Blair Kuntz in his Aug. 24 letter argues that the Canadian Jewish Congress is being hypocritical in its call for the deportation of Helmut Oberlander.

Kuntz maintains that the congress "continues its unstinting support for the policies of the government of Israel led by Prime Minister Ariel Sharon, whose own long history of war crimes includes the ultimate responsibility for the massacre . . . at Sabra and Shatila in 1982."

Whatever one's view of the war in Lebanon at that time, it is most inappropriate to lead readers into believing Israeli troops carried out the massacre in question or that Sharon directed the event. It was Christian Lebanese forces that committed the crimes at Sabra and Shatila and they did so with neither the co-operation nor the advanced knowledge of the Israeli military.

Kuntz is not only being disingenuous but also offensive in his effort to draw comparisons between the crimes of the Nazis and the actions of the Israeli military.

Simon Rosenblum
Director, Public Policy
Canadian Jewish Congress
Ontario Region
Toronto