By Eli E. Hertz
To whom did the Obama administration grant permission to fly the Palestinian Liberation Organization [PLO] flag in Washington D.C.?
The answer: Palestinian Arabs - A society whose overwhelming majority nurtures a blind hatred of Israel, and has created a cultural milieu of vengeance, violence and death. This organization, which has been directly responsible for the murders of American civilian and security personnel, now has its recognition and flag waving in our capitol.
Here is just a subset of articles from the PLO Charter that the American administration has no shame to honor:
*Article 7: [Individual] must be prepared for the armed struggle and ready to sacrifice his wealth and his life in order to win back his homeland and bring about its liberation.
*Article 9: Armed struggle is the only way to liberate Palestine. This it is the overall strategy, not merely a tactical phase. The Palestinian Arab people assert their absolute determination and firm resolution to continue their armed struggle and to work for an armed popular revolution for the liberation of their country and their return to it. They also assert their right to normal life in Palestine and to exercise their right to self-determination and sovereignty over it.
* Article 10: Commando action constitutes the nucleus of the Palestinian popular liberation war.
* Article 19: The partition of Palestine in 1947 and the establishment of the state of Israel are entirely illegal, regardless of the passage of time, because they were contrary to the will of the Palestinian people and to their natural right in their homeland, and inconsistent with the principles embodied in the Charter of the United Nations, particularly the right to self-determination.
*Article 20: The Balfour Declaration, the Mandate for Palestine, and everything that has been based upon them, are deemed null and void. Claims of historical or religious ties of Jews with Palestine are incompatible with the facts of history and the true conception of what constitutes statehood. Judaism, being a religion, is not an independent nationality. Nor do Jews constitute a single nation with an identity of its own; they are citizens of the states to which they belong.
And if their charter was not convincing enough, the United States Congress, on numerous occasions, has reaffirmed the PLO's status as a terrorist organization.
Although past U.S. presidents have attempted to circumvent this law, its conclusions are concise and unequivocal:
"Therefore, the Congress determines that the PLO and its affiliates are a terrorist organization and a threat to the interests of the United States, its allies, and to international law and should not benefit from operating in the United States."
The violent and disturbing history of the PLO and its Chairman Mahmoud Abbas is one that has dreadfully affected the lives of countless Israelis, Americans, and many others. The PLO is transparent in its criminal and malicious ways, whether it is via their charter, public statements, or incitement that one must question the State Department’s wisdom of continual support of the PLO’s DC office and the waving of its flag in our Capital.
For Israel, the Palestinians and the rest of the world, the PLO must face reality and reject a culture of hatred; only then should the State Department legitimize the organization and its renewed culture.
