OPINION:
The leaders of Israel have every right to condemn the recent actions of the European Union, actions that essentially list Israel as a pariah for having the nerve to exist (“European Union settlement order evokes Israeli ire,” Web, July 16).
In the ultimate example of hubris, the EU has issued a total ban on all products and cultural activities originating in lands won by Israel in a defensive war against its neighboring Arab nations. Perhaps the present leaders of the EU forget that the territory of the EU is the burial place of 6 million Jews, murdered by these same nations, either directly or by collaboration. Evidently there is no remorse on the part of the leaders of these nations as they indict Israel for building on its own land, deemed as such by history, religion, the Balfour Declaration and the League of Nations mandate.
Land won in a defensive war, which include the 1948, 1967 and 1973 wars, is not illegally occupied but sanctioned by international law to be retained for future defense. The EU has shown its true colors with this blatant display of anti-Semitism, disguised as an anti-Israel action. The countries should be ashamed, both collectively and individually, for this unprecedented action which can only delay, if not eliminate, any chance for peace between Israel and its Arab neighbors.
NELSON MARANS
Silver Spring
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