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Book honors (in)famous Arabs
by Carl Alpert
HAIFA — I should like to share
with my readers an honor and a
very great compliment that has
come to me. The letter, which came
from England, was unmistakably
addressed to me at my address here
in Haifa, Israel, and it began as
follows:
“I have the honor to give you
advance information that the
International Biographical Center
of Cambridge, England, is about
to embark upon its most ambitious
and significant project to date—
the publication in 1980 of the first
volumn in a lavish and profusely
illustrated series entitled Families
of Distinction.”
The heading, in large type, was
“Families of Distinction." Thrilled
by the implied compliment, I read
on. There was no mistake. I was
being included among the
“illustrious and distinguished
families” to be included. How
proud our children and
grandchildren will be!
It is clear that this is an honor
only for people who count. The
book is to be printed on
heavyweight paper, in large album
size, with gold-edged leaves and
bound in the most luxurious
leather, with 22 carat gold
embellishment. My name would be
embossed in gold on the front
cover.
My family entry would occupy
an entire page, with a full essay
about our achievements and with
family portraits. In addition I
would receive an Illuminated
Diploma of Honor in “massive
size” with four color calligraphy by
noted scribe, authenticated under
seal by two authorized officers of
the IBC. Price of the volume,
should I wish to buy a copy, comes
to $400 a copy.
Any limitations, restrictions,
special criteria? Yes—wait a
minute—the full name of the
volume is: “Families of
Distinction: The Arab World.”
The editors justify this exclusivity
in their first volume: “Because
Arab influence in the world is now
greater than at any other time in
history...” (you can say that
again); “It is these people (the
Arabs) to whom the world owes a
deep debt of gratitude.. .” (for the
gasoline squeeze?); “It is high time
that their achievements should be
honored internationally....’’
(Further comment superfluous).
There is a list of the nations
which will be represented in
Families of Distinction It begins
with Algeria and Bahrain, runs
through Kuwait, Libya, Saudi
Arabia, Syria and United Arab
Emirates, 20 in all, including
one called “PLO/Palestine."
Israel is not listed, and so 1
reluctantly come to the conclusion
that the invitation had been sent to
me by mistake. No matter; the
editor admits he has not been able
to discover every Arab of
distinction, and so he provides a
special form on which I can send in
my recommendations for
inclusion. I am happy to oblige, I
can think of many worthy families.
I’m sure all the members of
royalty and the chiefs of state are
already listed. 1 recommend some
they might not have thought of:
Ahmed Jabril, of the General
Command of the Popular
Liberation Front of Palestine,
whose men raided Kiryat Shmona
and killed eight civilians in their
home. Surely, an achievement of
distinction.
Naif Hawatma, of the Popular
Democratic Front, who
masterminded the illustrious
raid on children in the school at
Maalot, and slaughtered 20 of
them.
Mohammed Yusef Najjar and
Salah Khalaf surely merit
attention for planning the massacre
of the 11 Israeli athletes at the
Munich Olympics, an achievement
which, in the words of the
prospectus in my hands “should be
honored internationally."
There are many, many others
“to whom the world owes a deep
debt of gratitude" (again from the
prospectus). Surely the editor
already has the names of Yasir
Arafat and George Habash. What
are the names of the terrorists who
very recently stormed the Egyptian
Embassy in Ankara? What about
all those who through the years hi
jacked planes or machinegunned
airports and killed innocent
passengers at places like Athens,
Zurich, London and Lod. Did
someone mention Entebbe 9 What
about the bombs in the streets and
market places of Israel?
Yes, there are many “illustrious
and distinguished families" in the
Arab world. If the editor is
thorough and efficient, he can
acquire a long, long list of
candidates for his new book.
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P.**9 THE SOUTHERN ISRAELITE August 17, 1979