The terrorists had hijacked an Egged bus near Ashkelon and taken its passengers hostages. After a standoff, IDF forces stormed the bus, capturing two of the terrorists. Later on, while the terrorists were in General Security Service custody, they were killed, and Yatom was implicated in the murder.
Sharon claims that all considerations have been taken into account in appointing Yatom, and that he is the best man for the job. Sarid disagrees and has chosen to use the Supreme Court to make his political case.
There are several problems with the suit. First is that it was brought at all. The Supreme Court is a judicial, not political authority, regardless how hard it tries to claim otherwise. The fact that Sarid has chosen to use this avenue to make his own political gains – something Meretz members do with alacrity whenever the political climate turns against them – serves only to weaken the rule of law in Israel.
I find it very interesting how, when anyone campaigns against political or religious bias in the court system, Sarid is the first one on the barricades railing against the abuse of the rule of law represented by such claims. But when Sarid stands to lose political ground, he has no compunction about harming the rule of law in Israel to suit his own political needs.
The other things that are dreadfully wrong about this issue arose in all their splendor during the court session today. Yatom’s attorney, Yaakov Ne’eman, is a religious Jew, a prominent attorney, and a man with an admirable list of political connections, not to mention a firm grasp on the values Israel is supposed to represent. His line of defense was that while the murder of the terrorists in 1984 might have been wrong, the circumstances have drastically changed in the interim, to the point where only someone with Yatom’s security background could adequately fill the position for which he is nominated.
Sarid’s response was to tell a reporter covering the case that he remembers an even earlier time, since which circumstances have most certainly changed. Yet at that earlier time, the handing down of the Ten Commandments, G-d said that “thou shalt not kill”. Since that circumstance has not changed, says Sarid, Yatom should not be allowed to hold high national office.
I find it very disturbing that Sarid, a self-professed champion of the secular, an anti-religious firebrand of top ranking, and a man with very little understanding of either Jewish religious tradition or Zionist philosophy, feels it proper to quote biblical passages to support his arguments against a prominent religious attorney and professor.
The second comment out of Sarid’s mouth was directed more at Yatom himself. He referred to Yatom’s potential claim that he was following the orders of superiors, by responding that the Nazis said the same thing.
So here we have the full brunt of Yossi Sarid’s chutzpah. He has the gall to bring biblical sources to defend his anti-Jewish political position, and the further courage to resort to the most heinous form of name-calling.
Perhaps there are a few lessons in Jewish and Israeli history that Yossi Sarid never learned over the course of his education.
While Sarid appears to have learned the story of the Ten Commandments well, I have an even earlier quote from the Torah to throw back at him. “He who sheds human blood, shall by a human have his blood shed.” (Genesis 9:6) In other words, the only good terrorist is a dead terrorist.
There is a world of difference between the Nazis killing six million innocent Jews and an Israeli security officer killing two terrorists. There can never be any justification for what happened in Europe. But the past 14 months prove, if anything, that the murder of those two terrorists was correct. If they hadn’t been killed then, they likely would have been freed in an Israeli prisoner exchange, only to take part in further murder during the current Intifadah.
The actions of Yatom’s unit in 1984, and his involvement in them, make him uniquely qualified to finally bring some proper perspective to the office of anti-terrorism advisor in the Prime Minister’s Office. As a proud Jew concerned with the welfare of my fellow Israeli and the security of my state, I hope that Yatom’s appointment is allowed to go through. It will most definitely send the proper message to all those who would kill Jews.
Copyright 2001. Yehuda Poch is a writer living in Israel. Reproduction in electronic or print format by permission only.
