Israeli troops kill 2 Palestinians in West Bank raid
Daily Star 8/18/2007
Israeli troops killed two Palestinians and wounded six others during a raid near the Occupied West Bank city of Jenin on Friday, Palestinian sources said, as Israeli aircraft fired two missiles on Friday at Palestinian rocket launchers in the northern Gaza Strip, Hamas said. Palestinian security officials said that a gun battle broke out between Israeli troops and local gunmen in the West Bank village of Kafr Dan. One gunman, Nur Marai, 19, and a 16-year-old boy were killed. At least eight other Palestinians were wounded during the clashes, the sources said. Witnesses said at least 30 Israeli Army jeeps took part in the operation, encircling several buildings before exchanges of gunfire broke out. An Israeli military spokes-man was unable to immediately confirm or deny that an operation was under way in Jenin.
Electricity blackout in the Gaza Strip due to fuel shortage
Ma'an News Agency 8/17/2007
Gaza – Ma'an – The director of the only power station in the Gaza Strip has announced that three out of its four electricity generators are to be switched off because of a shortage of fuel supplies, leaving more than half of the Gaza Strip without electricity. At a news conference Rafik Maliha said that the generators would be stopped from six in the evening local time (3 p. m. GMT), on Friday until Sunday morning. If more fuel supplies do not arrive at the power station by then, the fourth generator will also be switched off, he said. This will leave the crisis-stricken area almost completely without electricity. Maliha denied that the power station had any strategic fuel stocks. He said that since Hamas took control of the Gaza Strip in June, Israel has only supplied fuel to keep the generators working and that it had not been possible to amass a stockpile.
U.S.: No strings attached to new defense package for Israel
Barak Ravid, Ha'aretz 8/17/2007
The new $30 billion American defense package for Israel is not conditioned on diplomatic progress or concessions to the Palestinians, a top U.S. aide said Thursday as representatives from both countries signed the memorandum of understanding in Jerusalem. U.S. Under Secretary of State Nicholas Burns said the aid to Israel was meant to counter "an axis of cooperation between Iran, Syria, Hezbollah, Islamic Jihad and Hamas that is responsible for the violence in the region." The hike in aid constitutes a 25-percent increase to the $2. 4 billion Jerusalem currently receives from Washington in annual military grants. Under the new agreement, the U.S. will transfer $30 billion to Israel over the next 10 years. U.S. officials have said the package - which was announced last month and must still be approved by Congress.
Five injured, among them journalists, at the weekly non-violent protest of Bil'in
Gifford Breslev, International Middle East Media Center 8/17/2007
The residents of the village of Bil'in, located near the central West Bank city of Ramallah, joined by international and Israeli supporters, conducted their weekly non-violent protest against the wall this Friday. As is the case each week, shortly after Friday prayers, protesters marched towards the location of the wall. Before arriving at the area where construction is taking place, the protesters were stopped by an Israeli military barricade. At the barricade, soldiers fired rubber-coated steel bullets, tear gas, and sound bombs at the protestors, injuring 5, among them 4 journalists. The journalists were identified as Fadi Abu Eid, Bakkir Abu Argeila and Kamal al-Azraq, who all work for Ramatan News Agency, and Ayman al-Nubani, who works for an international TV station.
UNRWA calls on PA to stop threats against their employees
Ma'an News Agency 8/17/2007
Jerusalem – Ma'an – UNRWA has on Friday called for the intervention of the Palestinian Authority to prevent its employees being repeatedly subject to threats. A number of UNRWA employees were detained for several hours in Nablus on Thursday. In a statement received by Ma'an, UNRWA demanded that the Palestinian Authority intervene immediately to stop those who are attempting to drag UNRWA into the ongoing Palestinian internal conflict. UNRWA made clear that threats and harassment are hindering their ability to carry out their humanitarian assistance in the Palestinian Territories. Exposing the UNRWA staff to danger limits their ability to continue working, the statement added. [end]
Issue of right to return is main obstacle in talks between Olmert and Abbas
Ma'an News Agency 8/17/2007
Bethlehem – Ma'an – The Israeli newspaper Ha'aretz has quoted an unnamed international source as saying that the issue of the right of return is the basic problem that confronted the recent talks held between President Mahmoud Abbas and Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert. The newspaper quoted the source as saying that Abbas refused to be flexible on this issue and that the two men came to certain understandings but were not able to draw up any firm agreements. Quoting senior politicians in the Palestinian Authority, Ha'aretz said that the negotiations that have taken place between Olmert and Abbas over the last two months in utmost secrecy discussed the possibility of elaborating a one page document containing 4-5 general principles which have been agreed upon.
Israeli forces storm Jenin and neighboring village of Al-Yamoun
Nisreen Qumsieh, International Middle East Media Center 8/17/2007
Israeli forces stormed the city of Jenin and neighboring village of Al-Yamoun situated in the north of the West Bank, before dawn on Friday morning. Security sources announced that the Israeli Army stormed the city of Jenin and conducted patrols of the surrounding neighborhoods amidst continued gun fire and explosions. Other sources added that military forces also stormed a nearby village of Al-Yamoun, to the west of Jenin, later withdrawing with no reported arrests. [end]
Israeli soldier wounded nead Balatah
Ma'an News Agency 8/17/2007
Bethlehem – Ma'an – Israeli military sources have confirmed that an Israeli soldier was wounded near Balatah, east of Nablus in the northern West Bank, on Friday morning. The Israeli sources said that a group of Palestinians attacked Israeli military vehicles as they performed their daily security activities. [end]
Al Quds brigades and Al Buraq army clash with Israeli soldiers in Qabatya
Ma'an News Agency 8/17/2007
Jenin – Ma'an – The Al Quds Brigades, the military wing of Islamic Jihad, and the Al Buraq army, have both reported taking part in violent clashes that took place in Qabatya early on Friday morning. The brigades said in a statement that their group clashed with Israeli military vehicles that came into the town. [end]
Six arrested on Friday morning
Ma'an News Agency 8/17/2007
Bethlehem – Ma'an – The Israeli forces arrested six Palestinians on Friday morning, claiming they are wanted. According to Israeli military sources, of those arrested three are from Ramallah, and three others are from Hebron. They were taken to interrogation centres. [end]
Brigades launch homemade projectile at Erez crossing
Ma'an News Agency 8/17/2007
Gaza – Ma'an – The Abu Ali Mustafa Brigades, the armed wing of the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine (PFLP), and the Al Aqsa Brigades, the military wing of Fatah, claimed responsibility for launching a homemade projectile at the Israeli side of the Erez crossing, on Friday. The brigades said in a joint statement that the operation was in response to Israeli attacks on Palestinians in the West Bank and the Gaza Strip. [end]
Rocket, mortar barrages hit Negev
Ali Waked, YNetNews 8/17/2007
Palestinian gunmen fire three Qassam rockets, 13 mortar shells from northern Gaza Strip toward Israel; no injuries or damage reported. One rocket lands near paratroopers company's reunion event attended by Deputy Defense Minister Matan Vilna'i. Alert system activated as head of local council tells participants about residents' distress Palestinians gunmen on Friday evening fired three Qassam rockets and 12 mortar shells from the northern Gaza Strip toward southern Israel. The al-Quds Brigades, the Islamic Jihad's military wing, claimed responsibility for the rocket fire. Two Qassam rockets were fired at the western Negev at around 6 pm. One rocket landed near Sderot. Another rocket hit a kibbutz south of Asheklon. A third rocket launched several minutes later landed near a community in the Sha'ar Hanegev Regional Council.
Qassam Brigades warn of an imminent Israeli invasion of the Gaza strip
Palestinian Information Center 8/16/2007
GAZA, (PIC)-- Abu Obaida, spokesman of the Qassam Brigades, the armed wing of Hamas, stated that the Israeli propaganda about huge amounts of explosives and arms being smuggled into the strip indicate that there is a Zionist plan to invade the Gaza Strip. In a press statement to the Qassam website, the spokesman said: "The exaggerated information published by the Zionist enemy, especially that which refers to smuggling tons of explosives into the strip is a pack of lies," adding that to portray the Qassam Brigades as an army equipped with modern arms and night vision binoculars is an exaggeration which aims to mislead public opinion. He also said that the Israelis try to portray what happens in Gaza as if it was a war between two equal armies while the fact is we have simple means with which we try to resist the occupation...
