Selective reading

Fran Morrison ("One-sided, indeed," Dec. 30), like all Israel's apologists, has selective reading of history, and of my own writing.

I have repeatedly condemned the killing of innocent civilians, be they Israeli or Palestinians.

As to the acceptance of Israel's existence by the Arab states and the Palestinians, this was done many years ago.

The Arab Summit Conference at Fez, Morocco, issued the "Fez Declaration," on Sept. 9, 1982, in which the UN Security Council resolution 242 was accepted, recognizing Israel's existence in 78 per cent of historic Palestine and which called for Israeli withdrawal from the territories illegally occupied by Israel in 1967.

This illegal oppressive occupation still continues 34 years later, in defiance of international law.

Furthermore, Arafat and the Palestine Liberation Organization, at the Algiers Conference in 1988, and in the Oslo agreement in 1993, have stated formally their full recognition of the state of Israel within the pre-1967 borders.

It is time for Israel to comply with international law and for its apologists to read history correctly and without this blind bias.

Ismail Zayid, M.D., Halifax