Scores of settlers takeover farm lands of Palestinian villagers near Bethlehem
By: Najeep Faraj, International Middle East Media Center 8/6/2007
Scores of Israeli right wing settlers takeover lands that belongs to Palestinian farmers from the village of Ertass south of Bethlehem city in the southern part of the West Bank, on Sunday evening. Witnesses told IMEMC. org that armed setters arrived to the lands with tents and building supplies and started to build a settlement on the Palestinians farmers's lands, the farmers who own the lands and villagers of Ertass rushed to the area, a scuffle took place between the two groups, no injuries reported. Shortly after massive Israeli troops arrived to the area and forced the villagers to leave after announcing the location as a closed military zone.... Khaled Al Azza the head of the Lands defense committee in Bethlehem city accused the Israeli army of working with the setters and helping them to takeover the...
Soldiers steal life-savings, beat women, loot homes; Ma'an reveals Israeli violations during incursions in Gaza
Ma'an News Agency 8/5/2007
Gaza – Ma'an – Invading Israeli soldiers steal the life-savings of Palestinians, physically assault women and loot homes, reveal eyewitnesses. In a new report, Ma'an investigates Israeli violations against Palestinians in the Gaza Strip. Palestinian citizens living in areas close to the eastern border of the Gaza Strip, especially the Sufa area, east of Rafah, and Al Fukhari, south of Khan Younis, areas surrounding Al Maghazi refugee camp and the Shajaiya area, east of Gaza City, informed Ma'an that Israeli soldiers have been looting Palestinian property and beating citizens including women. Local citizen Abu Suleiman sent a letter to Ma'an which read, "The Israeli soldiers ordered me to open the front door to my home in Al Fukhari. They then beat my wife and stole her gold, before asking me where my money was kept.
Israeli forces botch assassination attempt of a DFLP fighter and injure several civilians
Ma'an News Agency 8/5/2007
Gaza – Ma'an – The National Resistance Brigades of the Democratic Front for the Liberation of Palestine (DFLP) announced that one of its operatives escaped an Israeli assassination attempt on Saturday evening. The brigades said that an Israeli fighter jet launched a rocket at a car in which a group of combatants was traveling on Salah Addin Street in Gaza City. In a statement issued by the brigades, they said that the group was targeted whilst on a military mission, adding that many Palestinians were injured in the Israeli air raid. [end]
Hamas asks Abbas to halt his all-out war against the Movement in the WB
Palestinian Information Center 8/5/2007
NABLUS, (PIC)-- The Hamas Movement on Sunday held PA chief Mahmoud Abbas fully responsible for 810 attacks against the Movement since mid June till today and urged him to check the rampant security, political and educational chaos in the West Bank. A statement by the Movement called on Abbas to release the kidnapped Hamas leaders, cadres and supporters atop of whom came Ahmed Doula, who started a hunger strike on Friday and refrained from drinking water as of today Sunday. Hamas held Abbas fully responsible for his life. Despite all the slogans, the PA security apparatuses in Ramallah are still pursuing a systematic campaign of arrests against Hamas cadres and supporters in the West Bank, the statement underlined.
U.S. diplomat Burns to arrive in Israel on Wednesday for high level talks on Iran
Barak Ravid, Ha'aretz 8/5/2007
Top U.S. diplomat Nicholas Burns will arrive in Israel on Wednesday for a round of high level discussions on Iran's nuclear program. The under secretary of state for political affairs is charged with the issue of the Islamic Republic's disputed nuclear program, and will meet with Prime Minister Ehud Olmert, Foreign Minister Tzipi Livni and Defense Minister Ehud Barak. In addition, he will hold talks with Mossad intelligence service head Meir Dagan and officials in the Israel Atomic Energy Commission. Another issue on Burns' agenda during his stay will be the recent U.S. pledge to increase military aid by NIS 3 billion annually. Burns and his team will meet officials in charge of distributing the promised funds, such as Israel Bank head Stanley Fisher and representatives of various ministries.
Hamdona appeals for ending Shukri's 18 years of solitary confinement
Palestinian Information Center 8/5/2007
RAMALLAH, (PIC)-- The prisoners' studies center has called on legal institutions and human right organizations to save the life of Palestinian prisoner Ahmed Shukri who has been held in Israeli jails for 18 years in complete isolation. Ra'fat Hamdona, director of the center, said that the prisoner managed to send him a message asking him to campaign for an end to such a condition, which Shukri described as "hell". Hamdona said that Shukri, who is described by Israel as one of the most dangerous security prisoners, should be transferred to central prisons and should mingle with others after 18 years of total isolation especially as he suffers from a number of diseases. Shukri is serving a life sentence for killing an Israeli settler and for attempting to steer a bus into a valley but the operation failed and he was arrested since 1989.
Prisoner in PA jail declares water strike
Ameen Abu Wardeh, International Middle East Media Center 8/6/2007
Hamas leader, Ahmad Dola, who imprisoned by the Palestinian Security forces in Nablus declared that he will not drink water unless he is released. Dola has declared hunger strike on Friday to protest his arrest. He was summoned to be interviewed by one of the PA security forces on July 26, and was held in jail, but was promised to be released after 24 hours. Dola's wife held the Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas responsible if her husband is harmed because of the strike. Dola was previously arrested by the PA in early July, and then he was released after he was on hunger strike for 20 days in a row. However, the security forces arrested him again 4 days after his release. [end]
Hamas detained leader on hunger strike in PA security jails
Palestinian Information Center 8/5/2007
NABLUS, (PIC)-- Ahmed Doula, one of the Hamas political leaders in the West Bank, has gone on a hunger strike since Friday and on Sunday he announced he would stop drinking water in protest over his abduction at the hands of PA security apparatuses. Doula was kidnapped for the second time on 26/7/2006 after he was summoned by those apparatuses on a promise of releasing him within 24 hours but he was retained since then in jail. The wife of Doula held PA chief Mahmoud Abbas and his security apparatuses responsible for the life of her husband. She warned of his deteriorating health condition, recalling that he lost 20 kilograms of his weight in the first period of abduction and detention at the hands of those same apparatuses. She also said that her husband is held in solitary confinement under very harsh incarceration conditions and is deprived of visits.
Israel relents on little girl struck down by war
Uzi Mahnaimi, Jerusalem, Sunday Times of London 8/5/2007
A Palestinian girl paralysed from the neck down when an Israeli missile struck her family's car has won a court victory over the Israeli army. Marya Aman, 5, whose plight moved Sunday Times readers to donate £17,000 earlier this year, has been granted the temporary right to remain in Israel to receive life-saving treatment for her injuries. An interim injunction issued by the Israeli High Court last week blocked plans by Ehud Barak, the Israeli defence minister, to move Marya to the West Bank, depriving her of specialised medical care available only in Israel. In a letter to Hamdi, Marya's father, the Israeli defence ministry refused to grant them residency status and demanded that Marya be moved for treatment to Ramallah in the West Bank, far from her family in Gaza. The next stage of Marya's battle to stay in Israel will be fought before three High Court judges next month.
