Between 80,000-100,000 people packed Rabin Square in Tel Aviv last night to demand a strong fight against terrorism. The Yesha Council and other organizers were happy with the turnout, which had been threatened by general security fears. They said that in comparison with the much lower participation rate at recent left-wing demonstrations, it is clear on which side of the political spectrum the majority places itself.
Politicians were not among the speakers at the event. Atzmonah pre-military academy head Rabbi Rafi Peretz said, \"We will not only outlast these dangers, but we will even become strengthened from them. Our enemies want us to fall, but it is precisely falls of this nature that make us stronger. This is how is has always been for our nation, and the sweatshirts of all our hundreds of [past and present] students say, \'Am K\'Lavi Yakum\' (A Nation that Will Arise Like a Lion).\"
Gen. (res.) Shmuel Arad said, \"If the murderous terrorism continues, there will be no choice other than to set off on a campaign to collapse the PA and to throw out Arafat... The IDF knows what to do against suicide terrorists, and here\'s an example: In addition to the suicide killer\'s expectation of what awaits him in Paradise, he should also know that his family\'s house will be destroyed and his family will be in Lebanon 24 hours later.\"
Other pro-Israel demonstrations continue to take place outside Israel. Today in New York, an event \"American Teens in Solidarity With Israel\" will be held outside the United Nations building. Coordinated by the National Council of Yeshivot, the event will feature high school and day school students who wish to recognize \"our Israeli brothers and sisters who wage a daily battle against terrorism to maintain the existence of the Jewish state.\" Elsewhere in New York, anti-terrorism demonstrators continue to demand that the City of New York oust the PLO Mission to the United Nations from the city. \"The PLO UN Mission is a potential, and possibly an actual, terrorist nest in the midst of Manhattan,\" according to Rabbi Avi Weiss, national president of the Coalition for Jewish Concerns-Amcha. The organization has sponsored a series of rallies on this matter, the latest of which was held on Sunday afternoon.
Politicians were not among the speakers at the event. Atzmonah pre-military academy head Rabbi Rafi Peretz said, \"We will not only outlast these dangers, but we will even become strengthened from them. Our enemies want us to fall, but it is precisely falls of this nature that make us stronger. This is how is has always been for our nation, and the sweatshirts of all our hundreds of [past and present] students say, \'Am K\'Lavi Yakum\' (A Nation that Will Arise Like a Lion).\"
Gen. (res.) Shmuel Arad said, \"If the murderous terrorism continues, there will be no choice other than to set off on a campaign to collapse the PA and to throw out Arafat... The IDF knows what to do against suicide terrorists, and here\'s an example: In addition to the suicide killer\'s expectation of what awaits him in Paradise, he should also know that his family\'s house will be destroyed and his family will be in Lebanon 24 hours later.\"
Other pro-Israel demonstrations continue to take place outside Israel. Today in New York, an event \"American Teens in Solidarity With Israel\" will be held outside the United Nations building. Coordinated by the National Council of Yeshivot, the event will feature high school and day school students who wish to recognize \"our Israeli brothers and sisters who wage a daily battle against terrorism to maintain the existence of the Jewish state.\" Elsewhere in New York, anti-terrorism demonstrators continue to demand that the City of New York oust the PLO Mission to the United Nations from the city. \"The PLO UN Mission is a potential, and possibly an actual, terrorist nest in the midst of Manhattan,\" according to Rabbi Avi Weiss, national president of the Coalition for Jewish Concerns-Amcha. The organization has sponsored a series of rallies on this matter, the latest of which was held on Sunday afternoon.