Prisoners affairs institute says Hamas and Fatah prisoners are separated in Israeli jails
Ma'an News Agency 8/17/2007
Bethlehem – Ma'an – A lawyer from a prisoners' affairs institute said the Israeli prison administrations are tightening restrictions on both Palestinians in Israeli jails and their relatives who try and visit them. Buthaina Duqmaq from the Mandella Institute said the institution's lawyers made several visits to various prisons, where they found that prisoners affiliated to Hamas and Fatah were separated from each other. Extended family members were also barred from visiting their relatives in prison. Prisoners are demanding that the separation policy of Hamas and Fatah prisoners be stopped and that those prisoners in solitary confinement should be returned to regular cells. They are also requesting that their children under the age of 10 should be allowed to visit them in prison.
Megiddo Prison Authority escalates its repressive measures
Palestinian Information Center 8/17/2007
SALFIT, (PIC)-- The Megiddo Prison Authority has escalated its repressive measures against the Palestinian captives in that prison and their visitors, according to the captives. The prisoners said in a letter they smuggled out of prison that the general conditions for captives are bad, the prison is overcrowded, there is lack of medicine for the sick prisoners, there is lack of nutritious food as the captives have not received their food allowance, from the PA, for four months, banning of visits and banning prisoners to visit prisoners in other wings. The captives also complained of the constant moving of prisoners between different prison wards and different prisons causing the captives extra psychological stress. The captives stressed in their letter the need for pressure to be exerted on the occupation authority...
VIDEO - Settlers Take Land, Soldiers Do Nothing
International Solidarity Movement 8/17/2007
August 17th, 2007 | Posted in Hebron Region, Video - In the area of Susya in Hebron, an illegal settler sets out to farm crops on land owned by local Palestinians. Soldiers refuse to act, even after human rights workers explain that Palestinians have documents which prove the land is theirs, and have gone to the police already about this matter. [end]
Israeli court refuses to release head of a detainees' society
International Middle East Media Center 8/18/2007
The Ofer Israeli military court refused on Friday an appeal to release Mohammad Bisharat, head of the Nafha Society for Defending the Detainees Rights and Human Rights. Bisharat was kidnapped by the army twenty days ago and is currently imprisoned in Huwwara detention facility. So far, the Israeli authorities did not file any charges against him. Bisharat is known for his activities in defending human rights and the rights of detainees imprisoned by Israel, he was kidnapped first after the Al Aqsa Intifada inflamed late 2000. The Nafha society slammed the continued detention of Bisharat and called on human rights groups to practice pressure on Israel to lease him and to stop its ongoing attacks against human rights institutions in the occupied Palestinian territories.
Military checkpoint and roadblocs impedes development of several aid projects in Beit Fourik
Ameen Abu Wardeh, International Middle East Media Center 8/17/2007
The military checkpoint at the entrance to Beit Fourik, erected in 2001, is hindering any progress of several aid projects, Abd Al-Basit Hannini, the Mayor of the village, has said. He stated that during the last two years the checkpoint has made the continuation of work by existing aid projects impossible. These projects have previously been responsible for several developments in the town, including the foundation of a high school and a children's playground. The projects have also provided services that include dam reinforcement, the rehabilitation of Palestinians, re-surfacing of streets and reinstatement of electricity. In addition to this, the town had previously been able to establish good relations with surrounding civil and legal organizations in order to expose illegal Israeli practices in the area.
Non-governmental institutions facing real financial crisis
Moeen Shadeed, International Middle East Media Center 8/18/2007
Borhan Al Sa'ady, official spokesperson of the National Committee for non-governmental institutions in Palestine, stated on Friday that several unions and NGO's are facing real financial crises which are obstructing their work in rebuilding the Palestinians society by establishing projects which supports the Palestinian economy. Al Sa'ady stated that these NGO's always acted in support to the Palestinian society and the Palestinian aspiration of freedom, but are facing increasing burdens due to the lack of financial support. He also said that the some parties that are known for financing some institutions are now placing conditions which are obstructing the implementation of projects in Palestine. Al Sa'ady also stated that all unions in Palestine should increase their efforts in order to organize a unified.
Palestinian Dies after being Prevented from Leaving Gaza for Follow Up Treatment
Palestinian Centre for Human Rights 8/16/2007
PCHR Strongly Condemns Barring Patient from Traveling - PCHR condemns Israel's continued violation of Palestinians' health rights by preventing and obstructing their treatment in Israeli hospitals, which has inflicted damage on tens of patients from the Gaza Strip. In particular, the Centre condemns Israeli Occupation Forces' (IOF) rejection on 6 August 2007 to allow Ali Shehada Khalaf Eleyan (52) to access Ichilov Hospital in Israel for follow up treatment. As a result, the patient died on 15 August 2007. The Centre had asked the Physicians for Human Rights – Israel in a letter dated 13 August 2007 to intervene with relevant parties. The letter asked for attaining Israeli approval allowing the patient and his companion to enter Israel out of concern over the possible deterioration of his health condition.
Rights group complains against Israeli officer
Middle East Online 8/17/2007
JERUSALEM - A rights group on Thursday filed a complaint against an Israeli officer for allegedly not allowing an ambulance to enter from the West Bank with a critically injured Palestinian who later died. Physicians for Human Rights said in a statement that it had asked police to open a criminal inquiry against Dalia Basa, a medical coordinator with the Israeli military administration in the occupied West Bank. It said that on June 29 Basa had refused to allow an Israeli ambulance to enter Israel carrying 18-year-old Radi Alwahash, who had suffered critical head injuries in a traffic accident in Bethlehem. Basa demanded that the ambulance stop at the checkpoint between the occupied West Bank and Israel and that "an ambulance from the Palestinian Red Crescent take the patient to a hospital in the West Bank instead," it said.
Criminal proceedings lodged after Palestinian dies in ambulance denied permission to cross checkpoint
Ma'an News Agency 8/17/2007
Bethlehem - Ma'an – Unprecedented criminal proceedings have been lodged against an Israeli Civil Administration health coordinator in the case of an 18-year-old Palestinian boy who died at an Israeli checkpoint after the ambulance he was in was denied permission to cross into Israel, an Israeli newspaper has reported. Radi Al Wahash was being taken to hospital from Bethlehem to Jerusalem on June 29 after being critically injured in a road accident. The ambulance carrying him was denied permission to cross into Israel and he died of his injuries. Ha'aretz reported that a criminal complaint was lodged with the Tel Aviv police on Wednesday by the group Physicians for Human Rights (PHR) against the Civil Administration's health coordinator, Dalia Basa.
One Palestinian dies as Israeli authorities refuse him access to hospital
Ameen Abu Warda, International Middle East Media Center 8/17/2007
The Palestinian Center of Human Right (PCHR) condemned the ongoing Israeli procedures of neglecting Palestinian human rights to receive medical treatments. Specifically, the group objected to Israel's denying Palestinians access to Israeli hospitals, which causes harm to many sick Palestinian people. In August 2007, Israel refused to grant permission for entering Israel to a sick Palestinian man identified as Khalaf Elayan, 52, in order to receive treatment in Israeli hospitals for his dreadful medical condition. On Thursday, Aug. 15, Elayan died because he wasn't provided with the needed medical treatment. PCHR sent a statement on Aug. 13 to the Physicians League of the Human Rights for the intervention to the related authorities in order to obtain Israeli approval that would allow Elayan to enter Israel in case of the deterioration of his health condition.
Two injured at nonviolent anti wall protest near Bethlehem
Kate Orwell, International Middle East Media Center 8/17/2007
A demonstration took place on Friday in Al-Walaja village, near Bethlehem, against the ongoing Israeli occupation and the Annexation Wall which has hit the village particularly hard. Approximately 120 people -- Palestinians, Israelis and internationals -- came to show peaceful solidarity with the village, facing 6 army jeeps and around 30 Israeli soldiers. An Irish activist was mildly injured by soldiers, who in a show of excessive violence pinned him to the floor by his throat. Local sources reported that one Irish peace activist and one Palestinian were injured as the army violently attacked the peaceful protesters. One Israeli peace activist was arrested by the troops. The Irish peace activist was hit on his face and head and was seen bleeing on the scene before he was given the needed first aid.