Israeli forces erect new checkpoint in Tulkarem
Ma'an News Agency 8/5/2007
Tulkarem – Ma'an – Israeli occupying forces erected a new checkpoint on Sunday morning, at Baqa al-Sharqyia Illar junction, north of the West Bank city of Tulkarem. Local residents said that security procedures at Anabta checkpoint, east of Tulkarem, had become rigorous on Sunday morning. Ma'an's reporter quoted security sources as saying that the Israeli forces said the military procedures were put in place more than a month ago to protect the area and investigate local citizens. The procedures have led to huge tail-backs of vehicles at the checkpoints. [end]
More stranded Palestinians return to Gaza
Ma'an News Agency 8/5/2007
Gaza – Ma'an – Transporting of the Palestinians stranded at Rafah Crossing, through Al Awja Crossing to Erez Crossing, continued on Sunday. Head of the Palestinian coordination, Hani Jabbour, said that the group transported was the sixth group and will include 1,200 Palestinians. The number relocated to Gaza so far is 2,400, of an estimated 6,000 Palestinians who were stranded at Rafah Crossing. 13 truck-loads of flour, mounting to 235 tonnes, arrived in Rafah from the Egyptian Red Crescent in order to support the Palestinians in the Gaza Strip [end]
Eriekat: Abbas-Olmert Meeting not confirmed yet
Rashid Hilal, International Middle East Media Center 8/6/2007
Dr. Saeb Eriekat, head of the negotiations department at the Palestinian Liberation Organization, that the meeting scheduled for Monday between the Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas and the Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert is not confirmed yet, saying that talks are still ongoing in this issue. Apparently, the location of the meeting is the reason behind the delay in the confirmation. "The Palestinian Authority hopes that the meeting will be held in Jericho, however the Israelis said they will discuss this issue," Eriekat added. He said the meeting will focus on "political negotiations" pointing that the case of the Palestinian fighters who were deported from the Church of the Nativity in Bethlehem will be a priority. A number of Palestinians from Bethlehem were deported to several European countries...
Jericho to host Abbas-Olmert meeting ahead of further talks
Compiled by Daily Star staff, Daily Star 8/6/2007
Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas and Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert will meet on Monday in the West Bank, officials said, to begin preparing for a US-called Middle East peace conference later this year. "The meeting will happen tomorrow in Jericho," Nabil Amr, a political adviser to Abbas, told AFP in the first official confirmation of the encounter. A senior Israeli official also confirmed the location and date of the talks. It will be the first time in years that such a high-level meeting has taken place in the Palestinian territories. Nearly all previous Abbas-Olmert meetings have taken place in Occupied Jerusalem, where the two leaders last met on July 16. The encounter follows last week's visit to the region by US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice, who was laying the groundwork for an international...
Israeli Arab group calls on Abbas to renew dialogue with Hamas
Yoav Stern, Ha'aretz 8/6/2007
A top Israeli Arab group on Sunday urged Palestinian Authority Chairman Mahmoud Abbas and his Fatah movement to renew ties with Hamas, severed last June when the Islamic group forcibly took over the Gaza Strip. In a Ramallah meeting with Abbas, the Higher Arab Monitoring Committee called on Abbas to create the conditions that will bring about the cessation of open hostilities between Palestinian factions. The committee's chairman, Shawki Khatib, and other members expressed the "pain of the Palestinian public in Israel" over the infighting in the Palestinian territories. In response, Abbas reiterated his stance that Hamas must first apologize for its actions in Gaza and restore the status quo that existed in the Strip prior to its takeover.
Girl 'raised from dead' after Israeli air strike
Marwan Naamani, Daily Star 8/6/2007
BAZURIYE: One year ago, Dalia Hussein was just an ordinary little girl in southern Lebanon. She worked hard at school and showed a particular talent for maths. But then Israel bombed her home and her family feared the worst - until a miraculous stroke of luck saw her "raised" from the dead. Now seven years old, she is back home for the first time in 10 months, still severely handicapped despite extensive treatment at a hospital in Italy. On August 8, 2006, Dalia and her family were hit by an Israeli air strike on the village of Ghaziyeh, north of Tyre, where they had sought refuge from Israel's destructive campaign. "It was one o'clock. Dalia had gone with her father, her brother and her sister to buy some yoghurt for lunch from a shop in the village," recalls her mother, Alia Deeb.
Resistance fighters attack Israeli targets in retaliation for assassinations of Palestinians
Ma'an News Agency 8/5/2007
Gaza – Ma'an – The An Nasser Salah Addin Brigades of the Popular Resistance Committees said on Sunday that they launched four homemade projectiles at the Israeli town of Ashkelon. The brigades issued a statement declaring that the operation was "part of the retaliation for Israeli aggression, crimes and assassinations of the Palestinian people." The Al Quds Brigades of Islamic Jihad said that they launched a projectile at the Israeli military post near Erez Crossing between Israel and Gaza. The Al Quds Brigades issued a similar statement announcing that their attack was a just reprisal for Israeli attacks on Palestinians. The Al Mujahideen Brigades, a military group formerly affiliated to Fatah but currently independent, announced responsibility for launching a homemade projectile at Ashkelon.
Spanish FM delivers 'positive message' from Syria for Olmert
Barak Ravid, Ha'aretz 8/5/2007
Spanish Foreign Minister Miguel Moratinos recently requested a meeting with Prime Minister Ehud Olmert in order to convey a "positive message" from Syrian President Bashar Assad. Moratinos returned several days ago from a visit to the Syrian capital, where he met privately for 45 minutes with Assad, and discussed the possibility of renewing negotiations with Israel. According to sources who accompanied Moratinos, and who passed on information to their Israeli counterparts, the meeting between the senior Spanish official and Assad was "excellent." Moratinos, who had served as special European Union representative to the Middle East, reportedly relayed to Israel that he had heard interesting ideas from the Syrian leader regarding talks with Israel.
West Bank officials are responsible for Israeli blackmailing at Al Awja Crossing, says Haniyeh ally
Ma'an News Agency 8/5/2007
Gaza – Ma'an – Head of Haniyeh's office, Dr Mohammad Al Madhoun, said on Sunday that officials in the West Bank are responsible for deteriorating conditions and the consequences of the use of Al Awja Crossing as an entry point for the stranded Palestinians. Al Madhoun blamed the West Bank officials for agreements which led to "the blackmailing of citizens in order to cooperate with Israeli intelligence." Al Madhoun continued, "This is what Haniyeh's government warned of and what has happened, it seems that others are disinterested in the events at the crossing." The head of Haniyeh's office also said that what the Palestinians are facing at the crossing is "the responsibility of those who rejected the use of the Rafah Crossing for political reasons and accept the policy of humiliation of citizens.
