G. Jefferson Price's commentary refers to the Arab concern for Palestine ("An odd start to America's romance with Saudi Arabia," Feb. 13). But others have claims to that area. What the Arabs now consider Palestine, Jews call Israel or the Promised Land and Christians call the Holy Land. It is, in other words, a contentious area.
Jews in the Diaspora have always had an interest in Israel with holidays geared to events in it or on the way to it such as Passover. The words "Israel" and "Jerusalem" occur throughout Jewish prayers and ceremonies.
The actual interest of Jews in Israel can be shown by the numbers. In 1948, 5 percent of the world's Jews lived in the Palestine Mandate. Today, 40 percent of the world's Jews live in the independent state of Israel.
Jerry Levin, Baltimore