Many of my letters serve the purpose of correcting misinformation from other contributors. Such is the purpose of this response to retired physics professor Samuel H. Neff (“Daines ignores Israel’s violations of international law,” Inter Lake, March 15). 

Dr. Neff believes that Sen. Daines needs to pursue war crimes punishment of Israel for its failure to return land to Egypt, Jordan and Syria conquered in the Six-Day War of June 1967. He describes the war as “preemptive,” and quotes from the Geneva Convention (an agreement used against all civilized countries by those who routinely ignore the same document) which “outlaws wars of conquest and consequently requires that occupied land should not be incorporated into the conquering country.” 

He faults Prime Minister Netanyahu of Israel and Sen. Daines for believing “...that Israel would be under some kind of existential threat from a nuclear-armed Iran, and that sanctions, and the threat of attack by the U.S. or Israel is the way to remove the possibility of this threat.” He supports Obama’s approach, essentially allowing Iran to acquire nuclear weapons, and talks about his visit to Iran, describing the “warm hospitality and friendship” he experienced.  I suspect he didn’t meet with Ayatollah Khamenei who now Tweets for the “destruction of Israel.” 

Dr. Neff says that Iran has the “largest Jewish community in the Middle East” outside of Israel (which is true), but ignores that the numbers have dwindled from 100,000 in 1948 to 10,000 in 2014, that the few remaining Jewish schools (the number has decreased from 20 to three) have been taken over by Muslim leaders with an Islamic curriculum, that there remain three synagogues but no rabbis and the Jewish Sabbath on Saturday is now forbidden, and that Jews are severely restricted in education, business and travel and are under constant threat of persecution, prosecution and execution for any perceived connection to Israel or Zionism. 

So let me mention a few other “inconvenient truths.” Yes, Israel did strike and destroy Egypt’s air force, but only after a few other events. First, please remember the territorial size of Israel compared to Jordan, Syria and Egypt... Israel is a tiny sliver of land. Second, Egypt had amassed troops at the Israeli border on May 15, (Israel’s Independence Day), ordered the UN peacekeeping force to leave, and Egypt’s leader, Gamal Nasser, stated on May 18, 1967, “As of today, there no longer exists an international emergency force to protect Israel. We shall exercise patience no more. We shall not complain any more to the UN about Israel. The sole method we shall apply against Israel is total war, which will result in the extermination of the Zionist existence.” Similar threats of invasion came from Syria. 

I can give dozens of examples of threats and provocation including regular bombardments from Syria’s Golan Heights 3,000 feet above Israeli villages, just as Israel must suffer today as the world looks on. So Israel did what any tiny country faced with annihilation from three large surrounding neighbors would do, they destroyed the biggest threat, Egypt’s air force, in a brilliant raid and totally defeated their troops in the Sinai. 

Remember, 6 million Jews were marched into gas chambers and slaughtered in Germany just 25 years before the Six-Day War. Israelis have a saying, “NEVER AGAIN.” Egypt, Syria and Jordan discovered the strength of Israeli determination. In fact, two of the three now have peace treaties with Israel and recognize its right to exist. Iran has no such treaty and regularly voices the same threat of annihilation that Nasser voiced in 1967. 

If Dr. Neff believes that Israel should return the land captured in the Six-Day War, giving up vital defensive positions, perhaps he should have made a similar argument for what Russia did in Eastern Europe after World War II, not to mention what they recently did in Ukraine and Georgia. 

To allow Palestinians to resettle as Israelis with full voting rights would produce the same dilemma only faster that is occurring in France with a 20 percent Muslim population and growing. The caliphate doesn’t have to conquer Western civilization. It merely needs to repopulate it with Muslims and take over the government. Such would be the case eventually if Israel allowed a massive influx of Palestinians. Sooner or later there would be no Jewish state. 

I won’t get into the argument of who has the right to the land Israel was accorded in 1948. The Jewish people have a legitimate claim as an identified nation which goes back 3,700 years. One could argue all borders are fungible, depending on what date you examine. Surely the borders of the Middle East have been rewritten before. 

But until ALL Arab countries acknowledge Israel’s right to exist, allowing any hostile Muslim country to obtain a nuclear weapon, especially a country that supports international terrorism with zeal at the highest level of government is unacceptable. 

Should Israel take out Iran’s nuclear facilities if they get close to producing a nuclear bomb? Absolutely! Does Israel have nuclear weapons? You bet they do. Would they use them if faced with extinction by a nuclear-armed Iran. I hope so. I sure would. Remember... NEVER AGAIN. 

P. David Myerowitz is a resident of Columbia Falls.

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