Washington Report on Middle East Affairs, October/November 1997, Pages 61-64

Waging Peace

American Community School in Beirut, Lebanon Holds its Sixth Triennial Reunion

Alumni, faculty, trustees, and even some parents of students who attended the American Community School in Beirut, Lebanon celebrated the 4th of July in Washington, DC, with an event-filled weekend. Alumni from this independent school enrolling boys and girls of every nationality from kindergarten through grade 12, came from all over the globe, including Australia, Vietnam, Saudi Arabia, Pakistan, and Switzerland, to attend. The reunions are held every three years in different U.S. cities to encourage participants from both the East and West Coasts. The 1993 reunion was in Denver.

ACS was founded in 1905 to provide education for the children of members of the Presbyterian Mission in Lebanon and of American professors at what became the American University of Beirut. Eventually diplomats, business people, educators, and petroleum company employees throughout the Middle East sent their children to live in the dormitories. "Non-ACSers sometimes marvel at the tight bonds among alumni and the closeness between alumni and faculty," said Jon Stacey ('61), past president of the Alumni Association. "I think ACS was a 'home away from home,' especially so for the boarders, who enjoyed a strong sense of family. ACS touched the lives of everyone who was there."

As soon as ACSers arrived at the hospitality suite at the Capitol Hilton hotel, the fun began with hugs from friends, easy registration, and great souvenir shopping. Newly arrived Lebanese Ambassador to the U.S. Mohamad B. Chatah and his wife, Nadera Mikati, hosted the first event of the weekend at their residence on Thursday afternoon. More than 80 guests were impressed by the Tripoli-born, University of Texas at Austin graduate, his charming wife, and their sons Ronnie and Omar.

Lebanese restaurants in Washington were the scenes of class reunion dinners on the 4th of July. The event at Mama Aisha's on Calvert Street forced this writer to conclude that the doctors, lawyers, writers, business executives, artists and actors with whom she was dining must have been soaking up knowledge as others soaked up sunshine on Lebanese beaches.

U.S. Ambassador to Syria Chris Ross ('60) attended the '60s dinner at Dar-Es-Salam in Georgetown. There was a faculty luncheon as well as a pre-'50s alumni tea party at the Hilton Hotel, attended by Grace Dodge-Guthrie ('32), author of Legacy to Lebanon, available from the AET Book Club (p. 107).

After fireworks on the mall (the one activity not orchestrated by the reunion committee, led by graduates Charlotte Minette-Kaplow ('62) and Vicky Helling Olson ('63), with help from Andy Killgore ('62 and son of the publisher of this magazine), Mike Sena ('62 and newly elected president of the alumni association), Susan Helling ('71), and many others, who worked for a year planning the action-packed weekend), there was a fantastic sock hop. The highlight of the evening was a rousing Dabke dance led by Eva Amine Jameson ('72).

Saturday morning the group attended a business meeting and a presentation complete with a fascinating video and slide show by Catherine C. Bashshur, the current headmistress. Her pictures and descriptions of post-civil war ACS, with its 1,000 students and myriad activities once again available, made the school come alive to those who have not visited Lebanon in recent years. With the State Department travel ban for Americans lifted in Lebanon, enrollment is sure to skyrocket this year.

Carolyn Smith, author of the book Where Do We Go From Here?, spoke at a workshop led by Norma McCaig, an expert on the concept of global nomads. (If you're not sure where to call home; are intrigued by different cultures or international affairs; if you can switch gears between cultures while retaining your own identity; and if you only feel settled when you're sure you have the option to move whenever you want...you're a global nomad.)

"The Middle East in the Millennium," the first political event ever held at a reunion, was moderated by Andrew Killgore, publisher of the Washington Report on Middle East Affairs, retired U.S. ambassador to Qatar and the father of four ACS alumni. Other speakers were former U.S. Ambassador to Saudi Arabia James Akins, who also is a former ACS faculty member; former U.S. Ambassador to Oman and the UAE William Wolle, father of two ACS alumni; and former U.S. Information Agency official Richard Curtiss, editor of this magazine and father of four ACS alumni.