This Week In Palestine – Week 33 2007
Ghassan Bannoura - IMEMC - Audio Dept, International Middle East Media Center 8/17/2007
Click on Link to download or play MP3 file - || File 14. 6 MB || Time 15m 0s || - This Week In Palestine, a service of the International Middle East Media Center, www. IMEMC. org, for August 11th through August 17th, 2007. A new US arms deal boosts military aid to Israel by 25%, while the Israeli army continue to attack Palestinian killing seven this week, these stories and more coming up stay tuned. Nonviolent Resistance in Palestine - Let's begin our weekly report with news of nonviolent action in the West Bank cities of Ramallah and Bethlehem against the wall and settlements. IMEMC's David Johns has the details: Bil'in - The residents of the village of Bil'in, located near the central West Bank city of Ramallah, joined by international and Israeli supporters, conducted their weekly non-violent protest against the wall this Friday afternoon.
Illegal Israeli actions in Occupied East Jerusalem and the rest of the Occupied Palestinian Territory
United Nations General Assembly, ReliefWeb 8/15/2007
Identical letters dated 15 August 2007 from the Permanent Observer of Palestine to the United Nations addressed to the Secretary-General and the President of the Security Council - I write to you today to express, once again, our grave concern about the increasingly deteriorating situation in the Occupied Palestinian Territory, including East Jerusalem, as a result of Israel's grave breaches of international humanitarian law against the Palestinian people. Such actions come at a time when expressed political statements from the Israeli side have painted a deceptive picture of peace promotion and mutual respect. The Israeli occupying forces continue to carry out incursions into Palestinian towns and neighbourhoods across the West Bank and Gaza Strip, wreaking havoc and spreading destruction and death among the civilian population.
OPT: Protection of civilians weekly report 08 - 14 Aug 2007
United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs - OCHA, ReliefWeb 8/14/2007
Of note this week - Gaza Strip: - The IDF killed 11 Palestinians and injured 27 others (North Gaza, Gaza, and Khan Younis). Amongst the casualties are a 70-year-old woman and her son who were killed when a tank shell hit their home (Khan Younis). A total of four IAF strikes took place. - A total of 81 arrests were reported; the IDF ordered all males aged 16 to 25 years to gather in an open area and arrested 80 men (Khan Younis) and on another occasion the IDF conducted a house search operation in Al Maghazi Camp and detained a 16-year-old female shepherd but released her on the same day (Central Gaza). - 15 Qassam rockets and 29 mortars were fired from the Gaza Strip towards Israel, of which two rockets and one mortar landed in the Palestinian area.
The Al Quds brigades vows retaliation to the Jenin invasion
International Middle East Media Center 8/18/2007
The Al Quds brigades, the armed wing of the Islamic Jihad, vowed fierce retaliation to the Friday Israeli military invasion to Kafer Dan village, near Jenin, where two Palestinians were killed and several others were injured. The brigades called on all resistance factions to unite against the occupation and to increase their attacks against it. The brigades also stated that this invasion proves that Israel is not interested in clam and that resistance must continue against the Israeli occupation and its crimes against the Palestinian people. The two residents who were killed are identified as Mahmoud Darweeh, a resistance fighter, and Nour Mer'ey, 18, a resident who attempted to rescue Darweesh but was shot dead by the army. The invasion was carried out on Friday evening when Israeli forces, supported by.
Negev Border Police detain five Palestinians carrying two guns
Mijal Grinberg, Ha'aretz 8/17/2007
Border Police on Thursday detained five Palestinians traveling by car in the south of the country, one of whom had two pistols in his possession. The pistols were hidden in empty paint cans in the back of the car. Police had pursued the men since their departure from their homes south of Mount Hebron. The detainees were taken to Be'er Sheva for questioning where they will be brought before the Magistrate's Court on Friday. [end]
Outgoing israeli ambassador to Germany admits Israel's negative image
Ma'an News Agency 8/17/2007
Bethlehem – Ma'an – The Israeli ambassador in Berlin, Shimon Stein, has admitted that his country's image in Germany is "negative and not pleasant"The ambassador made the remarks in an interview on Thursday with the German newspaper Saechsischen Zeitung, only weeks before he is due to finish his posting to Germany. He said that the German public perception of Israel was concentrated on the Palestinian conflict, claiming the negative impression many Germans hold of Israel was not based on fact. "Many of the Germans build an image of Israel based on feelings not facts," he said. [end]
Erekat welcomes German help to Palestinians
Ma'an News Agency 8/17/2007
Jericho- Ma'an – Chief Palestinian negotiator, Saeb Erekat on Friday called on the international community to make every possible effort to assist the Palestinian people in the face of serious economic conditions especially in the stricken Gaza Strip, which is on the verge of economic collapse. His call came during a meeting with Dr Christoph Hozjenn, External Security Advisor to the German Chancellor, Angela Merkel. Dr Erekat said he appreciated the assistance Germany has provided for the Palestinian people. He said that the quickest way to achieve a comprehensive and lasting peace in the region was to instigate a meaningful peace process that would lead to the ending of the Israeli occupation that began in 1967. The international resolutions and the agreements, the vision of US President George W.
Backlash over Book on Policy for Israel
Patricia Cohen, New York Times, MIFTAH 8/17/2007
"The Israel Lobby and U.S. Foreign Policy" is not even in bookstores, but already anxieties have surfaced about the backlash it is stirring, with several institutions backing away from holding events with the authors. John J. Mearsheimer, a political scientist at the University of Chicago, and Stephen M. Walt, a professor at the John F. Kennedy School of Government at Harvard University, were not totally surprised by the reaction to their work. An article last spring in the London Review of Books outlining their argument — that a powerful pro-Israel lobby has a pernicious influence on American policy — set off a firestorm as charges of anti-Semitism, shoddy scholarship and censorship ricocheted among prominent academics, writers, policymakers and advocates.
Members of Congress Head to Israel for Summer, Sun and Summitry
Nathan Guttman, MIFTAH 8/17/2007
Jerusalem - The summer tour season to Israel for American politicians reached its peak this month, with nearly 10% of the House of Representatives visiting Jerusalem in the past two weeks. Forty Republicans and Democrats met with Israeli and Palestinian leaders in two separate rounds of intensive touring mixed with high-level policy meetings. This year's tours came at a crucial moment, as Congress is considering a massive and controversial arms deal proposed by the White House and aimed at both Israel and Saudi Arabia. In addition, American policymakers are readying for an international summit in November that will deal with the situation in the Middle East. The Congressional trips, sponsored by pro-Israeli groups, have become one of the main attractions offered during the summer recess.
Hamas says security devices barred it from holding festival in Jenin
International Middle East Media Center 8/18/2007
Islamic Resistance Movement, Hamas, accused on Friday Palestinian security devices of barring it from holding a festival to honor high school graduate in Al Yamoun village, near the northern West Bank city of Jenin. Hamas also said security forces arrested some of its members. Hamas also stated that Palestinian Security forces arrested Sheikh Ali Taher Zayid, 52, vice-headmaster of Al Yamoun Secondary school, and his brother Hasan, 45, head of the Teacher's Union in Jenin district. Both, according to Hamas, were arrested after Palestinian security men broke into their homes on Friday at night. Sources in Hamas also stated that Palestinian security forces also arrested Amer Ali Ater, 30, and Sheikh Mohammad Freihat, head of the Jenin Religious Court.
Interview with the leader of the Hamas-formed Executive Force
Palestine Newspaper, International Middle East Media Center 8/17/2007
Palestine Newspaper interview with Jamal Al Jarrah -- Abu Obaidah, leader of the Hamas-formed Executive Force in the Gaza Strip. - Main statements made by Abu Obaidah during the interview: - The Executive Force does not exist in the West Bank. - Hamas-run prisons are open for human rights groups, we ask them to be fair. - We never arrested any Fateh member for their political preference. - We are working hard to re-train Executive Force members to perform police duties. - We are preparing a special force for rapid response. - Our main achievements are in the security sector. The Interview: The newspaper spoke with Jamal Al Jarrah -- Abu Obaidah, General leader of the Hamas-formed Executive Force in the Gaza Strip. The Executive Force is part of the Ministry of Interior in Gaza, which is still performing its.