Haneyya's gov't holds Abbas responsible for blackmail at crossings
Palestinian Information Center 8/5/2007
GAZA, (PIC)-- The caretaker government headed by premier Ismail Haneyya held PA chief Mahmoud Abbas fully responsible for the serious repercussions that may result from the blackmail and compromise the Palestinian returnees to the Gaza Strip are subjected to by Israeli intelligence at the Awja and Beit Hanoun crossings." We hold the officials in the West Bank morally and nationally responsible for all serious consequences that may arise from the blackmail and compromise the Palestinian citizens returning to the Gaza Strip are subjected to at the Awja or Beit Hanoun crossings in order to collaborate with Israeli intelligence agencies Mossad and Shabak and to provide information about Palestinian resistance leaders in the Gaza Strip," Dr Mohammed Al-Madhoun, the director of Haneyya's office announced...
Israeli authorities release Palestinian youth after three-and-a-half years in jail
Ma'an News Agency 8/5/2007
Salfit – Ma'an – The Israeli occupation authorities on Sunday released Palestinian prisoner 19-year-old Tamir Masoud Khweira after three-and-a-half years in detention in Israeli jails. Khweira was arrested in March 2004 from Nablus and was subjected to harsh interrogation, then 41 months imprisonment, most of which he spent at a youth detention centre at Tel Mond, in Israel. [end]
Taha: Attacks, arrests in Gaza, WB target eliminating resistance
Palestinian Information Center 8/5/2007
GAZA, (PIC)-- Ayman Taha, one of the Hamas political leaders in the Gaza Strip, warned on Sunday that the Israeli attacks on the Gaza Strip coupled with the PA security apparatuses' atrocities in the West Bank aim at eliminating Palestinian resistance. He opined, in a press release, that the IOF aggressions on the Gaza Strip are not separate from what is going on in the West Bank at the hands of PA chief Mahmoud Abbas's security apparatuses. The Abbas-appointed Fayyad government is working to outlaw resistance against occupation to please the USA and the Hebrew state in return for crumbs, Taha elaborated. He noted that American secretary of state Condoleezza Rice extended arms to Fayyad to wipe out resistance." The Zionist project in the Arab region targets annihilating all liberation movements and resistance factions," he said. [end]
Palestinian police in Jenin launch campaign 'Against what is Against the Law'
Ma'an News Agency 8/5/2007
Jenin – Ma'an – The Palestinian police and security forces in Jenin have destroyed a number of unregistered or illegal Palestinian vehicles in the area, as part of their campaign 'Against what is Against the Law'. The demolished vehicles included cars and motorbikes. At the same time the police confiscated amounts of fireworks and drugs. Palestinian colonel and head of the police force in Jenin, Waseem Al Jayossy, said that the security services and police in the governorate confiscated 15 illegal cars in two hours on Sunday and destroyed them in the city centre. [end]
Report: Some 300 gunmen accept Israel's amnesty deal
Associated Press, YNetNews 8/5/2007
Palestinian security official says all but three al-Aqsa Martyrs' Brigades gunmen surrender weapons, swear off violence as part of deal with Israel - More than 300 West Bank gunmen have so far surrendered their weapons as part of an amnesty deal with Israel, a senior Palestinian security official said Sunday. The gunmen included in the deal are members of the al-Aqsa Martyrs' Brigades, a violent offshoot of moderate President Mahmoud Abbas' Fatah movement. Al-Aqsa was founded at the outbreak of the second Palestinian uprising against Israeli occupation in 2000, and its members carried out scores of shooting attacks. After the fall of Gaza to the Islamic militant Hamas in June, Abbas said he would no longer permit militias to operate in the West Bank, a Fatah stronghold.
Palestinian security services detain three students from An Najah University
Ma'an News Agency 8/5/2007
Nablus – Ma'an – The Hamas movement revealed that the Palestinian security services on Saturday evening arrested three students from the Islamic bloc at An Najah University in Nablus. Hamas said that the three students were arrested after raids on a number of university residences in the area. The detainees are from Tulkarem governorate and were identified as Saadah Ghanim, Abdullah Abu Shams and Shadi Atili. Two weeks ago violence erupted at An Najah University between members of the Fatah bloc and members of the Islamic movement. The clashes led to one death and several injuries among students. [end]
Palestinian and Israeli officials prepare for Abbas-Olmert meeting
Ma'an News Agency 8/5/2007
Jerusalem – Ma'an – A meeting of Palestinian and Israeli officials is to take place on Sunday in order to prepare for dialogue between Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas and Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert on Monday. The two sides will discuss which issues should be addressed in the meeting between the two leaders. On Saturday Palestinian sources said that Olmert and Abbas will meet in the West Bank city of Jericho and will address 'political issues'. [end]
Shabak provisionally says Olmert can enter West Bank for Abbas meeting
Ma'an News Agency 8/5/2007
Bethlehem – Ma'an - Contrary to previous meetings arranged between the two leaders, Shabak has allowed Israeli Prime Minister Olmert to enter the West Bank to meet Palestinian President Abbas in Jericho on Monday. During the years of Palestinian intifada (uprising), interior intelligence agency, Shabak, advised Israeli prime ministers not to enter West Bank cities, saying that they may be attacked by Palestinians. Israeli sources expect Abbas and Olmert to discuss coordination efforts for US President Bush's planned international peace conference in autumn. Israeli sources did not eliminate the possibility that Shabak may alter its position and prevent Olmert from travelling to Jericho for security reasons. If Olmert is permitted to enter the area, it will be his first visit in six years.
Ex-Shin Beth official: Letting PM meet Abbas in Jericho is 'irresponsible'
Yuval Azoulay, Ha'aretz 8/6/2007
Former head of VIP security in the Shin Bet Avraham Rotem said Sunday the mission of protecting Prime Minister Ehud Olmert while he is in Jericho is expected to be a nerve-wracking experience "After all, Israel will not occupy Jericho for the sake of this visit," noted Rotem. "This is a very complex operation. It is like President George Bush deciding to land in the middle of Afghanistan tomorrow. It seems irresponsible to me," he added. Witnessing any of the various events in Tel Aviv or Jerusalem attended by the prime minister is enough for one to get an idea of the complexity, challenge and cost of safeguarding VIPs. Guests are required to come hours before the event, undergo a detailed security check, including going through metal detectors and questioning, roads are often sealed off, and sometimes entire...
Report: Egypt detains Sudanese woman who tried to enter Israel
The Associated Press, Ha'aretz 8/5/2007
Egyptian police detained a Sudanese woman as she tried to cross the border into Israel with her 2-year-old daughter on Sunday, Egypt's official news agency reported. Police identified the woman as Merry Demis Locko, 27, a Sudanese refugee from the war-torn Darfur area, the Middle East News Agency said. The arrest comes three days after Channel 10 television reported that Egyptian soldiers murdered three Sudanese refugees, beating two to death in front of horrified Israel Defense Forces soldiers, screening what it said was army surveillance video and interviews with the soldiers. Egyptian police told The Associated Press that authorities arrested two Sudanese refugees Thursday, seriously injuring one when he scuffled with police. Without specifically mentioning the incident, a spokesman for Egypt's Foreign...
