Olmert hopes talks 'can lead to Palestinian state'
Adam Entous, Reuters AlertNet 8/6/2007
JERICHO, West Bank, Aug 6 (Reuters) - Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert met Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas on Monday, in the West Bank for the first time, and told him he wanted to restart negotiations soon on establishing a Palestinian state. After months of resistance, Olmert expanded the scope of discussions with Abbas to include so-called "fundamental issues" that are key to ending the conflict. But aides to Olmert and Abbas emerged with differing explanations of what "fundamental" meant and whether the leaders were discussing any of the main final-status issues of borders and the future of Jerusalem and Palestinian refugees. The goal of the talks is to reach agreement on broad statehood "principles" by November, when the United States is expected to convene a Middle East conference, officials said.
Chaos in Hebron as settler mobs attack Palestinians and set buildings ablaze
Ma'an News Agency 8/6/2007
Hebron – Ma'an – A gang of Israeli settlers set two Palestinian homes ablaze in the old city of Hebron on Sunday evening and a settler car ran over a 22-year-old Palestinian citizen, Noman Fawwaz Nazir, on Al Shohada Street, in the city centre. Dozens of Israeli settlers gathered in the old market place in the centre of Hebron after the Israeli police distributed orders to evacuate two shops occupied by Israelis over six years ago. Palestinian security sources informed Ma'an's correspondent that a group of Israeli settlers stormed a mosque in the old market place and set fire to the building. They then set ablaze the home of local citizen Andurrahman Sammouh and another Palestinian house. The settlers prevented the fire service from reaching the burning buildings.
Elderly Palestinian woman dies at West Bank checkpoint after her ambulance is denied passage
Ma'an News Agency 8/6/2007
Jenin – Ma'an – An elderly Palestinian woman form Barta'a ash Sharqiya, to the west of Jenin, died at an Israeli checkpoint into the village on Monday. Israeli soldiers manning the checkpoint prevented the passage of an ambulance and it was unable to collect her to take her to a nearby hospital. The woman's son, Tawfiq, told reporters from Ma'an that his mother, who was 75 years old, died because the ambulance did not reach her in time. He said that Israeli soldiers also refused her permission to cross the checkpoint when she arrived to meet the ambulance. According to Tawfiq, this led to the deterioration of her health and eventually her death at the checkpoint. Israeli soldiers claimed that there was no coordination with the Israeli forces in order to permit her passage.
Palestinian boy becomes 32nd to die at Rafah Crossing
Ma'an News Agency 8/6/2007
Gaza – Ma'an – Palestinian boy, Abdur Rahman Ismael, aged 17, died on Monday after his health deteriorated at the Rafah Crossing between Egypt and the Gaza Strip. Director of ambulances and emergencies in the Palestinian ministry of health, Dr Muawiya Hassanein, said that the corpse will be transported through the Israeli-controlled Kerem Shalom Crossing. Dr Hassanein added that Ismael was suffering from cancer and that the death toll amongst Gazans that have been stranded at the Rafah Crossing has now reached 32. [end]
Two babies, imprisoned in Israeli jails, are prohibited from leaving their cells
Ma'an News Agency 8/6/2007
Tulkarem – Ma'an – The official internal security in Tel Mond prison, on Monday issued a decision denying two detained babies, the children of incarcerated women, the right to leave their cells. The prison's authority refused to allow the infants to leave their cells during break-times in the jail. The mothers attempted to discover the reason for the ruling and appealed to the administration to revoke their decision, but their attempts failed. The children are Ghada Jaser Abu Omar, aged ten months, daughter of Khawula Zeitawi, and Bara' Subeih, aged thirteen months, the son of Samar Subeih. [end]
3,000 security forces ready to oust two Hebron families
Amos Harel, Ha'aretz 8/6/2007
The most amazing aspect of the operation planned for tomorrow to evacuate two Jewish families that forced their way into the Hebron wholesalers' market is the enormous number of forces allocated for it: about 700 police officers, 10 companies of Border Police officers and no less than four Israel Defense Forces battalions. Roughly 3,000 security forces will be mustered under the command of the IDF's Judea and Samaria Division. At first glance, this will be the largest confrontation between settlers and the government of Prime Minister Ehud Olmert since the demolition of the nine houses of the Amona outpost about 18 months ago. In reality, however, it is doubtful that any evacuation will take place tomorrow, and it is not at all clear that an evacuation will involve a violent confrontation.
Abu Ali Mustafa and Salah Eddin brigades injure Israeli settlers near Nablus
Ameen Abu Warda, International Middle East Media Center 8/6/2007
The Abu Ali Mustafa brigades, the armed wing of the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine (PFLP) and the Salah Eddin brigades, the armed wing of the Popular Resistance Committees, injured a number of Israeli settlers near the Alon Mureh settlement, located near the northern West Bank city of NablusPalestinian sources reported that a huge Israeli force rushed to area and launched a wide-scale military operation to search for those responsible. The same sources stated that resistance fighters sustained no injuries in the attack. In a statement released to the press, the Abu Ali Mustafa and Salah Eddin brigades noted that "The Abu Ali Mustafa and Salah Eddin brigades ambushed a settler car on the way to the Alon Moreh settlement at 10:30 on Sunday night. " [end]
On resident injured, five kidnapped in Nablus
IMEMC Staff, International Middle East Media Center 8/6/2007
The Israeli army concluded its invasion to Al Ein refugee camp, in Nablus, after invading it on Monday at dawn. One resident was abducted at several others were injured. Palestinian medical sources reported that the abducted resident was identified as Usama Hasan Daoud, 17. Daoud was shot by three rounds of live ammunion fired by the army during the invasion. Five residents were kidnapped by the invading forces and were moved to unkown destinations. Israeli army carries out military operation in El Ein refugee camp The Israeli army carried out a large military operation in the El Ein refugee camp, located near northern West Bank city of Nablus, on Sunday night. Local residents said that huge force invaded the camp on Sunday midnight, closed the area, and ransacked homes inside the camp.
Palestinian youth died of wounds sustained three days ago
IMEMC Staff, International Middle East Media Center 8/6/2007
Palestinian medical sources in Ramallah, in the northern part of the West Bank, reported on Monday that one youth died of wounds sustained three days ago when Israeli soldiers stationed at a roadblock near the city fired several rounds of live ammunition at him. The youth was identified as Mohammad Al Maloukh; he was shot in his chest, head and back, the sources stated. Eyewitnesses reported that Al Maloukh was practically assassinated by the soldiers after stopping him at the roadblock, and that he was shot from a close range. The army claimed that Al Maloukh attempted to escape after he was stopped at the checkpoint. In other news, soldiers kidnapped four residents from Al Jalazoun refugee camp, and Abu Falah village, near Ramallah.
Palestinian boy dies after being shot by checkpoint soldiers
Ma'an News Agency 8/6/2007
Ramallah – Ma'an – The 17-year-old Mohammad Oreib Ahmad from Qarawat Bani Zayd who was admitted into a hospital in Ramallah four days ago after being shot by Israeli soldiers at Atara checkpoint to the north of Ramallah, on Monday succumbed to his wounds. Medical staff performed surgery on the boy several times, but to no avail. [end]
Islamic Jihad and Fatah combatants attack Israeli targets, soldier injured
Ma'an News Agency 8/6/2007
Gaza – Ma'an – The Al Quds Brigades, the military wing of the Islamic Jihad movement, claim that they launched three mortars into Israel, east of Juhor ad Dik in the Gaza Strip, on Sunday evening. In a statement issued by the brigades they said "the shelling was retaliation for the Israeli aggression against the Palestinian people." The Al Quds Brigades also announced responsibility for launching two homemade projectiles at Sderot, which is located close to the north of the Gaza Strip, on Monday morning. In related news, the Sami Al Ghoul Brigades, a small militia affiliated to Fatah, said that they clashed with Israeli Special Forces on Monday to the east of Khan Yunis, in southern Gaza. In their statement, they said that the "group clashed with Israeli forces which were attempting to infiltrate the area.
