If President Bush leads America to war against Iraq, he’ll be repairing one of his father’s errors in the last war against Iraq — leaving Saddam Hussein in power. Last time around, we went to war to defend kingdoms in Kuwait and Saudi Arabia that did not share our values. This time around, our war aims include elevating to power in Iraq a democratic regime that does share our values. Would that this could be said of all our allies, much as we appreciate their help.

We were reminded of this when we heard of the message left for Westerners at the Hilton in Kuwait City. They found under the door a notice that said, “current law of the state of Kuwait prevent any kind of cooperation or interaction with Israel.” The Kuwaiti ministry of information notified journalists: “The ministry of information notifies against feeding Iraseli [sic] news and broadcasting organizations with reports for broadcast from the state of Kuwait. Any organisation or person who violate the above said notice will face legal persecution.” Which we take to mean prosecution.

Why this didn’t stir up a howl from the hundreds of journalists present in Kuwait City mystifies us, but our Adam Daifallah did put in the appropriate calls. He found out from Kuwaiti government officials that the notice is apparently genuine, notwithstanding the errors of English spelling and grammar. This sort of behavior strikes us as outrageous, particularly coming from a government that owes its very existence to a war fought by American troops in 1991. It merits an immediate and public condemnation from the Bush administration.

It’ll also be illuminating to see what kind of formal response it receives from the newspapers, wire services and television networks who have reporters in Kuwait and who have customers in Israel. To cite just two examples, the New York Times Company’s Paris Herald Tribune is circulated in Israel as an insert to the English language edition of Hebrew-language Israeli daily Ha’aretz. Another Israeli daily, the Jerusalem Post, publishes dispatches of the Associated Press.

If it turns out that we do go to war a second time in the Persian Gulf, many will be watching to see whether the new government of Iraq will maintain peaceful and friendly relations with Israel, an American ally in the region that shares our values of freedom and democracy. Saddam’s Iraq never won a lasting military victory over Kuwait. If a new a democratic government refrains from Kuwait’s hateful anti-Israeli tactics, a new Iraq could win a lasting victory in the battle for American public opinion.