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WHEREVER THEY MAY BE
© 1972, The
Beate Klarsfeld Foundation
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"That's what you think! It's unimaginable
to be a Jew and not be pro-Israel."
"But it is imaginable," I countered
slowly, thinking of Jewish friends I love very much.
That my
witness was understood by the Israelis is demonstrated by many messages I
received, including the following article from Al Hamishmar dated
January 22, 1974. Serge and I will never be alone again. The Israeli people
will always remember the small hand extended to them when their hearts were
hurting.
HOMAGE AND THANKS TO BEATE
KLARSFELD
Beate Klarsfeld – She did it again!
That courageous German woman who married a French Jew, who linked her destiny
to that of the Jewish people, and who battles against their foes and
detractors, past and present – Beate has gone into the lion's den. She has
gone to Damascus, the Damascus of Assad and Al Baas, to urge the
liberation of Syria's Israeli prisoners.
Beate, audacious Nazi-hunter,
does not tilt against windmills. She is as realistic as she is courageous, and
clearly knows the limits (sometimes unbreachable) between the possible and the
desirable. She is fully aware of the risks – mortal risks – she so
often runs. But this awareness does not prevent her from doing what must be
done when the time is right, from doing what her conscience dictates.
Beate's battle is not a vogue phenomenon, either in its object –
to redress the injustice done to the Jews and assure them of peace and dignity
– or in its means. The world lies impressed by the barbarous acts of the
Arab terrorists and capitulates to their blackmail. Beate's means are the moral
protestation, the passionate claim for justice, the spectacular evidence of the
criminal actions and their perpetrators. She exposes herself not only to the
vengeance of her desperate enemies, but she must also combat the indifference
and bad faith of others. Yet, in the face of this indifference and cowardly
defeatism, her action will prevail.
In these dark days, bereft of
ideals and moral enthusiasm, that bold and resolute action will succeed in
stamping itself on men's consciences. Beate seems alone, almost unique, in her
generation – but we are convinced she will become an example to many.
Beate, our sister, you have come to us from far away. The admiration
and the gratitude of the Jewish people will accompany you on all your future
paths and all your future deeds.
While I was campaigning in
Paris, Strasbourg, and Bordeaux to mobilize public opinion on the side of the
prisoners in Syria, we
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WHEREVER THEY MAY BE
© 1972, The
Beate Klarsfeld Foundation |
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Page 297 |
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