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Politics : Israel to U.S. : Now Deal with Syria and Iran -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: sea_urchin who wrote (9522)	12/18/2005 7:02:06 AM
From: Crimson Ghost	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 22250

REFORM JEWS CALL FOR CLEAR EXIT STRATEGY, END OF TORTURE RUSSELL BERMAN, NY SUN - An anti-war letter sent to President Bush yesterday by the Union for Reform Judaism has ignited a furor among some Reform Jews who say they support American policy in Iraq and the statement is not representative of Jewish opinion. The letter, a copy of which was sent to members of Congress last week, alerts the president to a resolution the union passed at its Biennial General Assembly last month in Houston. The resolution calls for a "clear exit strategy" from Iraq that includes specific troop withdrawals after the parliamentary elections on December 15. The statement also condemns the use of torture and abuse of prisoners and detainees, demands more transparency from the Bush administration, and calls for the creation of a bipartisan commission to investigate administration failures before and during the war. The letter to President Bush, signed by the union's president, Rabbi Eric Yoffie, and its chairman, Robert Heller, claims the Iraq war had to the "discrediting of America in the international community" and contributed "to the growth of terrorism." Several Jewish leaders, including Reform rabbis, swiftly rebuked the letter yesterday. A rabbi of a Reform synagogue in Danbury, Conn., Clifford Librach, said the letter "amplifies the extraordinary alienation from Israel and Israel's security on the part of the American Reform elite." "There may be a majority of American Reform Jews who are currently opposed to this war under any circumstances," Rabbi Librach said, "but the role of leadership is not to rubber stamp misguided popular opinion. The new peace process in Israel has advanced in part because Iraq has been neutralized and removed from the equation." The Union for Reform Judaism claims it represents 1.5 million North American members of the Reform movement. More than 2,000 delegates from more than 500 congregations voted on the resolution on November 18, the group said. nysun.com