A leading spokesman for the American Jewish community has criticized U.S. Secretary of State Colin Powell for tying Israel\'s hands in the current mini-war with the Palestinians - in opposition to Powell\'s own policy. Zionist Organization of America President Morton Klein writes that although Powell said just last month, \"America should enter fights with every bit of force available or not at all,\" the State Department has criticized almost every move Israel has made in self-defense: its use of fighter planes, its use of helicopter gunships to hit terrorist bases, its policy of targeting individual terrorist leaders, and even its withholding of funds from the PA that would be used to finance terrorism. \"And when Israel sent troops into areas used as terror launching pads, Powell condemned that as \'excessive and disproportionate,\'\" Klein writes. He continues:
\"Israel has not used \"full force\" or \"overwhelming force\" - to quote Powell\'s description of his recommended methods - even though the murders, injuries, and fears which its citizens have endured from the Palestinian Arabs is far worse than anything Americans have faced. There have been over 7,000 terrorist attacks in the past seven months. Nearly 100 Israelis have been murdered, and hundreds more wounded; there are daily shooting and bombing attacks in both Judea-Samaria-Gaza as well as Jerusalem, Tel Aviv, and Netanya, to the point where many Israelis are afraid to ride buses, shop in outdoor marketplaces, or enjoy other aspects of ordinary daily life. Furthermore, the Palestinian Authority terrorist forces are located just a few hundred yards from major Israeli cities, including Jerusalem. By contrast, the U.S. used overwhelming force in response to incidents that took place thousands of miles from America\'s shores - whereas Israel is responding to attacks in the heart of Jerusalem, Tel Aviv, and other major cities. For example, after an Iraqi attempt on the life of former President Bush (during his 1993 visit to Kuwait), the U.S. fired 23 cruise missiles fired at Iraq\'s intelligence headquarters in Baghdad, inadvertently hitting a civilian neighborhood as well. Powell defended the action as \"Appropriate, proportional and consistent with Article 51 of the UN Charter.\" (Washington Post, June 28, 1993).\"