ADC UPDATE:
Letter to Secretary Powell Regarding the Global Terrorism Report
May 4, 2001
The following is the text of a letter from ADC President Hala Maksoud sent to
Secretary Powell regarding the "Patterns of Global Terrorism 2000"
Report. The report, produced by the US State Department, was released this
week. The report can be read on the State Department's website http://www.state.gov/
. Should you wish to voice your concerns about the report you can write to
Secretary Powell via email at secretary@state.gov
or send letters to the following address.
The Honorable Colin Powell
Secretary of State
Department of State
2201 C Street, N.W.
Washington, DC 20520
Dear Secretary Powell:
I am writing on behalf of the American-Arab Anti-Discrimination Committee (ADC), the largest Arab-American membership organization, regarding “Patterns of Global Terrorism 2000” which was released earlier this week by the U.S. Department of State.
Arab Americans in general are deeply concerned about the spread of terrorism both at home and abroad. ADC is fully aware of the real threat of terrorism and its direct impact on our personal lives and civil rights as American citizens. In 1986, Jewish terrorists assassinated the Director of our regional office in California, Alex Odeh, as he entered his office in Santa Ana. Although the FBI identified the perpetrators of this heinous terrorist act, they were never brought to justice since they sought refuge in a Jewish settlement in occupied Palestine.
I would like to take this opportunity, however, to raise some serious concerns that we have regarding the Administration’s counter terrorism policy in general, and the 2000 report in particular.
First, United States policy on terrorism suffers from a definitional problem. The traditional U.S. definition of terrorism is highly politicized and selective in terms of its application. As a result, American policy has been widely criticized for its inconsistency, its double standards, and its lack of credibility. “Patterns of Global Terrorism 2000” is already generating such criticism throughout the Middle East.
Therefore, it becomes incumbent upon the Bush Administration to review this matter immediately and consider adopting a more consistent and objective definition of the phenomenon in question. Terrorism has been universally defined as including all politically motivated acts of violence against innocent civilian targets, whether carried out by individuals, groups or governments. American counter-terrorism policy would enjoy more credibility worldwide if the United States were to condemn and oppose all acts of terrorism, including state-administered terrorism, regardless of the identity of the perpetrator or the victim.
Second, in its section on Israel and the West Bank and Gaza, the State Department report states: “Israeli officials publicly expressed their dissatisfaction with PA counter terrorism efforts during the crisis. The Israelis also accused PA security officials and Fatah members of facilitating and taking part in shooting and bombing attacks against Israeli targets.”
The inclusion of Israeli allegations against Palestinian security officials and Fatah members in an official U.S. document is totally inappropriate and unnecessary since it raises serious doubts about the credibility and independence of the report throughout the region. The situation is further exacerbated by the fact that the report did not include Palestinian complaints about “excessive and disproportionate” Israeli attacks on innocent Palestinian civilians, even though such complaints were reiterated by the United Nations Security Council, the UN Human Rights Commission, Amnesty International, and even State Department officials. Frankly, it is a shocking omission that no mention is made of state-administered acts of terrorism committed by Israeli army death squads and other units of the IDF, as well as armed Israeli settler groups.
Third, Palestinian violence is depicted in the report as totally divorced from the context of continued Israeli occupation of the West Bank and Gaza since 1967. Palestinians are accused of committing acts of “terror” against military targets and armed settlers who are occupying their country in violation of international law. By its very definition, military occupation, including the Israeli occupation of Palestine, is a form of oppression. The collective punishment applied daily by the Israeli armed forces against Palestinian civilians qualifies precisely as the use of force against innocent civilians for political purposes. It is, therefore, by all objective standards, a form of state-administered terrorism. The U.S. must abandon this lack of sensitivity for the right of people under foreign occupation to resist oppression and put an end to occupation.
Fourth, the United States must reconsider the use of its list of nations accused of state-sponsored terrorism. This practice is antiquated and non-productive. It certainly has not produced the intended results for which it was established. Why is it, for example, that the Administration is not seeking a dialogue with Syria or Libya? If indeed these countries have not engaged in “state-sponsored” acts of terrorism for several years, as indicated in the report, then U.S. objectives would be better served through dialogue and constructive engagement than through confrontation and censorship.
Fifth, “Patterns of Global Terrorism” would be taken more seriously, at home and abroad, if the State Department were to avoid politicizing its findings. For example, the report tends to characterize various political groups that are opposed or “seek to prevent Middle East peace” as terrorist. We frankly fail to see how opposition to the Oslo peace process with Israel translates into terrorism unless it involves politically motivated acts of violence against innocent civilian targets. The same argument applies to the report’s characterization, on page 29, of IDF soldiers captured by Hizballah in Lebanon as “hostages,” while Lebanese civilians kidnapped from their own homes by the IDF and held illegally inside Israel are referred to as “prisoners.” These are specific examples of the inconsistencies that contribute to the continuing erosion of U.S. credibility and the dissemination of anti-American sentiments throughout the Middle East.
It is our sincere hope that the Bush Administration will take these suggestions seriously. We look forward to continuing our frank and constructive dialogue with you and your staff at the Department of State.
Sincerely,
Hala Maksoud, Ph.D.
President
cc: Edmund J. Hull, Acting Coordinator for Counter terrorism
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