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IOF troops kidnap four Palestinians
Palestinian Information Center 8/31/2008
NABLUS, (PIC)-- Israeli occupation forces on Sunday kidnapped four Palestinian young men at a roadblock south of Nablus city after ordering them out of their car and searching them, eyewitnesses reported. They said that the IOF soldiers forced all commuters out of their cars before rounding up the four citizens. In Salfit, IOF troops closed the Za’tara roadblock east of Salfit at the pretext they found a "suspicious object" near the barrier, locals reported. They said that thousands of citizens queued at the barrier and waited for a long time before the soldiers allowed them access after getting rid of the "suspicious object". [end]
Israeli forces detain four civilians at military checkpoint near Jenin
Ma’an News Agency 8/31/2008
Jenin – Ma’an – Israeli forces detained four civilians at a military checkpoint near Tubas from different villages in the Jenin governorate. The civilians were traveling from the area to Nablus city and were stopped at a checkpoint set up by Israeli forces on the road between Tubas and the El-Far’a refugee camp. Several cars were stopped and checked. The four men, Jihad Hassan Ibrahim from Kafr Ra’i, Wahid Najem Nawasrah from Fahma and Nayef Hardan and Sobhi Arda from Arraba were taken out of the cars they traveled in and transferred to an unknown location. [end]
Palestinian police deactivate explosive device near Al-Jalazun school
Ma’an News Agency 8/31/2008
Ramallah – Ma’an – An explosive found near the Al-Jalazun boys school was dismantled on Sunday by engineering experts from the Ramallah/Al-Bireh police department. The police statement said the explosive device was a gas cylinder weighing 12 kilograms, and containing nails, gasoline and cotton. Engineers used specialized equipment to deactivate the device. The interrogation department will follow up with this case. Police warned anyone wishing to harm children and the civil peace with violence and destruction would be found and punished to the fullest extent of the law. [end]
Damour Bridge reopens after postwar renovation
Daily Star correspondent, Daily Star 9/1/2008
CHOUF: Two years after its destruction by Israeli warplanes during the summer 2006 war, the freshly renovated Damour Bridge was finally open to motorists on Friday. Public Works and Transportation Minister Ghazi Aridi and Saudi Ambassador Abdel-Aziz Khoja, whose country funded the renovation of the bridge, attended a ceremony to inaugurate the span. "The kingdom of Saudi Arabia not only contributes to the reconstruction of Lebanon but also works hard on building bridges between various Lebanese groups," Aridi said, adding his usual rejoinder that Saudi Arabia "stands at an equal distance from all Lebanese groups and embraces their hopes and fears. "Aridi said the inauguration of the bridge, "will hopefully help in erasing some of the grievances of the summer 2006 war and herald the start of a new era of piece and stability. more.. e-mail
Al-Aqsa Brigades in Gaza graduate a class of fighters
Ma’an News Agency 8/31/2008
Gaza – Ma’an – A class of fighters trained by the Al-Aqsa Brigades, Fatah’s armed military wing, graduated on Sunday in the northern Gaza Strip. The group stated during the graduation ceremony, that they intend to continue armed resistance against the Israeli occupation. The fighters are part of the Brigades controlled by Fatah, the party which also controls the caretaker government in the West Bank. Palestinian Prime Minister Mahmoud Abbas is also a member of the party. Abbas is currently taking part in talks with Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert on details of a possible peace agreement before the end of Olmert’s term in mid-September. The general commander of the Al-Aqsa Brigades and leaders of the Consultation Council (senior leadership of the party who discuss Fatah policy) attended the graduation along with members of other Palestinian factions. more.. e-mail
Gaza kids ’training to kill Jews’
Ali Waked, YNetNews 8/31/2008
Salah al-Din Brigades training dozens of Palestinian children to ’fight the Jews and kill Jewish children’. Eleven-year-old trainee: I’d rather die fighting the occupation than die at home from a missile. Islamic Jihad threatens to unleash ’the fires of hell’ on Israel - The armed Palestinian groups in Gaza have recently stepped up their military training amid what they refer to as the threat of a wide-scale Israeli operation in the Strip. In this framework dozens of children have undergone training in the past few days by gunmen from the Salah al-Din Brigades, the armed wing of the Popular Resistance Committees. The training included firing pistols and rifles. "I am learning how to fight the Jews and kill Jewish children," 11-year-old Muhammad told Ynet, "the parents of the Jewish children are the soldiers and officers who kill us here. more.. e-mail
Haredi chastity squad methods exposed
Yifat Reuven, YNetNews 8/31/2008
Following arrest of chastity squad members, riots erupt in religious neighborhoods. Former members reveal how squads operate - The arrests of two alleged chastity squads members, Elhanan Buzaglo and Binyamin Meirovich, have sparked a new wave of violence in Jerusalem’s ultra-Orthodox neighborhoods. Following the arrests, garbage bins in the neighborhood of Geula were set on fire. Police officers who arrived were greeted with rocks being thrown at them. A store selling MP4 devices was attacked last week. Buzaglo, 29, was indicted over an incident which took place two months ago. The District Prosecutor’s Office believes that Buzaglo, along with six other chastity squad members, broke into a divorced woman’s home located in the Jerusalem neighborhood of, Maalot Dafna, beat her and threatened her. more.. e-mail
Israeli forces invade Jenin and Nablus
Rula Shahwan, International Middle East Media Center News 8/30/2008
Israeli forces invaded on Saturday morning the West Bank cities of Jenin and Nablus and nearby refugee camps, local sources reported. A number of Israeli military vehicles invaded Nablus at dawn; troops deployed in several streets and fired rounds of live ammunition. Moreover troops invaded Al Ein refugee camp in the city and launched a search campaign in the area, no arrests were reported. In Jenin, soldiers broke into the house of Nizar Suraqa, 24, who died on Friday at an evacuated military site near the city due to a landmine explosion. Troops seized his family members for interrogation for couple of hours after forcing them out of their home. Eyewitnesses reported that troops also invaded the nearby Arafeh and Qabatia villages and fired rounds of live ammunition and CS gas canisters among houses as troops spread throughout several neighborhoods. more.. e-mail
Amos Gilad named temporary coordinator of government activities in territories
Yaakov Katz, Jerusalem Post 8/31/2008
An irreconcilable difference between IDF Chief of General Staff Lt. -Gen. Gabi Ashkenazi and Defense Minister Ehud Barak led to the surprise appointment over the weekend of Maj. -Gen. (res. ) Amos Gilad as the temporary coordinator of government activities in the territories. The current coordinator, Maj. -Gen. Yosef Mishlav, will step down from the post next week after four years in the job and over 35 years in the IDF. Barak had wanted to appoint one of two people to the job - his military attachƩ Brig. -Gen. Eitan Dangot or his bureau chief Brig. -Gen. (res. ) Mike Herzog, brother of Welfare and Social Services Minister Isaac Herzog. Ashkenazi, defense officials said Friday, had made it clear to Barak in recent weeks that he was against appointing either of these officers. As a result, Barak decided to put Gilad in the post for the next three months until he can find a permanent appointment. more.. e-mail
Military wing of Islamic Jihad celebrates graduation of trained fighters
Ma’an News Agency 8/30/2008
Gaza – Ma’an – The Al-Quds Brigades, the armed wing of Islamic Jihad, are preparing for a major imminent confrontation with Israel, and graduated third class of fighters on Friday. The military group organized a celebration for the graduating battalion of fighters, named after the founder of the group Mahmoud Al-Khawaja. The celebration was held in Gaza City and several leaders of the Al-Quds Brigades as well as other factions attended the celebration. Trainees practiced military shows and actions shouting "death for America and Israel" as part of the celebration. Members of the new class also practiced fighting skills such as climbing walls using ropes, maneuvering under low-hung bribed wires, jumping over fire, blowing up an imaginary Israeli settlement and kidnapping Israeli soldiers. Senior Islamic Jihad leader Abu Anas delivered a speech at the graduation ceremony,. . . more.. e-mail
Young man killed by Israeli landmine in southern Jenin
Ali Samoudi, Palestine News Network 8/29/2008
Jenin -- Nizar Mahmoud Soarkeh died Friday morning. The 24 year old was killed by a landmine left undetonated by Israeli forces in southern Jenin. Area residents report hearing an explosion that rocked the early morning hours. It came from the vicinity of a former Israeli military camp that had been installed in the northern West Bank. The young man’s relatives report that he was on his way to work on his farm in the same area when the landmine exploded. His remains were transferred to Jenin’s Government Hospital, Khalil Memorial. Palestinian police immediately began conducting an investigation. They report that "the area where the explosion occurred was formerly a camp of the Israeli occupation army. " Palestinian sources said that the 24 year old was third family member killed by Israeli forces. more.. e-mail
Rabbi accuses Peace Now of grave sin
Kobi Nahshoni, YNetNews 8/29/2008
Yisrael Rozen writes article blaming left-wing organization for tale-bearing. Quoting Maimonides, he says punishment for such behavior is death; Peace Now head threatens to press charges - Rabbi Yisrael Rozen, head of the orthodox-affiliated, non-profit Zomet Institute, has expressed perhaps the most strident censure possible in Judaism for Peace Now activists, who are fighting to uproot settlers from the Migron settlement. "Such tale-bearing is known in Hebrew as ’moser’ (informer)"¦ Individuals who have sunk to this lowest level of behavior were despised and shunned (in Jewish tradition). They are considered worse thanheretics or apostates," wrote the rabbi in an article published in "Shabbat BeShabbato", a leaflet distributed in Israeli synagogues weekly. Rozen wrote that, according to halacha (Jewish law) the punishment of such tale-bearing was death. more.. e-mail
Israeli forces arrest four fishermen at Beit Lahiya shore
Ma’an News Agency 8/29/2008
Gaza – Ma’an – Four Gazan fishermen were detained and taken to an unknown location after being attacked on their boats while in Gaza waters near the northern Strip city of Beit Lahiya. Eyewitnesses reported seeing several Israeli vessels closing in on two Palestinian fishing boats, which were then attacked and arrested as the sun rose. Those detained were 55-year-old Mohammed Issa Sa’ad Allah, 18-year-old Ahmed Farid Sa’ad Allah, 60-year-old Mohamed Mohamed Sa’ad Allah and 39-year-old Jihad As-Sultan. [end]
Two Shfaram men held for planning terror attacks
Yuval Azoulay, Ha’aretz 8/29/2008
Two Israeli Arabs from Shfaram have been arrested on suspicion of belonging to Islamic Jihad and planning attacks that included assassinating Israeli pilots, scientists and university professors. The two, both university students, are also suspected of planning a shooting attack on an army checkpoint near Ramallah. The police and the Shin Bet security service believe that plan was relatively advanced. The assassination plans, in contrast, were still in their infancy. The two suspects are Anis Sappori, 20, who studies communications at Bir Zeit University in Ramallah, and Hussam Khalil, 19, who studies electrical engineering in Jordan. Three Palestinians, all members of Islamic Jihad, have also been arrested in the case. The cell was uncovered thanks to intelligence tips. As part of their efforts to get their terrorist cell up and running, Sappori and Khalil tried to contact. . . more.. e-mail
Islamic Jihad suspects deny allegations
Ahiya Raved, YNetNews 8/29/2008
Court extends remand of two Israeli Arabs suspected of planning to assassinate Israeli pilots, scientists. Father of one of suspects says actions ascribed to them ’acceptable’ - The Akko Magistrate’s Court on Friday extended the remand of two Israeli Arabs suspected of planning to assassinate Israeli pilots and scientists by five days. The two Shfaram residents are 20-year-old Anis Saffouri, a communications student at Ramallah’s Birzeit University, and 19-year-old Hussam Khalil, who studies electronic engineering in Jordan. They both denied the allegations against them. On Thursday it wascleared for publication that an Islamic Jihad cell plotting to assassinate Israeli pilots, scientists and university lecturers was exposed in a joint IDF, Shin Bet and police operation. The cell was comprised of three Palestinians and two Israeli Arabs from Shfaram. more.. e-mail
Jews visit demolished West Bank settlements for first time since pullout
Nadav Shragai, Ha’aretz 8/29/2008
