-Caveat Lector- ------- Forwarded message follows ------- Date sent: Thu, 4 Apr 2002 13:53:19 -0500 (EST) To: [EMAIL PROTECTED] Subject: LP RELEASE: The Middle East conflict From: Libertarian Party Announcements <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> Send reply to: [EMAIL PROTECTED]
-----BEGIN PGP SIGNED MESSAGE----- =============================== NEWS FROM THE LIBERTARIAN PARTY 2600 Virginia Avenue, NW, Suite 100 Washington DC 20037 World Wide Web: http://www.LP.org =============================== For release: April 4, 2002 =============================== For additional information: George Getz, Press Secretary Phone: (202) 333-0008 Ext. 222 E-Mail: [EMAIL PROTECTED] =============================== Don't play peacemaker: Keep the U.S. out of the Israeli/Palestinian conflict WASHINGTON, DC -- As violence explodes between Israelis and Palestinians, Libertarians have some surprising advice for President George W. Bush: Don't get more involved in the Middle East peace process. "Further U.S. meddling in this troubled region may well backfire and lead to the deaths of American soldiers, diplomats, and even tourists, while doing nothing to achieve a lasting peace," said Libertarian Party Executive Director Steve Dasbach. "Bush should resist the impulse, however well-intended, to get more involved in a conflict that poses no immediate, direct threat to the United States." Since a wave of suicide bombings over the past week killed more than 40 Israeli civilians, and the Israeli military moved forcefully into Palestinian-controlled territory, the region has teetered on the brink of all-out war. In reaction to the growing crisis, many political leaders and diplomats have encouraged Bush to get "more involved in the peace process" by trying to negotiate a cease fire, restrain Israeli troops, and even send U.N. peacekeeping forces -- many of whom are Americans -- to the region. But more U.S. meddling in the Middle East runs contrary to the U.S. national interest, said Dasbach. "Libertarians have just two words for politicians who favor a deeper U.S. role: Remember Lebanon. In an attempt to quell a similar outbreak of violence in 1983, President Ronald Reagan sent a U.S. Marine peacekeeping force into Lebanon. "The result? A suicide bomber murdered 241 Marines in their barracks, prompting the U.S. to flee the region. What politicians call peacekeepers, suicide bombers call sitting ducks. No American president should put military personnel in harm's way in the Middle East again." And it's not just American servicemen and women who will be in danger, said Dasbach. "The Holy Land is full of U.S. tourists, scholars, and students who have been, up to now, relatively safe from terrorist attacks. But that could change overnight if the U.S. tries to expand its role. "Virulent anti-American groups like Hamas and Islamic Jihad already see the U.S. not as an honest broker of peace, but as a hated ally of Israeli. An expanded U.S. role may be all it takes to provoke these terrorists into targeting American travelers." If that happened, the nightly news would be even more grim, said Dasbach. "As disturbing as it is to watch news broadcasts of Jewish and Palestinian civilians losing their lives, things can get worse: Imagine gunmen attacking a tour bus full of American families, or a suicide bomber targeting a restaurant full of American tourists to lash out against an unwanted U.S. military presence," he said. "The best way to prevent such nightmarish scenarios is to demand that the U.S. government get less involved in this seemingly intractable, centuries-old conflict." The first step to achieve that goal, said Dasbach, is for the U.S. government to stop selling weapons to Israel and the Arab states; pull the plug on foreign aid programs that provide approximately $3 billion a year to Israel and more than $2 billion to Egypt and other Arab nations; and above all, refrain from placing U.S. troops in the region. "The latest outbreak of bloody violence in the Middle East is a human tragedy," he said. "Let's not compound the tragedy by needlessly sacrificing American lives as well." -----BEGIN PGP SIGNATURE----- Version: 2.6.2 iQCVAwUBPKy7QNCSe1KnQG7RAQH71wQAnYZM+1RCe/sme83wadryB48jB6StI 7W6 S26URsyUqq64BqMrVz89tvWYhQ6UyINBTP+DHwvLgbC8OLr8tGUE+2m4edwQ8z Yr Z+ss3AW8DGrS5igITzDR/wUwgtgegARsAatRi3qci7RohaLRl4HN7JBNUWSQF3PH NjFl3RdWGkA= =q08G -----END PGP SIGNATURE----- ---------------------------------------------------------------------- - The Libertarian Party http://www.lp.org/ 2600 Virginia Ave. NW, Suite 100 voice: 202-333-0008 Washington DC 20037 fax: 202-333-0072 ---------------------------------------------------------------------- - For subscription changes, please use the WWW form at: http://www.lp.org/action/email.html ------- End of forwarded message -------From }}}>Begin End<{{{ ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Forwarded as information only; no automatic endorsement + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + In accordance with Title 17 U.S.C. section 107, this material is distributed without charge or profit to those who have expressed a prior interest in receiving this type of information for non-profit research and educational purposes only. + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + "Do not believe in anything simply because you have heard it. 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