June 2, 2003 Contact: (212) 481-1500 Attn: NEWS EDITOR

ZOA TO ASHCROFT: INDICT & EXTRADITE ARAB KILLER OF U.S. CITIZEN WHOM SHARON
IS RELEASING

NEW YORK- The Zionist Organization of America (ZOA) is urging U.S. Attorney
General John Ashcroft to indict and extradite a Palestinian Arab murderer of
an American, who is being released by Prime Minister Ariel Sharon as a
"gesture" to the Palestinian Arabs.

The terrorist scheduled for release is Ahmad El-Sukar, who is presently
serving a sentence of life imprisonment for a bombing in downtown
Jerusalem's Zion Square on July 4, 1975, murdering 14 passersby. One of
those murdered was U.S. citizen Rivka Ben-Yitzhak, age 35. Among the wounded
were three Americans--U.S. tourist Mark Katz and "two American young women
tourists" whose names were not released. (New York Times, July 5, 1975)

ZOA National President Morton A. Klein, chairman of the board Dr. Alan
Mazurek, and chairman of the National Executive Committee Dr. Michael
Goldblatt have sent a telegram to Attorney General Ashcroft urging: "We
deplore the Sharon government's reported decision to order the release of a
killer of Americans, and we urge you to intervene to ensure that El-Sukar
receives the appropriate punishment for his crimes. The United States should
indict El-Sukar for the murder of U.S. citizen Rivka Ben-Yitzhak, and
request that El-Sukar be extradited from Israel to the U.S. in accordance
with the terms of the U.S.-Israel extradition treaty. If the Sharon
government is not prepared to mete out justice to this murderer of Israelis
and Americans, El-Sukar, then the U.S. government must do so."

The ZOA is also urging the Attorney General to:

* Place Ahmad El-Sukar on the "terrorist watch" list so that he is not
allowed to enter the United States (except to stand trial).

* Assist the family of Rivka Ben-Yitzhak, and relatives of the Americans
wounded in the bombing, in filing suit against El-Sukar for violating their
civil rights.

* Demand that the Palestinian Authority pledge, in writing, to refrain from
providing any financial assistance to El-Sukar or his family (the PA's
standard policy has been to provide salaries to released terrorists).

* Demand that the PA provide a verifiable account of how much money it has
provided to El-Sukar or his family since his imprisonment, and deduct that
amount from the next installment of the Bush administration's annual
$150-million grant to the Palestinian Arabs.

* Post warnings in the vicinity of El-Sukar's next place of residence,
alerting U.S. citizens who live in the area that a killer is about to become
their neighbor--similar to warnings that are posted in American
neighborhoods when convicted child molesters move into the area.

* Instruct the CIA Station Chief in Israel to monitor El-Sukar's travels and
inform the Ben-Yitzhaks and the other victims' families of his whereabouts
at all times.

* * *

More than 100 American citizens have been murdered by Palestinian Arab
terrorists since the 1960s, 39 of them since the signing of the Oslo accords
in 1993. Twenty-seven of those 39 were killed since the Palestinian
Authority
launched the current wave of violence in September 2000.

In response to the ongoing murders of American citizens by Palestinian Arab
terrorists, the ZOA is strongly supporting the Koby Mandell Act, which was
recently introduced in Congress. The Koby Mandell Act would create a special
office within the Justice Department which would: gather evidence against
Palestinian Arab killers of Americans; arrange to bring the terrorists to
the U.S. for trial; initiate negotiations with the Palestinian Authority for
financial compensation for victims' families; and maintain a liaison with
the families to update them on efforts to capture the killers.

The Koby Mandell Act has been publicly endorsed by AIPAC and the Conference
of Presidents of Major American Jewish Organizations.

The legislation has broad bipartisan support in Congress. In the Senate, it
currently has 12 sponsors, led by Sen. Gordon Smith (R-OR) and Sen. Ron
Wyden (D-OR). In the House of Representatives, it currently has 41 sponsors,
led by Representatives Rob Andrews (D-NJ) and Jim Saxton (R-NJ). (For a
complete list of the sponsors, call the ZOA at 212-481-1500.)

The ZOA recently published a powerful new booklet, The Forgotten Victims:
American Citizens Murdered by Palestinian Arab Terrorists. It includes
biographical entries on Americans murdered by Palestinian Arab terrorists
and a "Killers at Large" section revealing the names --and, in some cases,
the photos-- of Palestinian Arab killers of Americans who are being
sheltered by the PA. For a free copy of The Forgotten Victims, please call
the ZOA at 212-481-1500.

* * *

The Zionist Organization of America, www.zoa.org ,founded in 1897, is the
oldest pro-Israel organization in the United States. The ZOA works to
strengthen U.S.-Israel relations, educates the American public and Congress
about the dangers that Israel faces, and combats anti-Israel bias in the
media and on college campuses. Its past presidents have included Supreme
Court Justice Louis Brandeis and Rabbi Dr. Abba Hillel Silver.