Jews visited the destroyed West Bank settlements of Ganim and Kadim this week for the first time since the disengagement removed them from the map three years ago. The visit began when the Glick family from Otniel, another West Bank settlement, decided to take a two-day tour of outposts in the northern West Bank. The tour had originally been intended to conclude with Homesh, another settlement evacuated during the disengagement, where there has been a continual Jewish presence in recent months. But when Yehuda Glick arrived at Homesh with his wife and four children, they met up with the Goldmintzes, a family of five. The two families, along with some 10 other people, then decided to go on to Sa-Nur, the last of the four West Bank settlements evacuated during the disengagement. more.. e-mail
Israeli settlers set fire to workshop under construction in Nablus
Palestinian Information Center 8/28/2008
RAMALLAH, (PIC)-- Palestinian eyewitnesses reported that Israeli settlers stormed Thursday morning the Burin town, south of Nablus, and set fire to lumber used in the construction of a workshop which led to the burning of all pieces of wood. The eyewitnesses added that the settlers cut the workshop’s water pipe before their withdrawal, but the Nablus fire department rushed to the scene and extinguished the fire. They said that those Israeli assailants might have come from the nearby settlements of Bracha or Yitzhar whose settlers are notorious for waging attacks on Arab villages. Meanwhile, an Israeli special force boarding civilian cars stormed Thursday the Faisal street, downtown Nablus, and kidnapped one of the Fatah-affiliated Al-Aqsa Brigades’ activists called Adham Labada from his workplace at a shop. Labada is one of Al-Aqsa Brigades’ activists who have been granted. . . more.. e-mail
One Palestinian man killed by an Israeli landmine near Jenin
Ghassan Bannoura, International Middle East Media Center News 8/29/2008
Palestinian police sources said that one Palestinian civilian was killed on Friday at dawn when an Israeli army landmine exploded in him near the northern West Bank city of Jenin The sources reported that the Nizar Suraqa 24 was at an evacuated military site near the city. Medical sources said that Suraqa died instantly due to the explosion. His relatives said that he was on his way to his farm when he apparently stepped on a landmine. The Palestinian police stated that it initiated a probe into the incident and added that the area used to be a training ground for Israeli forces. It is worth mentioning that he is the third family member to be killed in the same circumstances. Several years ago, his brother Basil and his cousin Nidal Swarka died in similar landmine explosions. more.. e-mail
Palestinians: Explosive device kills farmer in West Bank
The Associated Press, Ha’aretz 8/29/2008
A Palestinian police official says a West Bank farmer was killed when he triggered an explosive device while on his way to work in his fields. The official says the 24-year-old Palestinian was killed early Friday near the village of Al-Mansura, west of the town of Jenin. He says police have identified the device as an old Israeli mine. The Israeli military says it is checking the report. The Palestinian official says the Israeli army used the area in the past as a training ground. He spoke on condition of anonymity because the Palestinian police had not issued an official statement on the incident. The Israel Defense Forces retains overall control of the West Bank, but police loyal to Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas have limited authority in some areas. more.. e-mail
Israeli landmine planted in abandoned West Bank military base kills Palestinian
Ma’an News Agency 8/29/2008
Nablus – Ma’an – Landmines planted in abandoned Israeli military base in the West Bank killed one man in Arraba south west of Jenin on Friday. The information office for the Palestinian police said 24-year-old Nizar Sawarkah was killed immediately when a landmine exploded beneath the young man. Nizar was transferred to Jenin governmental Hospital, but died of the injuries he sustained. The police report said Nizar was walking in through an abandoned Israeli military base when the incident occurred. [end]
Israeli forces detonate explosives before arresting students
Amin Abu Wardeh, Palestine News Network 8/28/2008
Nablus -- The pre-dawn raids were expansive throughout the West Bank Thursday with Israeli forces arresting 17 Palestinians. The Israelis also hit western Nablus City and arrested six An Najah University students. Eyewitnesses report that undercover special forces infiltrated the area first and were followed by tens of military vehicles. Soldiers surrounded several homes and broke into a building behind the University. They detained a number of citizens before storming the student apartments. The Israeli military detonated explosives inside causing significant damage. Eyewitnesses said that Israeli forces took "at least five young men" believed to be students of An Najah University who were living in the Al Khalili apartment building. Throughout the night Israeli forces also invaded Bethlehem, Hebron, Qalqilia and Tulkarem. more.. e-mail
Israeli settlers set fire to workshop under construction in Nablus
Palestinian Information Center 8/28/2008
RAMALLAH, (PIC)-- Palestinian eyewitnesses reported that Israeli settlers stormed Thursday morning the Burin town, south of Nablus, and set fire to lumber used in the construction of a workshop which led to the burning of all pieces of wood. The eyewitnesses added that the settlers cut the workshop’s water pipe before their withdrawal, but the Nablus fire department rushed to the scene and extinguished the fire. They said that those Israeli assailants might have come from the nearby settlements of Bracha or Yitzhar whose settlers are notorious for waging attacks on Arab villages. Meanwhile, an Israeli special force boarding civilian cars stormed Thursday the Faisal street, downtown Nablus, and kidnapped one of the Fatah-affiliated Al-Aqsa Brigades’ activists called Adham Labada from his workplace at a shop. Labada is one of Al-Aqsa Brigades’ activists who have been granted. . . more.. e-mail
Israeli troops kidnap six college students from Nablus
Rula Shahwan, International Middle East Media Center News 8/28/2008
An Israeli military force kidnapped six Palestinian civilians from the West Bank city of Nablus on Thursday at dawn, local sources reported - A number of Israeli military vehicles and jeeps invaded the city, and began shooting gunfire and concussion grenades. In addition, soldiers surrounded a number of houses and harassed civilians by throwing sound bombs for over two hours. Troops invaded students’ dorms in the city and kidnapped Walid Sabane, Hikmat Jabar, Abd Allh Bsharat, Ahmad Fares, and Ala Jadan and Wael Bishrat. The soldiers took them to an undisclosed location after ransacking their dorms. The Israeli army often kidnaps Palestinian civilians without any justification, and usually transfers them to detention centers inside Israel proper which are inaccessible to Palestinians, an issue which violates International Law, and Israel’s obligations as an Occupying Power under the Fourth Geneva Convention. more.. e-mail
Soldiers invade West Bank cities, kidnap 10
Rula Shahwan, International Middle East Media Center News 8/28/2008
Israeli troops invaded the West Bank cities of Tulkarem, Hebron, Bethlehem, Jenin and Tubas on Thursday morning and kidnappedten civilians, local sources reported. Israeli soldiers, backed by military vehicles, invaded Tulkarem, in the northern part of the West Bank, and launched a wide scale search campaign targeting several random houses. Soldiers used police dogs during the search and confiscated computers and other belongings. Troops kidnapped 4 civilians from Saleh family after ransacking their place and confiscating money and personal computers. They were all taken to an unknown destination. In Hebron, in the southern part of the West Bank, soldiers broke into the residence of an-Najar family located near the Annexation Wall on the city’s lands, and kidnapped 5 family members taking them to an undisclosed location. more.. e-mail
Cell plotting to assassinate Israeli pilots, scientists arrested
Efrat Weiss, YNetNews 8/28/2008
Joint IDF, Shin Bet, police operation exposes Islamic Jihad cell comprised of three Palestinians, two Israeli Arabs, who planned to assassinate Israeli pilots, scientists - An Islamic Jihad cell plotting to assassinate Israeli pilots, scientists and university lecturers was exposed in a joint IDF, Shin Bet and police operation. The arrest was cleared for publication on Thursday evening. The cell was comprised of three Palestinians and two Israeli Arabs from Shfaram. The group also planned to carry out a shooting attack against the IDF checkpoint near Beit Zeit, in the Ramallah area, and go after those suspected of collaborating with Israel. The planning of the assassinations was still in the early stages. The two Israeli Arab members worked on the fundraising front, trying to secure money for the purchase of weapons. more.. e-mail
Palestine Today 082808
IMEMC News - Audio Dept, International Middle East Media Center News 8/28/2008
Click on Link to download or play MP3 file|| 3 m 30s || 3. 20 MB || Palestine Today 082808 Welcome to Palestine Today, a service of the International Middle East Media Centre, www. imemc. org, for Thursday August 28th, 2008. Israeli military forces invade West Bank cities and kidnap 16 civilians, meanwhile Egypt promises Gaza border crossing reopened before Ramadan, these stories and more, coming up, stay tuned. The News Cast Israeli military forces invaded the West Bank cities of Nablus Tulkarem, Hebron, Bethlehem, Jenin and Tubas on Thursday morning kidnapping 16 civilians. A number of Israeli military vehicles invaded Nablus, shooting gunfire and concussion grenades in residential areas. Soldiers surrounded a number of houses and harassed civilians by throwing sound bombs for over two hours. more.. e-mail
Israel Group Reports Sharp Increases in Settlement Activity
Ethan Bronner, MIFTAH 8/28/2008
Peace Now, the Israeli advocacy group, said in a report released Tuesday that in the last year Israel has nearly doubled its settlement construction in the occupied West Bank, in violation of its obligations under an American-backed peace plan. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice, in Jerusalem on a short visit to help Israeli and Palestinian leaders in their negotiations, said when asked about the report that she has told Israeli officials that such building does not advance the cause of peace. “What we need now are steps that enhance confidence between the parties, and anything that undermines confidence between the parties ought to be avoided,” she told reporters with the Israeli foreign minister, Tzipi Livni, standing at her side. Ms. Livni said that settlement building should not influence the negotiations because the goal should be “not to let any kind of noises that relate to the situation on the ground these days enter the negotiation room. ” more.. e-mail
Israeli settlers set fire to a construction workshop in Burin
Rula Shahwan, International Middle East Media Center News 8/28/2008
A group of Israeli settlers set a construction workshop on fire on Thursday morning in Burin village near the south of the West Bank city of Nablus. Eyewitnesses said the settlers from the nearby Brakha settlement, poured gasoline at the workshop equipments and set them on fire burning most of the tools and equipment. Later on, Fire Trucks arrived to the scene and put the fire down, and no casualties were reported. [end]
Israeli Arabs nabbed for planning attack
Yaakov Katz, Jerusalem Post 8/28/2008
Two Israelis were arrested by the Shin Bet (Israel Security Agency) earlier this month for allegedly setting up an Islamic Jihad cell near Ramallah and planning to assassinate air force pilots and scientists, it was released for publication on Thursday. Slideshow:The men - both from the Western Galilee town of Shfaram - were identified as Anis Zfori, a 20-year-old student at Bir Zeit University north of Ramallah, and Husam Halili, a 19-year-old who studies in Jordan. The pair confessed to contacting Islamic Jihad’s headquarters in Syria and to raising funds to buy weapons. The cell members underwent training and planned a shooting attack on an IDF checkpoint near Ramallah as well as attacks against Palestinians suspected of cooperating with Israel. They had also begun planning the assassination of key Israeli figures such as IAF pilots, scientists and university lecturers. more.. e-mail
2 Israeli Arabs arrested over suspected Jihad plot to kill pilots, scientists
Jack Khoury and Yuval Azoulay, Ha’aretz 8/28/2008
Two Israeli Arabs from Shfaram have been arrested on suspicion of belonging to Islamic Jihad and planning attacks that included assassinating Israeli pilots, scientists and university professors. The two, both university students, are also suspected of planning a shooting attack on an army checkpoint near Ramallah. The police and the Shin Bet security service believe that plan was relatively advanced. The assassination plans, in contrast, were still in their infancy. The two suspects are Anis Sappori, 20, who studies communications at Bir Zeit University in Ramallah, and Hussam Khalil, 19, who studies electrical engineering in Jordan. Three Palestinians, all members of Islamic Jihad, have also been arrested in the case. The cell was uncovered thanks to intelligence tips. more.. e-mail
