The hawkish factions of Jewish lobby may be out of step with members

THE MIDDLE EAST: The lobby's focus over the years has been to prevent the US from staying Israel's hand, writes Patrick Smyth, Washington Correspondent

If Israel's army is the stuff that military legends are made of, its political lobby in the US also puts rivals in the shade, with money, manpower, and the sort of lobbying techniques that only the likes of tobacco and the gun lobby can emulate.

Its motto might be "my country right or wrong". Its focus over the years has been to campaign, overwhelmingly successfully, to prevent the US from staying Israel's hand.

That "hands off Israel" approach, however, is significantly more hawkish than the views held by the US Jewish community who, even after September 11th, back both the Oslo land-for-peace deal and US mediation between Israel and the Palestinians by three to one, according to a recent poll. And then, there's the not insignificant matter of money - Israel, despite its prosperity, is the US's largest recipient of foreign aid - $3 billion a year. The lobby makes sure no politician dares touch it.