Syria wary of Israeli attack, says IDF
Attila Somfalvi, YNetNews 8/5/2007
Head of research in Military Intelligence says Syria keeps watchful eye on Israel, warns next Hamas-Fatah clash might sweep West Bank - The rift between Hamas and Fatah shows no signs of improvement despite efforts to resume negotiations, Brigadier General Yossi Baidatz, head of the research division of Military Intelligence, told the cabinet Sunday. "The next clash between the two might sweep the West Bank," he said adding "we've seen several violent clashes between Fatah and Hamas so far"¦ Fatah are working to reduce Hamas' reach within the West Bank, but they rely heavily on IDF presence in the area." According to Baidatz, Hamas' strength in the Gaza Strip continues to grow as the organization, which wishes to be recognized as a legitimate regime, pays the wages of all those who were cut off the Palestinian Authority's payroll.
MI: Syria increases military activity for fear of an Israeli attack
Barak Ravid, Ha'aretz 8/6/2007
The head of the research division of Military Intelligence, Brigadier General Yossi Baidatz, told lawmakers Sunday that Syria believes that Israel is planning to attack, and has therefore increased its military activity. Baidatz said, however, that the Syrians are reluctant to go to war, and therefore are not expected to initiate it. While the Syrian army has not altered its deployment along the Golan Heights, it has increased its activity in order to prepare for a possible Israeli attack, he added. Speaking to the cabinet during its weekly meeting, Baidatz said Syria is closely following the activity on the Israeli side and is highly sensitive to Israel Defense Forces action in the Golan, he said. Baidatz said the rival Palestinian factions Hamas and Fatah would likely clash in the West Bank very soon.
Sinai tops PMO's terror alert list for holiday season
Barak Ravid, Ha'aretz 8/6/2007
The Sinai Peninsula topped the list of terror alerts published Prime Minister's Office on Sunday, in an attempt to deter Israelis from traveling to areas with a high risk of terror attacks during the upcoming Jewish holidays. The PMO's anti-terror department warned Israelis not to travel to Egypt in general, and Sinai in particular, where the threat is classified as "concrete and particularly severe." The PMO urged Israelis currently visiting Sinai to return home immediately. Likewise, the PMO warned of a "severe threat" that Hezbollah will try to kidnap Israelis traveling abroad. The PMO urged Israelis to avoid unexpected tempting offers abroad, and to refuse to accept gifts from unknown or suspicious individuals. In addition, the PMO warned Israelis to refuse invitations to go to remote or isolated areas,...
UK to Israel: Try soldier for killing filmmaker
Ynetnews, YNetNews 8/5/2007
British officials give Jewish state deadline of Tuesday to respond to demand that it prosecute IDF officer for killing James Miller after new evidence allegedly proves soldier fired fatal shot, Sunday Times reports - Britain has told Israel that it should prosecute an IDF officer for the killing of a British documentary maker after new evidence allegedly proved that the soldier fired the fatal shot, the Sunday Times reported. According to the report, British officials have given Israel a deadline of Tuesday to respond, after which the British authorities will consider prosecuting Captain Hib al-Heib in the UK for the murder of James Miller, who was 34 when he was shot dead four years ago. The warning follows new evidence from an inquiry commissioned by Scotland Yard which has shown that the bullet that killed Miller came from al-Heib's armored personnel carrier (APC). -- See also: Britain tells Israel to try soldier for killing film-maker
Britain tells Israel to try soldier for killing film-maker
Michael Smith, Times of London 8/5/2007
Britain has told Israel that it should prosecute one of its army officers for the killing of a British documentary maker after new evidence allegedly proved that the soldier fired the fatal shot. UK officials have given Israel a deadline of Tuesday to respond, after which the authorities in this country will consider prosecuting Captain Hib al-Heib in the UK for the murder of James Miller, who was 34 when he was shot dead four years ago. The warning follows new evidence from an inquiry commissioned by Scotland Yard which has shown that the bullet that killed Miller came from al-Heib's armoured personnel carrier (APC). The Tuesday deadline, originally set in a letter from Lord Goldsmith before he stepped down as attorney-general, was reiterated last week by the Foreign Office. Miller, who was married with two children, was shot dead in the Gaza Strip...
Counter-Terrorism Bureau: Hizbullah kidnapping threat still exists
Ynet, YNetNews 8/5/2007
The Counter-Terrorism Bureau warned Israelis Sunday against visiting Egypt, Jordan, Yemen, Lebanon, Syria, Iraq, Sudan and Somalia. In a travel advisory issued ahead of Rosh Hashana, the bureau defined the risk level in these countries as "high and concrete," and urged Israelis who are currently there to leave the country immediately. Bureau officials stressed that the warnings were part of an updated review, which is being published twice a year. According to the warning, Israelis abroad were still at risk of being kidnapped by Hizbullah. Travelers are therefore advised to reject any tempting or unexpected offer abroad, turn down unforeseen gifts or invitations from unknown or suspect people, and make sure not to show up for meetings unescorted.
US document overlooks Shoah
Itamar Eichner, YNetNews 8/5/2007
Official State Department website document on Germany fails to mention six million Jews murdered in Nazi death camps. Yad Vashem chairman plans to appeal to US to rectify the matter; US source says text not meant to be historical reference - An official background note on Germany posted on the US Department of State's website has left out any mention of the Holocaust. The website offers background notes on every country, which are meant to serve tourists and give brief profiles of their travel destinations. According to Yedioth Ahronoth newspaper, the background note on Germany, which was written by the Bureau of European and Eurasian Affairs and updated on the website a few days ago, gives a distorted picture of the Shoah and belittles it.
Aliyah from Iran declining
Danny Adino Ababa, YNetNews 8/5/2007
'Despite discrimination, dire financial situation' faced by Jews in Iran, less and less choose to immigrate to Israel - Despite suffering discrimination and facing a harsh financial situation, Jews from Iran are immigrating to Israel in smaller numbers each year. While in 2005, 113 Jews arrived in the country from Iran, the number in 2006 stood at only 65. So far in 2007, 64 olim have arrived in Israel. There are currently 25,000 Jews living in Iran, and the Jewish Agency anticipated that many would try to flee the country in light of statements by President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad against Israel and the Jews. The Jewish Iranian community in the US has even offered a $10,000 grant to all those who make aliyah to Israel. However, although Iran does not prevent Jews from leaving the country...
Disabled Israelis block entrance to city in Jerusalem protest
Jonathan Lis, Ha'aretz 8/5/2007
Dozens of physically disabled Israelis held a protest in Jerusalem Sunday, to bring light to the treatment of the disabled in Israel. The protest was held on Shazar st. , the thoroughfare which includes the entrance to Jerusalem. Protestors reportedly laid their bodies down on the street to prevent the passage of cars, causing massive traffic jams in the city. Police did not arrest any demonstrators, as the march was given state approval. The demonstrators were also protesting the decision by the government to make the law that allocates benefits to polio victims part of the economic arrangements law. They fear that the law will be frozen and they will not receive their benefits. The law, initiated by former MK Azmi Bishara in March, was to go into effect at the end of the year, and would give polio victims...