Israeli police arrests two Arab residents accused of 'security violations'¯
Saed Bannoura - MEMC & Agencies, International Middle East Media Center News 8/28/2008
The Israeli Police and the Internal Security Services announced that they arrested two Arab residents of Israel, residents of Shfa-Amr Arab town, and claimed that the two "conducted security violations". The two were arrested more than three weeks ago but a gag order on the case barred any leaking of information to the media. The two were identified as Anis Safoury and Husam Khalil. Te police claims that the two joined a cell which belongs to the Islamic Jihad in Ramallah, and that this cell was in an advanced stage of planning attacks against Israeli targets, including opening fire at a military roadblock. The Israeli Security Services also claimed that the two discussed the possibility of assassinating Israeli figures including pilots, scientists and university lecturers. The Israeli Security Services are also charging the two of illegal position of weapons, and training in order to attack a military roadblock. more.. e-mail
Jewish settlers plan to build 1,761 illegal housing units in Occupied East Jerusalem alone
Inter Press Service, Daily Star 8/28/2008
OCCUPIED JERUSALEM: Israel has published tenders for the construction of 1,761 illegal housing units for Israeli settlers in Occupied East Jerusalem alone, according to the Israeli rights group Peace Now. The expansion plans come despite promises by the Israeli government at last year’s peace summit at Annapolis, Maryland to freeze all settlement growth. "Once again this government has shown that its words and commitments are meaningless, and they have no intention of keeping to their word," says Peace Now. UN chief Ban Ki-moon has stressed repeatedly that settlement construction or expansion in the Occupied West Bank is contrary to international law and Israel’s commitments under the "road map" peace process. The road map was a series of peace-building measures proposed by US President George W. Bush in 2002 and subsequently developed by the so-called diplomatic "Quartet". . . more.. e-mail
Palestinians: IDF arrests 5 Islamic Jihad operatives in Nablus
Jpost.com Staff, Jerusalem Post 8/28/2008
IDF elite troops arrested five Islamic Jihad operatives in Nablus late Wednesday bight, according to Palestinian sources. The five were reportedly part of the movement’s student leadership at the West Bank town’s An-Najah University. The IDF confirmed that there had been an operation in the town, during which several arrests were made. [end]
Israeli military forces invade West Bank cities, kidnap three civilians
Rula Shahwan, International Middle East Media Center News 8/27/0200
An Israeli military force kidnapped three Palestinian civilians from the West Bank cities of Hebron, Nablus and Jenin on Wednesday morning, local sources reported. A number of military vehicles invaded the southern Hebron and the nearby Surief town and Beit Ula village. Troops launched a wide scale search of residents homes. Eyewitnesses reported that the Israeli soldiers took Tahseen Abu Ayesh, Sharif Adwan and Ibrahim Saraheen prisoner and led them to undisclosed location. The Palestinian Prisoners’ Society reported Wednesday that the number of civilians imprisoned by Israeli troops during the month of August in Hebron stands at 48. In Nablus troops roamed the main roads of the city, searched and ransacked residents’ homes in nearby Balata and Askar refugee camps. Troops opened their gunfire and concussion grenades, no injuries were reported. more.. e-mail
Palestinian citizen of Israel killed in drive-by shooting
Ma’an News Agency 8/27/2008
Bethlehem – Ma’an – A Palestinian citizen of Israel was shot dead by masked attackers on Wednesday morning in the Galilee region of northern Israel. Police said 37-year-old Rabah Hijazi, from the village of Tamrah, was shot several times in the head. "Two masked men traveling in a white car opened fire at Hijazi in another car. Police are searching for the suspected car," a police statement said. Unidentified people on Wednesday morning shot dead a Palestinian holder of Israeli identity card, from the city of Tamrah in northern Israel. [end]
Israeli report: IOA gradually erasing green line
Palestinian Information Center 8/26/2008
OCCUPIED JERUSALEM, (PIC)-- A report prepared by an Israeli leftist movement revealed that the Israeli occupation authority was continuing to expand settlements in the West Bank at an accelerated rate that would eventually erase the green line separating the Palestinian lands occupied in 1967 from those occupied in 1948. The report by the peace now movement said that the increasing settlement activity aimed at erasing all features of the green line through intensifying building that would link settlement blocs to isolated settlements in the heart of the West Bank. It noted that more than 1,000 new buildings are under construction in the first half of 2008 that include around 2,600 housing units. The report pointed out that 55% of those buildings were built to the east of separation wall, and quoted the Israeli central statistics department as indicating that construction in settlements had almost increased double fold since last year. more.. e-mail
Bomb explodes at Al-Azhar University campus in Gaza
Ma’an News Agency 8/27/2008
Bethlehem – Ma’an – A bomb exploded in a classroom at Al-Azhar University in Gaza on Tuesday morning, causing no casualties. The Palestinian Center for Human Rights (PCHR) reported the incident in a statement released on Wednesday. The bomb went off in the Al-Katiba building on the campus in the West of Gaza City at 11:30am. The room was "heavily damaged. "A number of college students had attended an exam in the room shortly before the explosion. On Tuesday, 26 August 2008, a bomb exploded in a classroom in the campus of al-Azhar University in the west of Gaza City, but causing no casualties. This incident is part of the state of security chaos prevailing in the Occupied Palestinian Territory. more.. e-mail
Israel decides to keep Gaza crossings closed
Palestinian Information Center 8/27/2008
GAZA, (PIC)-- Informed Palestinian sources reported that the Israeli occupation told Palestinian officials in Gaza and Ramallah that it would retain the commercial Gaza crossings closed until further notice without clarifying the reasons for this extension. The crossings were expected to be reopened on Wednesday after Israel closed them at the pretext that a Palestinian rocket landed in an Israeli settlement adjacent to Gaza. In another context, Palestinian sources said that a large number of Israeli police and intelligence elements stormed Tuesday the Jerusalemite club of Beit Hanina smashing doors, ransacking and confiscating contents. They also kidnapped three Palestinians who were in the club. In the wake of this raid, they headed directly to the house of Hazem Gharabli, the club manager, who was not home then, and left him a summons after searching the house. more.. e-mail
IDF temporarily bans 3 rightists from West Bank
Efrat Weiss, YNetNews 8/27/2008
Central Command issues restraining orders against three right-wing activists after intelligence indicates they intend on hindering upcoming Palestinian olive harvest - IDF Central Command chief, Major-General Gadi Shamni, issued three restraining orders against settlers residing in the West Bank settlements of Yitzhar and Adi-Ad, banning them from the area pending the conclusion of the upcoming Palestinian olive harvest. Early Wednesday morning, the men - all known right-wing activists - were presented with the warrants, banning them from the West Bank from several months. According to defense establishment sources, the warrants were issued at this time despite the harvest being scheduled for October, since the army had accurate intelligence suggesting the men intend to hinder both the harvest and the preparations for it. more.. e-mail
Army invades several West Bank cities
Rula Shahwan, International Middle East Media Center News 8/20/0200
Israeli troops invaded the West Bank cities of Jenin, Qabatia and Bethlehem, searched several homes, installed roadblocks and kidnapped one civilian on Wednesday at dawn, Palestinian sources reported. In Jenin, in the northern part of the West Bank, a number of military vehicles invaded the city, and soldiers fired live rounds at random. Troops also searched and ransacked several houses causing damages, and kidnapped Ahmad Zaiad aged 22, and took him to an unknown destination. Qabatia the city, located south of the northern West Bank city of Jenin was invaded by several military vehicles and jeeps while soldiers installed a roadblock between the city and a nearby village. In addition, army invaded Bethlehem and al Obaidiah nearby village, searched and ransacked Shanayta and Jawareash family houses, after forcing the two family members to leave their homes. more.. e-mail
Israeli army kidnaps five civilians from Hebron
Marina Ayyoub, International Middle East Media Center News 8/20/0200
Israeli army invaded the southern West Bank city of Hebron kidnapping five civilians at Wednesday midday, local sources reported. Israeli military vehicles deployed in the southern part of the city while troops lunched a search campaign in the area and kidnapped four civilians. Moreover, soldiers kidnapped in the center of the city a child aged 12 after claiming that he was holding a knife and took him to an unknown detention camp. The reasons behind kidnapping of the four Palestinians remains unknown, as troops did not explain anything to the families. The Israeli army often kidnaps Palestinian civilians without any justification, and usually transfers themto detention centers inside Israel proper which are inaccessible to Palestinian, an issue which violates the International Law. more.. e-mail
Soldiers in attempt to attack a village council near Bethlehem
Rula Shahwan, International Middle East Media Center News 8/20/0200
A number of Israeli vehicles invaded the West Bank city of Bethlehem on Wednesday morning and attempted to raid the municipality of the nearby Al Walaja village, local sources reported. Eyewitnesses said the soldiers tried to break into the municipality building, but the security guards stopped them and as a result clashes occurred between both sides. The security guards told the troops that they don’t have a legitimate cause to enter the building, unless they take permission from Palestinian authorities. The reason behind this attempted attack remains unknown. Israeli soldiers repeatedly attempt to attack municipalities and village councils in the West Bank without any justification. more.. e-mail
Israeli army seizes eight civilians
Rula Shahwan, International Middle East Media Center News 8/19/2008
Israeli army troops invaded Tulkarem, Nablus and Jenin on Tuesday at dawn and rendited eight civilians, as reported by local sources. Israeli troops invaded Tulkarem with a number of military jeeps and launched a widespread search campaign among several neighborhoods. Troops searched, several houses kidnapping the total of six civilians and taking them to unknown detention camps. In Nablus, a number of Israeli military vehicles invaded the city. Troops searched several houses and took two civilians to an unknown detention center before they withdrew from the city. Troops also invaded Jenin; military vehicles drove through out the streets for a couple of hours then withdrew, no people were taken and the reason of this incursion is unknown. On August 11, Palestinian and Israeli security officials met in Jenin to discuss security issues. more.. e-mail
IOA reopens Karm Abu Salem, allows passage for only 25 trucks
Palestinian Information Center 8/19/2008
GAZA, (PIC)-- The Israeli occupation authority reopened the Karm Abu Salem on Monday after four months of closure only to allow the passage of 25 trucks loaded with various goods. Sources in the PA caretaker government’s national economy ministry told the PIC reporter that the supplies varied from foodstuff to plastics and detergents. The Palestinian trade center said that the Karm Abu Salem crossing could handle 160 trucks per day after completion of its expansion project but the number of trucks before its closure on 1/4/2008 did not exceed 40 trucks per day. It also noted that the Sufa crossing could handle 200 trucks a day but the IOA allowed entry of 80 trucks only. For its part, the professional syndicates union in Gaza Strip warned on Tuesday of a popular explosion in the Strip in the event the Rafah crossing remained closed. more.. e-mail
Barak orders Gaza crossings closed after Qassam hits Negev
Haaretz Service and Reuters, Ha’aretz 8/20/2008
Palestinian militants in the Gaza Strip fired a Qassam rocket into Israel Tuesday, in violation of the two-month old truce between Israel the coastal territory. The rocket landed in an open area in the Sha’ar HaNegev regional council area. No injuries or damage were reported. Defense Minister Ehud Barak ordered the border crossings with Gaza closed between Wednesday morning and Thursday afternoon in response to the rocket attack. Rocket firings have become rare since an Egyptian-brokered truce took effect on June 19. Israel has responded to such attacks by closing border crossings with the Hamas-controlled Gaza Strip. Israeli and Palestinian officials said earlier on Tuesday that Israel had allowed food and other supplies to enter the Hamas-ruled Gaza Strip through a key commercial crossing that had been closed for months. more.. e-mail