IDF officer lightly wounded by Palestinian fire in Nablus
Ha'aretz 8/6/2007
An Israel Defense Forces officer was lightly wounded by Palestinian fire early Monday morning, during an arrest raid in the West Bank city of Nablus. He received initial medical treatment at the scene and was then transferred to a hospital in Israel. Three wanted Palestinians were taken into custody during the operation. Five others were arrested overnight Monday in separate West Bank raids. An explosive device targeted IDF troops in Jenin. None of the soldiers were wounded. Also Monday, the Israel Air Force targeted a Palestinian rocket crew in northern Gaza that according to the IDF had just fired two rockets in the direction of Israel and was preparing to fire a third. According to Israel Radio, a Qassam rocket hit the western Negev town of Sderot on Monday, causing no damage or injuries. [end]
Israeli forces abduct Palestinian citizen from Abu Dis after beating him
Ma'an News Agency 8/6/2007
Bethlehem – Ma'an – Israeli military forces on Monday morning detained a Palestinian man from Abu Dis, in the central occupied Palestinian West Bank. The Asrana (Our Prisoners) media office, located in Jerusalem, said that a large Israeli military contingent, reinforced by border guards and Special Forces stormed the town and arrested Abdallah Arafat Abu Sbitan after invading his house and searching it for more than two hours. The Israeli soldiers beat the man in front of his family, who they then locked up in one of the rooms. Abu Sbitan has been arrested before in 2005; he has served 18 months in prison. [end]
IDF troops unwilling to evacuate Hebron market sentenced to jail
Nadav Shragai, Ha'aretz 8/7/2007
The Israel Defense Forces on Monday sentenced twelve soldiers to varying terms in military prison for refusing to take part in the removal of two Jewish families from a wholesale market in Hebron. IDF GOC Central Command, Major General Gadi Shamni, ordered disciplinary measures against two commanders and ten of their subordinates, and said they would be removed from combat. After the twelve stood trial, the commanders were sentenced to 28 days in military prison, and their 10 underlings were given 14-day terms. The soldiers refused to take part in guard duty along the Hebron-Jerusalem highway in the West Bank. The young men felt that the mission would negate their ideology as it would indirectly assist the evacuation of the families from Hebron by filling in for Border Police troops who would be diverted to carrying out the evacuation.
Reaction mixed to soldier's evacuation refusal
Nadav Shragai, Ha'aretz 8/6/2007
The refusal of soldiers to participate in today's evacuation of Jewish settlers from Hebron's market drew mixed reactions yesterday, with MKs on the right expressing their support. MKs Aryeh Eldad and Zvi Hendel (National Union - National Religious Party) congratulated the soldiers for "refusing to be the executioners of a blatantly immoral decision." The two Knesset members also said that the decision was "politically motivated, and its aim is to evict Jews from Jewish property in Hebron." "This is clearly an illegal order," Hendel said. "There is a limit to the extent to which the Jews can be abused, only because the extreme left has taken over the Supreme Court. The Israel Defense Forces needs to prepare for war and not deal with political policing actions.
No longer marginal
Nadav Shragai, Ha'aretz 8/6/2007
The ideological refusal to carry out military orders to evacuate settlers is no longer a marginal phenomenon within the Israel Defense Forces. Such refusal was not something to be dismissed two years ago either, when non-combat soldiers were placed on the front lines of the disengagement forces, while Golani and Paratroopers units were transferred to other assignments. But refusing orders has now become more mainstream, and is being granted increasingly greater legitimacy. More rabbis are directing their students to refuse evacuation orders, more right-wing public figures are supporting refusal, and more religious soldiers feel that they have the public and familial backing to refuse orders. And yesterday they were joined, though not for the first time, by some secular soldiers as well.
Israeli forces search Bethlehem streets for three missing soldiers
Ma'an News Agency 8/6/2007
Bethlehem - Ma'an - Citizens of Bethlehem in the occupied Palestinian West Bank were surprised by intensive Israeli forces deployed in many areas of the city on Monday morning. Israeli forces were seen patrolling the streets in Israeli military vehicles following unconfirmed reports they were searching for three Israeli Special Forces members within the city. Israeli forces were also seen patrolling the streets in neighbouring towns and villages. Sources from the Palestinian security services told Ma'an that Israeli forces frequently enter the cities of the governorate and patrol the streets. Israeli sources told Ma'an that three Israeli soldiers had entered the city and that contact with them had been lost. Reports of three missing Israeli soldiers were later revealed to be false.
Explosive device hidden in dead sheep
Efrat Weiss, YNetNews 8/6/2007
Cleared for publication: IDF arrests Palestinian who planned to carry out terror attack in West Bank settlement - An IDF force operating in the West Bank on Monday morning uncovered an explosive device weighing 40 kilograms (88 pounds), which was hidden inside the corpse of a sheep. The soldiers were led to the device by a Palestinian terrorist who was arrested and questioned by the defense establishment. According to intelligence information, military sources believe that the device, which was found on a road near the settlement of Elon Moreh, was slated to be used in a terror attack in one of the settlements in the area - Elon Moreh, Kedumim, Itamar or Bracha. On Sunday night, an IDF officer was lightly injured in an operation in the Nablus area after Palestinian gunmen opened fire at the force.
Qassam lands in Sderot kindergarten
Shmulik Hadad, YNetNews 8/6/2007
Rocket lands in schoolyard, damaging nearby buildings, including other adjacent schools. Kindergarten empty due to summer vacation; no casualties - A rocket launched from northern Gaza landed in a kindergarten schoolyard in Sderot, moments after the completion of a Monday afternoon meeting between Prime Minister Ehud Olmert and Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas. The al-Quds Brigades, the military wing of Islamic Jihad, took credit for the attack, which caused damaged to nearby buildings, including two other kindergartens and a public elementary school. Since the structures were empty, due to summer vacation, there were no ensuing casualties. "We heard the Color Red warning system and, luckily, managed to get into our protected room in time.
Israeli settlers attack Palestinian homes in Hebron
John Smith, International Middle East Media Center 8/6/2007
A group of Israeli settlers attacked a number of Palestinian homes in Hebron, setting two houses ablaze and running over a Palestinian man in the city centre on Sunday night, Palestinian media sources have indicated. After gathering in the centre of Hebron, the settlers reportedly attacked and set fire to a mosque in the city centre, after which the homes of two Palestinians were set ablaze. Security sources have indicated that the settlers prevented the fire service from stopping the blaze. Later the same day, a 22 year old Palestinian man, later identified as Noman Fawwaz Nazir, was struck by a settler-owned car. The man was admitted to a local hospital for medical treatment. [end]
Palestine Today 080607
IMEMC - Audio Dept, International Middle East Media Center 8/6/2007
Click on Link to download or play MP3 file - || File 3. 96 MB || Time 4m 20s || - Welcome to Palestine Today, a service of the International Middle East Media Centre, www. imemc. org, for Monday August 6th, 2007. Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas on Monday met with Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert in the West Bank city of Jericho. In the Gaza Strip, meanwhile, a child has died while waiting to return to the coastal region at the Rafah crossing. These stories and more coming up. Stay tuned. The West Bank - Israeli Premier Ehud Olmert on Monday met with Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas in the West Bank city of Jericho to discuss broad visions of the future outline of a Palestinian state. The visit marked the first time that any Israeli Premier has visited a Palestinian city in more than 6 years.
Reserves captain demoted for beating left-wing demonstrator
Yuval Azoulay, Ha'aretz 8/7/2007
An Israel Defense Forces reserves captain was relieved of his commanding duties on Monday, after a military tribunal found him guilty of inappropriate behavior in the form of beating a left-wing protester in southern Mount Hebron in May. Captain (res. ) Yair Amihai was videotaped kicking and shoving protesters from the left-wing group Anarchists Against the Wall and jabbing one of them violently in the chest with the muzzle of his loaded assault rifle. Amihai was officially reprimanded Monday by Commanding Officer Noam Tivon and ended his term as commander of his reserves unit because of the incident. Amihai expressed his desire to continue active service in the reserves corps. A military inquiry was launched shortly after the incident and focused on how familiar soldiers at all levels of the IDF were with the procedures for dispersing demonstrators.
IDF dismisses officer whose troops wounded Palestinian girl, 14
Amos Harel, Ha'aretz 8/6/2007
IDF GOC Southern Command Yoav Galant decided Monday to dismiss an infantry officer, whose troops wounded a 14-year-old Palestinian girl last month while employing the banned "neighbor policy" - in which Palestinian civilians are ordered to assist troops in arresting wanted militants. The High Court of Justice banned the use of the "neighbor policy" two years ago, saying it violates international law. According to an inquiry into the incident, troops from a special infantry unit surrounded a Beit Hanun house on July 12, in which militants were believed to be holed up. After several family members exited the house, troops ordered the mother to go back inside and bring out additional people. The mother in turn sent her 14-year-old daughter Rena Mufid.
