ISRAEL: A Triumph for Common Sense

The mayor's release helps Begin get off the hook

"In fire and spirit we redeem you, O Bassam!" shouted the jubilant townspeople of Nablus. Under a shower of rose petals, Bassam Shaka'a, 48, freed from prison and reinstated as mayor of the largest town in the Israeli-occupied West Bank, was hoisted on the shoulders of his Palestinian supporters and carried past garlands of flowers and olive branches into the town hall to greet his family. Smiling broadly, the mayor thanked his constituents for the hero's welcome. "I owe you my freedom, and from...

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