When a packed audience of anxious people with strong ties to the Middle East voiced their concern about the breakdown of peace efforts and current American policies in the Middle East, Richard Curtiss said the "persistent American tilt toward Israel, right or wrong, has been catastrophic to the United States. Americans who once were the only Westerners who were both admired and trusted throughout the Middle East, are no longer safe there." He added, "The tilt has earned the U.S. the contempt not only of some 200 million Arabs, but also of more than one billion Muslims."

When asked when the Syrians would leave Lebanon, James Akins predicted that they would stay until there was peace between the Palestinians and Israel. He suggested that what the Israelis will call "a preemptive attack" on Syria is likely under the Likud government of Binyamin Netanyahu to cover up the fact that Israel does not intend to go forward with land-for-peace negotiations with either the Syrians or Palestinians. He also saw the results of the recent Iranian elections as a massive rejection of Islamism by the voters. He suggested that as secular Turkey turns toward Islamism, the Islamic Republic of Iran will turn away from it.

Another highlight of the reunion was the elegant banquet held in the Washington Hilton Hotel. Five hundred sixty revelers enjoyed "Club Beirut," featuring the talents of musicians, singers, actors, writers, and comedians among the ACS alumni, and readings of poignant poetry from students now attending ACS. Parties continued even after the dancing ended, yet the brunch the next morning was another great event.

The reunion ended with promises to "keep in touch" with friends and political events in the Middle East. Many also quietly renewed a promise to themselves to speak out proudly and loudly against Middle East bashing whenever they hear it in their current hometowns, wherever those may be.

(For information on ACS and the alumnis' newsletter contact their Web site: http://almashriq.hiof.no//lebanon/300/370/371/acs/)

—Delinda Curtiss Hanley ('73)

MEI Holds Iran Conference

The Washington, DC-based Middle East Institute held a half-day conference July 30 that focused on the recent election of Mohammad Khatami as Iran's president, and its implications for U.S. policy.

Panel I, "Khatami's Election: Implications for Iranian Politics," featured Syracuse University professor Mehzrad Boroujerdi as speaker, with discussion from senior State Department adviser on Iran Stephen Fairbanks, currently at the Woodrow Wilson Center, and Ambassador Mohammad Mahallati, formerly the director-general of the Iranian Ministry of Foreign Affairs (1983-1987) and Iran's ambassador and permanent representative to the United Nations (1987-1989).

"This election was the first opportunity for the new, rising generation [in Iran] to express their political views," Boroujerdi began, and Khatami knows he owes his election victory to the women and youth of Iran, which means that he has to be very careful to keep their views in mind when formulating policies. Boroujerdi described an interview in which a journalist asked then President-elect Khatami who has the last word in his household. Without hesitation Khatami replied: "I do, and those words are, 'yes, my love.'"

On a policy level, changes in U.S.-Iranian relations probably will not be dramatic and swift, according to Dr. Boroujerdi, but Khatami's election dispels the notion that change in Iran is impossible. Speaking of the administration of President Bill Clinton, Boroujerdi said, "The level of American rhetoric [against Iran] lately has been subdued and that's a welcome change. [Now] it's time for Congress to reciprocate."

Panel II, "Prospects for U.S.-Iran Relations: Khobar and the Sanctions Debate," examined what will happen if Iran or Iranian-sponsored agents are found culpable in the bombing of the Khobar Towers in Saudi Arabia in June 1996 that killed 19 U.S. airmen. As a corollary, participants also examined the continued efficacy of unilateral U.S. sanctions against Iran.

Opening remarks were delivered by former Assistant Secretary of State for Near East and South Asian Affairs Richard Murphy, a career foreign service officer who spent most of his 34-year career in the Middle East. Moderating the discussion was Ambassador Robert Pelletreau, also a retired career foreign service officer who was Murphy's successor from 1994 to 1997. Speakers were Richard Haass, currently of the Brookings Institution and senior director for Near East and South Asian Affairs at the National Security Council from 1989-1993, and Geoffrey Kemp, director of regional strategic programs at the Nixon Center for Peace and Freedom and former senior director for Near East and South Asian Affairs at the National Security Council during the first Reagan administration. A paper also was submitted in absentia by Gregg Rickman, legislative director for Senator Alfonse D'Amato (R-NY).

