example, were Jews, among them such Struggle stalwarts as Lionel Bernstein, Joe Slovo and Ruth First. Among the founders of the underground military wing of the African National Congress, Umkhonto we Sizwe, were Dennis Goldberg, Harold Wolpe and Arthur Goldreich (a volunteer in the War of Independence who later settled in Israel).Jewish lawyers were prominently involved in defending Mandela in the various political trials in which he was involved, among them Isie Maisels (later a member of the governing body of the Jewish Agency), Arthur Chaskalson, Joel Joffe and Sidney Kentridge. He also worked closely with the journalist Benjamin Pogrund, who later made aliya and in addition to promoting Israeli- Palestinian dialogue has been a staunch defender of Israel in the propaganda war against it.After Mandela’s release fromprison in 1990, he and the mainstream Jewish leadership forged a cordial relationship and many leading Jewish businessmen were brought on board to assist in addressing the legacy of poverty and inequality left by the apartheid system.He became especially close to Chief Rabbi Cyril Harris, a charismatic leader who whole-heartedly embraced the new democratic dispensation and encouraged the greater Jewish community to do likewise.The SAJBD met with Mandela regularly, and its leadership, along with Rabbi Harris, accompanied him on a visit to Israel shortly after he had stepped down as president in 1999.On the Israel-Palestine question, Mandela was deeply committed to the attainment of Palestinian statehood, but at the same time recognized that this had to be pursued through a process of peaceful negotiations and never deviated from