Former Palestinian National Security Advisor says Hamas needs Abbas' help
Ma'an News Agency 8/17/2007
Bethlehem – Ma'an – Former National Security Advisor, Jibril Al Rjoob, said that Hamas needs the help of Palestinian president Mahmoud Abbas." It is not a secret that Hamas is supplied by Iran or Qatar, but now they need the Palestinian president because they are besieged in Gaza," he said. In an interview with Al Arabia satellite television channel, Rjoob said "I never imagined that Hamas could reach this level of military cutting off and controlling… Interfering in people's private lives is worse than Al Qa'ida's ideas." "We in Fatah have made mistakes. We are not angels, but Hamas utilised those mistakes to commit their crimes," he said." The security services and the Fatah movement were never part of what happened in Gaza," Al Rjoob said.
Hamas members arrested by Palestinian security services
Ma'an News Agency 8/17/2007
Jenin – Ma'an – The Palestinian Security Services arrested three Hamas members in Al Yamoon, west of Jenin, on Friday. Hamas sources said that the Palestinian Security Services arrested Amer Al Atr, Ali Taher Zaied Mu'alem, and his brother Hasan, who is in charge of the Islamic faction for teachers. The source said the security services also arrested but soon released the Qabatiah court judge, Muhammad Freihat. They also arrested Isam Abu Al Haija', the muezzin of one of the mosques in Al Yamoon. [end]
Condition of girl hit by Olmert's convoy deteriorating, mother says
Liron Milstein, YNetNews 8/17/2007
Mother of 10-year-old girl hit by the prime minister's motorcade on Thursday says daughter's condition worse than initial assessment. 'She didn't even remember me this morning,' says mother. Investigation into incident to continue Sunday - A day after her daughter was hit by a car in Prime Minister Ehud Olmert's motorcade in Jerusalem; Etti Sofer on Friday told Ynet that her daughter Hannah's health had deteriorated since the accident Thursday. The 10-year-old child's condition was initially defined mild, but Friday morning, the mother Etti, speaking from Hadassah Ein Karem hospital, where her daughter is staying, told Ynet, "They discovered a fracture in her pelvis; she suffers from headaches, bruises all over her body, and continues to vomit."
Knesset to discuss granting police access to phone data
Shahar Ilan, Ha'aretz 8/17/2007
A Knesset committee will discuss legislation Sunday to give the police access to all Israeli fixed-line and mobile phone numbers as well as information on devices such as computers and modems. So far, no member of the Constitution, Law and Justice Committee has expressed opposition to the law. According to a Justice Ministry document, the database would be the largest legal search engine in the Western world for police use. The Association for Civil Rights in Israel (ACRI) said the establishment of the database, which would make it much easier for police to analyze wiretap data and conduct surveillance, would seriously infringe privacy. Over the past few weeks, the committee has been preparing for its second and third reading of the law governing the police's access to phone information.
Police to gain access to private phone data
Shahar Ilan, Ha'aretz 8/17/2007
A Knesset committee will discuss legislation Sunday to give the police access to all Israeli fixed-line and mobile phone numbers as well as information on devices such as computers and modems. So far, no member of the Constitution, Law and Justice Committee has expressed opposition to the law. According to a Justice Ministry document, the database would be the largest legal search engine in the Western world for police use. The Association for Civil Rights in Israel (ACRI) said the establishment of the database, which would make it much easier for police to analyze wiretap data and conduct surveillance, would seriously infringe privacy. Over the past few weeks, the committee has been preparing for its second and third reading of the law governing the police's access to phone information.
Funding not renewed for Iron Dome system
Yuval Azoulay, Ha'aretz 8/17/2007
Lack of a consistent funding plan may leave the home front open to rocket and missile threats from neighboring countries, defense industry officials told Haaretz yesterday. Moreover, officials saidthe Defense Ministry has not allocated funds for Israel's primary missile-interception system for 2008. The Defense Ministry, however, said the lack of such a funding plan will not impede development. The officials said they were concerned about the absence of a regular government funding plan for the Iron Dome missile-interception project. They warned that inadequate and short-sighted budgeting may cause contractors to be unable to meet the government's deadline 20 months from now for deploying anti-ballistic rocket systems near population centers.
Act of vengance
Yossi Melman, Ha'aretz 8/15/2007
"Everyone knew about my research, including the army and the defense establishment," Prof. Ethan Rubinstein wrote in reply to an article published here last week. The article cited a new report by the counter-terrorism unit and the Israeli National Academy of Sciences stating that potentially dangerous microbes, viruses and technology are not properly safeguarded at institutions, hospitals and industrial plants, and that they may fall into hostile hands. The report's authors mentioned a study by Rubinstein and his colleagues regarding anthrax's resistance to antibiotics as an example of sensitive research that perhaps should not have been carried out in an ordinary academic institution, or at least should not have been published in a public scientific journal.
Just a security officer
Avner Cohen, Ha'aretz 8/17/2007
Amir Oren's article ("A secret guard for nuclear ambiguity," August 7) about Yehiel Horev, who is retiring as head of the Defense Ministry's security department (known by the Hebrew acronym Malmab), identified precisely the main reason for Horev's importance. The importance of Horev - and, by association, of the Malmab as an entity which he built up out of nothing - is in his being the State of Israel's Mr. Ambiguity. But the bottom line in Oren's article was outrageous: As long as Dimona nuclear reactor exists, he says, the Malmab must exist as well. The fact of the existence of Dimona is the justification for the existence of the Malmab, and of Horev's power as Israel's No. 1 guardian of the atom. This statement comes from Horev's own school of thought.
Survivors, PMO fail to reach agreement
Anshel Pfeffer, Ha'aretz 8/17/2007
Holocaust survivors failed to reach an agreement with the Prime Minister's Office in a meeting marred by discord last night. The meeting addressed government allowances for Holocaust survivors who immigrated from the former Soviet Union, the so-called "second circle." The parties had hoped to settle the final details of the agreement on the survivors' allowances, which is due to be signed Sunday by Prime Minister Ehud Olmert and the survivors. The Holocaust refugees in question fled Nazi-occupied areas, and never lived through ghettos or camps. They suffered mainly later, under the Soviet regime, and came to Israel in recent years. In previous meetings, the parties had said that NIS 300 million would be allocated to these individuals, who currently receive no special allowances.
Acting Justice Minister Unauthorized to Dismiss the Attorney-General
Palestinian Centre for Human Rights 8/16/2007
PCHR strongly condemns the decision issued by Dr. Yusef El-Mansi, the acting Justice Minister in the dismissed Palestinian Government, ordering the dismissal of the Attorney-General (AG) under the claim that the AG's legal appointment procedures were not completed. PCHR affirms that the AG worked and continues to work according to the law; and that no Justice Minister has authority over the AG. The Minister's decision is a serious infringement on the judicial system, and hinders its work. The acting Minister issued his decision on 14 August 2007. It stated that the appointment procedures of the AG were not completed in accordance with the law since the PLC did not approve the appointment prior to the AG's swearing in. The Minister relied on Article 1/107 of the Amended Basic Law for the Year 2003...
Two Palestinians killed in an Israeli military invasion to Jenin
IMEMC Staff, International Middle East Media Center 8/17/2007
Palestinian sources reported that two Palestinian youth were shot and killed in an Israeli military invasion to Kufur Dan village, west of the northern West Bank city of Jenin; one of the killed is the leader of Abu Ammar Brigades, one of the armed wings of Fateh movement. Eyewitnesses reported that troops invaded the eastern neighborhood of Kufur Dan village on Friday approximately at 6 p. m, and exchanged fire with resistance fighters of Abu Ammar Brigades, and Al Quds Brigades -- the armed wing of the Islamic Jihad. Resident Mahmoud Saleh Ashour Darweesh, 25, leader of Abu Ammar Brigades, was hit by several rounds of live ammunition and when one youth identified as Nour Mer'ey, 18, rushed to save him and move him to a different location soldiers shot him dead by several rounds of live ammunition.
