At Brandeis, Carter Responds to Critics

[New York Times] Pam Belluck - Former President Jimmy Carter told an audience at Brandeis University on Tuesday that he stood by his book Palestine: Peace Not Apartheid and that he had been disturbed by accusations that he was anti-Semitic. He said a sentence in which he seemed to suggest that Palestinians would not have to end their suicide bombings and acts of terrorism until Israel withdraws from the territories "was worded in a completely improper and stupid way," adding: "I have written my publisher to change that sentence immediately. I apologize to you personally, to everyone here." He said: "I have never claimed or believed that American Jews control the news media. That is ridiculous to claim." He said "a lot of support for Israel comes from Christians like me who have been taught since they were three years old to honor and protect God's chosen people." After Carter left, Alan M. Dershowitz, a Harvard law professor who has sharply criticized the book, spoke. "There are two different Jimmy Carters," Dershowitz said. "You heard the Brandeis Jimmy Carter today, and he was terrific. I support almost everything he said. But if you listen to the Al Jazeera Jimmy Carter, you'll hear a very different perspective."


2007-01-24 01:00:00

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