Army bars children from flying their kites in Bil'in village
Saed Bannoura - IMEMC & Agencies, International Middle East Media Center 8/6/2007
Israeli soldiers chased on Monday several Palestinian children of Bil'in village, west of Ramallah in the West Bank, from flying their kites during a summer festival for children in the village. Soldiers fired gas bombs and dozens of children were treated for gas inhalation, the Arabs48 news website reported. On Monday afternoon, dozens of children from Bil'in, went to Palestinian orchards near the Annexation Wall and flew their kites as part of the activities of a summer program for children supervised by the Bil'in Sport Club. The children were also supposed to play soccer, play some musical instruments and visit the landscape in the area which is threatened to be annexed by Israeli for Wall and settlement constructions, but the soldiers arrived at the scene and demanded the children to leave the area.
Further group of stranded Palestinians return to Gaza
John Smith, International Middle East Media Center 8/6/2007
A further group of Palestinians returned to the Gaza Strip through the Erez crossing on Sunday, security sources have indicated. The group, the sixth to be transported, is thought to be made up of approximately 1,200 people. The transfer brings the number allowed to return to the Gaza Strip to 2,400 out of the approximately 6,000 Palestinians stranded at the Rafah border crossing. At least 32 people have died while waiting to return the coastal region with the latest, Abdur Rahman Ismael, aged 17, dying on Monday. Ismael had been in Egypt receiving cancer treatment when Israel closed all entry points into the Gaza Strip. [end]
Palestinians in an Egyptian sports stadium are transferred home
Ma'an News Agency 8/6/2007
Gaza – Ma'an – The process of transferring Palestinians from Arish sports stadium, in Egypt, to the central Sinai road of Al 'Oja, in order to return them to the Gaza Strip, continued on Monday. Palestinian official, Hani Al Jabour, said that 900 Palestinians are being transferred, he said that six groups have already returned, totaling around 3,500. The citizens of Gaza are returning as part of an Egyptian agreement with Israel. Palestinian sources said they expect all Palestinians to be returned by next Thursday. The citizens had been stranded on the Egyptian side of the border since the internecine fighting in Gaza led to the closure of Rafah Crossing. Many are now returning home through Israeli-controlled crossings, but there have been several reports of Israeli officials using the situation to recruit collaborators at border control.
The United Nations Relief and Works Agency condemns IDF incursion into UNRWA school in Gaza
United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in, ReliefWeb 8/3/2007
Gaza: The United Nations Relief and Works Agency, UNRWA, has condemned the incursion into an UNRWA school in southern Gaza by the Israeli Defense Forces, which left UNRWA property damaged. "This is a violation of our property and we expect the IDF to halt any operation that places in danger our staff and which damages our installations," said John Ging, Director of the UNRWA office in Gaza. According to the Convention on the Privileges and Immunities of the United Nations, to which Israel has acceded, "The premises of the United Nations shall be inviolable". Local residents report that at about 7 30 this morning, IDF soldiers and two tanks entered the compound of the Al Shouka Elementary Coeducational School and arrested two of the guards. The main gate of the school was damaged during the operation.
Palestinians: We can't take responsibilty for security in West Bank
Avi Issacharoff and Barak Ravid, Ha'aretz 8/6/2007
The Palestinian Authority's security organizations are unable to assume security control of cities in the West Bank, Prime Minister Salam Fayad told senior Israeli officials during recent meetings. Fayad told Israeli officials that the PA's security forces are unable "to impose law and order in the West Bank at this time." Meanwhile today, Prime Minister Ehud Olmert is scheduled to meet Palestinian Authority Chairman Mahmoud Abbas in Jericho. The meeting will focus on making substantive progress in preparation for the regional summit planned to take place in November in Washington. During meetings with senior Israeli officials, the interim Palestinian prime minister and his interior minister, Abd al-Razek al-Yihiya, made it clear that the PA's security cannot at this time assume control of West Bank cities.
Abbas and Olmert meet, IMK alleges that the Israeli PM "sold the West Bank"
Ma'an News Agency 8/6/2007
Bethlehem – Ma'an – Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas met with Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert in the West Bank city of Jericho on Monday. Olmert, who is the first Israeli official to enter the city in over six years, was received by Abbas. Palestinian sources revealed that the meeting addressed political issues and the demands of the Palestinian side. Palestinian requests included the removal of checkpoints and roadblocks in the West Bank, an end to the expansion of Israeli settlements and the return of deportees from Bethlehem. Olmert said that he hopes that the meetings will lead to negotiations about the establishment of a Palestinian state. Israeli Member of Knesset from Likud, Yuval Steinitz, said that Olmert "sold the West Bank as if Gaza had not become Hamasistan.
Prisoners' Affairs Minister cancels meeting with Israeli prison administration that refused the minister's attendance
Ma'an News Agency 8/6/2007
Ramallah – Ma'an – The Minister of Prisoners' Affairs, Ashraf El Ajrami, cancelled a meeting with the Israeli prisoners' administration after it refused Ajrami's artists delegation. The meeting was supposed to take place on Sunday. In a statement the minister said: "it was on the agenda of the meeting to discuss many important issues on facilitating the daily life of Palestinian detainees in Israeli jails. Another point of discussion would have been "the suffering of their [the prisoners'] families and relatives from hardships and difficulties, imposed by the Israeli side, far from humanitarian or ethical standards." El Aljrami added that "the cancellation of the meeting came from me, after the Israeli prisoners' administration refused to allow my attendance at the meeting, which is considered a disregard...
Barghouthi highlights Israeli expansionist projects hidden by high-profile meetings
Ma'an News Agency 8/6/2007
Ramallah - Ma'an - Dr. Mustafa Barghouthi, Secretary-General of the Palestinian National Initiative, on Sunday expressed his condemnation of the takeover by settlers of tracts of land belonging to the village of Artas, near the West Bank city of Bethlehem. In a statement Barghouti said, "Hundreds of settlers, under the protection of the army, seized territory in Khallat Cotton [near Artas], attacking the citizens as soldiers fired sound bombs and gas at them, at the same time as trying to deal with the settlers, to defend their land." Barghouthi said "This incident, which coincides with a meeting with President Abbas and Olmert, confirms that Israel is using these meetings in order to cover their expansionist designs." Barghouthi added, "The people, through projects addressing the Israeli efforts to impose...
Olmert travels to Jericho for first talks in Palestine in seven years
Rory McCarthy in Gaza City, The Guardian 8/7/2007
For the first time in seven years Israeli and Palestinian leaders met for talks in the Palestinian territories yesterday, the latest round in a wave of Middle East diplomacy. Ehud Olmert, the Israeli prime minister, said he intended to discuss "fundamental issues" with the Palestinian president, Mahmoud Abbas, at the meeting in the InterContinental Hotel in Jericho. The two talked for three hours about the outlines of a future Palestinian state as well as more immediate concerns, including economic issues, possible prisoner releases, checkpoints and humanitarian needs. But an Israeli official later said the talks had stopped short of negotiations over the core issues of a future peace deal: the future borders of a Palestinian state, the removal of settlements, the fate of refugees and the future of Jerusalem.
Olmert visits Jericho for Abbas talks
Fred Attewill and agencies, The Guardian 8/6/2007
Ehud Olmert today became the first Israeli prime minister to visit Palestinian territory for seven years when he met the Palestinian president, Mahmoud Abbas, for what were described as "very constructive" talks designed to address "fundamental issues". The two leaders met in Jericho for the highest-level discussions in several years in what is being seen as a boost for Mr Abbas and his moderate Fatah administration. Relations between Israel and Fatah have improved since Hamas - which refuses to recognise Israel - seized control of the Gaza strip in June, splitting the Palestinian territories in two. Israel has since attempted to bolster Mr Abbas by releasing Palestinian tax revenue and freeing 250 prisoners. Palestinians have been pushing for today's talks to focus on "final status" issues including the borders...
PM: Israel, PA to expand talks on establishing Palestinian state as soon as possible
Avi Issacharoff and Barak Ravid, Ha'aretz 8/7/2007
Prime Minister Ehud Olmert told Palestinian Authority Chairman Mahmoud Abbas at a meeting in the West Bank on Monday he would push for the establishment of a Palestinian state as "fast as possible." In a Jericho meeting with the PA chairman, Olmert refrained from setting a schedule, but said statehood would be achieved by adherence to the internationally brokered road map to Middle East peace, and through mutual understanding. "We have decided to expand the scope of the negotiations between us in order to advance mutual understanding and formulate the framework that will allow us to move forward toward establishing a Palestinian state," Olmert said. Monday's meeting marked the first time an Israeli prime minister has visited the Palestinian Authority since the outbreak of the second intifada in September 2000.