Two Palestinians, including a 16-year-old, killed by IOF troops in Jenin
Palestinian Information Center 8/17/2007
JENIN, (SAMANEWS)-- Two Palestinians were killed, Friday afternoon, by IOF troops in the village of Kafr Dan to the west of the northern West Bank city of Jenin, according to Palestinian medical sources. Eyewitnesses said that IOF troops raided the eastern part of the village and clashed with a group of Palestinian fighters affiliated with the Abu Ammar Brigades (Fatah) and the Quds Brigades (Islamic Jihad). Mahmoud Ashour, 30 years old and a member of the Abu Ammar Brigades was hit with a bullet in the head and taken to Jenin's state hospital were he was announced dead. The witnesses also said that unarmed Palestinian youth confronted the invading troops and the confrontations resulted in the death of Noor Mari'I, 16 years, as a result of being hit with eight bullets all over his body. IOF troops also raided a number of homes in the village and turned them into military posts. [end]
Giuliani anti Palestinian state
BBC Online 8/17/2007
Republican presidential hopeful Rudy Giuliani has said he is not in favour of the creation of a Palestinian state, contradicting current US policy. In an essay, he said it was not in the US interest to help create a state that, he said, would support terrorism. He also said he would consider talks with Iran, so long as its rulers understood the US might be prepared to destroy Iran's nuclear infrastructure. The former New York mayor leads polls for the Republican party's nomination. Outlining his foreign policy views in the latest issue of Foreign Affairs magazine, Mr Giuliani said too much emphasis had been placed on brokering negotiations between Israel and the Palestinians. "It is not in the interest of the United States, at a time when it is being threatened by Islamist terrorists, to assist the creation of another state that will support terrorism," he wrote.
Israel and U.S./ Halloween candy
Shmuel Rosner, Ha'aretz 8/17/2007
WASHINGTON D. C. - The increase in U.S. military aid for Israel can justifiably be regarded as a failure rather than an achievement. After all, 10 years ago Jerusalem announced it would gradually eliminate its reliance on aid. But the new aid package, which was formalized yesterday in Jerusalem, proves Israel cannot be weaned from the American teat. The new aid package, albeit intended for military purposes, is as big as the United States' previous non-military aid program: $30 billion over 10 years, from 2008 through 2017. And Israel had little choice but to ask for extra funding, because the U.S. gave similar defense packages to Arab countries in the Persian Gulf. Israel, wishing to retain military supremacy, cannot allow itself to fall behind.
The Jewish (Agency) wars
Daphna Berman, Ha'aretz 8/17/2007
Nefesh B'Nefesh will bring 100,000 North American Jews to Israel by 2015, NBN Co-chairman Danny Ayalon predicted this week. He said this "ambitious" 7-year plan is "entirely doable." "Zionism would not succeed without ambition," Ayalon said recently. "We can bring 10,000 olim a year with the same number of staff we have now. We have the know-how, the expertise and the personnel. The only constraint we have is budgetary." NBN stopped receiving funding from the Jewish Agency after their agreement lapsed and their partnership soured. The dispute has received much public exposure, with representatives from both organizations trading barbs in the media in the past several weeks. NBN has begun underwriting the costs of chartering the aliyah flights, which were previously paid by the JA.
Syrian cabinet minister reiterates country does not want war
Yoav Stern, Ha'aretz 8/17/2007
Syrian cabinet minister Bouthaina Shaaban said Thursday that Syria does not want war. "We hope that war does not break out. We want to live in peace in our land and the land of our fathers," Shaaban told BBC Arabic-language radio in an interview. Speakers from Israel and Lebanon were also interviewed on the the program, which dealt with the possibility of war in the region. Shaaban, who is the Syrian minister of expatriates, harshly criticized the United States' policy of isolating Syria. "The possibility of war stems from the policy of refusing dialogue with countries," she said. She also said the millions of dollars being invested in armaments in the area could be used to stabilize the region. Despite denials and official statements, the general atmosphere in Syria is that it is on the brink of war.
Jordan to increase number of scholarships for Palestinian students
Ma'an News Agency 8/17/2007
Bethlehem – Ma'an – The Palestinian interim government has welcomed the announcement by the Jordanian government that it will increase the amount of scholarships for Palestinian students to study in Jordanian universities. The Palestinian Minister of Information Dr Riyad Al Maleki, in an exclusive interview with Ma'an said, "we welcome this donation and any other donation." Al Maleki said that the government will work on increasing the percentage of students who will take up scholarships from the Palestinian Authority or any other Arabic country, from 40% to 45% for Gaza, and to 60% for the West Bank. Al Maleki said the increase comes as a result of the difficult situation the students were enduring because of the internal clashes within the Gaza Strip.
Two Steps in one Go
Roger Cohen, MIFTAH 8/17/2007
A brief document called "Two Steps in One Go" that attempts to fast-forward Palestinian statehood has landed on the desks that matter in the Middle East and is arousing considerable interest. Written by Terje Roed-Larsen, a senior United Nations official immersed in the region for decades, the proposal envisages the creation of a Palestinian state with provisional borders followed by state-to-state negotiations on final-status issues using principles agreed before Palestine's establishment. Israelis and Palestinians might agree, for example, on the principle that the borders of Palestine would be those of 1967 adjustable by territorial swaps involving 5 percent of the land. These swaps would be the object of subsequent state-to-state talks." Palestinians are fed up with gradualism and don't believe it works,".
Guy Hever's mother 'certain he is in Syria'
Raanan Ben-Zur, YNetNews 8/17/2007
Ten years after IDF soldier's disappearance from Golan Heights, Rina Hever believes her son is still alive. 'He is being held by one of the organizations in Syria,' she says, claiming 'Olmert is comfortable remaining silent and doing nothing' - Ten years after her son, IDF soldier Guy Hever, disappearance from the Golan Heights, Rina Hever refuses to give up and still believes her son is alive. Guy Hever went missing on August 17, 1997 and was last seen and heard from at his base in the Golan Heights at 9:30 am. Many efforts have been made to find Guy since his disappearance, and his family and military sources met with defense and diplomatic bodies in Israel and abroad, including the Red Cross and the United Nations, to no avail.
Line of hope links Palestinians and Israelis
Jeremy Grange, BBC Online 8/17/2007
A special phone service linking Israelis and Palestinians, called Hello Peace, has facilitated nearly a million telephone conversations since it began operating in November 2000. As we sit talking in his office in a Jerusalem apartment block, graphic designer Rami Elhanan pauses for a moment, deep in thought, recalling the day his life changed forever. On 4 September 1997, just after three o'clock in the afternoon, a suicide bomber detonated a device in the busy Ben Yehuda Street in central Jerusalem. Among those killed by the explosion was Rami's 14-year-old daughter, Smadar, who was in town with two friends to buy textbooks for the new school term. You have the feeling that you want revenge. But revenge on whom? How many people shall I kill? For me Yousef is worth the whole Israeli people.
PM, Abbas negotiate core issues on founding Palestinian state
Barak Ravid, Ha'aretz 8/17/2007
Talks between Prime Minister Ehud Olmert and Palestinian Authority Chairman Mahmoud Abbas on a future Palestinian state are stuck on the issue of the Palestinian refugee problem, government sources in Jerusalem told Haaretz this week. Abbas is refusing to make significant concessions, the sources said. They said Abbas and Olmert have in recent weeks been negotiating a new document on the core issues of forming a Palestinian state. The one-page document has five general clauses on central issues such as the permanent borders of the future Palestinian state, the question of jurisdiction over holy sites in Jerusalem, and the Palestinian refugee problem. Olmert and Abbas have reached several understandings, but have yet to agree on actual resolutions, the sources said, adding that the two leaders will meet at the end of the month to discuss the issues.
Olim greeted by cheering soldiers, flag-waving children and a shofar
Daphna Berman, Ha'aretz 8/17/2007
NEW YORK - There was a frenzied commotion in JFK Airport's Terminal 4 this week, as 200 soon-to-be olim said their final goodbyes to the families and friends who came to see them off. Some appeared stoic while others seemed almost hysterical, with blotchy, tear-streaked skin. Cameras flashed to capture one last portrait before they boarded an El Al plane to become Israeli citizens. The almost-olim lingered over coffee and cake, reluctant to pass security and begin the flight that marked a new beginning and the end of one chapter of their lives. "Of course we will call and write," Karen Altchouler said into the phone as she boarded, wiping away tears with her sleeve. "I love you too." Altchouler has "mixed feelings" about the move, she said after the call ended.
Gov't gives Peru $20,000 for quake relief; no Israelis reported hurt
Haaretz Service and Reuters, Ha'aretz 8/17/2007
President Shimon Peres ordered his aides on Friday to examine ways Israel can assist Peru, after a powerful earthquake ravaged its central coast on Wednesday killing some 450 people. The Foreign Ministry reported Friday that it has been in contact with all the Israelis known to have been in the area of the disaster. About 50 Israelis in Peru still have not communicated with their families. No Israelis, however, are known to have been hurt in the earthquake. The 8. 0-magnitude quake struck late on Wednesday and many of its victims were poor, killed when their flimsy mud-brick homes caved in. Hospitals and morgues were overwhelmed, forcing residents to lay bodies out on city streets. Peruvian firefighters and the United Nations said the earthquake had killed at least 450 people, while civil defense authorities put the latest death toll at 437.
