The Palestinian olive harvest Oct-Nov 2002, and the settler violence directed against it 
By Nancy Hawker, Alternative Information Center, November 18, 2002 
1/ Economic aspect: The importance of the olive harvest should be seen in the context of Palestinian agriculture as a whole. According to the Palestinian Economic Council for Development and Reconstruction, agricultural production accounts for 7% of Palestinian GDP. Since September 2000, productivity in this area has decreased by 70% due to closures and sieges, which prohibit access to agricultural land [PECDAR, 2002]. Moreover, transport and marketing of the produce is all but impossible, what with transport hindered by checkpoints and roadblocks, affecting export as well. Exports of agricultural goods are deemed to be especially upset by the crisis, with losses equivalent to 30% of their corresponding value in 2001 [World Bank, 2002]. Olive oil is a prime export, destined to Arab countries in the Gulf and Saudi Arabia.

The US will be legislator, judge and executioner
By Richard Norton-Taylor, The Guardian, November 18, 2002
The hawks in the White House have plans for NATO:  The Nato summit in Prague this week will determine the security interests of European countries, including Britain, for decades to come. It will determine what strategic direction they should take. It could determine when European countries go to war and when to keep the peace. These decisions will be made not by sovereign nations but by the United States. It seems the Blair government has already decided where it stands: Britain's national interest is identical to America's. If the Bush administration launches a pre-emptive strike on Iraq, or any other "rogue" state, or suspected terrorists, then Britain has no alternative but to applaud. If Washington wants to use British bases for its "son of star wars" project, then London will, in the end, inevitably concede.

A catastrophic response
Editorial, Ha'aretz, November 18, 2002
Prime Minister Ariel Sharon yesterday joined the demands of the Hebron and Kiryat Arba settlers when he spoke of the need for territorial continuity between Kiryat Arba and the Tomb of the Patriarchs. Foreign Minister Benjamin Netanyahu offhandedly negated the Oslo Accords, as well as the Hebron Agreement, which he, himself, signed. The Kiryat Arba settlers hurriedly set up an outpost at the site of the battle and declared they would not leave the area until their demands were met. And the Israel Defense Forces began uprooting trees and destroying houses. The bitter results of the battle that raged Friday night in Hebron between IDF soldiers and the Kiryat Arba emergency response squad and the Islamic Jihad cell, leaving 12 Israelis dead, are already rolling along under political wraps. It is a wave of reactions, reckless decisions and rash actions that are not unstained by the pending-elections mood and are likely to be catastrophic.

To quit the territories in a year
By Akiva Eldar, Ha'aretz, November 18, 2002
The Metzer massacre and the bloody battle in Hebron seemingly should have provided proof of the failure of the right-wing government's policies. With Benjamin Netanyahu on his right, Shaul Mofaz on his left and Effi Eitam breathing down his neck, Ariel Sharon has nobody to blame. The Labor Party, which supposedly prevented the unity government from expelling Yasser Arafat, is busy with its primaries. The "left," which prevented him from winning in Lebanon, is busy trying to decide whether to cast a blank ballot or vote for "Another Israel" (Yisrael Aheret). Nonetheless, the public is behaving like a battered wife who insists on going home to her violent husband. According to the polls, every terror attack strengthens Sharon and the right.

Fear and loathing in Hebron
By Amira Hass, Ha'aretz, November 18, 2002
HEBRON - Every weekend, including this past Friday, at around 5 P.M., soldiers take up positions on the roof of the home of Hussam Jaber in Wadi Nasara in the eastern part of Hebron. The three-story home is located on a narrow street that turns southward from the "worshipers' way" from the Jewish settlement of Kiryat Arba to the Tomb of the Patriarchs. The entire wadi, the hills that surround it, the houses of the neighborhood, the grapevines and the olive and peach groves spread beneath the roof like a relief map. On the railing around the roof the soldiers set up a floodlight ("At our expense," notes a member of the family) that illuminates the wadi. This happens every Friday and every Saturday, to ensure the safety of the many Jewish worshipers who walk the kilometer or so between Kiryat Arba and the old city of Hebron.

Putting Palestinian "Terrorism" into Perspective
By Baha Abushaqra, Palestine Chroncile, November 17, 2002
(PC) - Palestinian activist Marwan Barghouti, General Secretary of Fatah on the West Bank and an elected member of the Palestinian Legislative Council, wrote earlier this year to the Washington Post, "Want Security? End the Occupation." His opinion, as you can tell, is not being taken seriously by the Israeli lawmakers, who conveniently locked him up, branding him and his Fatah movement as "terrorist." "Our enemies called us terrorists. People who were neither friends nor enemies…also used this Latin name, either under the influence of…propaganda or out of habit ... They called us 'terrorists' to the end. And yet, we were not terrorists ... It all depends on who uses the term ...What has a struggle for the dignity of man, against oppression and subjugation, to do with 'terrorism?' Our purpose, in fact, was precisely the reverse of 'terrorism.' The whole essence of our struggle was the determination to free our people of its chief affliction -- fear...if you love your country, you cannot but hate those who seek to annex it…if you love your mother, would you not hate the man who sought to kill her: would you not hate him and fight him at the cost, if needs be, of your own life?" These were not the words of Mr. Barghouti, or of the spiritual leader of Islamic Jihad, rather, of revered former Israeli Prime Minister, and, incidentally, former leader of the (terrorist?) Irgun group, who personally led the notorious Deir Yassin massacre, Menachem Begin, rebuffing charges of terrorism against his militant gang, whom he refers to as freedom-fighters (from his book, The Revolt, New York, 1977).

Amnesty International & Israel: Say it Isn't So!
By Paul de Rooij, Palestine Chroncile, November 17, 2002
LONDON (PC) - Any organization fighting torture and other human rights abuses deserves our support. A recognized leader in this fight is Amnesty International (AI), helping people escape with their lives or avoid torture for decades. Given AI's track record and its role as a human rights monitor, one must be careful leveling criticism against it. But one can no longer be silent about AI's stance regarding Israel and Palestine.
This article analyzes Amnesty's entire public record and stance during the current intifada (Sep. 2000 thru Sep. 2002). It is an analysis of a meager record of 83 press releases and six reports . It reveals the following shortcomings and questions about its stance.