AG mulls U.K. call to charge IDF troops with photographer's death
Akiva Eldar, Ha'aretz 8/7/2007
Attorney General Menachem Mazuz will thoroughly examine the British government's demand that Israeli soldiers be indicted for murder, in the killing of photographer James Miller in Gaza in 2003, Israel promised London over the weekend. However, in his conversation with Mark Lyall Grant, political director of the British Foreign Office, Israeli Ambassador Zvi Hefetz warned that Mazuz may not be able to complete his investigations by Tuesday, as London has demanded. Peter Goldsmith, Britain's attorney general at the time of the incident, wrote Mazuz on June 26 requesting he clarify what he termed new information. He said that if Mazuz did not respond within six weeks, legal proceedings would be launched in Britain against the commander of the force that shot Miller, and who was cleared in a disciplinary hearing, as well as other soldiers and officers.
Israel rejects UK ultimatum to try soldier
Ynet, YNetNews 8/6/2007
IDF refuses to prosecute officer suspected of shooting British filmmaker in Gaza Strip four years ago. Justice Ministry: We will consider request according to our timetable - Israel is refusing to meet a British deadline concerning the case of an IDF officer suspected of killing British filmmaker James Miller in the Gaza Strip four years ago. According to a Sunday Times 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 Miller. IDF officers said Miller's murder was thoroughly investigated by the military police that cleared Al-Heib and other soldiers of wrongdoing. When the deadline, issued by former British attorney general Lord Goldsmith, expires, the British authorities...
Al Mezan Center demands a probe into army killing of UK Journalist
Saed Bannoura, International Middle East Media Center 8/6/2007
The Al Mezan Center for Human Rights demanded on Monday an immediate probe into the Israeli army fatal shooting of a British Cameraman at the borders area in Rafah, in the southern part of the Gaza Strip, in 2003. The Center stated that the soldiers who fired at James Miller should be prosecuted for this violation, and that Miller and his crew had been working on Friday May 2, 2003, for the US Home Book Offices (HBO) cable network in Rafah on a documentary about how Palestinian children are affected by the violence. Miller died while waiting evacuation from the scene. Miller, an award-winning filmmaker, was born on January 1, 1946. He and five crew members filmed a interviewed a family in Rafah and as they were leaving the area, wearing special press vests and carrying a white flag with lights pointed at it...
Israel voices satisfaction on UN statement
Daily Star 8/7/2007
Israel expressed its satisfaction about a recent United Nations Security Council statement that voiced grave concern at reports that the arms embargo along the Lebanese-Syrian border had been breached and that militias in Lebanon were re-arming, Israel's Jerusalem Post reported. The statement - which also expressed strong concerns about Israeli overflights into Lebanese air space and called for the immediate return of the capture of the two Israeli soldiers - came two weeks before the Security Council is set to extend the mandate of the United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL), which is deployed in the South of the country along the Israeli-Lebanese border. According to Israeli sources, the statement reiterated the United Nations's commitment to the terms of the original mandate, a development that Israel viewed positively on the eve of the UNIFIL mandate renewal.
Israel warns of Hizbullah abduction plot
Daily Star 8/7/2007
Israel warned on Monday that Hizbullah is seeking to abduct Israelis who are on visits to Muslim countries. Israel's anti-terror headquarters issued a travel warning ahead of the Jewish holidays in mid-September, repeating its call to its citizens not to travel to any Arab country. The warning included Jordan and Egypt with its Sinai peninsula - one of the most popular destinations for Israeli tourists. The council said any Israeli citizens in those countries should cut their trips short. The warning said that there is "a severe potential threat" of abducting Israelis by Hizbullah, after last year's summer war. In 2000, Hizbullah captured Israeli businessman Elhanan Tannenbaum after luring him to the UAE. He was released in January 2004 as part of a prisoner exchange deal with Hizbullah.
Study: Israel must initiate talks with U.S. on conflicting Iran interests
Barak Ravid, Ha'aretz 8/7/2007
A position paper that calls for Israel to initiate talks with the United States, to avoid the possibility that Washington and Tehran may conclude a "package deal" excluding Israel, has recently grabbed the attention of senior ministerial officials. Prepared by the Reut Institute, the document warns of the possibility that an agreement between the United States and Iran may allow the latter to retain some of its nuclear capabilities - particularly the ability to enrich uranium - and thus present Israel with a "strategic surprise." As such, "Israel must consider raising the matter of a deal with Iran in its talks with the United States... The more Israel offers creative alternatives to blocking Iran's nuclear ambitions, the greater the chances that the United States will include it in its decision-making.
Israel, Hamas renew stalled Shalit talks
Barak Ravid, Ha'aretz 8/6/2007
Israel and Hamas have renewed negotiations over the release of captured Israel Defense Forces soldier Gilad Shalit, with the help of Egyptian mediation, a senior political official in Jerusalem said yesterday. The official said the talks were restarted about a week ago, after having been suspended since Hamas took over the Gaza Strip in June. The Shalit issue came up in Prime Minister Ehud Olmert's meeting with Palestinian Authority Chairman Mahmoud Abbas yesterday. The two leaders discussed the possibility of releasing more Palestinian prisoners, in addition to the 255 prisoners Israel released on July 20 in a bid to boost Abbas. Olmert said he would consider the issue, but took into consideration the impact that Israel's bolstering of Abbas and his Fatah party could have on the rival Hamas.
PCBS and UNRWA sign agreement to share Palestinian statistics
Ma'an News Agency 8/6/2007
Ramallah – Ma'an – The Palestinian Central Bureau of Statistics (PCBS) and the United Nation's Relief and Works Agency (UNRWA) on Monday in Ramallah signed an agreement according to which both agencies will work together in sharing statistics. The agreement was signed by the head of the PCBS, Loay Shabana, and by Filippo Grandi, on behalf of UNRWA. The main goal of the cooperation will be "the enhancement of mutual understanding and maintaining of the substantial body of statistical information regarding the Palestinians in general and the Palestinian refugees in particular." For his part, Shabana expressed his gratitude towards UNRWA official Grandi for using PCBS's statistics over the years. Shabana also pointed out that the signing constitutes an integral part of the Central Bureau's efforts to enhance...
Minister of women's affairs and UNICEF's special representative to Palestine meet, discuss ministry's difficulties
Ma'an News Agency 8/6/2007
Ramallah – Ma'an – Minister of Women's Affairs, Dr. Kholoud Deibes, on Sunday met with the special representative of the United Nation's International Children's Fund (UNICEF) in Palestine, Patricia McPhillips, in the ministry's offices in Al Bireh, near Ramallah. Deibes talked about the difficulties the ministry is facing and said that the ministry intends to reach all women, and not just work with a specific group. McPhillips expressed her admiration for the work the ministry is doing and the goals that it has set. She also conveyed her readiness to provide assistance to the ministry, as well as briefing Deibes on UNICEF's activities in the Palestinian territories. [end]
Mahmoud Abbas to hold talks with Husni Mubarak on Wednesday
Ma'an News Agency 8/6/2007
Cairo – Bethlehem - Ma'an – Fatah Revolutionary Council member, Major General Jibreel Rajoub confirmed on Monday during a visit to Egypt that Palestinian president, Mahmoud Abbas will arrive in Cairo on Tuesday, and meet with the Egyptian president, Husni Mubarak on Wednesday. He said that President Abbas will discuss domestic Palestinian issues and Arab-Palestinian relations in addition to the Arab standpoint towards the peace conference called by US president, George W. Bush next fall. Rajoub stressed the importance of providing mechanisms at the peace conference to activate the peace process, and to implement the international legitimacy resolutions. In Cairo, Rajoub met with the Egyptian foreign minister Ahmad Abu Al-Gheit, the chief of the Egyptian intelligence service Umar Sulaiman and the Arab League secretary general Amr Moussa.
