LETTER FROM AN ISRAELI MOTHER TO HUSAM

Via Harvey Tannenbaum, Israel...and great thx to the israeli consulate ottawa canada

An Open Letter to a Palestinian Boy from an Israeli Mother

25 March, 2004
Dear Husam,
I am looking at your picture in the paper; it says here that a terrorist organization strapped 8 kilos of explosives to your body and sent you to
blow up in Israel. I look at your picture and I think of children your age, such as my own, and how they talk about all the things they want to
do when they grow up.

How do you feel today, Husam? Your mother must have been very worried when you didn't come home from school yesterday. We heard that they gave you
100 shekels to sneak through the checkpoint and then blow yourself up in a group of Israelis. Did you think that your mother would be happy to get 100 shekels instead of her son? I don't think so.

We also heard that the other kids used to tease you and made fun of you all the time because your didn't do well in school. You know what, Husam?
Kids, even teenagers, are always teasing each other. That's no reason to blow yourself up. Maybe you thought that the Koran expects children to sacrifice their lives for the sake of the jihad. That's what your teachers taught you, and of course you believed them. They taught you that it is necessary to make war on Israel. They taught
you that it is good to kill Israelis. They taught you about the virgins waiting for martyrs in heaven. And most of all, they taught you to hate.

What a pity that the teachers who are supposed to prepare you for life, to give you the tools to be a successful and productive citizen, abuse your trust and prepare you instead for death. We call that "exploitation of a minor" - but you wouldn't know about that kind of thing. I know they taught you to trust grownups. So it's hard to blame you. But I also know you can trust your mother.

Yesterday, your mother was angry. She was worried about you. And she did not agree with what you
tried to do. Listen to her; learn from her.

But don't listen to people like your teachers who want to turn children into bombs. Stay away from them. Believe me, there is no ideal in the world, no reason, no cause worth dying for as a child. Whoever convinced you to strap that explosive belt to your chest surely did not want what
was best for you. People like that don't mind sending you to die at the age of 14; they don't care that they are ruining your life, your future,
your chance to grow up, to raise a family and to be happy. They don't want you to continue to enjoy listening to music on the Internet, as you enjoy so much doing.

Well, Husam, I say - listen to your music. Study, play, have fun, do all the things boys your age usually do. Continue to play on the computer. You must grow up in order to realize your dreams. Keep going, and someday you will be able to do what you want to do - maybe open that electronics store you talked about, to repair radios and televisions. You might even eventually succeed in teaching others to repair certain other things that need fixing in this world

Perhaps you are disappointed that you didn't get to heaven, to the rivers of honey and wine and the waiting virgins that you were promised. If you
had succeeded, it is hard to say if it would
have fulfilled your expectations. But one thing is certain - if you had succeeded, you would have caused the deepest sorrow and pain to your
mother. And you would have caused the deepest sorrow and pain to the parents of the children - of all ages - that would have been killed with
you. One of them could have been me.

That's all for now. Please send my regards to your mother.

Ana Schulkin, Jerusalem

found at www.StandWithUs.com