Campos 253promises of brotherhood, equality, and a united Ottoman nation (though
the paper did note that each ate from his own utensils, implying that the
Jewish soldiers’ dietary restrictions were not compromised).
In the same issue, however, ha-Herut published an article translated
from the Jerusalem-based Christian newspaper al-Insaf, which accused
the Jewish community of lying to the local medical inspection commit-
tee in order to win exemptions from military service. In response, the
Ottoman Jewish community voiced outrage, citing the deep loyalty and
commitment of the Jewish community to the empire and, significantly,
relying on the newly granted laws and rights of the constitutionalist
regime to redeem them. In an article published as a rejoinder, “‘Otomani”
urged the Jewish community to sue the paper according to articles 17
and 19 of the new press laws. He wrote, “I call on every Jew who in his
heart has feelings of nationalism and honor that it is a holy duty laid down
upon them to prosecute the editor of this paper to either show the truth
of his words or to punish according to the law for the honor of the Jews.”^49
Ha-Herut’s editor seconded his recommendation and dismissed the
Arab editor who was, in his opinion, jealous of the Jewish community’s
advances in commerce, industry and education. “The government knows
well its Jews because they are loyal to it, not less than the Christians and
perhaps much more than them.”
endel Kremer, the M mukhtār^50 of the Ashkenazi community in
Jerusalem, went to the head of the military inspection committee to com-
plain; the official reportedly denied the Christian press’s allegation of
Jewish shirking. The editor of ha-Herut demanded that official steps be
taken through the Society of Ottoman Jews to sue the editor for libel. In
response, the editor apologized and promised to retract his statements in
the next issue if the Jewish community did not prosecute him. Partially
placated, the newspaper insisted that if the editor fulfilled his promise,
they would forgive him; “if not, we will demand a lawsuit so that all our
haters and enemies will hear, and know that there is an eye that sees and
an ear that hears, and the Jews will go to court over everything.”
everal days later, S ha-Herut reported that al-Insaf had retracted its
former accusations, simply noting, “by the way, the notice we published
that some Jewish youth put tobacco in their eyes to fool the doctors is a
falsehood.”^51 In response, the Jewish newspaper editors wrote that while