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Sestak slammed, Sestak slams Hamas

By Ami Eden · July 29, 2010

Benyamin Korn, director of Jewish Americans for Sarah Palin, takes to the pages of The Philadelphia Inquirer to slam Democratic Senate hopeful U.S. Rep. Joe Sestak. In particular, Korn, a former editor of The Jewish Exponent, and other Jewish conservatives have been hammering Sestak over a 2007 appearance that he made at an event organized by Council on American-Islamic Relations, citing alleged ties that members of the group have had to Hamas or other terrorist groups:

Sestak accepted the invitation to headline the dinner. Members of the Jewish community met with him beforehand and pleaded with him to cancel, citing CAIR's terrorism ties. But Sestak wouldn't budge.

To this day, Sestak refuses to acknowledge that his appearance at the dinner was a mistake. Instead, his campaign has tried to pressure Comcast to stop broadcasting an advertisement challenging his record on Israel. A letter from Sestak's lawyer demanded that the ad be suppressed because it falsely characterized Sestak as anti-Israel.

The proof of Sestak's sympathy for Israel, Sestak's lawyer implausibly claimed, is that as a Navy officer he took part in joint American-Israeli military exercises and thereby "put his life on the line to defend Israel." Pardon me for doubting that an Arab army would attack Israel during a joint American-Israeli military exercise.

A more convincing demonstration of Sestak's alleged sympathy for Israel would be a clear denunciation of the Israel-haters of CAIR.

Joe Sestak's relationship with this group matters. U.S. senators play an important role in shaping our foreign policy. Pennsylvanians of all faiths who value America's national security will want a senator who recognizes the need to reject those with links to terrorism, not speak at their fund-raisers and hire their employees.

Sestak isn't criticizing CAIR, but he's issued a policy statement condemning Hamas, describing it as a dangerous proxy of Iran and backing U.S. and Israeli efforts to defang the terrorist organization:

The United States must continue to support Israel’s efforts to prevent the militarization of Hamas. Israel has the right under international law to set up a naval blockade to keep weapons from reaching Hamas and a responsibility to protect its homeland.

I welcome Israel’s recent decision to create a list banning the import of weapons and dual-use items while allowing all other items into Gaza. We cannot underestimate the danger of Hamas, which continues to deny Israel’s very right to exist. Let us remember that Hamas is a proxy for Iran, which threatens Israel and the U.S openly, almost daily.

Israel’s citizens, like ours, deserve to live without fear. I call upon Hamas to recognize Israel’s right to exist, renounce the use of violence, and abide by previous agreements between Israel and the Palestinian people.