Israeli soccer fans go wild in Bosnia
Nadav Zenzifer, YNetNews 8/17/2007
Hapoel Tel Aviv fans light torches in celebration of goal in match with local team. Torches cause fire in stands, leading the game to be stopped for 15 minutes while Israeli fans kicked out of the stadium - BOSNIA - Israeli soccer took a turn for the worst Thursday night when Hapoel Tel Aviv fans set fire to the stands in the team's UEFA Cup qualifying match with Siroki Brijeg in Bosnia. Two were arrested and one fan was evacuated to a hospital following the incident. After gaining a 1-0 advantage in the 14th minute, Hapoel fans celebrated by lighting torches and throwing them on the field. Local ushers threw the torches back at the crowd, setting the seats in the old stadium on fire. The UEFA observer and referee immediately ordered the game come to a halt.
Electricity cut off in most of Gaza as Israel halts fuel deliveries
Agence France Presse - AFP, Daily Star 8/18/2007
GAZA: Power was cut in most of the Gaza Strip as of 1500 GMT on Friday because of a lack of fuel deliveries from Israel, the director of the Palestinian electricity company said. "At [1500 GMT], we are going to stop nearly all electricity production in Gaza due to a stop in fuel deliveries," company director Rafiq Maliha told reporters in Gaza. "We are forced to stop three out of the station's four generators," he said. Gaza has a single 140-megawatt power plant that provides some three-quarters of the territory's electricity needs. All of the fuel for the plant comes from Israel." We have not received fuel since Thursday morning," he said. "We didn't receive any today and tomorrow is Shabat for the Israelis, so there won't be any. The situation is difficult.
Electricity cut in Gaza due to lack of fuel
Hanan Greenberg and AP, YNetNews 8/17/2007
Palestinian company supplying about 25% of electricity to central Strip cuts off power after Israel closes crossing through which fuel is brought into Palestinian area. IDF spokesperson says crossing has been closed since Wednesday for security reasons which cannot be detailed - A Palestinian company supplying electricity to the central Gaza Strip on Friday evening cut off power, explaining that Israel had closed a crossing through which fuel is brought into the Palestinian area. "For two days we have not received fuel," the chairman of the Gaza Generating Company, Rafik Malikha, told a press conference in Gaza City. "The Israeli side is preventing vehicles from approaching the crossing." The Israeli army spokesman said the crossing had been closed since Wednesday for security reasons he could not detail.
Hamas and Fatah in the dock for 'audacious' new drama in Gaza City
Adel Zaanoun, Daily Star 8/18/2007
GAZA CITY: Crowds throng the hall to hear the court's decision. In the dock are Gaza's Hamas rulers and their secular rivals Fatah. The verdict, with no right of appeal, comes late, after passionate and stormy debate: "All are guilty of killing the people and the nation." But the dramatic verdict is just that - drama. The judges and the accused are all actors in a satirical play, "Watan (The Nation)," which has enjoyed great success in a land where culture is more often noticeable by its absence. More than 1,500 people flocked to the Rashad Shawa Cultural Center in Gaza to see the play, forcing organizers to add extra seats in the auditorium to meet demand." The Nation" is the work of Palestinian dramatist Said Suirki and the "trial" is tagged with the number 48.
IEC preparing for power shortages
Avi Bar-Eli, Ha'aretz 8/17/2007
The Corporation (IEC) has started negotiations with investment bank Goldman Sachs over $1 billion in financing. The IEC's board approved the move on Wednesday. As TheMarker reported last month, Goldman Sachs has offered the company a loan to finance its development budgets for 2007 and 2008. A delegation of senior bankers arrived in Israel from London six weeks ago and presented the financing plan to the IEC and the Government Companies Authority (GCA). The loan will be for 20 years. The board also approved an emergency plan to generate electricity in 2009 and 2010 at its Wednesday evening meeting. According to forecasts, Israel will suffer a shortage of electricity in those years. The plans include, inter alia, upgrading the IEC's gas turbines spread out around the country and accelerating the construction of an integrated power station in Haifa.
Israelis develop drug erasing long-term memory
Reuters, YNetNews 8/17/2007
Researchers find way to erase long-term memory in rats without damaging their brains in study that could lead to targeted drugs for people suffering from dementia - Israeli and American researchers have found a way to erase long-term memory in rats without damaging their brains in a study that could lead to targeted drugs for people suffering from dementia. The findings show long-term memories are not as secure as thought and challenge the idea they stabilize after maturing from short-term memories, said Yadin Dudai, who led the study. "Memory can be erased by applying a drug into a specific part of the brain that stores that memory," he said in a telephone interview. "Long-term memory can be erased." In the study, published on Thursday in the journal Science, the researchers fed the rats saccharine,.
The battle for Jerusalem
Shahar Ilan, Ha'aretz 8/17/2007
On August 21, 1987, the leisure and arts section of the Jerusalem weekly Kol Ha'ir appeared on the paper's front page. This was no accident. At the time, the most important events in the city were the pioneering movie screenings on Friday nights and the demonstrations supporting or opposing them. The Beit Agron theater was showing "Little Shop of Horrors" and "Body Heat," visitors to the Mapam Party's Tzavta theater could catch a show of "A Midsummer Night's Sex Comedy," and Beit Yitzhaki (also a Mapam facility) was screening "Irma la Douce." And what about the demonstrations? Activists from the city's poorer neighborhoods were planning a protest across from the Haredi (ultra-Orthodox) neighborhood of Mea She'arim. A Haredi group, meanwhile, intended to hold a demonstration in front of Beit Agron, while members.
Satmar rebbe mourns Temple, flaunts power over Zionists
Yair Ettinger, Ha'aretz 8/17/2007
Japanese tourists visiting the Mt. Scopus promenade were startled yesterday when hundreds of black-clad haredis suddenly emerged and took over the observation site. One ultra-Orthodox man wearing glasses and an embroidered silk coat started crying when he turned to face Temple Mount. He was accompanied by the crowd's mournful chanting. Someone drew a knife and made a long rent in his silk coat. Everyone in the crowd followed suit and tore their coats. The bespectacled man was Rabbi Aharon Teitelbaum, son of the late Rabbi Moshe Teitelbaum and the new spiritual leader (Admor) of the Satmar hasidic dynasty. His uncle, Rabbi Yoel Teitelbaum, the ideological leader of the anti-Zionist ultra-Orthodox hasids, wrote a book after the Six-Day War explaining the prohibition against visiting and praying at the Western Wall.
'Too marvelous to ignore'
Mirella Hodeib, Daily Star 8/18/2007
REVIEW - BEIRUT: The Pyramid Texts, which evolved into the Book of the Dead, are the oldest religious writing from ancient Egypt that are known to us today. A collection of spells and legends, the texts form the basis of much Egyptian religious theology and literature. The oldest of the Pyramid Texts were found, in the form of funerary inscriptions, on the walls inside the Pyramid of Unas in the region of Saqqara. In myriad, diverse ways, they describe the resurrection and ascension of the pharaos to the afterlife. What binds them together is their emphasis on the eternal existence of the king and their tendency to equate the sky with the realm of the afterlife. Gamal al-Ghitani's "Pyramid Texts" was first published in Arabic as "Mutun al-Ahram" in 1994.
Fadlallah accuses US of blocking attempts to end political crisis
Daily Star 8/18/2007
BEIRUT: Senior Shiite cleric Sayyed Mohammad Hussein Fadlallah accused the US Friday of "blocking any actual attempts" to forge a resolution to the 10-month-old political impasse in Lebanon. "A number of European nations who showed enthusiasm to solve the crisis and restore stability to our country have gone back on the suggestions they have made after direct and indirect pressures exercised by the US," he said during the weekly Friday sermon at the Imam Hassanayn Mosque in Haret Hreik. He added that a number of Arab countries which had earlier undertaken mediation efforts to solve the Lebanese deadlock "have also followed in the footsteps of Europeans. Fadlallah described the "rhetoric of defiance" prevailing on the Lebanese political scene as an "unhealthy sign.
