While Joseph Clark is entitled to his opinions, he is not entitled to rewrite history and invent facts that seriously distort the origins and evolution of the Israeli-Palestinian-Arab conflict ( "Unrest between nations childish, peace must overcome war," SN 6/18).

Contrary to Clark's claim, the Jewish nation is not "a new kid" who has only recently appeared in the Middle East "neighborhood." As a matter of fact, the Jewish presence in what is now Israel/West Bank antedates the presence of Arabs in that area by at least 2,500 years. Likewise, the modern state of Israel was not created by Great Britain.

Instead, it emerged following a decision by the United Nations General Assembly in November 1947 (with Britain abstaining) to split Palestine West of the Jordan River between two independent states: a Jewish state (Israel) and a Palestinian/Arab state. The latter never emerged due to opposition by Egypt and Transjordan, both of which respectively occupied the Gaza Strip and the West Bank following the 1948 war that they and other Arab states had initiated against Israel.

Two additional glaring errors should encourage Clark to do his homework. The close relationship between Washington and Jerusalem has nothing to do with Israel's possession of nuclear weapons. That relationship goes back to 1948 and is deeply rooted in common ideological, political and cultural values shared by both nations. Finally, there is no "earlier peace accord" that has determined the West Bank and Gaza legally belong to the Palestinians.

The ultimate fate of these areas is instead to be determined by negotiations between the parties. These, unfortunately, are yet to be concluded.

Michael Rubner
International Relations professor,
James Madison College