Archives	Home page

Group Urges Pro-Israel Leaders' Silence on Iraq

Wed, 27 Nov 2002 06:45:48 -0800

washingtonpost.com

Memo Outlines Response If Hostilities Occur, Discourages Lecturing of

Americans on Middle East

"The memo coached: "(A)s an Israeli, most certainly don't talk about why

some Arab leaders and their people dislike the United States. Americans

don't want to be told by an Israeli why we have problems in the Middle East

or why people hate us."

By Dana Milbank

Washington Post Staff Writer

Wednesday, November 27, 2002

A group of U.S. political consultants has sent pro-Israel leaders a memo

urging them to keep quiet while the Bush administration pursues a possible

war with Iraq.

The six-page memo was sent by the Israel Project, a group funded by

American Jewish organizations and individual donors. Its authors said the

main audience was American Jewish leaders, but much of the memo's language

is directed toward Israelis, urging them to play down the likelihood Israel

would retaliate after an Iraqi attack and asking them not to lecture

Americans about the Middle East conflict.

The memo reflects a concern that involvement by Israel in a U.S.-Iraq

confrontation could hurt Israel's standing in American public opinion and

undermine international support for a hard line against Iraqi President

Saddam Hussein.

"Let American politicians fight it out on the floor of Congress and in the

media," the memo said. "Let the nations of the world argue in front of the

U.N. Your silence allows everyone to focus on Iraq rather than Israel."

The memo, meant to guide pro-Israel leaders' statements before and during

possible hostilities with Iraq, is the latest contribution to an

international public relations battle that has shadowed the diplomatic

maneuvers involving Iraq and the Middle East. The United States has

launched an "information" effort to boost the image of the United States in

the Arab and Muslim worlds.

Saudi Arabia has spent millions of dollars to improve its public image in

the United States. The kingdom has hired political consultants and

advertising specialists and charged them with reversing damage resulting

from the knowledge that 15 of the 19 hijackers on Sept. 11, 2001, were

Saudis.

An Israeli diplomat in Washington said the Israeli government did not

request or fund the efforts of the Israel Project and that Israeli leaders

were unlikely to follow all the advice. "These are professional public

relations people," the diplomat said. "There's also a political-diplomatic

side."

The Iraq memo was issued in the past few weeks and labeled "confidential

property of the Israel Project," which is led by Democratic consultant

Jennifer Laszlo Mizrahi with help from Democratic pollster Stan Greenberg

and Republican pollsters Neil Newhouse and Frank Luntz. Several of the

consultants have advised Israeli politicians, and the group aired a

pro-Israel ad earlier this year.

"If your goal is regime change, you must be much more careful with your

language because of the potential backlash," said the memo, titled "Talking

About Iraq." It added: "You do not want Americans to believe that the war

on Iraq is being waged to protect Israel rather than to protect America."

In particular, the memo urged Israelis to pipe down about the possibility

of Israel responding to an Iraqi attack. "Such certainty may be Israeli

policy, but asserting it publicly and so overtly will not sit well with a

majority of Americans because it suggests a pre-determined outcome rather

than a measured approach," it said. The memo cautioned: "There is the

feeling that Israel has NOT done all it could to bring about peace in the

Middle East so don't try to change public opinion in the middle of a war."

Luntz said the memo was written to advise pro-Israel Americans about how to

respond to Iraq-Israel hostilities. "The assumption is Iraq will bomb

Israel, and then the assumption is Israel will respond," he said.

Much of the guidance, however, appeared to have Israelis in mind.

"Demonstrate your historic willingness to compromise sacrifice on behalf of

America," it said. "This may not play well among some Israeli politicians

but it will certainly play well in the states." It advised leaders to say:

"Like America, Israel has a right to defend itself and our people."

The memo coached: "(A)s an Israeli, most certainly don't talk about why

some Arab leaders and their people dislike the United States. Americans

don't want to be told by an Israeli why we have problems in the Middle East

or why people hate us."