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June 15, 2001/Sivan 24, 5761, Vol. 53, No.37
Maccabiah games may be postponed
GIL SEDAN
Jewish Telegraphic Agency
JERUSALEM - The Maccabiah Games, the quadrennial tournament of Jewish athletes from around the world, is poised to become the latest casualty of the eight-month-old Palestinian uprising.
Barring any last-minute change, organizers of the 16th Maccabiah were expected to announce June 15 that the Games - slated for July - will be postponed until next summer. If so, it would mark the first time the Maccabiah Games have been canceled since World War II.
It also would follow the recent announcement by the U.S. Reform movement that it is canceling its summer youth camps this year in Israel.
Both developments have drawn the ire of Israeli officials, who feel that especially now - when Israelis feel they are under siege from Palestinian terror attacks and international criticism - world Jewry should make good on its frequent protestations of unity.
Yet by canceling trips, Diaspora Jews are refusing to show solidarity with Israel at this difficult time, Israeli officials charge.
Transportation Minister Ephraim Sneh spoke June 10 of the "disgraceful" behavior of those "who for all these years have talked to us about the unity of the Jewish people over mounds of bagels and lox."
In recent days, increasing numbers of athletes said they do not want to participate in the upcoming Maccabiah, nicknamed the "Jewish Olympics."
Some 2,500 are still registered to participate, but cancellations are continuing.
Last week, the U.S. delegation - the second-largest, after the Israeli hosts - suggested postponing the games for a year because of the threat of Palestinian terrorism.
On June 10, an Israeli deputy minister sympathized with the calls to postpone the Games.
Rabbi Michael Melchior, Israel's deputy foreign minister for Diaspora affairs, said he had just returned from a tour of Jewish communities in Europe and found that most delegations there would not attend the July 16-26 event.
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