3,000 march in support of survivors
Yael Branovsky, YNetNews 8/5/2007
Some 2,500 people rally in protest of state's decision to raise Holocaust survivors' pensions by less than NIS 100 a month. 'I'm not optimistic, I doubt things will change,' says one survivor - Some 3,000 Holocaust survivors and their supporters arrived in Jerusalem Sunday afternoon to take part in the March of the Living in protest of the government's treatment of survivors, and particularly a recent decision to raise their allowances by a meager NIS 83 a month. The protestors set out from the Knesset and marched towards the Prime Minister's Office and carried signs saying, "Sorry for surviving," "Holocaust survivors are still here," and "Holocaust survivors bill - our moral duty." Minister for Pensioners Affairs Rafi Eitan and MK Colette Avital participated in the event.
Peres, Netanyahu back Holocaust survivors on allowances
Ynet, YNetNews 8/5/2007
President Shimon Peres and opposition leader Benjamin Netanyahu united Sunday in calling on the government on Sunday to resolve a row over allowances to thousands of elderly Holocaust survivors living in Israel. Holocaust survivors and many politicians censured the government over plans to grant impoverished survivors a meager monthly allowance of NIS 83 (about $19). "The crisis has to be solved in a respectable manner," said Peres, who turned 84 on Saturday. "In light of the economic reforms implemented between 2003 and 2005, Israel's economic situation allows it to assist those in need of government help," said Netanyahu, who served as finance minister during those years. "Many elderly Holocaust survivors are entitled to government assistance to live in dignity.
Cabinet extends tenure of parks' authority head despite criticism
Tzafrir Rinat, Ha'aretz 8/5/2007
The cabinet on Sunday approved a second five-year term for Israel Nature and Parks Authority Chairman Eli Amitay, despite criticism of his management. Extension of Amitay's tenure by five years came under broad opposition from environmental organizations as well as many scientists. Various groups have chargde that during his first term, Amitay encouraged commercial development in nature reserves, ignored the opinions of professions and agreed to compromises that involved conceding protected lands. Anonymous sources have also made claims of mismanagement at the INPA, allegations that Environment Minister Gideon Ezra (Kadima) rejected as unfounded during the meeting. [end]
Gov't posted NIS 1.2b surplus in July
Amir Keidan, Globes Online 8/5/2007
The aggregate deficit fell to NIS 3. 1 billion for the past 12 months. The government posted a surplus of NIS 1. 2 billion in July 2007, thanks to higher than expected tax revenues. The surplus including net credit was NIS 1. 6 billion. The surplus in domestic activity was NIS 800 million, and the surplus in foreign activity was NIS 400 million. The government's aggregate deficit continued to fall in July, mostly thanks to the increase in tax revenues. The aggregate deficit fell to NIS 3. 1 billion for the past 12 months. Budget performance has been in line with projections since January, indicating the budget performance for 2007 will be full. Preliminary estimates show budget performance of 55% since January, a high level given that government spending in the second half of the year will rise substantially.
Ramat Hasharon okays loans to help residents build shelters
Yigal Hai, Ha'aretz 8/5/2007
Ramat Hasharon's municipal council unanimously approved NIS 1 million in loans to residents for constructing shelters. The Tel Aviv suburb will grant loans to residents living in private houses who do not have shelters or rooms with reinforced walls. An approved committee will deliver its recommendations on criteria for loan approvals, giving preference to impoverished families." The aim is not, heaven forbid, to sow panic in the public, but to take care of families in the town so they can sleep better at night and be ready for any event," Mayor Itzik Rochberger said. [end]
Tawjihi results to be announced Tuesday
Ma'an News Agency 8/5/2007
Ramallah – Ma'an – The minister of education, Lamees Al-Alami, said that the date of the announcement for the results of the general secondary examination, Tawjihi, will be Tuesday. The announcement is to take place during a press conference at 10am, in the ministry and will be broadcast live. Al-Alami said he will publish the results in newspapers, in messages on the mobile network, on radio, television stations and several websites, in addition to the ministry's two websites: [see below] The release of the results has been delayed due to the ongoing bitter feud between Fatah and Hamas and the resulting problems collecting all results from both the West Bank and the Gaza Strip. [end] -- See also: PA Education Ministry website and PA Education Ministry website
Former Labor minister endorses Netanyahu
Nehama Duek, YNetNews 8/5/2007
Ora Namir says she will not vote for Likud but will be happy if Netanyahu wins next elections. 'He will be an excellent prime minister and will lead to an agreement with the Palestinians,' she adds - "I would be very happy to see Benjamin Netanyahu win the elections and become our next prime minister," Former Labor Party minister, Ora Namir, said Saturday. Namir, 77, told Yedioth Ahronoth, "I believe Netanyahu will be an excellent prime minister. I have been following him in the past few years and I believe that he has learned a lot from his mistakes. "In addition, he did an excellent job as finance minister, and therefore I consider him the most suitable person to be the next prime minister," she added. Namir, who worked for former Labor Chairman Amir Peretz in the 2006 Knesset elections and...
Livni slams Friedmann over feud with Beinish
Attila Somfalvi, YNetNews 8/5/2007
Foreign minister urges justice minister to hold 'calm' talks with Supreme Court president to resolve feud over reforms - "You are harming the public's trust in the judicial system and democracy," Foreign Minister Tzipi Livni accused Justice Minister Daniel Friedmann on Sunday. Livni leveled criticism at Friedmann during a meeting of Kadima ministers who gathered to hear explanations from the justice minister about his feud with Supreme Court President Justice Dorit Beinish. "Trust in the justice system is declining and this is harming the democratic process," Livni told Friedmann as she urged him to hold "calm" talks with Beinish. Friedmann fired back, accusing Supreme Court justices of using the media to promote as "harmful" a number of judicial reforms he planned to implement.
ISRAEL: An IDP village sees light at the end of the tunnel
Shabtai Gold/IRIN, IRIN - UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs 8/6/2007
EIN HOUD, 5 August 2007 (IRIN) - Residents of Ein Houd village have been without electricity for almost 60 years but now Muhammed Abu al-Haija's house has been connected to Israel's electric grid. "So far, I'm the only one with electricity," said Al-Haija, who, like the other 250 residents, is an Israeli citizen. "But I hope the whole village will get it soon." Al-Haija said the villagers had been campaigning to be connected to the electricity grid for almost 30 years. The Ein Houd villagers are internally displaced people (IDPs) from the 1948 Israeli-Arab war and their descendents. During the war, the 900 villagers of Ein Houd, near the port city of Haifa, fled and once hostilities had ended, the Israeli military did not allow them to return home.
Tel Aviv Stock Exchange opens trading with dramatic losses
Michael Rochverger and Omri Cohen, Ha'aretz 8/5/2007
The Tel Aviv Stock Exchange met the expectations of weekend analyses when it opened the week on Sunday with serious losses. All of the main indices plummeted in reaction to losses last week in the United States and Europe, and to substantial gains in the East. Before noon, the TA-25, which lists Israel's top 25 companies, had fallen by 3. 7 percent to 1,056 points, the TA-100 lost 4 percent and the Tel-Tech index was down 2. 2 percent. The real estate index was down by six percent. Economists and senior analysts in Israel and all over the world tried last week to calm worried investors. "Nothing has changed in the economic foundations, which are as they were yesterday and the day before," they told the media again and again. However, the level of fear on Wall Street rose again at the end of last week because...