Norway FM to Peres: Our contact with Hamas has been severed
Barak Ravid, Ha'aretz 8/6/2007
Norwegian Foreign Minister Jonas Gar Store said Monday his country has severed all ties with Hamas established during the brief Palestinian Authority unity government. In a meeting with President Shimon Peres, Gar Store said the Norwegian government now deals exclusively with PA Chairman Mahmoud Abbas of Fatah and the PA Prime Minister Salam Fayad. Peres called on the Norwegian foreign minister to take a "strong line against Hamas," and added that it "must be made clear to Hamas that no one in the world will fund terrorism and the firing of rockets on Sderot and adjacent towns." In response, the Norwegian foreign minister reaffirmed his government's commitment not to donate money to the Islamic group. During the meeting, the president also touched on the Iranian nuclear program, calling it "the central threat to world peace.
Literary imagination makes for great PR
Shiri Lev-Ari, Ha'aretz 8/6/2007
For the past three years Israeli literature has been flourishing abroad and enjoying rather good public relations. Writers have traveled and returned, won prizes and had their works translated into many languages. One of the people most responsible for this is Dan Orian, who until last week served as the head of the literature department at the division for cultural and scientific affairs (DCSA) at the Foreign Ministry. Upon completing his service in that position, he has taken up his new assignment as consul at the Israeli Embassy in Copenhagen. Cooperation between Israeli writers and the Foreign Ministry is based on mutual interest: The writers and poets seek maximum exposure for their work abroad and the Foreign Ministry wants to use them to present Israel's attractive, sane face.
US State Department to revise website over Holocaust complaint
Associated Press, YNetNews 8/6/2007
Jewish group accuses State Department of minimizing Germany's role in Holocaust; State representative says language will be changed to 'more accurately reflect historical facts' - The US State Department said Monday it would revise a portion of its website after a prominent Jewish group accused it of minimizing the Holocaust and Germany's role in the Nazi slaughter of European Jews. The department's special envoy for Holocaust issues said a section of the site devoted to "background notes" on Germany would be altered following a protest from the Simon Wiesenthal Center that urged Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice to change the entry that it charged omitted key information about the mass killings. "We intend to change the language in order to more accurately reflect historical facts," said the envoy, J.
Palestinian Security forces abduct Hamas members before Abbas-Olmert meeting
Ameen Abu Warda, International Middle East Media Center 8/6/2007
Several hours before the scheduled Abbas-Olmert meeting in Jericho on Monday, a huge contingent of Palestinian Security forces invaded Al Shoyok town, located near the southern West Bank city of Hebron, launching a widespread search campaign designed to abduct Hamas members in the area. As a result, 14 Palestinians were abducted. They were identified as Thaer Halayka, Amer Halayka, Rami Halayka, Mahmoud Halayka, Mohammad Halayka, Bassam Halayka, Abed El Kareem Halayka, Khaled E'wedat, Mohammad Raki Halayka, Rezeq Halayka, Bassam S'efan, Mohammad Warasnah, Ayed Halayka, Ahmad Halayka. All the men were abducted from the Al Shoyok region, located within Zone C. According to the Oslo agreement, areas located in zone C fall under full Israeli.
Palestinian security forces arrest 13 suspected EF members
Ma'an News Agency 8/6/2007
Hebron – Ma'an – Sources within the Palestinian security services said they have arrested thirteen Palestinians from Ash Shuyukh, to the north-east of Hebron, on Monday morning. The arrested men are suspected to be members of the Hamas' Executive Forces. The sources added that the thirteen were in possession of documents that contain information that would be damaging to the Palestinian Authorities, which were intended to be used as incitement. The commander of the Hebron municipality, Samih As Seifi, told Ma'an that the arrest of the suspected men was done according to legal procedures and was "based on intelligence information." 'Abductees not EF' - Hamas commented on statements from the Palestinian security. Spokesperson of the movement in the West Bank said "we deny any relation between the abductees and the Executive Force.
Hamas and Islamic Jihad meet to resolve differences
Ma'an News Agency 8/6/2007
Gaza – Ma'an – Leaders from Hamas and Islamic Jihad in the Gaza Strip met on Sunday in order to discuss the latest developments in the Palestinian arena in light of the prevailing issues facing Palestinians. Leaders of the two factions agreed to continue their consultations, so as to achieve better coordination and cooperation "for the best of the Palestinian people." A statement issued after the meeting said that the two sides discussed the regrettable incidents between the two factions. Also, the leaders stated that they will take the appropriate steps to prevent any repercussions of the incidents. Despite attempts at cooperation between the two factions, fighting broke out between the Hamas and Islamic Jihad movements last Tuesday.
Ministry of prisoners' affairs to commence paying employees' and prisoners' salaries
Ma'an News Agency 8/6/2007
Bethlehem – Ma'an – Minister for Prisoners' affairs Ashraf El Ajrami said that starting Monday, the ministry will begin paying full salaries to 60 percent of the government employees that have not yet received their salaries. In an interview with a local Palestinian radio station in the Gaza Strip the minister said that "part of those who were appointed in November 2005 will be receiving salaries, the others need more checking, and their case is now being discussed, because there are so many." El Ajrami added that the contract employees will receive part of their salaries, and that the prisoners will be paid two month's worth of their allowance. Palestinian prisoners in Israeli jails receive an allowance from the Palestinian Authority in order to afford food and basic necessities. [end]
Deposed government pays the salaries of employees dissmissed by caretaker government
Ma'an News Agency 8/6/2007
Gaza – Ma'an – The deposed government on Monday started to pay the salaries of 500 Gaza and West Bank employees whose salary payments were frozen by the caretaker government's Prime Minster Salam Fayyad. The spokesman for the employees, Alaa Batta, told Ma'an that "these employees were paid only three times before," adding that the employees "were fired from their jobs as a result of unfair decisions by the Fayyad government." Alaa Batta said that previous payments included 1,000 workers, most of them from Hamas' Executive Force. Batta was informed that an additional 100 employees have been dismissed and their salaries will be paid by the deposed government. The spokesman called on the trade unions to exert pressure on Fayyad to pay the salaries of 25,000 employees in the West Bank that have been dismissed by the Fayyad caretaker government.
Deposed interior ministry condemns decision to stop government departments working in the Gaza Strip
Ma'an News Agency 8/6/2007
Gaza - Ma'an - The deposed Interior Ministry condemned the government's decision to close the Gaza Strip and to stop work in its departments there, describing it as an "illegal procedure." In a statement, the Ministry said that its decision would increase the blockade on the Palestinian people and obstruct services for citizens in the Gaza Strip. The ministry said that their work was on the "right track", calling for all employees to be committed to their jobs and carry out their national duty. They indicated that any member who was not fully committed may be accountable by law. [end]
Haniyeh's deposed government to dispense salaries
Wisam Afifa, International Middle East Media Center 8/6/2007
The spokesperson of the employee genuine in Gaza Strip, Ala El Bata ensured that the deposed government headed by Ismail Haniyeh will today commence with the payment of salaries to those civil servants who have had their salaries withheld by the Fatah movement for political reasons. The number of people thought to benefit from this is approximately 500. The employee genuine called on the employees to collect their salaries from the banks and presented it's gratitude to the Prime Minister for fulfilling his promise. [end]
Palestinian official: Most Gunmen have disarmed
John Smith, International Middle East Media Center 8/6/2007
The majority of resistance fighters with links to Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas' Fatah movement in the West Bank have disarmed in the hope of aiding a political solution, a senior Palestinian security official stated on Sunday. The statement comes one month after Israel announced an amnesty offer to members of the al-Aqsa brigades, the armed wing of Fatah, promising that they would be removed from Israel's so-called 'wanted list' if they surrendered their weapons to Palestinian Authority officials and pledged to renounce violence. According to the official, who wished to remain anonymous, approximately 300 members of the al-Aqsa brigades have made use of Israel's offer. [end]
Survivors' protest makes foreign journalists gasp, security vanish
Daniel Ben Simon, Ha'aretz 8/6/2007
It's difficult to remember when security last had been so flimsy for a demonstration outside the Prime Minister's Office in Jerusalem. All the frantic nervousness characterizing the most closely guarded compound in Israel, if not the entire Middle East, disappeared Sunday during the Holocaust survivors' protest. Thousands of protesters marched hundreds of meters from the Wohl Rose Park to the Prime Minister's Office unhindered, while security guards kept a very low profile. The last thing they needed was a violent clash with the Holocaust survivors. Foreign journalists were visibly taken aback by the bizarre spectacle of a Jewish state apparently at war with Jewish Holocaust survivors, who were angrily protesting what they considered a miserable stipend offer from the government.