"I am persuaded that U.S.-Iranian relations can improve, but the logic for that improvement is ahead of the likelihood it will happen," Ambassador Murphy began. However, "if the authorship of Khobar [Towers] is traced back to the leadership in Tehran, our relations with Iran certainly will worsen." In reference to the continued viability of U.S. sanctions, Ambassador Murphy said: "Sanctions are not effective when they're unilateral and we all agree that [U.S.] sanctions against Iran are certainly unilateral."

Haass described five possible forms of U.S. intervention in Iran including sanctions, unconditional involvement (called "critical dialogue" by several European countries), covert action, military force and conditional engagement. Favoring the latter approach, Haass explained that U.S. engagement with Iran could be tied to changes in Iranian politics, with incremental changes on both sides of that relationship made in tandem, not sequential order. In reference to the Iran-Libya Sanctions Act, which imposes sanctions on non-U.S. companies (American companies are banned outright) investing more than $20 million in Iran's petroleum industries, Haass said "we still ought to rethink the wisdom of secondary sanctions."

Concluding the panel, Kemp praised the Clinton administration which "reacted quite sensibly to Iran's elections." He went on to discuss U.S.-Iran relations with an emphasis on a "what if" scenario where Iran's leadership is found to be behind the Khobar Towers bombing and the U.S. contemplates a military strike. Two regional allies, Israel and Saudi Arabia, are "very much against" that option because "they're on the front-line of Iranian retaliation," Kemp said. He also pointed out that one ironic element of U.S. sanctions against Iran is that they encourage Iran to buy more unconventional weapons systems—chemical, biological and apparently nuclear-related equipment—because conventional military weapons generally are much more expensive. Iran therefore is opting for some type of deterrent rather than spending tens of billions of dollars trying to reach regional parity with the United States.

—Shawn L. Twing

NCR Supporters Call for Iran Sanctions

Several thousand supporters of the National Council of Resistance of Iran gathered in Denver June 20 during the Summit of Eight in Denver to call upon the world's industrialized nations to end all trade and diplomatic ties with the Islamic Republic of Iran. "We gathered here to loudly convey to the rest of the world, to the conscientious public and particularly to the leaders at the Summit of the Eight that Iran, with its long history and rich culture, its tremendous human, economic and natural resources, does not belong to the medieval mullahs," said Sarvi Chitsaz, the NCR's U.S. representative.

The group chose Denver for this year's protest because world leaders would be in the mile-high city on June 20, the 16th anniversary of the founding by Massoud Rajavi in 1981 of the NCR, which describes itself as anti-fundamentalist and democratic, calling for free multi-party elections in Iran. Similar rallies were held in Germany and Sweden and from the Iraq base of the allied National Liberation Army of Iran, from which Maryam Rajavi, wife of Masoud Rajavi and the NCR's president-elect of Iran, addressed the Denver rally by satellite. She predicted that the close of the 20th century will usher in peace and justice in Iran.

U.S. Rep. Gary Ackerman (D-NY), a member of the House International Relations Committee, addressed the participants in Denver, saying of the current government of Iran, "You cannot be a state of God and do the devil's work."

—R.H. Curtiss

Hallaj Discusses Peace Process at CPAP

What are the viable alternatives to the "dilapidated Arab-Israeli peace process"? Dr. Muhammad Hallaj told an audience at the Center for Policy Analysis on Palestine, which he formerly directed, that what is necessary is a transition of Arab world governments to popular, democratic systems. Such systems would allow these nations to come to terms effectively with Israeli military hegemony in the region. Another solution to the specific Arab-Israeli problem is for the Arab countries to encourage European involvement in their affairs in hopes of receiving more balanced treatment of the issues than the United States has been willing to deliver.

