Sir, – Last Wednesday evening, the Paratroopers held an inspiring induction ceremony of new recruits at the Western Wall, including two of our grandsons – one coming from a “knit kippa” family and the other from a secular but traditional family. Both are highly motivated youngsters ready to serve their country.I cannot therefore comprehend (and I strongly condemn) the attitude and actions of the haredi rabbis and politicians who encourage and allow the tens of thousands of able-bodied yeshiva boys to avoid army service. Don’t they realize the obvious consequences and dangers to the security and future of the State of Israel “where they also happen to live” – as outlined in the well-written articles by Caroline Glick and Sara Honig in this weekend’s Jerusalem Post?SAMMY BERGER Kiryat OnoThe San Remo ResolutionSir, – Susie Dym asks, “When will Jewish rights become known and recognized?” (“Remember San Remo,” Letters, May 2) She then refers to the “contributions” made by Mr. Eli Hertz and MK Danny Danon in recognizing “the exclusive national Jewish rights to the Land of Israel under international law.”I have dealt extensively with this very subject in the first chapter of my book The Legal Foundation and Borders of Israel under International Law. In fact, it was I who created the term “San Remo Resolution” to denote the inter-allied agreement that laid the legal foundation for the State of Israel. The late Prof. Yuval Ne’eman – to whom I served at the time as legal adviser on Eretz-Israel at the Ministry of Energy and Infrastructure, which he headed – acknowledged in a 1992 article that it was “at San Remo that the State of Israel draws its legal existence,” citing me as the legal source for his statement.Eli Hertz himself wrote me on January 17, 2009, saying that “it was Howard Grief that insisted – correctly – that the San Remo Resolution is a piece of international law and the foundation that led to the final legal document – the ‘Mandate for Palestine.’”HOWARD GRIEFJerusalemTribute to ‘Lady J’Sir, – The sudden passing of Lady Jakobovits has created an enormousvoid, not only in the world Jewish community, but also among thousandsof individuals and families whose lives she touched and greatlyinfluenced for years (“Lady Jakobovits dies at 81,” May 9).And while Lady J will be remembered for her decades of public service,it was her ability to impact the individual that made her so veryunique. Weekly visits to terminally sick friends, personal phone callswhen she heard someone was in the hospital, and using her unmistakablevoice to bring out a smile are but a few examples of her exceptionalpersonality.Lady J, we will miss you sorely, but never stop loving you.CHAIM FACHLER Netanya
May 10: Addressing the threat to Zionism
The increase of non-Jewish immigration into Israel would reduce the “us vs. them” tensions between Jews and Arabs.
Sir, – Last Wednesday evening, the Paratroopers held an inspiring induction ceremony of new recruits at the Western Wall, including two of our grandsons – one coming from a “knit kippa” family and the other from a secular but traditional family. Both are highly motivated youngsters ready to serve their country.I cannot therefore comprehend (and I strongly condemn) the attitude and actions of the haredi rabbis and politicians who encourage and allow the tens of thousands of able-bodied yeshiva boys to avoid army service. Don’t they realize the obvious consequences and dangers to the security and future of the State of Israel “where they also happen to live” – as outlined in the well-written articles by Caroline Glick and Sara Honig in this weekend’s Jerusalem Post?SAMMY BERGER Kiryat OnoThe San Remo ResolutionSir, – Susie Dym asks, “When will Jewish rights become known and recognized?” (“Remember San Remo,” Letters, May 2) She then refers to the “contributions” made by Mr. Eli Hertz and MK Danny Danon in recognizing “the exclusive national Jewish rights to the Land of Israel under international law.”I have dealt extensively with this very subject in the first chapter of my book The Legal Foundation and Borders of Israel under International Law. In fact, it was I who created the term “San Remo Resolution” to denote the inter-allied agreement that laid the legal foundation for the State of Israel. The late Prof. Yuval Ne’eman – to whom I served at the time as legal adviser on Eretz-Israel at the Ministry of Energy and Infrastructure, which he headed – acknowledged in a 1992 article that it was “at San Remo that the State of Israel draws its legal existence,” citing me as the legal source for his statement.Eli Hertz himself wrote me on January 17, 2009, saying that “it was Howard Grief that insisted – correctly – that the San Remo Resolution is a piece of international law and the foundation that led to the final legal document – the ‘Mandate for Palestine.’”HOWARD GRIEFJerusalemTribute to ‘Lady J’Sir, – The sudden passing of Lady Jakobovits has created an enormousvoid, not only in the world Jewish community, but also among thousandsof individuals and families whose lives she touched and greatlyinfluenced for years (“Lady Jakobovits dies at 81,” May 9).And while Lady J will be remembered for her decades of public service,it was her ability to impact the individual that made her so veryunique. Weekly visits to terminally sick friends, personal phone callswhen she heard someone was in the hospital, and using her unmistakablevoice to bring out a smile are but a few examples of her exceptionalpersonality.Lady J, we will miss you sorely, but never stop loving you.CHAIM FACHLER Netanya