Jerusalem is central to Judaism

Last Saturday's editorial equating the Iraqi claim of hegemony over Kuwait to those of the state of Israel over Eastern Jerusalem was misleading in every way ("Israel's Choices," March 27). First, minimizing the Jewish people's connection to the holy city that is its capital betrays a bias that calls the Post-Gazette's judgment into question.

Iraq's only interest in Kuwait was its large oil reserves despite its claim that Kuwait was a natural part of Iraq carved off by the British. In contrast, Jerusalem has been central to Judaism ever since King David made Jerusalem his capital 3,000 years ago. The holiest site in Judaism -- the Western Wall -- is located in Jerusalem. For thousands of years, Jews have been praying three times a day, uttering the words, "To Jerusalem, thy city, shall we return with joy," and have repeated the Psalmist's oath: "If I forget thee, O Jerusalem, let my right hand forget her cunning."

Second, while Iraq invaded Kuwait in an act of unbridled aggression, Israel captured Eastern Jerusalem in a war of self-defense, when Jordan ignored Israeli pleas to stay out of the Six-Day War in 1967 and attacked the western part of the city, losing it to the Israel Defense Forces.

Whatever one's opinion about the future of Jerusalem as the capital of one state or two, the Jewish people's religious and historic claims to Jerusalem are undeniable and must be acknowledged as part of any future peace process.

 

DEBORAH FIDEL
Executive Director
Pittsburgh Area Jewish Committee
Oakland