After Arafat
In thinking about how to address Yasser Arafat’s departure and its meaning for the Middle East, friends of Israel would do well to follow the lead set by Israeli Prime Minister Sharon in the past week, when he ordered his ministers to maintain a dignified silence despite their dislike for the man. Arafat was an unabashed terrorist whose hands were stained with the blood of thousands, and few Jews will grieve for him. But he was also an iconic figure to the Palestinians, the people with whom Israelis must share their troubled land.
We understand that Arafat’s passage will open up new opportunities for Israel to strengthen its security and strive for new regional relationships. But we also understand that it represents a time of mourning for Israel’s neighbors, and for millions of Arabs and Muslims around the world. Analyzing the crimes past and the opportunities ahead is the right thing to do right now. Celebrating is not.
The Forward is free to read, but it isn’t free to produce
I hope you appreciated this article. Before you go, I’d like to ask you to please support the Forward.
Now more than ever, American Jews need independent news they can trust, with reporting driven by truth, not ideology. We serve you, not any ideological agenda.
At a time when other newsrooms are closing or cutting back, the Forward has removed its paywall and invested additional resources to report on the ground from Israel and around the U.S. on the impact of the war, rising antisemitism and polarized discourse.
This is a great time to support independent Jewish journalism you rely on. Make a gift today!
— Rachel Fishman Feddersen, Publisher and CEO
Support our mission to tell the Jewish story fully and fairly.
Dive In
-
Opinion It looks like Israel totally underestimated Trump
-
Opinion I supported Israel’s actions in Gaza in October 2023 — not anymore
-
Opinion This week proved it: Trump’s approach to antisemitism at Columbia is horribly ineffective
-
Opinion NASA finally stopped honoring a Nazi scientist. Why did it take so long?
Most Popular
- 1
Fast Forward Ye debuts ‘Heil Hitler’ music video that includes a sample of a Hitler speech
- 2
Opinion It looks like Israel totally underestimated Trump
- 3
Culture Cardinals are Catholic, not Jewish — so why do they all wear yarmulkes?
- 4
Fast Forward Student suspended for ‘F— the Jews’ video defends himself on antisemitic podcast
In Case You Missed It
-
Culture How one Jewish woman fought the Nazis — and helped found a new Italian republic
-
Opinion It looks like Israel totally underestimated Trump
-
Fast Forward Betar ‘almost exclusively triggered’ former student’s detention, judge says
-
Fast Forward ‘Honey, he’s had enough of you’: Trump’s Middle East moves increasingly appear to sideline Israel
-
Shop the Forward Store
100% of profits support our journalism
Republish This Story
Please read before republishing
We’re happy to make this story available to republish for free, unless it originated with JTA, Haaretz or another publication (as indicated on the article) and as long as you follow our guidelines.
You must comply with the following:
- Credit the Forward
- Retain our pixel
- Preserve our canonical link in Google search
- Add a noindex tag in Google search
See our full guidelines for more information, and this guide for detail about canonical URLs.
To republish, copy the HTML by clicking on the yellow button to the right; it includes our tracking pixel, all paragraph styles and hyperlinks, the author byline and credit to the Forward. It does not include images; to avoid copyright violations, you must add them manually, following our guidelines. Please email us at [email protected], subject line “republish,” with any questions or to let us know what stories you’re picking up.