Dr. Hallaj, who served as a member of the Palestinian delegation to the peace talks from 1991 to 1993, and is currently on the board of the Palestinian Independent Commission for Citizens' Rights, characterized the peace process as "stalled" and "paralyzed" in his July 17 talk. Nevertheless, he said, it has been the most serious attempt to date to resolve Israel's disputes with its neighbors. The peace talks gave legitimacy to the Palestinians, he pointed out. The talks also resulted in Israeli recognition of the Palestinians as a separate "entity," despite the fact that in the early negotiations, Israel tried to select the Palestinians with whom it would negotiate by stipulating that delegates must have no affiliation with the PLO, and must be residents of the West Bank or Gaza.

Hallaj praised the peace process for incorporating the concerns of the Palestinians, and thus improving its chances of succeeding, despite such imposed restrictions on the Palestinian delegates. Discussing the difficulties of negotiations, Hallaj cited the imbalance of power between the Israelis and the Palestinians. With its unlimited and unconditional U.S. financial and political support, as well as its military superiority, Israel does not feel compelled to reach new agreements, implement old ones, or negotiate the postponed issues such as the status of Jerusalem, water, refugees, and settlements. Another difficulty Hallaj cited is the division of opinions within Israel. He said the governing Likud party has not yet concluded that Israelis must make a commitment to peace for their own security and prosperity and in order to relate to their regional environment. The most serious impediment to the progress of peace, Hallaj said, is the imbalance in results. Israel has achieved trade, tourism, and financial breakthroughs with its Arab neighbors, breaking out of its isolation in the region. But the Palestinians are still waiting to see results.

Hallaj also discussed the status of Jerusalem and U.S. policy. According to the United States, settlements have always been "illegal" and "obstacles to peace." However, with its recent veto of a U.N. resolution condemning Israel's Jews-only Har Homa/Abu Ghneim settlement near Jerusalem, the U.S. is contradicting its own stated policy. The U.S. monopoly on the peace process therefore poses a serious problem. Hallaj believes that by seeking to rescind U.N. resolutions the U.S. is undermining Palestinian human rights.

With Clinton's signing on the White House lawn of the Oslo accords in 1993, Hallaj insists that the U.S. is morally and legally obligated to see that both parties respect the agreement and to force its implementation. He further asserts that the U.S. has neglected its responsibility to the peace process. His solution to the stalled negotiations is for the Arab states to restore good relations among themselves and also to look beyond the U.S. to seek the support of up-and-coming powers in Europe and Asia. As for the Palestinians, Hallaj said they must now build a strong democratic nation of their own.

—Dina M. Tamimi

Middle East Institute Considers Plight of Palestinian Refugees

Maya Ayoub of the Palestinian Children's Relief Fund and Dr. Peter Gubser of American Near East Refugee Aid presented their views of the current status of Palestinian refugees in the Middle East at a June 30 program at the Middle East Institute in Washington, DC.

According to Ayoub, who worked with the Palestinian Children's Relief Fund in Lebanon from 1993 to 1996, more than 128,000 Palestinians fled from Palestine to Lebanon in 1967, and they and their descendants now number 350,000. These refugees are concentrated in 12 refugee camps, several of which are being destroyed as Lebanon reconstructs itself. For example, the Lebanese destroyed a large portion of the infamous Shatila refugee camp in order to make way for a new sports stadium, leaving many of its families without housing.

Often, refugees forced to relocate find themselves in worse conditions than before. In addition, among the Palestinian refugees are more than 11,000 men, women and children crippled by years of civil war and strife. Neglected in the Oslo accords and rejected by the Lebanese, Palestinian refugees in Lebanon face a bleak future.

In an overview of Palestinian refugees in Lebanon, Syria, Jordan, Israel and the West Bank and Gaza, Dr. Gubser agreed with Ayoub. "Of all the Palestinian refugees, the Lebanese Palestinians are in the worst situation," he said. "Things have actually gotten worse, and now even Palestinian professionals, such as doctors, are banned from practicing."

Palestinians in Jordan have done the best of all, Gubser said, and even Palestinians in the West Bank and Gaza have seen some improvements, notwithstanding Israel's continued occupation of substantial portions of territory.

Both speakers agreed that the refugees had little hope of returning to their old homes in Israel, the West Bank and Gaza, and both were unsure about what type of resolution would be possible under current political conditions.

—John Vandenberg