3,000 Holocaust survivors march to protest welfare policy / 'Proud of the state, ashamed of its leaders'
Nadav Shragai, Ha'aretz 8/6/2007
Before every holiday, Shmuel Reiner goes to wealthy families in the Haifa area and collects food for other Holocaust survivors less fortunate than he. Yesterday, the 70-year-old joined dozens of other survivors and some 3,000 other Israelis in a march from the Knesset to the Prime Minister's Office, to protest the government's treatment of survivors who, in Reiner's words, "don't even have a cucumber in the refrigerator." Waving a small Israeli flag, Reiner, who survived the hell of Czernowitz as a child of eight, ascended the podium to address the demonstrators, and declared: "I'm proud of the State of Israel, but ashamed of its leaders. My heart aches over the fact that the government has brought those survivors still capable of standing on their feet to demonstrate here.
Right MKs: Hebron eviction illegal; Pines-Paz slams refusal
Nadav Shragai, Ha'aretz 8/7/2007
The refusal of soldiers to participate in Tuesday's evacuation of Jewish settlers from Hebron's market drew mixed reactions Monday, with MKs on the right expressing their support. MKs Aryeh Eldad and Zvi Hendel (National Union, National Religious Party) congratulated the soldiers for "refusing to be the executioners of a blatantly immoral decision." The two MKs also said that the decision was "politically motivated, and its aim is to evict Jews from Jewish property in Hebron." "This is clearly an illegal order," Hendel said. "There is a limit to the extent to which the Jews can be abused, only because the extreme left has taken over the Supreme Court. The IDF needs to prepare for war and not deal with political policing actions." MK Ophir Pines-Paz (Labor) assailed Eldad.
Hamas shaves year off inmates' sentences for memorizing Koran
The Associated Press, Ha'aretz 8/7/2007
Inmates in the Gaza Strip's main prison can now reduce their sentences by one year if they memorize five chapters from the Koran, Islam's holy book, the prison's governor announced Monday. The prison, controlled by the militant Hamas movement since the group's violent takeover of the Gaza Strip in June, holds 350 prisoners, 30 of whom are on death row. The new scripture program seeks to encourage prisoners to behave according to the Koran's law, prison governor Col. Abu al-Abed Hamid, said in a statement. Most of the inmates were sentenced before Hamas took power, for crimes ranging from murder to corruption to collaborating with Israel. The traditionally male-dominated Hamas also announced its intention to add 100 female officers to the Gaza police force.
Barak: Israel's 2000 pullout was the only right move
Daily Star 8/7/2007
In his testimony Monday before the Winograd Commission as part of the investigation into the failings of the "Second Lebanon War," Israeli Defense Minister Ehud Barak said the Israeli Army's withdrawal from Lebanon in 2000 had been the only right move for Israel. Israel's Haaretz newspaper cited Barak Monday as saying in his testimony that the Israeli Army withdrawal from Lebanon was justified as it brought, for the first time in 18 years, six consecutive years of quiet on the northern border. "Considering the circumstances and the manner in which it began, the Israeli Army withdrawal from Lebanon went very well," Barak said, adding that Israel was "a stone's throw away from leaving Lebanon under fire without any possibility of justifying the losses.
War probe to allow hearings for those affected by final report
Yuval Azulay and Haaretz Service, Ha'aretz 8/6/2007
The Winograd Committee announced Monday it will allow key figures who may be affected by its findings to plea their case to the panel before it publishes its final report. In a letter to former defense minister Amir Peretz (labor), retired judge Eliyahu Winograd said the committee he heads that is charged with probing the Second Lebanon War will summon all those who may be unfavorably implicated in its conclusions. "We are currently endeavoring over learning and analyzing the voluminous material gathered, in order to formulate decisions that will allow initial identification of those who may be affected by the report, and in what way they may affected," Winograd wrote. "We will turn without delay to all those who may be hurt and give them an appropriate chance to plea their case.
A secret guard for nuclear ambiguity
Amir Oren, Ha'aretz 8/6/2007
The retirement of Yehiel Horev last week from the post of Security Chief for the defense establishment drew public attention on the man - a 44-year-old veteran civil servant, who spent nearly half his life in security - but very little on the organization he headed. This is in and of itself an indirect achievement of the man who for two decades was the main "ambiguator" of Israel - the chief of staff of ambiguity. They only spoke of him, so much so that they forgot to ask whether that mysterious agency he headed was still necessary, an agency hidden in the shadows of the lower floors of the tower in the Defense Ministry's compound, which employs hundreds at the headquarters, in various branches, and in industry. The security organization, known by its Hebrew acronym as MALMAB, emerged in 1975 out of the Bureau...
Peretz: Barak is anti-social like Netanyahu
Attila Somfalvi, YNetNews 8/6/2007
Former Labor chairman speaks out for first time since losing primaries, slams his replacement over budget discussions. 'All our accomplishments are going down the drains,' he says - Prime Minister Ehud Olmert is taking advantage of the fact tha Defense Minister Ehud Barak is anti-social or is taking advantage of my lack of presence in the government in order to change the budget, former Defense Minister Amir Peretz said Sunday evening. Peretz, who is out of the country on a private vacation, made the remarks in a conversation with his associates. The former Labor chairman expressed his anger over the principles of the 2008 state budget, which he claimed harshly damaged the coalition agreement he signed when the Labor Party entered the government following the 2006 elections.
Ministry of Social Affairs slams plans to privatize special housing
Yael Branovsky, YNetNews 8/6/2007
Social Affairs, Finance ministries clash over plans to privatize special housing for the mentally retarded. 'This is unacceptable, unfair and unjust,' says social affairs minister The Ministry of Social Affairs, along with family members of individuals staying in special housing for the mentally retarded, protested Monday the Finance Ministry's intention to privatize state-funded facilities. The Finance Ministry announced recently that it intends to start privatizing the State facilities, which currently house some 1,200 occupants of all ages, suffering from various degrees of mental retardation. The privatization of these facilities would result in the firing of staff members, leading to a decrease in the level of care given to the patients, warns the Ministry of Social Affairs.
Gaza voices
BBC Online 8/3/2007
Three Palestinians - a musician, a private sector employee and ajournalist - describe life in Gaza. - There have been some minor clashes between Islamic Jihad and Hamas in Rafah, but today all of Gaza is busy with the secondary school exam results, which have just come out. The girl with the best results in all of the Gaza Strip is here in Rafah; she's one of my neighbours. But with the economic situation, I doubt she can do much. The Hamas government has said it will sponsor 10 students through university. Life under Hamas is OK. I am the only one working in my family, I have six younger brothers at school. Basically, I'm supporting the family. My father spent 12 years in Israeli jails. He's out now, but he's not getting any money because he's a Palestinian Authority employee.
Peace Index: July 2007 / Jewish Israelis don't have much faith in negotiations with PA
Prof. Ephraim Yaar and Prof. Tamar Hermann, Ha'aretz 8/6/2007
Although a considerable Israeli Jewish minority currently supports an extensive Israeli withdrawal from the West Bank (except for the large settlement blocs), the majority does not support such a move even if it occurs in the framework of a peace agreement with the Palestinians. Moreover, the majority objected to the recent freeing of the Palestinian prisoners, even though it was aimed at helping Palestinian Authority Chairman Mahmoud Abbas (Abu Mazen) boost his status among the Palestinian public, and an even larger majority opposes any future release of Marwan Barghouti despite the possibility that, if freed, he could strengthen the status of the secular Palestinian leadership. This position partly stems, apparently, from the Israeli Jewish public's current lack of hope that negotiations with the PA can lead to peace in the foreseeable future.
Wild orchids and metaphorical shipwrecks
Kaelen Wilson-Goldie, Daily Star 8/7/2007
BEIRUT: The contemporary art scene in Beirut is famously flexible. For more than 15 years, a community of independent artists and nonprofit arts organizations has built an infrastructure for cultural production that is capable of withstanding one political rupture after another. That infrastructure dovetails nicely with the commercial gallery system, which grows robust when economic times are good and becomes strained when they are bad. The dog days of August are always slow when it comes to art. Galleries typically go on hiatus for the month, artists and curators travel and the public seeks refuge at the beach or in the mountains. But few would argue that the contemporary art scene in Beirut is currently in good health. The otherwise indefatigable Agenda Culturel, the fortnightly French-language listings guide...
