On rabbis' visit to Syria

The Egyptian weekly al-Musawar said in its recent issue that the chairman of the Arab Democratic Party, who is also a member of the Israeli Knesset, Abdulwahab Darawshe, is making contacts with Syrian officials for the visit of both the leader of the Shas movement, Obdana Youssef, and the Rabbi of the Eastern Jews to Syria.

Darawshe said: "It will be the first visit for an Israeli Jew to Syria which refuses to receive Israelis before ending peace talks and reaching peace, adding that for five years Syria has only agreed to receive a delegation of Israeli Arabs including Israeli Knesset members (Arab members of the Israeli Knesset).

Darawshe added that negotiations between him and the Syrians continue, and so far there is no rejection of the idea, rather discussions on the side which will extend the invitation to the rabbi. He said the proposal is that the invitation is to be extended either by the Republic's Mufti, Sheikh Ahmad Kiftari, or the chairman of the Jewish community in Syria, Youssef Jajati, on the grounds that the invitation will be religious rather than official.

Darawshe continued that he also seeks the visit of each Rabbi Bakishdroun, the higher Rabbi in Israel, together with Rabbi Laro of the western Ashkenazi Jews to Syria.

He continued that he is seriously working to make the visit quickly because it is in the interests of Syria, noting that Rabbi Youssef's backing for the withdrawal from the Golan and behind him the Shas movement and Eastern Jews would guarantee the majority in the Knesset and in the people's referendum over withdrawal from the Golan.