Terror bombings in Israel inspire vigil

In the wake of renewed violence in the Middle East, two student groups are planning an evening vigil for tonight to reflect on the recent wave of attacks that has left almost 30 Israelis and Arabs dead, and hundreds more injured, in the past week.

"We just want to raise awareness of what's happening in the Middle East and what Israelis have to go through on a daily basis," said organizer Leo Lazar '05 of the event. "We want to show people that America is going through something that Israel's been going through for a long time."

Organizer Dan Fishman '04 agreed. "There are horrible things going on, and the attacks on the Israelis have really hit home because many of us know people who are in Israel," he said. "There's a feeling you get when you hear about the attacks and worry for the people you know. It's really a powerful feeling. It's a scary one."

"It's a tragedy," said Sally El-Sadek, president of the Arab Society of Princeton, which was not included in the planning of the vigil. "It was the taking of innocent lives."

The event, which is being planned by Princeton Israel Public Affairs Committee in conjunction with Princeton Committee Against Terrorism, will be held to remember the victims of the attacks and spread awareness of the Middle East crisis.

"We want to show solidarity with people who are suffering from terrorist attacks," said PCAT member Carlos Ramos-Mrosovsky '04. "We want to show that terrorism is an international problem. It's not just something that affected New York once."

PCAT member Eric Wang '02 agreed. "We've asked people around the world to stand with America, and we'd like to take this opportunity to stand with other victims of terrorism."

On the night of Dec. 1, two Palestinian suicide bombers walked into a busy pedestrian mall in downtown Jerusalem and killed 10 Israelis, most of them in their late-teens and early-twenties. The attack sparked Israeli retaliation and a breakdown of the peace process.

"So many of the people who died this weekend were our age: They were students, soldiers, sons, daughters, boyfriends and girlfriends [who were] trying to escape the state of terror in which they live every day," Lazar said.

El-Sadek agreed. "No matter who the person is, it's tragic when someone dies in such a manner. It's unfortunate in that region, you have that going on all the time."

PCAT, which was formed in response to the Sept. 11 attacks on the United States, is using the vigil as an opportunity to condemn terrorism beyond American borders.

"We're standing up against something that's awful in a country thousands of miles away," Ramos-Mrosovsky said. "We're not going there to be pro-Israel or anti-Israel, but anti-terrorism."

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Lazar defended the absence of the Arab Society in the planning, saying that the point of the PIPAC-sponsored vigil was to remember the Israeli citizens.

"We really want to take a stand and raise awareness that not only does terrorism affect Americans, but it's also a problem the Israelis have been dealing with for decades," said Wang. "We've been thinking a lot about what's been happening at home, but we want people to think beyond just the United States."

"It's a pivotal moment in the international battle against terrorism," he added. "It's going to have a lot of potential ramifications."

El-Sadek pointed out that Palestinians were also victims of the violence. "The mainstream media does not present the entire picture, especially in the Middle East," she said. "It's important to realize the reverse of what's going on, that the Palestinian people have been living under violent occupation for this long.

"These were not the only deaths that were occurring," she added, referring to the victims of the weekend attacks. "There are people getting killed by Israeli military. You've got it happening on both sides."

According to Lazar, the University's Jewish community was shocked by the attack.

"They're devastated, obviously," he said. While noting that there was "probably not enough" awareness of the events on campus, Lazar called the suicide attacks unprovoked and supported Israeli retaliation.

"What's even more striking is that they happened right when a U.S. envoy was in Israel," Lazar said. "It's very telling. It shows people they are not interested in peace at all.

"The U.S. is here to broker a peace deal, but the Palestinian Authority just does not want peace," he added. "They orchestrated this because they don't want peace and they aren't willing to make a deal."

"These kinds of actions are not going to right what's wrong for the Palestinians," said El-Sadek. "In fact, it is undermining the overall goals for independence."

Lazar praised the American government for its peace efforts and for its stance on the recent outburst of violence.

"I think [the retaliation] was absolutely justified, especially in light of what's been happening and what America's been doing," he said. "I'm so proud to be an American right now because we've got such great support for Israel.

"As someone who is equally attached to the United States and Israel, I see it as my obligation to show Princeton students that America is not alone and that Israel will prove to be President Bush's most important ally in the war against terrorism and oppression," Lazar added.

But the main focus of the event, Fishman said, is about raising the campus' consciousness of the conflict.

"Something on this campus has to be done so people are aware," said Fishman. "It's shaken us up. We want to bring all those people together to show this is an issue."

The vigil will take place at 8 p.m. in the area just north of the Frist Campus Center, between 1879 Arch and McCosh Hall.

(Princetonian Staff Writer Zachary A. Goldfarb contributed to this report.)