Sixth-century mosaic floor discovered near Palmahim
Ofri Ilani, Ha'aretz 8/6/2007
A floor mosaic dating back to the sixth century, depicting trees and fruit baskets, was uncovered this week at the Yavneh-Yam archaeological site near Kibbutz Palmahim. The floor, discovered during excavations by Tel Aviv University's Institute of Archaeology, decorated the dining room of a Byzantine villa, containing unbroken pottery. The Yavneh-Yam site, 15 kilometers south of Jaffa, served as a seaport from the middle of the second millennium B. C. E. until the ancient Islamic period. The numerous artifacts uncovered at the site point to extensive cultural and trade ties with Egypt, Lebanon, Cyprus and the Greek Isles. At the end of the fifth century, it was home to a monk known as Peter the Iberian - a charismatic bishop of Georgian origin who gathered around him a circle of intellectuals.
Israelis support government policy of expelling Sudanese refugees
Ynetnews, YNetNews 8/6/2007
Recent poll indicates Israeli public favors stated government policy of expelling majority of more than 1,500 African infiltrators currently in Israel. Study finds disparities along age and gender lines as well as religious and geographical divide. Meanwhile Amnesty Israel launches internet campaign petitioning interior minister to protect refugeesForty-seven percent of Israelis support the government's intention to expel the majority of infiltrators from Africa while only 39% oppose the policy. A poll conducted by the Kevoon Institute found that of those polled 14% percent were undecided. The question posed to over 500 adult Jewish Israelis was: "Over the past year 1,500 refugees from the Sudan have illegally entered Israel. The government believes most of them have come here looking for work.
West Bank trade hub feels checkpoint squeeze
Mohammed Assadi, ReliefWeb 8/6/2007
NABLUS, West Bank, Aug 6 (Reuters) - For five years, Ziyad al-Sarrawi watched Israel's tightening cordon around the city of Nablus slowly strangle the auto parts shop he built from scratch. He found his solution in April when he opened a new branch a few kilometres away -- just on the other side of Hiwwara, the Israeli checkpoint at the southern entrance of the city that cuts Nablus off from much of the occupied West Bank and Israel. Within the tangled network of 500 checkpoints, roadblocks and barriers across the West Bank, the eight checkpoints around Nablus may be the ultimate obstacle. Home to about 365,000 Palestinians, Nablus and the surrounding villages have been famed as a centre for trade since Greco-Roman times. Before Israel ringed Nablus with checkpoints in 2002 after the start of the Palestinian uprising, the city was the West Bank's economic heart.
Mon: TASE corrects upwards
Roy Meltzer, Globes Online 8/6/2007
The Tel Aviv 25 index rose 0. 88% led by real estate stocks. The shekel rose against the dollar and pound, but depreciated against the euro. The Tel Aviv Stock Exchange (TASE) rose today. The Tel Aviv 25 index rose 0. 88% to 1060. 17 points, the Tel Aviv 100 rose 0. 92% to 1038. 27 points, and the Tel-Tech rose 1. 05% to 411. 16 points. Turnover was NIS 1. 97 billion. The TASE corrected upwards today, helped by stable international markets as they began the trading week. Foreign currency trading was volatile. Although the shekel depreciated against most currencies in morning trading, it appreciated against the dollar and pound sterling in the afternoon. The shekel-dollar rate fell 0. 37% to NIS 4. 296/$, but the shekel-euro rate rose 0. 56% to NIS 5.
Shekel near all-time low against the euro
Roy Meltzer and Uri Shuster, Globes Online 8/6/2007
The shekel-euro exchange rate influences domestic inflation. - The shekel-euro exchange rate is nearing an all-time high and might even break through the NIS 6/€ threshold. The shekel-euro rate rose 0. 56% today to NIS 5. 936/€, and is now 6. 7% above its level in January. For the sake of comparison, the shekel-dollar exchange rate has risen 1. 7% since January. The gap is the result of the euro's 5% rise against the dollar, which explains the lack of correlation between the shekel's performance against the two currencies. The shekel-euro exchange rate reached NIS 5. 99/€ in inter-bank trading today, above its all-time high of NIS 5. 9554/€ reached in December 2004, before retreating in late trading. Israel's foreign trade data for the first half of the year show that 38% of imports came from the EU and were denominated in euros.
Dairy prices rise 3.8%
Amiram Cohen, Ha'aretz 8/6/2007
Prices of milk and other dairy products under price supervision will rise by 3. 8 percent on average. The joint price committee of the Finance and Agriculture ministries decided on the increase. The main cause of the rise is the increase in world prices of grains used to prepare animal feed. Over the last year and a half, from January 2006 through June 2007, wheat prices have risen 75 percent and corn - 55 percent. These increases have caused the price of raw milk sold by Israeli farmers to dairies to increase by 6. 9 agorot per liter, a 4 percent rise. The Milk Board and Cattle Growers Association have recently published figures explaining the rise in world grain prices: increased demand, mostly from China, which is expanding its dairy industry drastically; climatic troubles; lower strategic and commercial food...
"Interest rates below average"
Zeev Klein, Globes Online 8/6/2007
Bank of Israel Deputy Governor: The nominal rate should reach about 5%. - Globes: Is the Israeli economy now at greater risk? Bank of Israel Deputy Governor Zvi Eckstein: "Israel's five-year risk premium has risen to 25 basis points from 17, after remaining stable over the last three months. The yield gap between Shachar bonds and US government debt has also jumped from zero to 1. 3%. This gap reflects an increase in Israel's 10-year risk premium to 0. 75%. " The bi-annual inflation report that you published last week states quite clearly that the Bank of Israel is expected to raise the interest rate by 0. 6%. "It looks as though we probably will raise the interest rate. With the inflation target set at 1-3%, and real interest rates at a year-on-year average of 3%, the Bank of Israel's nominal interest rate should be around 5%.
Court grants Heftsiba protection from creditors
Noam Sharvit, Globes Online 8/6/2007
Signature Investment Group a US-based real estate investment company, has expressed an interest in buying Heftsiba. After a marathon six hour hearing lasting until 11:30 Sunday night, Jerusalem District Court deputy president Judge David Heshin issued a temporary stay in proceedings against the Heftsiba Building Development & Investments Ltd. group until the next court hearing on Thursday. In his decision, which was handed down at 2:00 am this morning, Heshin appointed the company's official receiver Adv. Shlomo Shahar as temporary trustee. The parties to the dispute may not take any material actions until the next hearing, including the foreclosing of guarantees. Judge Heshin also gave an order allowing Heftsiba's creditor banks to exercise their rights on assets of the company mortgaged to them.
Moves to sue Securities Authority over Heftsiba
Noam Sharvit, Globes Online 8/6/2007
The Securities Authority is examining whether any aspects of Heftsiba's collapse falls within its authority. A group of 150 apartment buyers and creditors of Heftsiba Building Development & Investments Ltd. plan to sue the Israel Securities Authority , its chairman Moshe Tery, and the Tel Aviv Stock Exchange (TASE) for negligence. The group has asked the law firm Yaniv & Co. to represent them against Heftsiba, the company's creditor banks, its subcontractors, and other parties. The group says that the Securities Authority and the TASE bear tort liability for not noticing that "the writing was on the wall" before Heftsiba Building collapsed. The creditors that they have information, which allegedly indicates that the Securities Authority and the TASE failed in their supervisory and monitoring responsibilities, even though they had this information in time.
U.S. real estate firm to makea bid for Heftsiba
Arik Mirovsky, Ha'aretz 8/6/2007
The American real estate firm, Signature Investment Group (SIG), owned by Efraim Shurka and his Israeli partner Yacov Bar confirmed to TheMarker that it is currently considering acquisition of Heftsiba, and intends to make an offer during the court hearing on Thursday. SIG owns property in the U.S. , which purportedly yields hundreds of millions of dollars a year mainly in New York, as well as its extensive real estate holdings in Israel. The company has refused to detail either its intentions for Heftsiba or the price it would be willing to invest in the company. [end]
Rival Lebanese leaders claim by-elections as 'victory'
Daily Star staff, Daily Star 8/7/2007
Aoun declares results of voting a 'national win' - BEIRUT: Free Patriotic Movement leader General Michel Aoun declared his victory in the Met by-election as a "national" victory and accused his contender in the Phalange party of pumping "political money" into the elections. "They called me Michel Nasrallahian. How much more national can you get?" The FPM leader asked in a news conference on Monday. Aoun was responding to the news conference held earlier by his party's contender for the Metn seat, Former President Amin Gemayel, who said the elections had proven that Aoun had lost Christian support. "Those who win a parliamentary seat, they have won nationally, and that includes the Christians," said Aoun. Aoun slammed Gemayel for using numbers of "lost votes" to show that the FPM leader lost popularity among Christians.