Israeli army seizes two civilians in Hebron
Rula Shahwan, International Middle East Media Center News 8/19/2008
The Israeli army troops invaded Hebron, kidnapping two civilians following a search of their houses, as reported by local sources. Troops entered the city and searched a number of houses, releasing concussion grenades and shooting at random. They took Ahmad Al Qayq aged 57 and Yasser Amr aged 47. [end]
Israeli lightly wounded in stone-throwing north of Jerusalem
Jpost.com Staff, Jerusalem Post 8/19/2008
An Israeli was lightly wounded Tuesday when his car was pelted with stones thrown by Palestinians north of Jerusalem. The man was treated at the scene. [end]
VIDEO - Gaza militants train women suicide bombers in case of renewed violence
Haaretz Staff and Channel 10, Ha’aretz 8/20/2008
The cease-fire agreement struck between Israel and Palestinian militant groups in the Gaza Strip has brought a semblance of calm to the region, but neither side has stopped preparing for the possible renewal of violence. In Gaza, Islamic Jihad members recently offered TV cameras a rare glimpse into training undergone by women who are prepared to carry out suicide attacks should the Israel Defense Forces reinvade the coastal territory. T he women take as an example Fatma Al-Najar, a 57-year-old grandmother who blew herself up in Gaza in 2006, wounding three soldiers. Related articles: Israeli movie turns camera on female would-be suicide bombersIsraeli film on mothers of suicide bomber, victim tapped for 3 Emmys Fatma Al-Najar, 57, becomes first grandmother suicide bomberAlso on Haaretz. more.. e-mail
Report: Homemade projectile ’falls near Sderot’; no injuries
Ma’an News Agency 8/19/2008
Bethlehem – Ma’an – A homemade projectile apparently fired from the Gaza Strip landed in a field west of the Israeli border town of Sderot on Tuesday evening, Israeli media reported. No injuries were reported. There was no immediate claim of responsibility from any Palestinian group. This was the first such projectile fired since Sunday. Last week Israel briefly imposed total closure on the Gaza Strip’s borders in response to another homemade rocket. Israel and Palestinian groups in Gaza entered into a ceasefire on 19 June in which Israel pledged to ease its blockade of Gaza’s borders. Palestinians say Israel has failed to deliver on this latter pledge. [end]
Court gives state 90 days to resolve Migron controversy
Jerusalem Post 8/19/2008
The High Court of Justice has given the state three more months to work out a mutually acceptable arrangement with settlement leaders to remove the residents of the illegal Migron outpost, according to a decision revealed Tuesday. The decision came in response to a brief by the state on August 13 in which it informed the court that settlement leaders had agreed to choose a new site inside the West Bank for the roughly 50 Migron families within 30 days. Palestinians who say they own the land upon which Migron is situated and Peace Now petitioned the court in October 2006, demanding that the state dismantle the outpost, which was built without government authorization. The state admitted immediately that the mobile homes and other structures belonging to the Migron settlers were built on private Palestinian land and must be removed. more.. e-mail
Israeli forces storm three towns in northern tip of West Bank
Ma’an News Agency 8/17/2008
Jenin – Ma’an – Israeli forces stormed the village of Silat Adh-Dhahr in south west Jenin on Sunday morning along with villages of Ti’nnik and Zububa north west of the city where the patrols searched agricultural lands. The villages are clustered in the northern most point of the West Bank, near Israel’s Salem military training compound. Last week several dunums of agricultural land and olive groves were destroyed to enlarge the area. Palestinian sources say that Israeli forces stormed the village of Zububa at 2:30am Sunday morning and searched agricultural lands near the separation wall. In Silat Adh-Dhahr and Ti’nnik, Israeli patrols marched the streets with no detentions reported. more.. e-mail
Israel postpones evacuation of Jewish wildcat settlement
Agence France Presse - AFP, Daily Star 8/18/2008
OCCUPIED JERUSALEM: The Israeli government has decided to put off for the time being its promised evacuation of the largest Jewish wildcat settlement in the Occupied West Bank, the Defense Ministry said on Friday. The ministry told the Israeli High Court the Migron settlers - about 200 people living on private Palestinian land - can remain until new homes are built for them on public land. "We have told the court we will announce within 45 days the new location of Migron," a ministry spokeswoman said. The ministry did not say when the settlers would be moved. In January the government told the court it would evacuate Migron by August. The government’s new plan to move the settlers later has the backing of the main Occupied West Bank settlers’ organization, but the Migron residents, some right-wingers and anti-settler activists reject it. more.. e-mail
Qassam hits western Negev, causing no injuries
News Agencies, Ha’aretz 8/18/2008
Palestinian militants in the Gaza Strip fired a Qassam rocket at the western Negev on Sunday, in an affront to a fragile two-month old truce between Israel the coastal territory. The rocket caused no injuries or damage, Israel Police said. Police spokesman Micky Rosenfeld said the missile landed in a field near Kibbutz Nahal Oz, an agricultural community close to a border crossing with the Gaza Strip. There was no immediate claim of responsibility. Rocket firings have become rare since an Egyptian-brokered truce took effect on June 19, but there have been a number of incidents, nontheless. Israel has responded to such attacks by closing border crossings with the Hamas-controlled Gaza Strip. The cease-fire is meant to stay intact for six months. Rumors have abounded of an imminent Israel Defense Forces operation in the territory. more.. e-mail
Qassam rocket lands in western Negev
Shmulik Hadad, YNetNews 8/17/2008
Despite truce, Palestinians continue to launch Qassams into Israel. Rocket hits open area within Eshkol Regional Council; no injuries or damage reported - A Qassam rocket was fired Sunday afternoon from the northern Gaza Strip, landing in an open area within the Eshkol Regional Council in the western Negev. There were no reports of injuries or damage. Despite the ceasefire declared between Israel and Hamas in Gaza, Palestinians have fired several rockets or mortar shells into the Jewish state over the past few weeks. Another rocket hit the western Negev on Friday afternoon. It landed within the Ashkelon Coast Regional Council without causing any injuries or damage. Last Monday, a rocket landed in an open area near a kindergarten in the city of Sderot. Two days earlier, a rocket hit an open area in the Sha’ar Hanegev Regional Council. more.. e-mail
Projectile fired from Gaza lands in Israel
Ma’an News Agency 8/17/2008
Bethlehem – Ma’an – A homemade projectile fired from the Gaza Strip landed in the Negev desert in Israel on Sunday afternoon, causing neither injuries nor damage. An Israeli police spokesperson said that the rocket landed near Kibbutz Nahal Oz. Israel and armed Palestinian factions in Gaza entered into a ceasefire on 19 June. [end]
Islamic Jihad leader warns of Israeli plans to demolish Al-Aqsa Mosque
Rula Shahwan, International Middle East Media Center News 8/16/0200
Islamic Jihad leader, Ibrahim an-Najjar slammed the ongoing excavations Israel is carrying out under the Mughrabi Gate ramp near the Western Wall (Al-Buraq Wall) and the Aqsa Mosque Noble Sanctuary, (Haram ash-Sharif) in the old city of Jerusalem. An-Najjar’s comments came during a commemoration marking the 29 anniversary of burning the Aqsa Mosque, on August 21, 1969. An Australian Christian extremist hoping to hurry the coming of the messiah was actually responsible for the arson in the mosque in 1969, but widespread fears that Israel would destroy the area after taking over East Jerusalem in 1967 trumped the truth. Since Israel had razed the Mughrabi Quarter - an 800 year old neighbourhood that stood where the Western Wall compound now is - when they took control over the area in 1967, Palestinians had ample grounds for mistrust as to how the holy area would be treated. more.. e-mail
Nativity Church deportee kidnapped, beaten in Gaza
Ma’an News Agency 8/17/2008
Bethlehem – Ma’an –Masked gunmen kidnapped and assaulted Mazen Hussein, one of the deportees from the Nativity Church siege of 2002, in Gaza on Sunday night. "I was walking in a street in Gaza City when three masked men jumped from a jeep and drove me inside where they beat me on the head with their guns and then moved me into another jeep, and I think we were in a place not too far from As-Sarayah street in central Gaza City," said Hussein, speaking to Ma’an"Then they took me to the car market east of Gaza City, where a number of masked men started to beat me with iron pipes and kicked me and then threw me in the street where people from the area called the ambulance and sent me to Ash-Shifa Hospital," he added. Hussein was held captive for over an hour before he was left in the street. Both of Hussein’s knees were broken. more.. e-mail
Israeli forces seize three Palestinians near Nablus
Ma’an News Agency 8/17/2008
Nablus – Ma’an - Israeli forces detained at dawn on Sunday three young men from the village of Asira, south of Nablus, after storming their houses. Palestinian security sources said that the Israeli forces identified the detainees as: Taha Yassin and ’Ala Abdel-Latif and Montasser Yassin. [end]
For an agreement, against confrontation
Yehuda Ben Meir, Ha’aretz 8/18/2008
The agreement reached between the Yesha Council and the government on evacuating the unauthorized outpost at Migron is a good one, and both sides - the government and the Council of Jewish Settlements in Judea, Samaria and the Gaza District - should be commended for their responsibility and courage in choosing compromise and agreement over confrontation and the danger of bloodshed. There is no cause for surprise at the howls of protest being voiced in extremist circles on both the left and the right. They were predictable and only prove the compromise was appropriate and fair. As for the response of the left, I admit it is beyond my ken to comprehend why it is permissible and desirable to talk with enemies, but it is forbidden to talk with rivals. Why is it that the same people who are all for speaking to our worst enemies, to terrorists. . . more.. e-mail
Village Council member to PNN: Israeli forces confiscating our land for military base
PNN, Palestine News Network 8/16/2008
Rummaan -- Israeli military machines have spent the past two days razing vast agricultural areas and uprooting olive trees in the northern West Bank’s Rummaan. The village, near Jenin City, is being over run by Israeli forces that are expanding a military training base. Since 1948 Israeli forces have confiscated 80 percent of Rummaan Village land. Targeted land includes that which belongs to Mahmoud Ahmed Haab and to Aziz Tahir Bushnaq and their families. Fruit and olive trees are destroyed, along with several dunams of land. This means immediate financial devastation as olive harvest season is just around the corner. Village Council Member Al Ahmad told PNN on Saturday afternoon that a military order was delivered five days ago stating that six dunams and 100 meters of land and many trees would be confiscated for "military purposes". more.. e-mail
The Israeli army kidnaps a civilian from Bethlehem
Rula Shahwan, International Middle East Media Center News 8/16/0200
The Israeli army troops kidnapped one Palestinian civilian in the West Bank city of Bethlehem Saturday morning, Palestinian sources reported. Eyewitnesses said that a number of Israeli military vehicles drove into the city and surrounded the house of Fawzi Nawawra, 27 in Bethlehem suburb. Troops searched and ransacked his home leaving some damages behind and took Nawawra prisoner. Witnessess added that Nawawra was handcuffed, blindfoldedd and taken to undisclosed location. The reasons behind kidnapping Nawawra remain unclear, as troops did not explain anything to the family. [end]
Gush Katif Museum opens in Jerusalem
Tovah Lazaroff, Jerusalem Post 8/17/2008
On the back wall of the newly created Gush Katif Museum in Jerusalem hangs a photograph of four tattered Israeli flags on a rope in the Gaza Strip during the 2005 disengagement. Slideshow:"It shows that there is something torn that happened here as the result of disengagement," explained museum director Yankale Klein. The museum, which opened last Tuesday, chronicles both the history of the 21 evacuated settlements and their destruction. Located on Rehov Sha’arei Tzedek, near the Mahane Yehuda market, exhibitions begin on the walkway to the small, first-floor museum. On a white wall outside the museum graffiti mimics messages that were scrawled on the walls of the empty Gaza homes by evacuees. After the evacuation, Klein went to the Elei Sinai settlement and photographed the homes. The graffiti in front of the museum, he said, was a replica from one of those photographs. more.. e-mail
