A Matter of "Pikuach Nefesh" (Saving Jewish Lives)
By David Bedein
Born in 1950 in
Philadelphia and a former resident of Tsfat, David Bedein is a long-time
communal organizer and an investigative journalist, now living in the
Judean city, Efrat. He is the founder of the Israel Resource News Agency
and the head of the Center for Near East Policy Research. He has reported
for media outlets such as CNN Radio, Makor Rishon, Philadelphia Bulletin
and The Jerusalem Post; covered Middle East negotiations in important
locations all over the globe; authored several significant books; and
produced numerous films, investigative studies and news reports. [For
more detailed information, see "Source" below]
Two weeks ago, Thursday-Sunday, November
13-14, more than 5000 emissaries of Rabbi Menachem Mendel Schneerson,
the "Lubavitcher Rebbe" from 86 countries gathered in Brooklyn
for the 42nd annual International Conference of Lubavitcher Shluchim,
in order to extol and expand the legacy of "the Rebbe," who
passed away 31.5 years ago in June 1994, but still continues to exert
a towering influence. On the final day, these 5200 devotees of the Rebbe
visited the grave of the Rebbe and shouted out a collective voice for
peace in the Land of Israel (as well as other goals of the mission that
the Rebbe placed upon them).
The Rebbe taught that the Arab war against
Israel should not be understood as a conflict between nation states, but
rather as an existential threat to the Jews in the Land of Israel. In
the language of the Rebbe, this threat constitutes a matter of "Pikuach
Nefesh,"-- a matter of life or death -- for the Jewish nation.
Hamas, the terrorist military organization
elected in 2006 to run the PLO parliament, exemplifies that total war
on the Jews. The charters of the PLO and Hamas, which openly call for
the total obliteration of the Jews in Israel, have remained unchanged,
despite international agreements signed on the White House lawn in 1993.
(Note: That peace agreement was never ratified by the PLO.) That same
PLO is now funded, condition-free, by 135 nations.
With Pikuah Nefesh as a guiding policy
for the Land of Israel, this was an opportune time for the 5,000 devotees
of the Rebbe to address these six threats to Jewish lives:
1. Pay to Slay Legislation
The PLO adopted an unprecedented law to provide a salary for life to anyone
who murders a Jew, or a salary for life to the family of anyone killed
while murdering a Jew. Not one nation on earth has demanded that this
law be changed. The time has come to condition humanitarian aid on the
striking of "Pay to Slay." To receive humanitarian aid, you
must act human.
2. Indoctrination on PA TV, PA Radio and
PA Social Media.
The PA media, known as the PBC, operating PA on Israel-owned frequencies,
focus on programs that incite Arabs to wage war on Jews. Thus, Palestinian
media constitute a threat to human life. The time has come to jam the
frequencies of the Palestinian media, which are owned by Israel.
3. PA Schools of War
PA schools, operating under the authority and with the sanction of the
Israel Civil Administration, have adopted a new curriculum to indoctrinate
a new generation to wage war on Jews. If that curriculum continues, the
time has come to padlock PA schools.
4. The PSF - Palestinian Security Forces
trained by Israel
The PA armed forces, the PSF, which was trained by the IDF, have turned
on the Jewish state. This is the time to disarm the PSF
5. UNRWA
UNRWA oversees 6.7 million descendants of Arab refugees stuck in 59 refugee
camps since 1948, under the lethal premise of "The Right of Return
by Force of Arms", without any plan to replace "temporary"
refugee camps with communities dedicated to UN principles of peace. The
time has come to cut international funds to UNRWA until UNRWA policies
change, and the time to close UNRWA in Gaza,
6. COGAT-
The Israel Civil Administration COGAT, instead of representing Israel's
interests in Judea, Samaria and Gaza, supports Arabs who build anywhere,
regardless of constraints under the law. COGAT facilitates Pay to Slay,
PBC, PA schools of war, PSF and UNRWA
THE TIME HAS COME TO LAUNCH A PIKUACH
NEFESH ALERT,
produced in multiple languages, to address these six threats to the lives
of every Jew, with a flow of facts and films, with one goal: to mobilize
public opinion and policy makers to protect the lives of Jews. That is
how to preserve and protect the Pikuach Nefesh legacy of the Rebbe.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Source: Modified and
supplemented by Yerachmiel Tilles from a submission by the author specially
for Ascent.
 Born
in 1950 in Philadelphia, David Bedein is a long-time communal organizer
and an investigative journalist, now living in the Judean city, Efrat.
In 1987 he established the Israel Resource News Agency, and in 2005 became
the head of the Center for Near East Policy Research. He has reported
for media outlets such as CNN Radio, Makor Rishon, Philadelphia Bulletin
and The Jerusalem Post. He has covered Middle East negotiations in many
important locations, such Oslo, The Wye Plantation, Annapolis, Geneva,
Washington, D.C., London, Bonn, and Vienna. Bedein is also the author
of ROADBLOCK TO PEACE": How the UN Perpetuates the Arab-Israeli Conflict:
UNRWA Policies Reconsidered; and Genesis of the Palestinian Authority,
as well as the producer of numerous films, investigative studies and news
reports.
[For a complete multi-page biography, look him up in Wikipedia]
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