Qassem: Hizbullah rejects any mandate regardless of its source
Daily Star 8/18/2007
Hizbullah's number two Sheikh Naeem Qassem said the political standoff can be summed up with one of two themes: either rejecting a US mandate over Lebanon, or accepting it. "If we, as Lebanese political forces, can reach an understanding over issues of contention, we can then stop the US mandate over Lebanon," he said in an interview with Cairo-based Al-Ahram weekly. According to Qassem, Hizbullah rejects any form of "mandate," regardless of where it comes from. The Syrian mandate over Lebanon, he said, was the result of an agreement made by the Saudis, the Syrians, the French and the Americans. "There were regional and international conditions at the time that allowed Syria to be in Lebanon. It was an international rather than an internal decision," he said.
Three months on, Lebanese army still battling Islamists
Sylvie Groult, ReliefWeb 8/17/2007
NAHR AL-BARED, Lebanon, Aug 17, 2007 (AFP) - Three months into the deadly standoff between the Lebanese army and Islamist guerrillas holed up in a refugee camp, troops are still battling to crush an unexpectedly well-armed and well-organised enemy. Located along the Mediterranean coast near the northern city of Tripoli, the Nahr al-Bared camp today is but an apocalyptic scene of twisted steel and ruins. The red and white Lebanese flag flutters here and there as a sign of the army's advance. Black and white smoke hangs over the skeletal buildings that heave at the impact of each mortar round or from the explosion of mines spread by the Fatah al-Islam fighters all over the sprawling camp. The army in the last week has resorted to air attacks in a bid to flush out the estimated 70 militants thought to still.
Saudi accuses Syria of trying to stoke regional disorder
Middle East Online 8/17/2007
RIYADH - Saudi Arabia launched a fierce attack on Syria's vice president on Thursday, accusing him of making false statements and seeking to "stoke disorder in the region," the official SPA news agency said. Recent statements by Faruq al-Shara "contain numerous lies aimed at damaging the kingdom," SPA cited a government source as saying. Shara said on Tuesday that it was "regrettable" that Saudi Arabia had not attended a meeting in Damascus last week on the security situation in Iraq, which was attended by US and French delegations. "The kingdom never refused any meeting aimed at strengthening Arab ranks... the problem lies in the (Syrian) positions which are designed to stoke disorder and trouble in the region," the Saudi source said. Relations between Riyadh and Damascus were strained after the Hezbollah-led.
Saudi Arabia hits back at Syria in escalating spat
Daily Star 8/18/2007
Saudi Arabia has rejected as "lies and fallacies" high-level Syrian accusations that its role in the Middle East was waning, signaling a new low in diplomatic ties already strained over Lebanon and Iraq. "The government of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia has followed with great surprise the distasteful statements recently made by [Syrian Foreign Minister Farouk] al-Sharaa, which included numerous lies and fallacies aimed at harming us," said the statement, quoting an unidentified official source and carried by the official Saudi Press Agency SPA late Thursday. The unusually scathing statement by the conservative Muslim kingdom comes at a time when Saudi Arabia is trying to bolster its regional role. "Talk about the paralysis of the kingdom's Arab and Islamic role does not come from a rational and prudent person, as this role is well known to everyone.
IRAQ: Between the Two Rivers, Lack of Water Kills
Ali al-Fadhily, Inter Press Service 8/17/2007
BAGHDAD, Aug 17(IPS) - The collapse of Iraq's infrastructure has created a worsening water crisis that is killing untold numbers of Iraqis. Iraq, with its famous Tigris and Euphrates rivers that run the length of the country, is now unable to provide drinking water to most of its people. "The two rivers are still there, great as they always were, and flowing all through the year," chief engineer Ahmad Salman of the Baghdad Water Authority told IPS. "Yet Iraqis are thirsty, and we are ashamed of being engineers in the service. We have simply failed to provide our people with half of the drinking water they need." Much of the country is suffering severe lack of water, and the small quantities supplied are not good for human use. "I analysed the water supplied by the water authority, and the result.
Iraq bomb death toll reaches 344
BBC Online 8/17/2007
The governor of the Sinjar region of north-western Iraq has said 344 people died in Tuesday's multiple bomb attacks against the minority Yazidi community. He said another 400 people had been injured by the blasts and that he believed 70 others were still buried in the rubble of destroyed buildings. About 600 local residents had been made homeless, the governor added. The attacks on the two Yazidi villages near Sinjar were among the deadliest in Iraq since the US-led invasion in 2003. Elsewhere, the US military in Iraq said it had killed 13 suspected insurgents and one civilian in a clash near the town of Tarmiya, north of Baghdad. The Americans said they had been targeting a cell leader of the al-Qaeda in Iraq militant group. The US military said the raid came after the death of one of its soldiers,.
Iraq's Sunni Arabs slam new Shiite-Kurdish alliance
Daily Star 8/18/2007
Leaders of Iraq's disenchanted Sunni Arab community on Friday slammed the new Shiite and Kurdish alliance formed to salvage Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki's national unity government. Maliki and President Jalal Talabani, however, made fresh attempts on Friday to win support from members of the former elite. The National Concord Front, the main Sunni Arab political bloc in the country's 275-member Parliament, called the new tie-up between the two Shiite and two Kurdish parties a "futile" exercise. On Thursday, Talabani and Maliki announced the forming of the alliance which brought together Shiite Dawa party and Supreme Iraqi Islamic Council and the Kurdish factions of Patriotic Union of Kurdistan and Kurdish Democratic Party. The National Concord Front led by Sunni Vice President Tareq al-Hashemi's Iraqi Islamic.
Islamic scholars denounce sectarian violence in Iraq
Middle East Online 8/17/2007
DUBAI - Forty Muslim clerics and religious scholars from different sects on Thursday denounced sectarian violence in Iraq and said the killing of any innocent person was taboo. "God has forbidden the killing of innocents whether they be Muslim, Christian or otherwise. All who take life without legitimate justification commit a major crime and an atrocity before God," they said in a statement in English released in the United Arab Emirates. "Islamic doctrine does not allow excommunication of any Muslim who prays in the direction of Mecca," the scholars said in a reference to Sunni extremists who engage in "takfeer" -- branding other Muslims as infidels in order to legitimise violence against them. "All blood that is spilt as a result of religious edicts that advocate excommunication is considered a criminal act of murder," the statement said.
Warrant out for Saddam daughter
BBC Online 8/17/2007
Interpol has circulated an arrest warrant for the oldest daughter of former Iraqi leader Saddam Hussein. Raghad Saddam Hussein, who fled the 2003 US-led invasion, is accused of terrorism and other offences. She helped organise the legal defence of her father, who was hanged last December for crimes against humanity. Last year Iraq put Raghad and her mother, Sajida, on a list of its most wanted fugitives, alleging they supported the insurgency in Iraq. The Iraqi Interior Ministry told the BBC Interpol had notified member countries on Friday. Before her father was executed last year, Raghad asked for his body to be buried temporarily in Yemen until, she said, such time as coalition forces were expelled from Iraq. The Jordanian authorities said last year that she was living in their country as an asylum seeker, but it is not clear where she is at present.
Netherlands agrees to host Hariri tribunal
Agence France Presse - AFP, Daily Star 8/18/2007
UNITED NATIONS: An international court to try suspects in the assassination of former Lebanese Premier Rafik Hariri will be based in the Netherlands, UN officials said Friday. Dutch Prime Minister Jan Peter Balkenende had written to UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon agreeing to host the special court at the UN's request, UN spokeswoman Michele Montas said. "The secretary general was pleased to receive on August 15 a letter from Prime Minister Jan Peter Balkenende informing him that the government of the Netherlands is favorably disposed to hosting the special tribunal for Lebanon," she said. The tribunal aims to try suspects in the 2005 assassination of Hariri, killed with 22 others in a massive explosion targeting his car. On Thursday, Dutch Foreign Minister Maxime Verhagen hinted his country was ready to host the special tribunal.
Maliki seeks a lifeline in Syria
Sami Moubayed, Asia Times 8/18/2007
DAMASCUS - Iraqi Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki is scheduled to arrive in Damascus for a two-day visit on Monday. This will be his first visit to the Syrian capital - where he lived as a refugee in the 1990s during the Saddam Hussein years - since becoming prime minister in April 2006. Maliki is due to meet with Syrian President Bashar al-Assad, Prime Minister Mohammad Naji Otari, Parliament Speaker Mahmud al-Abrash, Vice President Farouk al-Shara and Foreign Minister Walid al-Moualem. They are to discuss security and the political situation in Iraq. Syria, which was reluctant at first to welcome the Iraqi leader, finally approved his visit, stressing that talks must deal with reconciliation, fair and balanced political representation of the Sunnis, amending the de-Ba'athification laws and articles in the Iraqi.