Islamic Jihad leader warns of Israeli plans to destroy Al-Aqsa Mosque
Ma’an News Agency 8/16/2008
Gaza – Ma’an – In marking the 29th anniversary of the 21 August 1969 burning of the Al-Aqsa mosque in Jerusalem, Islamic Jihad leader Ibrahim An-Najjar questioned current excavations carried out by Israel beneath the Mughrabi Gate ramp near the Western Wall and the Noble Sanctuary (Haram Al-Sharif) compound. An Australian Christian extremist hoping to hurry the coming of the messiah was actually responsible for the arson in the mosque in 1969, but widespread fears that Israel would destroy the area after taking over East Jerusalem in 1967 trumped the truth. Since Israel had razed the Mughrabi Quarter - an 800 year old neighbourhood that stood where the Western Wall compound now is - when they took control over the area in 1967, Palestinians had ample grounds for mistrust as to how the holy area would be treated. more.. e-mail
PRC rehearses kidnapping of IDF soldier
Ali Waked, YNetNews 8/16/2008
Spokesman for armed Palestinian group says drill aimed at sending Israel message that if prisoners issue not resolved more IDF soldiers will be kidnapped, admits some kidnapping attempts failed, others frozen due to ceasefire -The Salah al-Din Brigades, the armed wing of the Popular Resistance Committees (PRC), conducted an exercise in Beit Hanoun on Saturday in which it rehearsed a raid of an IDF base and the kidnapping of an Israeli soldier. PRC spokesman Abu Abir told Ynet that the drill was aimed at sending a message that "if the Israelis don’t resolve the Palestinian prisoners issue soon and contemplate attacking Gaza, the Palestinian resistance is prepared to not only defend the Strip but also take the initiative and kidnap more soldiers who will never see the light of day unless a prisoner exchange deal is signed. more.. e-mail
Israeli army invades West Bank cities and kidnaps 16 civilians
Rula Shahwan, International Middle East Media Center News 8/15/0200
The Israeli military invaded the West Bank cities of Hebron, Tulkarem and Ramallah on Friday at dawn, as reported by local sources. The Israeli army invaded Hebron at dawn, driving miltiary vehicles through the streets and kidnapping a total of nine Palestinian civilians. In Tulkarem Israeli troops invaded nearby villages kidnapping four civilians and taking them to unknown destination. [end]
Nonviolent Palestinian resistance undeterred by Israeli violence
PNN, Palestine News Network 8/15/2008
Ramallah - During a nonviolent Palestinian demonstration in western Ramallah, Israeli forces injured 15 people. Three foreign supporters were also arrested at the central West Bank protest against the Wall. The march began yesterday, Thursday, with dozens in a group of foreigners from Sweden, Spain and Italy, to denounce Israel’s construction of Wall and its settlement expansion. Residents walked the streets together during a three-hour commercial strike in protest of Israeli violence and land confiscation on the southern side of town. The Israeli military fired gas, concussion grenades and rubber-coated steel bullets. Three of the 15 injured demonstrators have bullet wounds. Five in total are hospitalized. Even an ambulance driver is among the list of injured after succumbing to gas inhalation. Regardless of the violent Israeli response, the Palestinian nonviolent resistance remains undeterred. more.. e-mail
Israel puts off evacuating illegal settlement
Middle East Online 8/15/2008
TEL AVIV - The Israeli government has decided to put off for the time being its promised evacuation of the largest Jewish wildcat settlement in the occupied West Bank, the defence ministry said on Friday. The ministry told the Israeli High Court the Migron settlers -- about 200 people living on private Palestinian land -- can remain until new homes are built for them on public land. "We have told the court we will announce within 45 days the new location of Migron," a ministry spokeswoman said. The ministry did not say when the settlers would be moved. In January the government told the court it would evacuate Migron by August. The government’s new plan to move the settlers later has the backing of the main West Bank settlers’ organisation, but the Migron residents, some right-wingers and anti-settler activists (for different reasons) reject it. more.. e-mail
Settlers come and settlers go as reported by the Israeli Bureau of Statistics
PNN, Palestine News Network 8/15/2008
Jerusalem -- The Israeli government continues to give incentives to settlers willing to come from throughout the world and colonize the West Bank and East Jerusalem. An entire settlement in southern Bethlehem is comprised of former residents of Brooklyn, NY, reports the Freedom Tent campaign whose owner is trying to keep hold on his family land. However, there are many who have left in recent years. The Israeli Central Bureau of Statistics announced that the number of people with Israeli citizenship living abroad registered in 2006 rose from the previous year. The office said in a report published that the number of Israelis who left the country in 2006 rose to 22,400 people versus 21,500 in 2005. On the other hand, the number Israelis who are returning to the country rose to 9,600 people, with an estimate of 12,800 shortly following. more.. e-mail
Three years on, Anglos still in mourning for Gaza pullout
Cnaan Liphshiz, Ha’aretz 8/15/2008
English speaking Israelis gathered last week to commemorate the 2005 disengagement from Gaza’s Gush Katif, calling the move anti-democratic. Some of the 250 Anglos who attended last week’s event at the Great Jerusalem Synagogue came to remember their homes in the Gaza Strip, which they were ordered to leave three years ago this month. Others came to consolidate a lobby of Israeli-Americans to prevent another pullout. The event was organized by the Council of Young Israel Rabbis in Israel, and featured speakers who recalled their lives in Gush Katif during its heyday, the disengagement itself, and an update on the status of the evicted. Organizers announced two specific projects during the event: a fund raiser to buy school materials for 3,000 children of Gush Katif evacuees, and another to help approximately 200 former residents who cannot afford urgent dental care. more.. e-mail
Projectile hits Ashdod beach, CNN reports PRC has long range projectile, PRC denies CNN report
Ma’an News Agency 8/15/2008
Bethlehem – Ma’an – Israeli sources said that a Palestinian home made projectile was fired onto the beach of Ashkelon in the south of Israel Friday afternoon. No injuries or damages were reported, and no Palestinian factions have claimed responsibility for the attack. The Palestinian Resistance Committees (PRC), however, revealed a new projectile that doubled the range of earlier weapons fired by other Palestinian factions. The projectile, also home made, was unveiled during a Friday field meeting held by officials of the Committees. CNN News Network said that its crew was allowed to take pictures of the PRC military training site as well as the site where the new Naser 4 with a range of 25 kilometers is said to be manufactured. PRC reportedly told journalists that the new projectile can reach cities like Ashdod and Ashkelon. more.. e-mail
This Week in Palestine week 33 2008
IMEMC News - Audio Dept, International Middle East Media Center News 8/15/0200
Click on Link to download or play MP3 file || 12 m 0s || 10. 9MB || This Week In Palestine, a service of the International Middle East Media Center, www. IMEMC. org, for August 9th, through August, 15th, 2008. Lead: Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert offered new ideas for a solution between Palestinian and Israelis. moreover as the Palestinian ceasefire with Israel enters its eighth week, the Israeli army has cleared the soldiers who killed Reuter’s cameraman. These stories and more coming up, stay tuned. Nonviolent Resistance We begin our weekly report with recent nonviolent actions in the West Bank. IMEMC’s Rula Shahwan has the details: Nil’in On Friday IMEMC’s correspondents reported that a group of peace activists including internationals and local villagers marched in a non-violent protest against the wall at Nil’in village. more.. e-mail
UN agency reports progress on cluster bombs in southern Lebanon
Palestinian Information Center 8/15/2008
BEIRUT, (PIC)-- The United Nations agency responsible for clearing mines in southern Lebanon said on Thursday that it has dealt with half the cluster bombs dropped by the Israeli airforce on southern Lebanon two years ago. The report of the UN Mine Action Coordination Centre of South Lebanon, published on Thursday, states that an estimated area of 40 square kilometers of land became contaminated with hundreds of thousands of unexploded cluster munitions, which have so far killed 20 people and maimed 194 others. Whole villages were covered with unexploded cluster bombs according to the report, which posed great danger to the lives of the villagers and affected their economy as most of them depended on agriculture for their livelihood and with their field infested with these bombs there were great economic losses. more.. e-mail
Dome of the Rock ’erased’ from Temple Mount
Kobi Nahshoni, YNetNews 8/15/2008
Religious movement’s Tisha B’Av pamphlet shows Temple Mount minus Muslim sites; group chairman says hopes al-Aqsa will be obliterated altogether, not just through Photoshop software - "On the eve of Tisha B’Av the serious question is raised whether we should take the opportunity and ascend to the Temple Mount as it stands empty, inviting us to build our dream house on it. "Whoever read this caption which appeared on the cover of the Maayanei Hayeshua movement’s latest pamphlet might have thought that this was a symbolic expression of the expected redemption on the eve of Tisha B’Av. However, those with a keen eye noticed that the huge picture of the Temple Mount which was spread on the cover page was missing the Dome of the Rock, and that the pamphlet "cleaned"¯ the mount of all Muslim signsThe Islamic Movement’s northern branch did not. . . more.. e-mail
From war-ravaged Georgia to a Jordan Valley kibbutz
Eli Ashkenazi, Ha’aretz 8/15/2008
The Mamashvili family - Vazha, 39, Irina, 29, and their two children - arrived on Thursday from Tbilisi, the capital of Georgia, and went directly to their new home in [the illegal settlement] Kibbutz Massada in the [Palestinian] Jordan Valley. Both the parents and the children, 3-year-old David and 8-year-old Nicolazh, said they were very excited to be here. They had thought previously about immigrating to Israel, the parents said, but not under such circumstances. "They arrived in Israel with nothing, empty-handed. Even the few suitcases they managed to take were lost at the airport," said a kibbutz member responsible for the new immigrants. Moreover, Vazha left his parents and brothers behind and is worried about them, though he says they are all right. The children have already been placed in educational frameworks. more.. e-mail
Israeli forces destroy 25 commercial produce stalls in the eastern West Bank
Fathy Khdeirat, Palestine News Network 8/14/2008
Jericho - As reported on Tuesday as breaking news on the PNN English news ticker, on Tuesday, 12 August, at least 25 market stalls owned by Palestinian farmers were demolished by Israeli forces in the Jordan Valley. Israeli soldiers went on rampage along Road 90 in the eastern West Bank’s Jordan Valley. At 6:30 am troops began to raid Palestinian vegetable shops established close to the villages of Bardala, ’Ein Al Beida, Marj Naje, Zubeidat and Jiftlik. For many Palestinian farmers in the area, selling their produce on the road is one of the main sources of income in a region isolated from the areas inside the Green Line, and the rest of the West Bank and Jordan by the Wall, checkpoints, trenches and closed military zones. Palestinians were not allowed to remove tomatoes, peppers, eggplants and a variety of fruits from under the simple market stalls, put up to. . . more.. e-mail
Israeli troops invade Khan Younis
Marina Ayyoub, International Middle East Media Center News 8/14/0200
A number of Israeli military vehicles invaded Khan Younis in the southern part of the Gaza Strip on Thursday morning. Eyewitnesses reported that two Israeli military bulldozers and two tanks invaded the southern part of the city; troops patrolled the streets and searched and ransacked several houses. Israeli military vehicles shot live rounds at random causing panicked evacuation by local Palestinian farmers. This is the second time that the Israeli army has invaded Gaza since Egypt brokered a truce between Israel and the Palestinian authority last June. [end]
Assault on two young men from Mount Scopus by guards of Israeli PM
Maisa Abu Ghazaleh, Palestine News Network 8/13/2008