Exclusive equity
Roee Bergman, Globes Online 8/5/2007
Bank Hapoalim is investing $1 billion, a quarter of it from its own money, in private equity funds. This puts private equity closer to center stage in Israel. But it's for the rich only. - Last week's announcement by Bank Hapoalim of its massive, strategic entry into private equity funds, will intensify this instrument's's popularity Israel, even though it designed for institutions and for private investors with at least $500,000 available for investment. The bank plans to set up new funds with local and foreign investors, who will join the six existing funds managed by its subsidiary Poalim Capital Markets - Investment Bank Ltd. , and then invest in existing global funds. In all, the move will amount to $1 billion, a quarter of which the bank will contribute from its own resources.
SpearCast signs deals with leading US search sites
Gali Weinreb, Globes Online 8/5/2007
The firm will set up beta sites with East Bay Express, Restaurant. com, HappyCow, and others. Meytav Technological Enterprises Innovation Center Ltd. portfolio company SpearCast Ltd. , has signed agreements with a number of leading local search engines in the US, which will incorporate a beta version of its Palore personalized information retrieval service. Among the company's new partners are the local services search sites East Bay Express, which serves 2. 1 million people in the Berkeley, Oakland and the San Francisco Bay area, discount coupon site Restaurant. com, and Happy Cow, the leading vegetarian restaurant guide in the US. SpearCast has developed an application that can insert information on a specific business or tradesman into the page that the surfer is currently viewing.
Heftsiba seeks court protection as debts mount
Eran Peer and Globes' correspondent, Globes Online 8/5/2007
Banks are owed NIS 818 million out of total company debts of almost NIS 1. 6 billion. Three subsidiaries of Heftsiba Building Development & Investments Ltd. today applied to the Jerusalem District Court for an ex parte urgent stay in proceedings for protection from creditors. The petitioners say that Heftsiba owes NIS 1. 6 billion, including NIS 818 million to the banks for credit and guarantees, NIS 500 million to unsecured creditors (suppliers), NIS 312 million to parties at interest, and NIS 10. 6 million in priority creditors (including NIS 2. 5 million to employees and NIS 2 million each to the Israel Tax Authority and the National Insurance Institute). The petitioners also said that, in addition to rights in the outstanding balances in various projects, if any, they have the right to receive NIS 204 million...
Court rejects couple's request to guarantee ownership of home
Carmel Ben-Tzur, Ha'aretz 8/5/2007
The Tel Aviv District Court on Sunday denied the request filed by a couple seeking to establish ownership of a home they had purchased and moved into before it was finished, fearing they would lose their investment amid rumors the construction company had gone bust. On Thursday, dozens of ultra-Orthodox Jews broke into apartments being built by the Heftsiba construction company. The group launched a concerted effort, operating simultaneously in several areas across the country, and entered the construction sites, refusing to leave. The couple, Guy Baigel and Inbal Halel, married a year ago and bought a home in Kfar Yona. They have so far paid 85 percent of the value of the home - some NIS 675,000. In their request, the couple asked the court to guarantee their investment would not be lost.
10 criminal organization members arrested
Efrat Weiss, YNetNews 8/5/2007
Detainees suspected of extortion, threats, money laundering and illegal gambling; Netanya crime figure Riko Shirazi among those arrested - Officers of the police's International Investigation Unit and Tax Authority inspectors on Saturday night arrested 10 people on suspicion of involvement in what they referred to as "the criminal organization of (Netanya crime figure) Riko Shirazi," who was also among the detainees. According to the suspicions, the organization members - residents of Netanya and central Israel - were engaged in a large variety of offenses, including money laundering, illegal gambling and using "straw accounts". The 10 individuals will be brought before the Petah Tikva Magistrates Court on Sunday for a custody hearing.
Tel Aviv Police locate boy reported missing since Thursday
Roni Singer-Heruti, Ha'aretz 8/5/2007
Police on Saturday night located a 16-year-old boy who was reported missing on Thursday and was suspected of being kidnapped by Arabs from East Jerusalem. The boy was spotted by police eating in a restaurant on Allenby Street in Tel Aviv in no apparent danger, and fears of his kidnapping were subsequently dismissed. Last Thursday evening, the boy's mother called police and reported that her son had left their home in Bnei Brak several hours earlier to visit friends in Rishon Letzion and had not been heard from since. The mother stated that when she called her son's cell phone a voice answered speaking Arabic, leading to fears that the boy had been kidnapped. In response to the mother's testimony, Police opened kidnapping response procedures, organizing a special situation room in coordination with agents from the Shin Bet security service.
Former Shin Bet chief Amos Manor dies, age 89
Efrat Weiss, YNetNews 8/5/2007
Born in Romania, Manor joined the Shin Bet a month after immigrating to Israel in 1949. He served as head of the Non-Arab Affairs Department and deputy chief to Izi Dorot before replacing him as chief of the service, a position he filled for a decade - Former Shin Bet chief Amos Manor died on Sunday night at the age of 89. He headed the Shin Bet between 1953 and 1963 and served, among other positions, as the first chief of its non-Arab Affairs Department. Born in Transylvania as Arthur Mendelowitz in 1918, Manor began working for the Romanian branch of the Mossad Le' Aliyah Bet in 1947. Founded in 1939 the organization sought to smuggle Jewish refugees to British Mandate Palestine in defiance of the strict British restrictions on immigration quotas.
Army seizes tunnels, buildings in Nahr al-Bared
Daily Star 8/6/2007
Repair crew cannot reach power plant - The Lebanese Army on Sunday pushed its offensive against besieged Islamists in the Nahr al-Bared refugee camp in North Lebanon as the battle entered its 12th week. "The fighting is still going on but with varying intensity," a military spokesman said. Two Lebanese soldiers were killed in continued fighting between the army and Fatah al-Islam militants in Nahr al-Bared, a senior military official reported on Saturday. The army has been advancing slowly in the Nahr al-Bared camp, targeting the fortifications and tunnels used by Fatah al-Islam fighters, the official said, speaking on condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to speak to the media. One soldier died on Saturday and another on Friday, the official reported, raising to at least 130 the number of troops killed since fighting erupted on May 20.
Aoun declares victory of FPM candidate in Metn, Gemayel disputes results
Hani M. Bathish, Daily Star 8/6/2007
METN/BEIRUT: Fifteen minutes after Free Patriotic Movement leader MP Michel Aoun announced the FPM's victory in the Metn by-election, former President Amin Gemayel, disputing Aoun's claims, declared that the Christians in the Metn had voted for the March 14 track. "We were told that the winning candidate is Dr. Camille Khoury," Aoun said. "We hope that calm prevails, this electoral battle is not against a martyr, but it is to choose a political track." While in Bikfaya celebrations commenced for what Gemayel supporters considered a victory, Aoun called on his supporters and MPs to gather at the Jdeideh Serail where he said there was an attempt to tamper with one of the ballot boxes. "We have been informed of an attempt to cancel one of the ballot boxes.