Saudis nip extremism in the bud
Christopher Boucek, Asia Times 8/18/2007
For the past three years, the Saudi government has been quietly engaged in an ambitious strategy to combat violent Islamist extremist sympathies through an innovative prisoner re-education and rehabilitation program. After the May 2003 Riyadh compound bombings, the regime adopted a series of security measures to fight Islamist terrorism. In addition to the aggressive counter-terrorism steps taken by the government, Saudi officials have also sought to combat the support of extremist ideology in the kingdom through a series of less-known "soft" counter-terrorism measures aimed at combating the appeal of extremist takfiribeliefs. (Takfiris hold that Muslims who hold anything less than an extreme view of Islam that is intolerant of non-Muslims are themselves no better than kafirs - infidels.
Welch plans visits to France, Libya and Oman next week
Agence France Presse - AFP, Daily Star 8/18/2007
WASHINGTON: The top American diplomat for Middle East affairs will travel to France, Libya and Oman next week for discussions on a wide range of issues, the State Department said Thursday. Assistant Secretary of State for Near Eastern Affairs David Welch's first stop will be Paris, where his topics of discussions with French counterparts will include Syria, which has been implicated in a UN probe over the 2005 murder of former Lebanese Prime Minister Rafik Hariri, and efforts to resolve the Palestinian question, the department said. They will talk about "the US-French partnership on supporting Lebanon, supporting [efforts to] bringing to justice the killers of former Prime Minister Hariri," said department spokesman Sean McCormack. The Netherlands plans to host the international court that will try suspects in Hariri's murder.
UN could debate fresh sanctions on Iran
Middle East Online 8/17/2007
UNITED NATIONS - A third UN resolution imposing sanctions on Iran over its controversial nuclear program could come as early as September, diplomats said as Washington raised the heat on the Islamic republic. Five months after the last round of sanctions was approved, three of the five permanent members of the UN Security Council -- United States, France and Britain -- support such a move, while Russia and China are more hesitant. With resolutions 1737 (December 2006) and 1747 (March), the Security Council imposed then increased sanctions on Iran for refusing to halt sensitive uranium enrichment activities. The sanctions aim to convince Tehran to stop enriching uranium and building a heavy-water reactor in Arak, and to cooperate fully with the inspectors from the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA).
Articles
The one clear solution
Azmi Bishara, Al-Ahram Weekly 8/16/2007
A workable and just solution in Palestine is predicated on one principle, tested in South Africa: side with racism or be against.
The world looks different from the southern tip of Africa. There, in that country that liberated itself from a colonialist apartheid regime a decade ago, the people have embarked on a bold venture to build a nation. They have a sophisticated democratic constitution that officially recognises 11 languages within the framework of a multi- ethnic, multi-tribal, multi-religious civil polity founded on the concept of equal citizenship. This constitution embodies different aims and different priorities. It embodies a revolution that has transformed itself into a state, not only by means of the fight until victory but also by means of the arts of negotiation and compromise that made the transition possible.
Some believe that compromise went too far. They say that while the African National Congress (ANC) won the right to rule, it failed to win effective economic and political power. The descendants of the white settlers, indeed the very children of the old order, still control the nation's major companies and the bulk of the media. There are still gross disparities in land ownership and standards of living, and chronic poverty among non-whites. The government is still encumbered by debts from the former regime and it is obliged to abide by all international agreements to which that regime committed itself, including those it signed with Israel.
On the other hand, there is no denying that there is a growing African middle class and that the South Africa is gradually changing in many other ways -- and radically so.
In South Africa, the victims of apartheid had to suffice with the confessions and pleas for forgiveness offered by their oppressors before the Truth and Reconciliation Commission. But those who issued the orders that led to crimes against humanity and those who carried out these orders with excessive zeal did not escape punishment. Still, the commission was the result of a spirit of compromise. In fact, some attempted to take advantage of this spirit and stretch it as far as they could. They held that the violence perpetrated by the ANC resistance should be treated no differently to the violence perpetrated by members of the white regime and, therefore, that ANC officials responsible for actions that led to the death of civilians should be brought to justice. More recently, there was even debate over whether the names of white "victims" should be etched alongside the names of the actual martyrs of the resistance on the liberation monument that would be erected in a large park in Pretoria. Such arguments are clearly indicative of a bid on the part of the remnants of the former regime to exploit the nation's historic breakthrough to re- write history. Their intent is to promote the idea that there had existed some kind of parity between the oppressor and the oppressed and to recast the victims and victimisers as equally empowered parties. To me, nothing could be more guaranteed to keep wounds open and to court losing battles.
A Year After Israel's Second Lebanon War
Jonathan Cook, ZNet 8/16/2007
This week marks a year since the end of hostilities now officially called the Second Lebanon war by Israelis. A month of fighting -- mostly Israeli aerial bombardment of Lebanon, and rocket attacks from the Shia militia Hizbullah on northern Israel in response -- ended with more than 1,000 Lebanese civilians and a small but unknown number of Hizbullah fighters dead, as well as 119 Israeli soldiers and 43 civilians. When Israel and the United States realised that Hizbullah could not be bombed into submission, they pushed a resolution, 1701, through the United Nations. It placed an expanded international peacekeeping force, UNIFIL, in south Lebanon to keep Hizbullah in check and try to disarm its few thousand fighters. But many significant developments since the war have gone unnoticed, including several that seriously put in question Israel's account of what happened last summer. This is old ground worth revisiting for that reason alone. The war began on 12 July, when Israel launched waves of air strikes on Lebanon after Hizbullah killed three soldiers and captured two more on the northern border. (A further five troops were killed by a land mine when their tank crossed into Lebanon in hot pursuit.) Hizbullah had long been warning that it would seize soldiers if it had the chance, in an effort to push Israel into a prisoner exchange. Israel has been holding a handful of Lebanese prisoners since it withdrew from its two-decade occupation of south Lebanon in 2000.
No Way around Conciliation
Jordan Times - Editorial, MIFTAH 8/17/2007
o much for the only democracy in the Arab world. Having experimented with real, representative and fair elections, the Palestinian Authority, or the part that is controlled by Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas, has announced that in effect it will not allow Hamas, the victors in the last elections, to take part in any new elections.
In a presidential decree yesterday, the Palestinian electoral law has been changed so that candidates for both legislative and presidential elections must "respect" the political programme of the PLO and previously signed agreements between Israel and the PA.
In other words, Palestinian politicians must now be fully paid-up members of the two-state solution as defined by the Oslo accords. Not only do Hamas and Islamic Jihad fall foul of the law, anyone, and this includes many Palestinian intellectuals and independents who believe Oslo was a trap, and everything since has been proof of that, will walk the wrong side of the line.
The law is problematic in the extreme. It stymies Palestinian options and robs Palestinians of genuine choices. It means that Palestinians will, in essence, only now be able to vote covering a few percentage points of the West Bank with regard to the thing that really matters to them: how to achieve statehood and freedom.
Arab League Should Play a Key Role in Bush Summit
Francis Matthew, MIFTAH 8/17/2007
The Arab League is conspicuous by its absence in seeking to take the political lead as the Arab world struggles with some of the largest challenges it has faced for decades.
The future of Iraq hangs in the balance as the Nouri Al Maliki government struggles to find new coalition partners; Iran continues to impose its renewed strength on the region, both in the nuclear sphere and in Iraq; and Palestine faces the horrors of a divided political leadership as Israel and the US administration prepare for President George W. Bush's autumn summit on the Middle East.
Not only is the Arab League silent, but there is little feeling across the region of any need for the Arab nations to plan how to take the political initiative on these issues. Individual countries are very active where they have special concerns, but as a group the Arab states seem to have run out of their collective energy.
Of course, it is hard for the Arab League to take the initiative on any of the issues such as Iraq, Iran, Darfur and others, where there is no formal Arab position, but that cannot be said about Palestine.
Arabs in distress
Nazir Majali, Ha'aretz 8/17/2007
Two leading figures spoke out last week in a way that is hurtful to the Arab public in Israel. The first is "everyone's" President Shimon Peres and the second is Public Security Minister Avi Dichter. In the president's name, a goo
0 Have Your Say!:
Post a Comment