Carter Declines To Respond To Gillerman's 'Bigot' Remark

By BENJAMIN SARLIN, Special to the Sun
April 29, 2008

President Carter says that he will let Israeli and American officials speak in his defense against criticism by Israel's ambassador to the United Nations, Dan Gillerman, who told reporters last Thursday that Mr. Carter had become a "bigot" by meeting with Palestinian terrorist groups.

Earlier this month, Mr. Carter traveled to Syria to meet with the leader of Hamas's military wing, Khaled Mashaal, drawing criticism from the White House, as well as Democratic and Republican lawmakers, for breaking with the American policy of isolating the terrorist organization. Mr. Gillerman said Mr. Carter "went to the region with soiled hands and came back with bloody hands after shaking the hand of Khaled Mashaal, the leader of Hamas."

While in New York last night signing copies of his new book, "A Remarkable Mother," Mr. Carter declined to directly challenge Mr. Gillerman's words.

"No, I won't respond to him," Mr. Carter said. "But his own government condemned him and made ridicule of what he said and also the U.S. Ambassador in Jerusalem criticized him, so I don't feel like I need to."

A report in the Israeli newspaper Ha'aretz on Saturday said that the American embassy in Tel Aviv had complained to Israel's foreign ministry about the comments and that one prominent Israeli legislator, Yossi Beilin, had called for Mr. Gillerman to be removed from his post.

In an op-ed in the New York Times yesterday, Mr. Carter defended his decision to meet with Hamas, writing: "the path to peace lies in negotiation, not in isolation." He said Hamas leaders told him they were open to peace negotiations with Israel and would accept a peace agreement between Prime Minister Olmert and the Palestinian leader, Mahmoud Abbas, if it were put to a referendum.