Barry Rubin, in his article, March 23, justifying the assassination of Sheikh Ahmad Yassin, states: '" In 1997, during the Oslo peace process, Israel gave Mr Arafat's claim a try and released the religious sheik." This is a total falsehood. Sheikh Yassin was released from Israeli gaols, in 1997, in response to a deal with King Hussein of Jordan to release Israeli secret Mossad agents, carrying Canadian passports, sent, by Israeli prime minister Netanyahu, in a botched attempt to assassinate Khalid Meshal, in Amman, using internationally-banned chemical weapon.

Mr Rubin states : " International diplomacy generally assumes that any dispute is resolvable through compromise and negotiation." Perhaps Mr. Rubin should be reminded that international law and diplomacy require all states to comply with international law prohibiting invasion and occupation of the land of its neighbous. International law requires termination of the oppresive illegal Israeli occupation, that has been allowed to stand for 37 years, in defiance of international law and repeated Security Council resolutions.