Security measures prove successful as few incidents occur during voting
Hesham Shawish, Daily Star 8/6/2007
METN: Few security incidents accompanied Sunday's heated Metn by-election, with isolated skirmishes rarely breaking the either tranquil or festive moods at the district's polling stations. Internal Security Forces chief General Ashraf Rifi told The Daily Star on Sunday that election day as a whole was going well. "Thank God that, up to now, everything has gone according to plans with no major incidents," he said. "We are pleased with the current situation." Security measures were tight around polling stations throughout the Metn, with armored personnel carriers and tanks outside some polling stations. Calm prevailed at voting centers in Bikfaya and Bteghrine, while drumming and dancing livened polling stations in Burj Hammoud, Jdeideh, Dora and Zalka.
Maliki rejects Sunni ministers' resignation, urges Accordance Front to rejoin Cabinet
Compiled by Daily Star staff, Daily Star 8/6/2007
Iraq's prime minister on Sunday rejected the resignation of Cabinet ministers from the country's largest Sunni Arab bloc, and asked the six ministers to rejoin his government. Meanwhile, US forces killed the mastermind of two attacks on a revered Shiite mosque at the heart of Iraq's bitter sectarian conflict during a crackdown on Al-Qaeda's Iraqi affiliate, the military said Sunday. Haitham al-Badri, whom the Americans linked to a string of lethal bombings and described as the Al-Qaeda in Iraq "emir" in Salaheddine province, was killed in an air strike east of the northern city of Samarra Thursday. "Badri, along with three other terrorists, was killed by the air strike," said the military, specifying that one of the others had been a foreigner.
LEBANON: Fears of fresh instability as elections held to replace slain MPs
Marie Claire Feghali/IRIN, IRIN - UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs 8/6/2007
METN, 5 August 2007 (IRIN) - Security was tightened amid fears of violence and further instability as by-elections took place in Lebanon on 5 August to replace two anti-Syria MPs who were assassinated last year in Beirut in separate incidents. The by-election in Metn, a majority-Christian community in the mountains north-east of Beirut, is the more critical and potentially more volatile of the two votes, specialists say. It pits Camille Khoury, a candidate from opposition Christian leader Michel Aoun's Free Patriotic Movement (FPM) party, against former President Amin Gemayel, the father of slain minister Pierre Gemayel who previously held this seat. Pierre Gamayel was killed in a bomb blast last November. The election is not only seen as a key test of support for the government among the Christian community,...
In pictures: Lebanese by-elections
BBC Online 8/5/2007
Lebanese have been voting in two by-elections, one of which is seen as a test for the country's deeply-divided Christian community ahead of a presidential poll later this year. Security was tight for the tense polls following clashes between the rival Christian parties. Old and young turned out to vote. These Lebanese youths are helping an elderly woman to a polling station near Beirut. Supporters of Christian leader Michel Aoun were keen to show off their political colours. These supporters of Mr Aoun's rival, the Christian Phalange party of Amin Gemayel, were equally enthusiastic. But amid high turnout and heightened security, there were no reports of violence. [end]
Solidere: 'Vigilantism under cover of law'
Daily Star 8/6/2007
BEIRUT: Since Solidere was incorporated on the Lebanese Stock Exchange in 1994 the public purpose company conceived to reconstruct battered downtown Beirut after the Civil War has managed to shrug off countless bribery and corruption charges, Lebanon's deteriorating investment climate, and profit from the abundant petrodollars flooding the region, all the while taking the shape of a commercial company and moving farther from its narrow, local mandate. On May 29, a committee of 500-dogged, disenfranchised former downtown property owners filed a suit at the Majlis al-Shura against a two-month old ministerial decree approving Solidere's decision to create an international branch in Dubai. The case is the latest in a long line of lawsuits against Solidere over the past 12 years that raises questions about the company's dubious legal foundations and its checkered past.
Turkey sees growth in AKP
Jonathan Gorvett in Istanbul, Al Jazeera 8/5/2007
The ruling Justice and Development Party (AK party) went into the elections having presided over an unprecedented period of economic growth and stability which helped swing the election in their favour. Emre Yigit, an analyst at the Istanbul-based brokerage Global Securities, believes the AK party's election win was due to voters effectively rewarding the government's economic performance during the past few years. He said: "Inflation has dramatically dropped, there's been four years of strong growth, the government almost balanced the budget last year and there's been a major surge in investment." Turkey's economy has come a long way in the last few years. When the AK party first took office in 2002, Turkey was still reeling from a huge financial crisis.
Secret Brotherhood trial resumes
Al Jazeera 8/5/2007
The Egyptian authorities have barred human rights groups from attending the secret military trial of 40 members of the Muslim Brotherhood, the country's most powerful opposition group. A Brotherhood source said observers from Amnesty International and the Arab Commission for Human Rights, based in France, were stopped from attending the trial. The media and 60 defence lawyers were also prevented from attending the proceedings on Sunday. Some defence lawyers were allowed in and four family members per defendant, sources said. Among the defendants is Khairat el-Shatir, the Brotherhood's third-in-command. Six others are being tried in absentia and face various charges including money-laundering and terrorism. The defendants deny the charges.
Iran to fund Nicaraguan projects
Al Jazeera 8/5/2007
Daniel Ortega, the Nicaraguan president, has signed a series of agreements with Iran defying pressure from the United States. Iranian officials promised to help fund a new ocean port and build 10,000 houses for the cash-strapped Nicaraguan government during a visit to the capital Managua on Saturday. Tehran also said it would help to choose a site for a $120m hydroelectric project to help Nicaragua overcome a power crisis which is causing daily blackouts in the Central American nation. In exchange Nicaragua will export coffee, meat and bananas to Iran. Ortega has been building alliances with countries opposed to Washington - such as Venezuela and Iran - which have money to invest due to high oil prices and are eager to win friends in Latin America.
The Abu Ghraib whistleblower's ordeal
Dawn Bryan, BBC Online 8/5/2007
The US soldier who exposed the abuse of Iraqi prisoners in Abu Ghraib prison found himself a marked man after his anonymity was blown in the most astonishing way by Donald Rumsfeld. When Joe Darby saw the horrific photos of abuse at Abu Ghraib prison he was stunned. So stunned that he walked out into the hot Baghdad night and smoked half a dozen cigarettes and agonised over what he should do. Joe Darby was a reserve soldier with US forces at Abu Ghraib prison when he stumbled across those images which would eventually shock the world in 2004. They were photographs of his colleagues, some of them men and women he had known since high school - torturing and abusing Iraqi prisoners. His decision to hand them over rather than keep quiet changed his life forever.
