-Caveat Lector- THE TIMES April 11, 2002
Jews appalled by German plan for peacekeeping >From Roger Boyes in Berlin GERMANY provoked fierce criticism from the Jewish community yesterday by suggesting that it was ready to send troops to Israel to support a Middle East peacekeeping operation. The idea that German soldiers, after half a century of rebuilding a relationship with Israel, might fire on Jews brought howls of dismay from across the political spectrum. The blocking of weapons sales to Israel and some unusually open German criticism of Ariel Sharon, the Israeli Prime Minister, had already strained relations, but when Gerhard Schröder, the German Chancellor, told generals that he was considering troop deployment in the Middle East - a taboo for Germany since the Holocaust - the row erupted. "It's absolutely scandalous to think that German soldiers could fire on Israelis," Saloman Korn, the influential chairman of the Frankfurt Jewish community, said, adding that Israel could not accept foreign troops on its soil. There was no mistaking the new sharpness of the German tone towards Israel. Norbert Blüm, a former Christian Democrat minister, described the Israeli offences as a "war of annihilation". Jürgen Möllemann, the Free Democrat Party's deputy chairman, said that he supported Palestinian violence. "I would resist, too, and use force to do so," he said. The German Jewish community protested, saying that such critics were "standing shoulder-to-shoulder with the anti-Semites". This flushed out more German critics of Israel. "It must be possible in Germany to criticise the military politics of the Israeli Government without being pushed into the anti-Semitic corner," Guido Westerwelle, the Free Democrat chairman, said. The flurry comes as Joschka Fischer, the Foreign Minister, is circulating proposals for ending the violence in Israel. His plan, due to be formally submitted to European foreign ninisters on Monday, closely resembles ideas from Washington and calls for an Israeli withdrawal, a provisional Palestinian state and a ceasefire monitored by an international force sponsored by the United States, the European Union, the United Nations and Russia. But the fact that Herr Fischer is behind the plan has drawn a suspicious response from Israelis. As a student rebel he attended anti-Zionist events and delivered speeches critical of Israeli action against Palestinians. He has since abandoned his radicalism, but some Israelis believe that Herr Fischer's generation planted the seeds of a new form of German anti-Semitism. <A HREF="http://www.ctrl.org/";>www.ctrl.org</A> DECLARATION & DISCLAIMER ========== CTRL is a discussion & informational exchange list. Proselytizing propagandic screeds are unwelcomed. Substance—not soap-boxing—please! These are sordid matters and 'conspiracy theory'—with its many half-truths, mis- directions and outright frauds—is used politically by different groups with major and minor effects spread throughout the spectrum of time and thought. That being said, CTRLgives no endorsement to the validity of posts, and always suggests to readers; be wary of what you read. CTRL gives no credence to Holocaust denial and nazi's need not apply. Let us please be civil and as always, Caveat Lector. ======================================================================== Archives Available at: http://peach.ease.lsoft.com/archives/ctrl.html <A HREF="http://peach.ease.lsoft.com/archives/ctrl.html";>Archives of [EMAIL PROTECTED]</A> http:[EMAIL PROTECTED]/ <A HREF="http:[EMAIL PROTECTED]/";>ctrl</A> ======================================================================== To subscribe to Conspiracy Theory Research List[CTRL] send email: SUBSCRIBE CTRL [to:] [EMAIL PROTECTED] To UNsubscribe to Conspiracy Theory Research List[CTRL] send email: SIGNOFF CTRL [to:] [EMAIL PROTECTED] Om
