Jewish leaders across the political spectrum support plans for a regime change in Iraq, believing it would be in the best interests of Israel and the United States. But according to some analysts, Jewish leaders are keeping a low profile out of concern that critics might accuse America of attacking Iraq to benefit Israel.
“Why should it be a Jewish or Israeli issue?” asked Morris Amitay, a pro-Israel activist and former executive director of the American Israel Public Affairs Committee. “We should stay as patriotic as the next guy, but not be out front.”
The debate in Jewish organizations closely reflects the groups’ conundrum before the 1991 Persian Gulf War. Then, Jewish leaders largely supported President George H. W. Bush’s plans to attack Iraq and worked to rouse congressional support for the war.
Then too, however, Jewish leaders were hesitant to speak out, fearing some would think the United States had gone to war for Israel because of American Jewish pressure on Congress.
Those concerns were fueled in part by comments from Pat Buchanan, the conservative former presidential candidate, who said Israel and its “amen corner” in the United States were trying to push the White House into war.
“It was a partisan issue,” said one official with a Jewish organization. “Jews were very supportive but very uneasy about being put out front.”
There seems to be a bit less concern today.
“It was clear in ’91 that there was no backlash,” said David Harris, executive director of the American Jewish Committee. “The dire predictions of some were just plain wrong.”
Some Americans may be apprehensive about attacking Iraq, but unlike the situation a decade ago, this Bush administration has framed the prospect of attacking Iraq in a broader, more publicly acceptable light as part of the U.S.-led international war on terrorism.
A change of regime in Baghdad still would benefit Israel, but the Jewish state is not seen as the sole, or even primary, beneficiary of a war.
“The administration has made it very clear that this is an American concern,” said Tom Neumann, executive director of the Jewish Institute for National Security Affairs. “The American community is united in this war, and the president has done a good job of pointing that out.”
But that does not necessarily mean American Jewish groups will take a higher profile.
“Many in the American Jewish community don’t feel the necessity of speaking out when the policy direction already seems quite clear, and to many, seems like it is headed in the right direction,” Harris said.
“We’ll be supporting, rather than leading,” one Jewish official agreed. “Everybody’s waiting for the bells to go off.”
American Jewish groups do have some concern about how an attack on Iraq will affect Israel. In 1991, Israeli Prime Minister Yitzhak Shamir was pressured not to retaliate for Iraqi missile attacks on Israel.
Israel expected that its restraint would win stronger American support, but soon after the war Bush engaged in an open standoff with Shamir over Israeli settlement policy.
This time around, Israeli officials have stressed that they will indeed retaliate if targeted, but some are worried that the United States may again urge restraint.
Additionally, if the Bush administration seeks international support for an attack on Iraq, the White House could promise progress on the Israeli-Palestinian conflict — often a euphemism for Israeli concessions — in exchange for Arab support.