US 'kills' key Iraq shrine bomber
BBC Online 8/5/2007
US troops in Iraq say they have killed an al-Qaeda leader who [they claim] masterminded the attacks on a Shia shrine that led to a major escalation in sectarian violence. Officials say Haitham al-Badri was behind the 2006 and 2007 attacks on the al-Askari shrine in Samarra, which destroyed its golden dome and minarets. Mr Badri's body has reportedly been identified by people close to him. The US claim came as mortar attacks killed at least 11 people in the eastern part of the capital, Baghdad. Mr Badri, said to be leader of al-Qaeda in Salahuddin Province, was killed on Thursday by US troops east of Samarra, US officials said. "It looked like they were setting up an ambush and so they [the troops] brought in rotary-wing close air support and there was some strafing that occurred from helicopters," US military spokesman Mark Fox said.
Egyptian police seize large cache of explosives in central Sinai
the Associated Press, Ha'aretz 8/5/2007
Egyptian police have found 500 kilograms (1,102 pounds) of explosives buried near a central desert village in the Sinai Peninsula, a police officer said Sunday. Captain Mohammed Badr of the northern Sinai police force said a tip from local Bedouins regarding alleged drug smuggling instead led officials to discover the explosives packed in ten plastic sacks near the Gifgafa village located about 80 kilometers (50 miles) south of El-Arish. Wide parts of the Sinai desert are used for drug and weapons smuggling into the Gaza Strip. Last month, police found more than 1,200 kilograms (2,645 pounds) of TNT explosives buried in the northern desert. Islamic militants have carried out three major bomb attacks in Sinai since October 2004. The blasts in the resorts of Sharm el-Sheik, Taba and Dahab killed 125 people.
Soldier gets 110 years behind bars for rape, murder of Iraqi girl and family
Agence France Presse - AFP, Daily Star 8/6/2007
WASHINGTON: A US soldier was sentenced Saturday to 110 years in jail for raping and killing a 14-year-old Iraqi girl and slaying her family, the US military said. "Private First Class Jesse Spielman was sentenced to 110 years in prison with the possibility of parole for his involvement in the March 2006 rape of a 14-year-old Iraqi girl and the murders of her and three family members," an army statement said. A court-martial found Spielman guilty Friday of rape, conspiracy to commit rape and housebreaking with the intent to commit rape and four counts of felony murder. Spielman had pleaded not guilty on Monday to raping and killing Abir Qassem Hamza al-Janabi and murdering her family, but he pleaded guilty to lesser charges including arson and obstruction of justice.
Articles
Mimicking Oslo
Khalid Amayreh in occupied East Jerusalem, Palestinian Information Center 8/5/2007
A few days after the 2006 parliamentary elections in the occupied Palestinian territories of the West Bank, E. Jerusalem and Gaza, which Hamas won decisively, Fatah leaders and activists held a "soul-searching" meeting in Dura, near Hebron.
Nabil Amr, now Mahmoud Abbas's political advisor, who failed to win a seat, attended the meeting, apparently in order to boost his defeated faction's moral
And when a Fatah activist and student leader asked Amr how Fatah could rehabilitate itself and regain stature and preeminence among Palestinians, Amr reportedly said, without patting an eyelash "Concessions, concessions, concessions."
Amr often describes himself as a "secular pragmatist" and "firm believer in real politike"
In 2003, he played a leading role in effecting American-backed efforts to weaken the late Palestinian leader, along with people like Mahmoud Abbas and Muhammed Dahlan.
The "gang of conspirers" as Arafat called his critics within Fatah, sought, with full American backing, to strip the late Palestinian leader of at least some of his powers, including control over security agencies.
Arafat's presence was then quite dominant and Amr, Abbas and Dahlan couldn't successfully challenge Arafat's autocratic leadership. In fact, on 20 July, 2004, Amr himself was shot and nearly killed by a Fatah gunman, apparently on instructions from Arafat who had apparently thought that Amr was going too far in criticizing and undermining his benefactor. A few weeks later, Amr got his right leg amputated in Germany.
A map of what might have been
Jim Quilty, Daily Star 8/6/2007
BEIRUT: In the year since last summer's war with Israel, the reconstruction process in Lebanon has been painfully slow and multifaceted. Many actors are involved - foreign state donors, international non-governmental organizations, companies and funding agencies (and their local agents), local political parties, politicians and entrepreneurs, Lebanese para-state institutions and, from the sidelines, the state.
The Department of Architecture and Design at the American University of Beirut (AUB) has been busy, too. Witness the 67-page pamphlet "The Reconstruction of Haret Hreik: Design Options for Improving the Livability of the Neighborhood," which went into free circulation a few weeks ago.
Shortly after the war ended in August 2006, members of the AUB faculty formed the Reconstruction Unit (RU), a multidisciplinary group of professionals with public- and private-sector experience. Made up of architects, urban designers, landscapers, planners and engineers, the RU's aim was to assist in the reconstruction of Beirut's southern suburbs (Dahiyeh) and the ruined villages of South Lebanon.
Some Hamas ideas to reform the PLO
Ghazi Hamed, Daily Star 8/6/2007
The issue of reform of the Palestine Liberation Organization is one of the most complex and important issues on the Palestinian political agenda. The organization is considered the "sole, legitimate" representative of the Palestinian people, but it currently suffers from an inability to translate that theory into a practical reality accepted by all Palestinian factions.
Over the past 40 years, the PLO has undergone several political and administrative changes that have left several question marks over its ability to perform its designated duties. Hence all the major Palestinian factions, including Fatah and Hamas, agree on the importance of restructuring and undertaking serious reform of the organization to save it from the negligence and inertia that has characterized its functioning in recent years.
One of the biggest problems in the PLO's structure is how to resolve the competition for influence and representation by the many Palestinian factions while avoiding unnecessary bureaucratic and administrative bloating or impotence of the organization's decision-making capacity. The strict control exercised by the late President Yasser Arafat - imposed partly as a result of his strong personality - led to the impression that the PLO was his private domain or that of his Fatah party. It is partly as a result of that state of affairs that the PLO's Oslo solution caused such a deep rift within the organization, pushing already integrated factions such as the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine and the Democratic Front for the Liberation of Palestine into the opposition.
Fuelling the arms race doesn't make peace
Editorial, Al-Ahram Weekly 8/2/2007
US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice and Defense Secretary Robert Gates's current tour of the region had been heavily trailed as a mission to promote peace in the Middle East. Indeed, it is their first visit in this part of the world since US President George W Bush called on 16 July for an international Middle East peace summit to be held in autumn.
Yet the only tangible outcome of the Rice-Gates visit so far has been $63 billion worth of arms deals concluded with America's "allies" in the region -- $30 billion for Israel, $13 billion for Egypt and $20 billion to be shared between Saudi Arabia, Qatar, the UAE, Oman and Bahrain. Little has been heard of peace, or even Bush's hoped-for conference.
The two US officials -- purposefully vague on the agenda of the proposed peace summit -- have been far more focussed on rallying Washington's allies against the state's perceived-to-be enemies. According to the current US administration its allies -- Israel, Egypt, Jordan, the Lebanese government, Saudi Arabia and most of the Gulf countries -- must unite against Syria, Hizbullah, Hamas and Iran. It's the same "moderate" versus "extremist" scenario that Washington has been pushing for some time now. The region, according to Bush, should be one in which Arabs are pitched against Arabs, Muslims against Muslims.
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