Gemayel calls for Christian unity
Al Jazeera 8/6/2007
Amin Gemayel, Lebanon's former president, has called for unity among the country's Christian population, after his narrow defeat in a parliamentary by-election by another Christian candidate. Sunday's vote was seen as an indicator as to which way the country's divided Christian community will vote in September's presidential election. Gemayel said: "These elections have shown that the solution to the Lebanese crisis is found in respect for institutions. "This is why I am calling for reconciliation between Christians... so that presidential commitments can be respected." Close result - Official results showed Camille Khoury, who represented Christian opposition leader Michel Aoun, defeated Gemayel, who was backed by the ruling Western-backed coalition by, by 418 votes.
Opposition claims victory in Lebanon poll
Jocelyne Zablit – BEIRUT, Middle East Online 8/6/2007
Big blow to Lebanon's Western-backed ruling majority - Aoun's party emerges winner in by-elections with narrow margin of 418 votes over Gemayel's party. - Lebanon's Western-backed ruling majority was dealt a blow on Monday in by-elections that deeply split the country's Christian camp and boosted the Syrian-backed opposition ahead of a presidential poll. Official results showed the candidate representing opposition leader Michel Aoun winning by a slim margin of 418 votes over former president Amin Gemayel, who was backed by the ruling Western-backed coalition. The outcome of the vote was important as it was expected to show which way the country's divided Christian community was leaning ahead of a presidential election scheduled for next month.
Witnesses report heavy clashes in Nahr al-Bared refugee camp
Daily Star 8/7/2007
BEIRUT: Heavy fights were witnessed early Monday between the Lebanese Army and Fatah al-Islam militant groups, now fighting for the 12th week. "Intermittent morning fights in Nahr al-Bared persisted between the Lebanese Army and surviving Fatah al-Islam militants," the National News Agency said on Monday. It said that army artillery bombarded at 7am militant sites still remaining in the security zone inside the camp. The camp was witness to violent confrontations since the early morning and the army attacked militants in several locations. Despite limited breaches, the night was calm. President Emile Lahoud spoke out against some March 14 politicians, who have been saluting the army for its heroic accomplishment at the Nahr al-Bared camp.
Government announces killing of Fatah al-Islam's number two
Nafez Qawas and Mira Borji, Daily Star 8/7/2007
BEIRUT: The Lebanese government said following a Cabinet session Monday evening that Fatah al-Islam's deputy commander Abu Hureira was killed in Tripoli last week. Quoting Interior Minister Hassan Sabaa, Information Minister Ghazi Aridi said Abu Hureira was killed as he was firing at an Internal Security Forces (ISF) checkpoint in Abu Samra. "ISF personnel shot him and arrested his colleague who confessed that the body belongs to Abu Hureira," Aridi said. A source close to the minister told The Daily Star that Abu Hureira had swum away from the Nahr al-Bared camp in Tripoli and traveled to the Ain al-Hilweh camp near Sidon. "He changed his facial features before coming back to Tripoli and renting an apartment with a sum of $30,000," said the source speaking on condition of anonymity.
Rival Islamist groups vie for control of refugee camp
Report, Electronic Intifada 8/6/2007
"It's named after the Jews who used to live around Sidon," Khoder Abdel Aziz, a 24-year-old resident of the street, tells us, referring to the neighboring port city, 45 kilometers south of Beirut. "We never thought to change the name and we never harmed the Jewish cemetery inside the camp. But when the Israelis invaded in 1982 they put a fence around it." Where once talk of Jews and of the state of Israel -- whose creation in 1948 drove hundreds of thousands of Palestinians into exile and succeeding generations, such as the youngsters living in Ein al-Hilweh, to the life of a refugee -- would have raised angry words, on this hot and tense day the subject brings but a faint murmur. The threat from within - Today, the most immediate security threat to the lives of the Sunni Palestinian refugees in Lebanon comes...
Iraq's Kaseb: Violence has destroyed my family
Middle East Online 8/6/2007
'I thought many times of taking poison after my son died' - © IRIN - Widowed mother says her younger son committed suicide, her daughter now requires psychological help. - BAGHDAD - Housekeeper and mother of three Anisah Kaseb, 58, says the relentless violence in Iraq has damaged her family psychologically: Her younger son committed suicide and her daughter now requires psychological help. Widowed and dependent on her deceased husband's pension, Kaseb tries to make some extra money by cooking for marriage parties or washing laundry at home. Her plight has worsened of late. "My son Muhammad, who was only 28 years old, was desperate: He had no job for the past two years and couldn't marry because we didn't have enough money. He was out on the streets one day looking for a job when a car bomb exploded near him.
Cabinet setback as Iraqi MPs quit
BBC Online 8/6/2007
Five Iraqi MPs have announced a boycott of cabinet meetings, deepening the political crisis and leaving the unity government without any Sunni members. The ministers, who are loyal to former Prime Minister Ayad Allawi, blamed what they said was the Shia-led government's failure to end sectarian favouritism. The Iraqiya List ministers included Sunni and Shia Muslims and a Christian. Iraq's largest Sunni-Arab bloc, the Accordance Front, withdrew six ministers from the cabinet last week. So far this year, 17 government ministers - nearly half of the cabinet - have either suspended their participation or quit. The BBC's Andy Gallacher in Baghdad says it is a serious setback for any attempts at reconciliation between Shia and Sunni factions.
US 'loses track' of Iraq weapons
BBC Online 8/6/2007
The US military cannot account for 190,000 AK-47 assault rifles and pistols given to the Iraqi security forces, an official US report says. The Government Accountability Office (GAO) says the Pentagon cannot track about 30% of the weapons distributed in Iraq over the past three years. The Pentagon did not dispute thefigures, but said it was reviewing arms deliveries procedures. About $19. 2bn has been spent by the US since 2003 on Iraqi security forces. GAO, the investigative arm of the US Congress, said at least $2. 8bn of this money was used to buy and deliver weapons and other equipment. Correspondents say it is now feared many of the weapons are being used against US forces on the ground in Iraq. The Iraqi interior ministry has blamed the Americans for the disappearance of the weapons.
US admits delay to Iraqi weapons
BBC Online 7/27/2007
The US-led coalition in Iraq has failed to deliver nearly two-thirds of the equipment it promised to Iraq's army, the US Defence Department has said. The Pentagon said only 14. 5m of the nearly 40m items of equipment ordered by the Iraqi army had been provided. The US military commander in charge of training in Iraq has asked for help in speeding up the transfer of equipment. On Wednesday, Iraq's ambassador to the US said the delays were hindering the fighting capacity of its armed forces. Samir Sumaidaie said Iraqi troops were often "cannon fodder" for militants. "There is general frustration in the Iraqi government at the rate at which Iraqi armed forces are being equipped and armed," he said. "This is a collaborative effort between the Iraqi government and the government of the United States,...
Ahmadinejad stages a bureaucratic revolution
Kaveh L Afrasiabi, Asia Times 8/7/2007
Making good on his campaign promise to introduce "revolutionary changes" in the government's management of economic, social and foreign affairs, Iranian President Mahmud Ahmadinejad has introduced serious measures that have yet to be fully implemented but which will in all likelihood define his era. Although he has been in office since October 2005, Ahmadinejad has now hinted at a "new diplomatic phase at a different level" within the next four months, promising that a "new movement" inIran's diplomacy is about to start that will make a significant improvement in the country's external affairs. Boasting that Iran has "a very active" foreign diplomacy, Ahmadinejad has not publicly elaborated on the details of his bold new vision or whether it will entail any organizational restructuring in addition to a "new approach".
Bush expands eavesdropping powers
Al Jazeera 8/6/2007
The US president has signed into law an expansion of the government's power to eavesdrop on foreign terror suspects without warrants, a law that civil rights groups say goes too far. "When our intelligence professionals have the legal tools to gather information about the intentions of our enemies, America is safer," George Bush said on Sunday. "And when these same legal tools also protect the civil liberties of Americans, then we can have the confidence to know that we can preserve our freedoms while making America safer." The law, approved by the senate and House of Representatives just before congress adjourned for its summer break, was deemed a priority by Bush and his chief intelligence officials. The administration said the measure was needed to speed up the national security agency's ability to intercept...
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