Jerusalem -- Two young East Jerusalem men are suffering from bodily trauma and pain after being beaten by the guards of Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert. Ahmed and Ihab Abu were beaten two days ago, on Monday. Ahmed is in his home attempting to recover. Twenty-three year old Ihab of the Jerusalem neighborhood Mount Scopus spent the past days in a coma in the Hadassah Ein Karem Hospital after being beaten unconscious by the Israeli guards. His nose is broken and he is severely bruised on his face, eyes, neck, chest and back. "All over his body," is the description used by eyewitnesses. Ahmed and Ihab are low wage laborers, one working in a factory and the other new there after working in agriculture. They were returning home in the uniforms of their factory, its name emblazoned upon them, on Monday at 12:00. more.. e-mail
Israeli settlers assault a Palestinian child in Hebron
Rula Shahwan, International Middle East Media Center News 8/13/0200
A group of Israeli settlers attacked the West Bank city of Hebron on Wednesday, wounding a young Palestinian child. Eyewitnesses said that the Israeli settlers attacked civilians by throwing glass bottles and stones. A local Palestinian child suffered injuries to the head, and was transferred to a local hopsital. Israeli settlers have conducted daily attacks on Hebron throughout the week. Settlers are usually backed by Israeli soldiers who rarely move to stop their aggression against Palestinian civilians. [end]
Israel confiscates and destroys northern West Bank olive groves
Ma’an News Agency 8/14/2008
Jenin – Ma’an - Israeli military bulldozers uprooted olive trees and tilled-under agricultural land between the military camp of Salem and Rummana village at the northern tip of the West Bank on Thursday. The lands were confiscated on Tuesday. One of the owners of the confiscated and now destroyed land Mahmoud Taher Bushnaq said that Israeli forces issued a decision two days ago to confiscate the land and to uproot the olive trees. "I thought that the bulldozers came to the lands to provide enough space for the troops to train and have their exercises because our land lies along the camp," Bushnaq explained. [end]
Israeli forces detain 7 in Bethlehem, injure and detain two boys
Ma’an News Agency 8/14/2008
Bethlehem – Ma’an – Seven Palestinians including two young boys were detained early Thursday morning during an Israeli raid at Ad-Duheisha camp south of Bethlehem. The two young boys were also injured during the raid, when Israeli solders fired live bullets into the air. Palestinian security sources reported to Ma’an that Israeli forces detained two young boys, Hamada As-Salihi and Hamdi Al-Atrash after they were injured with Israeli bullets during clashes at the camp following the Israeli invasion. Also detained were 30-year-old Muhammad Yahya Al-Qassas, 32-year-old Adnan Naim Al-Qabu, 27-year-old Mohamed Hussein Al Najjar as well as Wael Khalil ’Atallah, and Ra’fat Abu ’Akr. All of the men were affiliated with the Popular front for the Liberation of Palestine, a leftist party with a military wing. more.. e-mail
Israeli army kidnaps 4 civilians from West Bank
Rula Shahwan, International Middle East Media Center News 8/14/0200
The Israeli army invaded the West Bank cities of Nablus, Tulkarem, and Jenin on Thursday at dawn and kidnapped 4 civilians. The Israeli army invaded Nablus for the third day in a row. They harassed a number of civilians and detained them whilst checking their ID cards. Military vehicles drove through the city’s streets, detaining four civilians and taking them to unknown detention camps. In Tulkarem, Israeli military vehicles surrounded the city, erecting several military checkpoints on road crossings and village entrances. Israeli troops hindered the movement of civilians in the city. The Israeli army invaded Jenin, demolishing farm lands by uprooting olive trees and tilling over the earth. Troops also confiscated a private land of 6 donum. more.. e-mail
Israeli army shoots 2 civilians and kidnaps 7 from Bethlehem
Rula Shahwan, International Middle East Media Center News 8/14/0200
The Israeli army invaded Deheisheh refugee camp in Bethlehem on Thursday dawn, shooting two civilians and kidnapping five others. Eye witnesses reported that a large Israeli army force entered the camp and began heavy shooting at random, injuring two civilians. The Israeli army took the two wounded civilians to an unknown destination. Eye witnesses also reported that troops searched and damaged a large number of houses, as well as renditing five more civilians to an unknown destination. [end]
IOF troops advance toward Khuza’a town in southern Gaza
Palestinian Information Center 8/14/2008
KHAN YOUNIS, (PIC)-- A large number of IOF troops reinforced by armored vehicles and bulldozers on Thursday morning advanced toward the Khuza’a town in Khan Younis, southern Gaza Strip, for the second time since the truce took effect about two months ago. Palestinian eyewitnesses reported that a number of Israeli military tanks and bulldozers advanced a distance of approximately 100 meters east of the town, adding that the Palestinian farmers had to leave their agricultural lands for fear of being shot by IOF troops. In a report received by the PIC, the Quds Brigades, the armed wing of the Islamic Jihad Movement, said that it monitored 10 Israeli violations during the eighth week of the truce, most of them were committed against Palestinian fishermen. more.. e-mail
UN: We’ve cleared half the cluster bombs Israel dropped on Lebanon
Shlomo Shamir, Ha’aretz 8/15/2008
The United Nations said on Thursday that it has managed to clear wide swaths of south Lebanon of half of all cluster bombs fired by Israel during the Second Lebanon War two years ago. In a report released on Thursday, the world body warned that the remaining ordnances still pose a threat to the local population, particulary in the southern Lebanon village of Kafer Sir. "We’ve managed to clean up about half of the known cluster munition strike sites in this village. We hope to have the whole village completely cleared by the end of the year," the UN Mine Action Coordination Center of South Lebanon said on Thursday. "This whole village was covered with unexploded cluster munitions. They were on people’s rooftops, hanging from trees, even in playgrounds. "Chris Clark, the head of the center, said 20 people have been killed and 194 have been wounded thus far as a result of the cluster bombs. more.. e-mail
’Migron settlers to move when homes built’
Jerusalem Post 8/14/2008
The leaders of the settlement movement in the West Bank will choose a new site for the illegal outpost of Migron within 30 days and build permanent housing there for the Migron settlers, the state informed the High Court of Justice on Thursday. Slideshow:The new housing will be located close to the present site, which is privately owned Palestinian land, and within the boundaries of the Binyamin Regional Council. "In the shortest possible amount of time after choosing the site, we will submit plans to the planning office of the Civil Administration and immediately afterwards start preparing the infrastructure," said Dani Dayan, chairman of the Council of Jewish Communities in Judea, Samaria and the Gaza Strip. "At the same time, we will prepare building plans and get ready to build in order to complete construction as quickly as possible. more.. e-mail
IOA invited tenders for construction of 1,761 housing units since Annapolis
Palestinian Information Center 8/14/2008
OCCUPIED JERUSALEM, (PIC)-- The Israeli occupation authority has invited tenders for the construction of 1,761 housing units in occupied Jerusalem since the Annapolis conference in the USA last November, according to an Israeli movement. The leftist peace now movement published a report in the media indicating that the number of the units constituted an unprecedented increase in settlement construction in the city. It said that the latest such tender was for the construction of 130 housing units in Har Homa settlement built on Jabal Abu Ghunaim area. The movement recalled that the IOA had pledged during the Annapolis conference to freeze all settlement activity and to conclude a peace agreement with the Palestinians within a year. more.. e-mail
2 civillians detained near Hebron
Ma’an News Agency 8/14/2008
Hebron – Ma’an – Two Palestinians were detained south west of Hebron on Wednesday night and Thursday morning according to the Palestinian Prisoners Society. The society told Ma’an that Israeli soldiers detained 36-year-old Anwar Aj-Jamal after Israeli forces stormed the house of his father Najeh in the Abu Sneineh neighborhood of central Hebron. Residents of the home were evacuated and its contents were ransacked. Anwar was taken to an unknown location. Forces also stormed the home of Kamil Shawamreh in village of Deir Al-Asal Al-Fauqa, south west of Hebron and detained his 20-year-old son Nadir before ransacking the home. [end]
2 detained near Nablus
Ma’an News Agency 8/14/2008
Nablus – Ma’an – Israeli forces detained two young men from Nablus at 2:30am on Thursday morning. Troops stormed the homes of the two men before they were detained and taken to an unknown location. Palestinian security sources told Ma’an’s correspondent in Nablus that Israeli forces detained 25-year-old Rami Ghazal from Wadi At-Toffah west of Nablus and Muhannad Ghanem 27-year-old from Rafidia. [end]
Palestine Today 081408
IMEMC News - Audio Dept, International Middle East Media Center News 8/14/0200
Click on Link to download or play MP3 file || 3 m 0s || 2. 75 MB || Welcome to Palestine Today, a service of the International Middle East Media Centre, www. imemc. org, for Thursday August 14th, 2008. The Israeli army invaded west bank cities shot 2 civilians and kidnapped 12, these stories and more coming up, stay tuned. The Israeli army invaded Deheisheh refugee camp in the West Bank city of Bethlehem, Eye witnesses reported that a large Israeli army force entered the camp and began heavy shooting at random, injuring two civilians. The Israeli army took the two wounded civilians to an unknown destination. Also, troops searched and damaged a large number of houses, as well as kidnapping five more civilians and taking them to an unknown destination. The Israeli army invaded Nablus for the third day in a row. more.. e-mail
Sderot parents threaten schools to remain closed
Shmulik Hadad, YNetNews 8/14/2008
City’s Parents Association announces it may decide to halt opening new school year in fortnight’s time, due to city’s failure to fortify schools. ’We can’t endanger our children,’ says association -The Sderot Parents Association announced Thursday it is considering not opening the new school year, which is scheduled to launch on September 1st. According to the Parents Association, a series of bureaucratic failures involving the Sderot Municipality and several government bureaus have prevented the fortification of some of the city’s schools against rocket fire. The Parents Association said in a statement that it would be announcing its final decision on the strike within the next few days. "We refuse to sit idly by and be guinea pigs. You can’t play with human lives like that. more.. e-mail
Tanzim gunman who broke pledge to cease terror arrested by IDF
Yuval Azoulay, Ha’aretz 8/15/2008
Israeli security forces apprehended a senior Tanzim gunman who had violated a signed pledge to cease all terror-related activities, Israeli media reported Thursday after military censors lifted a gag order on the case. The Tanzim operative, Firas Tashtush, was arrested by an elite Israel Defense Forces unit during a military operation in Nablus. He is suspected of planning to supply Tanzim members with explosive materials, and was said to have taken part in attacks against IDF troops in the area. Firas Tashtush was arrested by an elite IDF unit during a military operation in Nablus. He is suspected of planning to supply the town with tanks and of being involved in terror activities against IDF forces in the area. Tashtush, 24, signed an agreement a few months ago which committed him to ceasing any involvement in terror-related activities. more.. e-mail
’If we die, Abbas is to blame,’ say Fatah fugitives stranded in Gaza
Reuters, Ha’aretz 8/15/2008
A patch of sand dunes on the Gaza Strip frontier, within view of Israeli border patrols, is all the haven that eight Palestinians on the run from Hamas have. The men, members of President Mahmoud Abbas’s Fatah faction who escaped a July 25 raid by Hamas police, had hoped that Israel would allow them out of the blockaded coastal territory and on to the relative safety of the occupied West Bank. Israel admitted dozens of other Fatah loyalists at Abbas’s request but says there has been no such intercession for the eight fugitives, who have survived three weeks in the sweltering heat thanks to food and water smuggled to them by a friend. "Hamas wants us dead. They will kill us if we return, and Israel is not letting us in," one of the men, who gave his name as Ahmed, toldby telephone. more.. e-mail
IDF: Forces shoot Syrian gunman at border
Reuters and Roee Nahmias, YNetNews 8/14/2008
Army spokesman says infiltrator carried a gun; man lightly wounded, treated in Israeli hospital - IDF forces shot and wounded an armed man who crossed from Syria into the Golan Heights on Wednesday, the army said. Violence along the Israeli-Syrian border is rare and the IDF said the incident was reported to United Nations forces in the area. An army spokesman said it was not immediately clear why the man entered the Golan. Troops shot at the man because he was carrying a gun, the spokesman said. The infiltrator was lightly wounded in the incident and was taken to an Israeli hospital for treatment. About a month ago, IDF forces killed a Syrian man who arrived at the border fence in the northern Golan Heights in order to carry out a drug deal. Another man at the scene was shot and wounded. Earlier Wednesday, sources in. . . more.. e-mail
