
9/11 awakened Americans to the ease with which terrorists can reach
us. Our schools, our homes, our water and our air are so vulnerable. It
just takes one angry person with a weapon.
This weekend one angry person stole the lives of 19 people in Haifa.
Some of them were Arabs, some of them were Jews. Hatred does not
distinguish.
At a time when violence seems to be taking over the region, it is
hard to remember the optimism that so many of us felt this summer.
As the largest delegation of Members of Congress ever to visit
Israel, we had the opportunity to meet with many of the people who are
key to the peace process. They were hopeful that better times lie
ahead, and so were we.
But peace cannot come as long as Arafat continues to call for a
million martyrs. Peace cannot come as long as Palestinian children are
taught to idolize terrorists. Peace cannot come as long as Palestinians
refuse to crack down on terrorist groups.
Terrorism wages war against children, old people, the defenseless.
Terrorism seeks to destroy the most vulnerable.
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In a free and open society such as Israel's, the only response to
terrorism is a determination to go on. In Israel we saw extraordinary
creativity, energy and freedom.
Despite their daily brush with terrorism, Israelis are determined to
lead ordinary lives. In their very normalcy, they pose a daily
challenge to terrorists.
Let us hope that in the future they will not have to try so very hard
to lead normal lives. Let us hope that freedom will prevail over
terrorism.
Mr. HILL. Mr. Speaker, I thank the gentleman from New York (Mr.
Nadler) for his eloquent remarks. As always, he has a lot to say.
Mr. Speaker, there was no vacation that we took. We worked very hard
and the gentleman from Maryland (Mr. Hoyer) worked us very hard. We
were at it early in the morning and until late at night every single
day. As a matter of fact, by the end of the trip, I was thankful that
we were going home. But because of his leadership, we learned a great
deal and we have a much greater appreciation.
Mr. Speaker, I yield the balance of my time to the gentleman from
Maryland (Mr. Hoyer), the leader of this trip, our Democratic whip, for
purposes of control.
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