Israelis say settlement building and expansion will not stop in East Jerusalem and West Bank
PNN, Palestine News Network 8/12/2008
Jerusalem - A spokesman for the main body of settlers said yesterday, Monday, that Israel has proposed building a new Jewish settlement in the West Bank near Jerusalem. No comment was given by the Israeli security department which supervises the case on this step, which will see the Palestinians and Israel’s allies in the United States and Europe in violation of its commitments to stop settlement activity on Palestinian land for the independent state. The Palestinians already accused Israel of not implementing its commitments under the "peace process" sponsored by the US in Annapolis because of its approval of the expansion of other settlements, most recently in occupied Jerusalem. The Israelis gave the green light last month to build a completely new settlement in the Jordan Valley. The settlers said that 40 trailers for the colonizers have been placed without official, but implicit, approval. more.. e-mail
Secret Plans Revealed: Train to the Western Wall
Danny Adino Ababa, YNetNews 8/12/2008
Jerusalem Municipality holds secret meeting in which plans are unveiled for extension of city’s light train to Dung Gate, just minute’s walk from holy site; tunnel through Mt. Zion also proposed -Jerusalem’s new light train may reach the Western Wall, according to a meeting held by the capital’s municipality, in the civil engineer’s office. The meeting, which took place on June 25, was kept under wraps for fear that its subject would enrage representatives of the three faiths in the city. Jerusalem’s leaders fear that the close proximity of the train’s path to the Old City and the cemetery nearby may destabilize the delicate balance between the religions, and invoke a protest fueled by local aggravation. The proposal for the train’s new path was offered as a solution to the Old City’s chronic traffic congestion, specifically near the Western Wall. more.. e-mail
Report: Israel to move settlers from outpost to larger, authorized settlement
Ma’an News Agency 8/12/2008
Bethlehem – Ma’an/Agencies – Israel plans to expand one larger settlement to make room for settlers it will evacuate from the West Bank outpost of Migron, near Ramallah, the Reuters news agency reported on Tuesday. An Israeli Defense Ministry official told the agency that Israel plans to dismantle the Migron outpost, which was set up on a hilltop over six years ago. The official did not say specifically where the settlers will be moved, but Ishai Hollander, a spokesperson for the YESHA settler council, said on Monday that the Israeli government had proposed building a new settlement near Migron for those listed for evacuation. A ministry official denied to Reuters that Israel had agreed to build a new settlement for the 40 families living in Migron, but said "an agreement in principle" was reached to expand an existing settlement to absorb them. more.. e-mail
Settler attacks in Hebron
Rula Shahwan, International Middle East Media Center News 8/12/0200
A group of Israeli settlers attacked houses and a mosque in the West Bank city of Hebron, and attempted to set the mosque on fire, as reported by local sources. The settlers attacked both local civilians and international peace activists inside the mosque, and showered them with garbage. Eye witnesses reported that the settlers climbed onto the roof of the mosque and attempted to set it on fire. They also harassed civilians and forcibly grabbed video cameras from international photographers present at the attack. Another group of armed Israeli settlers attacked the nearby Wad Al Nasara village, by attempting to break into houses in the village and harrassing local civilians. They are reported to have caused considerable damage to some of the properties attacked. more.. e-mail
Israeli settlers attempt to raid Shu’fat refugee camp near Jerusalem
Ma’an News Agency 8/12/2008
Bethlehem – Ma’an – Dozens of Israeli settlers attempted on Tuesday evening to raid Shu’fat refugee camp in northern Jerusalem, Israeli sources said. Police arrested two settlers. One of the arrestees, Barokh Merzel, is affiliated to a group called the Jewish Front. Merzel was reportedly leading the group. [end]
Israel unveils intentions to build new settlement in W. Bank
Palestinian Information Center 8/12/2008
OCCUPIED JERUSALEM, (PIC)-- Israeli media outlets revealed Monday that officials in the Israeli war ministry made a proposal calling for building a new settlement outpost in the West Bank near occupied Jerusalem. Spokesman for the Zionist Yesha settlements council Yishai Hollander said that the war ministry officials had proposed moving several families from the Migron settlement to another West Bank site. According to Hebrew media, Yishai asserted that the Yesha council would meet this week to discuss a proposal put forward by Israel’s war ministry to build a permanent settlement of Migron nearby the current site, on a hill near the Palestinian city of Ramallah. This proposal is a new slap in the face of PA chief Mahmoud Abbas and his negotiators who are wrongheadedly insistent on holding meetings and shaking hands with Israeli officials despite the escalating Israeli settlement expansion. more.. e-mail
Israeli forces seize four civilians in Qabatiya
Ma’an News Agency 8/12/2008
Jenin – Ma’an – Israeli forces raided the West Bank town of Qabatiya, near Jenin, detaining four Palestinian civilians. Palestinian security sources told Ma’an that Israeli forces raided Palestinian’s houses, destroying property. The detainees are: Asef Mahmoud Abu Ar-Rab, Mahmoud Hassan Zakarneh, Hassan Khaled Dihmaz and Saleh Amin Saleh Kamil. [end]
Israeli forces detain 11 Palestinians in Nablus and Balata refugee camp
Ma’an News Agency 8/12/2008
Nablus – Ma’an – Israeli forces seized eleven Palestinians on Tuesday during a dawn raid on the West Bank city of Nablus and neighboring Balata refugee camp. Palestinian security sources told Ma’an that Israeli forces stormed the city and the refugee camp, ransacking houses. The detainees were identified as: Mohammad Ubeid, Ihab Mohammad Ash-Shafi’i, Omar Diab, Mohammad Ash-Shafi’i, 17-year-old Adham Nihad Natsheh, 18-year-old Abdel Mottaleb Khaled Bilal, 17-year-old Mohammad Rajeh Al-Qaissi, 22-year-old Omar Abdel Rahim Abu-Shousheh, 22-year-old Majed Bader Rajeh and 24-year-old Haitham Bukhari and his 22-year-old brother Adham. The Israeli military says that it arrested 16 Palestinians overnight, 13 of them in Nablus. more.. e-mail
Israeli forces invade Nablus again and arrest 13 Palestinians
PNN, Palestine News Network 8/12/2008
Nablus -- Israeli forces arrested thirteen citizens in a pre-dawn invasion of Nablus on Tuesday. They hit the city and its refugee camp, Balata. Local security sources and eyewitnesses report that the Israeli forces raided the Balata Refugee Camp and arrested nine citizens, among them being: Qais Mohammed Ihab El Shafei, Majid Omar Rajeh Abu Shusha, Haitham, Adham Njaara, Adham Nihad and Bilal Murad. In Nablus City Israeli forces arrested four citizens including Mohammed Obeid and Omar Dhiab. As the attack waged on throughout the earliest hours of this morning, the 13 Palestinians were bound and blindfolded before being taken to unknown locations. Intensive gunfire was heard throughout the northern West Bank city and its environs, particularly when the Israeli forces penetrated the city center. Throughout the West Bank today, Israeli forces arrested 16 Palestinians,. . . more.. e-mail
Israeli forces seize Palestinian butcher from shop in Hebron
Ma’an News Agency 8/12/2008
Hebron – Ma’an – Israeli military forces on Tuesday abducted a young Palestinian man, 22-year-old Jalal An-Natshah from his workplace near Hebron University, Palestinian security sources told Ma’an. The sources added that Israeli troops ransacked a butcher’s shop where An-Natshah works and took him to an unknown location. [end]
Israeli forces seize young Palestinian man in Nablus
Ma’an News Agency 8/12/2008
Nablus – Ma’an – Israeli forces seized 20-year-old Abdul-Rahman Hindiyya during an overnight raid on his house in the West Bank city of Nablus, his family said. Hindiyya’s father told Ma’an that Israeli troops stormed the family home on As-Sikka street in Nablus at 3am, locked the family in a single room, and damaged the interior of the house before leaving with his son as a prisoner. At least 11 other Palestinians were rounded up during raids on Monday night and Tuesday morning in Nablus and adjacent Balata refugee camp. [end]
IOF troops kidnap 3 Jihad elements in Jenin, 13 citizens in Nablus
Palestinian Information Center 8/12/2008
JENIN, (PIC)-- Israeli occupation forces at dawn Tuesday kidnapped three Palestinians affiliated with the Islamic Jihad Movement in Qabatia town, south of Jenin city, while other units rounded up 13 citizens in Nablus district. A source in Islamic Jihad said that the soldiers broke into the town at midnight Monday and clashed with a number of fighters of the Quds Brigades, the armed wing of Islamic Jihad, before arresting three of its members after searching their homes and assaulting their relatives. The source pointed out that the soldiers burst into the homes of families of Quds Brigades martyrs in the town. He further noted that the PA intelligence apparatus send notifications to a number of Jihad activists summoning them to the apparatuses’ headquarters in Jenin including Abdul Fattah Khuzaimia who has been released from PA jails only a few months ago after a series of mediations. more.. e-mail
Palestine Today 081208
IMEMC News - Audio Dept, International Middle East Media Center News 8/12/0200
Click on Link to download or play MP3 file || 4 m 0s || 3. 66 MB || Welcome to Palestine Today, a service of the International Middle East Media Centre, www. imemc. org, for Tuesday August 12th, 2008. The Israeli army has invaded several West Bank cities and has kidnapped 19 civilians, whilst Israeli settlers continue to attack Hebron city. We will be discussing these stories and more, so stay tuned. On Tuesday, the Israeli army invaded Balata refugee camp east of Nablus with a large number of military vehicles, spreading throughout the camp, ransacking several houses and seizing thirteen civilians. They are reported to have shot grenades, sound bombs and live rounds. Simultaneously, the Israeli army invaded Petunia village south of Ramallah and kidnapped two civilians after searching houses in the village. more.. e-mail
Sderot residents to receive welfare based on security situation
Yael Branovsky, YNetNews 8/12/2008
After enduring almost a decade of nonstop rockets, explosions, alarms; Sderot, Gaza vicinity communities’ residents to receive monetary assistance in light of security-related difficulties - Inhabitants of Sderot and Gaza vicinity communities have endured eight years of Qassam rocket showers, explosions and alarms. A decision was finally made to recognize that people there are receiving welfare as a result of, "difficulties due to a temporary security situation,"¯ and not in light of, "failure to function"¯ or because they "suffer from domestic difficulties,"¯ as was the case until now. A person recognized as eligible for social services, can in accordance with the assessment, also receive psychological services, economic assistance and additional help. The Ministry of Social Affairs noted that those being treated see this change in terminology as an important step and not just an official issue. more.. e-mail
2 killed in Gaza smuggling tunnel
Associated Press, YNetNews 8/10/2008
Men die during attempt to smuggle fuel from Egypt into Strip; some fuel apparently spills, releasing fumes -A Palestinian medical official says two people have died in a smuggling tunnel under the Gaza-Egypt border and five are missing. Area residents said Sunday that the men were trying to smuggle fuel into Gaza and that some of it apparently spilled, releasing fumes. Palestinian Health Ministry official Dr. Moawiya Hassanain says the bodies have not yet been retrieved and that he has no word on the cause of death. Dozens of tunnels run under the Gaza-Egypt border. The smugglers have become increasingly daring since Israel and Egypt closed their borders with Gaza last year, following the violent Hamas takeover of the territory. Israel began scaling fuel supplies in January to pressure militant groups to halt attacks. more.. e-mail
Israeli settlers renew their attacks on citizens in occupied Hebron
PNN, Palestine News Network 8/10/2008
Hebron -- Israeli settlers from the colony of Kiryat Arba in the southern West Bank’s Hebron once again have attacked the native residents. Settlers tore through homes in two villages while also placing tents on land own by Mahmoud Abu Jaber. They are attempting to overtake his land and make it a part of their settlement. Concerning international law, all Israeli settlers and settlements are in direct contravention. Bassam Jabari is a homeowner in the region. He said that the settlers renewed their attacks in the region on Saturday night and Sunday and carried out "violent, arrogant and widespread assaults. "A number of Palestinians were attacked. Twenty-five year old Nahidah Jabari was hit last night during the attacks, as were two members of an international relief agency. more.. e-mail
Three wounded, seven missing, in a tunnel collapse on Gaza-Egypt borders
Saed Bannoura & Agencies, International Middle East Media Center News 8/10/2008
The Palestinian Information Center, run by Hamas, reported on Sunday that three residents were hospitalized after suffocating under the rubble of a collapsed tunnel in Rafah, on the borders between Rafah, in the southern part of the Gaza Strip, and Egypt. Seven residents are still missing. The three wounded residents are currently in stable conditions after receiving the needed medical attention. They were located on Saturday at night; the tunnel collapsed on Saturday evening. On August 1, four Palestinians were killed and fourteen others were wounded in a similar incident that took place Al Barazil neighborhood, east of Rafah. [end]
7 missing after tunnel collapse in Rafah
Ma’an News Agency 8/10/2008
Gaza – Ma’an – Seven people went missing and three were rescued on Sunday after a tunnel collapsed under the Egypt- Gaza border near Rafah in the southern Gaza Strip. Efforts to rescue those trapped are ongoing, said Director of ambulance and emergency service in the Palestinian health ministry Mu’awiya Hassanain. Hassanain denied reports that rescue leaders had been killed during their efforts. Five have died already this week after a similar incident. [end]
Member of pro-Fatah Hillis family dies in Israeli hospital, bringing Gaza toll to 13
Ma’an News Agency 8/10/2008
Gaza – Ma’an – A member of the Fatah-aligned Hillis family died in an Israeli hospital on Sunday from wounds he sustained during fighting with Hamas-allied security forces in the Shuja’iya neighborhood of Gaza Ctiy last week. Palestinian medical sources confirmed the death of 36-year-old Mohammad Faraj Hillis, bringing the death toll to 13 in the battle. Eleven members of the Hillis clan and two policemen affiliated to the Hamas-run de facto government were killed in the day-long battle, which was the worst flare-up of Hamas-Fatah infighting since Hamas took over the Gaza Strip in June 2007. [end]
Three wounded, seven missing in tunnel collapse
Palestinian Information Center 8/10/2008
GAZA, (PIC)-- Three Palestinian citizens were barely rescued from a tunnel collapse on the Egyptian-Palestinian borders in Rafah south of the Gaza Strip, medical sources said on Sunday. They explained that the three, who were retrieved from the tunnel last night, were in a very bad condition and had almost suffocated. However, they were carried to hospital and their condition was now stable, the sources elaborated. The sources noted that seven other citizens were missing inside the collapsed tunnel and attempts were made to recover them. Four citizens were killed and 14 others were wounded when a tunnel collapsed while they were trying to cross into Gaza early August east of Rafah city. Palestinians resort to digging tunnels to secure their needs from Egypt after the tight Israeli siege and Egypt’s refusal to open the Rafah border terminal led to acute shortage in many basic materials in the Strip. more.. e-mail
On Tisha B’Av, rightists see Gush Katif as symbol of loss
Nadav Shragai, Ha’aretz 8/11/2008
Over the last three years, since Israel evacuated the settlements of the Gaza Strip, those who left their homes have felt a sense of loss. For these Israelis, and the religious Zionist community as a whole, this sense of loss has often manifested itself in comparisons between the loss of the Gaza settlement bloc on Tisha B’Av three years ago, to the fall of the second temple thousands of years ago, also on the ninth day of the Jewish month of Av. To many followers of religious Zionism, and those on the right wing of Israeli politics, the loss of those very settlements has become another storied tragedy to befall the Jewish people on Tisha B’Av. Dozens of pamphlets and prayers of lamentation have been compiled dealing with the loss of the Gaza settlement bloc, including one in which each of its 15 chapters starts with the words "How. . . more.. e-mail
Gaza militants fire Qassam rocket into western Negev
Fadi Eyadat, Ha’aretz 8/10/2008
Gaza militants on Saturday fired a rocket into Israel in new violation of a fragile cease-fire between Israel and Hamas in the coastal Strip. The rocket struck an open area in the western Negev. No injuries or damage were reported. Last Wednesday, while settlers who were evacuated from the Gaza Strip in 2005 staged a rallymarking three years since the disengagement, a Qassam rocket hit an open area in the Sha’ar Hanegev regional council, also causing no injuries or damage. There have been several rocket launches from the coastal territory since an Egyptian-brokered truce between Israel and the Palestinian militant group Hamas went into effect on June 19, though such attacks tapered off in recent weeks. The truce calls on Gaza militants to halt rocket attacks in return for Israel gradually easing an embargo on the territory. more.. e-mail
Defense Ministry: 500 protective structures in south by year’s end
Hanan Greenberg, YNetNews 8/10/2008
Placing of structures for protection against Gaza rocket fire to be expedited despite ceasefire -The Defense Ministry is expected to complete the project of dispersing 500 hollow concrete structures for protection against rocket fire in Sderot and other Gaza-vicinity towns by the end of 2008. The project is expected to be implemented at an accelerated pace despite the ongoing ceasefire between Israel and the armed Palestiniangroups in the Strip and the relative calm in the region. The first phase of the project was completed this week with the distribution of 200 hollow concrete structures in the south. The State has recently approved the allocation of NIS 15 million ($4. 2 million) toward the project, and the Defense Ministry will select three companies to manufacture the structures simultaneously. more.. e-mail
Israeli settlers storm Ibrahimi mosque; settler aggression on the rise
Ma’an News Agency 8/9/2008
Bethlehem – Ma’an – A group of 50 armed Israeli settlers attempted to storm the Ibrahimi Mosque on Friday. The attack marks the fourth recorded settler attack in the West Bank in four days, and a general rise in aggressive tactics of settlers. The Ibrahimi mosque is believed to be the burial site of Adam and Eve, Abraham and Sarah, Isaac and Rebekah and Jacob and Leah; also known as the tomb of the patriarchs, and is located in the West Bank city of Hebron. The group of settlers attempted to enter what is now the Muslim section of the mosque, an area that represents about 81% of the structure and is under the control of the Awaqf Ministry (the traditional trust) in Palestine. All Palestinians entering the area, however, are searched by Israeli soldiers guarding the area. The remaining section is used as synagogue for Israeli settlers in and around the city of Hebron. more.. e-mail
Israeli forces invade Tulkarem, overrun vegatable market
Ma’an News Agency 8/9/2008
Tukarem – Ma’an – Around 12 Israeli military jeeps invaded the northern West Bank city of Tulkarem on Saturday afternoon and attack a vegetable market. The Israeli military jeeps rolled through the market, destroying vendors’ stalls and firing sonic bombs. A Palestinian security source in the city denounced the attack, which he said aimed at disturbing the security of the city and the enforcement of law and order. He said the attack would weaken the work of the Palestinian security forces. [end]
Israeli settlers assault Palestinian women in Hebron
Ma’an News Agency 8/9/2008
Hebron – Ma’an – A Palestinian woman, a resident of the southern West Bank city of Hebron was hospitalized on Sunday after she was attacked by Israeli settlers. Israeli settlers occupying the Ar- Rajabi building in Hebron assaulted a passing group of Palestinian women, severely beating 25-five-year-old Nahida Jameel Al-Ja’bari, local sources said. Witnesses said Al-Ja’bari sustained bruises all over her body. Al-Ja’bari was taken to the government hospital in Hebron. [end]
Tunnel collapses near Rafah crossing
Ma’an News Agency 8/9/2008
Gaza – Ma’an – A tunnel collapsed near the Rafah border crossing on Saturday, witnesses in the city of Rafah said. No one was injured. A complex system of tunnels is operated by smugglers underneath the border between Egypt and the Gaza Strip. Under pressure from Israel, Egypt frequently uses explosives to destroy what tunnels it can find. [end]
Qassam rocket lands in western Negev, no injuries
Yonat Atlas, YNetNews 8/9/2008
Palestinians fire rocket from northern Gaza for first time since last Wednesday - A Qassam rocket fired from northern Gaza landed in an open area belonging to the Sha’ar Hanegev Regional Council early Saturday evening. No injuries were reported and no damage was caused. Another rocket landed in the same region last Wednesday, also causing no injuries. The ’Color Red’ rocket alert sirens sounded throughout Sderot and the other communities neighboring Gaza. The area has been relatively quiet since Israel signed a ceasefire agreement with Hamas and other Palestinian groups in Gaza, though intermittent rocket and mortar fire has been recorded every several days. On Wednesday the Qassam rocket landed as thousands gathered near Kibbutz Kissufim to mark the third anniversary of the disengagement from Gaza and the evacuation of Gush Katif. more.. e-mail
Report: Homemade projectile from Gaza lands in Israel
Ma’an News Agency 8/9/2008
Bethelehem – Ma’an – A homemade projectile fired from the Gaza Strip landed in Israel in the Negev Desert on Saturday evening, Israeli media reported. No injuries or damage were reported. The shell landed in the area of the Sha’ar Hanegev Regional Council. It is the first reported projectile attack since last Wednesday. No Palestinian group has claimed responsibility for the attack. [end]
Israeli sources: 'Qassam shell fired from Gaza into the Western Negev'¯
Saed Bannoura & Agencies, International Middle East Media Center News 8/10/0200
Israeli military sources reported on Saturday that resistance fighters fired a homemade shell into the Western Negev. The shell landed in an open area causing no damage or injuries. Israeli officials said that this incident is one of several similar attacks carried by armed groups in Gaza since the fragile ceasefire deal went into effect on June 19. The ceasefire deal was brokered under extensive Egyptian mediation efforts. According to Israeli military sources, Palestinian fighters fired last Wednesday a Qassam homemade shell at the Sha’ar Hanegev area in the Negev. The shell also caused no injuries or damage, the sources said. The sources added that the shell was fired while Israeli settlers, who were evacuated from the Gaza Strip in 2005, were marking three years since the implementation of the Disengagement Plan. more.. e-mail
Israel issues bids for 447 settler homes in Jerusalem
Saed Bannoura & Agencies, International Middle East Media Center News 8/8/0200
The Israeli Housing Ministry issued on Thursday bids for the construction of hundreds of settler homes in Jabal Abu Ghneim (Har Homa) in Bethlehem district and Beitar Elit settlement near Jerusalem. The Israeli government intends to construct 130 units in Abu Ghneim settlement and additional 317 in Beitar Elit. The new bids were considered another blast in the already trembling peace process between Israel and the Palestinian Authority. The announcement of the new bids came only one day after the Palestinian President, Mahmoud Abbas, met with the Israeli Prime Minister, Ehud Olmert. Hamas movement said that this announcement became a reoccurring event which follows every meeting between Abbas and Olmert. Settlements in the occupied territories are illegal and violate by the international law, but the international idleness and silence encourages Israel to annex more Palestinian lands in order to build illegal settlement. more.. e-mail
Israeli settlers attack British diplomats’ car
Middle East Online 8/8/2008
LONDON - A car carrying British diplomats was attacked in the West Bank by a group of Israeli settlers on Thursday, Britain’s Foreign Office said. "We can confirm that a delegation of visiting British diplomats were attacked in their car by a small group of Israeli settlers while visiting in Hebron," the Foreign Office said in a statement. "There were no injuries. The Israeli police intervened and we are assisting then with their investigation of the incident," it added, without giving further details. Israel on Thursday approved construction of 400 new homes in a Jewish neighbourhood in annexed east Jerusalem (which belongs to the Palestinians) and invited bids for construction of another 416 settler homes in the occupied West Bank. Jewish settlements (which are illegal under international law because they are built on Palestinian land occupied by the Israeli military). . . more.. e-mail
Israeli forces detain Islamic Jihad leader Qassim As-Sa’di
Ma’an News Agency 8/8/2008
Jenin – Ma’an - The Israeli army stormed the Jenin home of Islamic Jihad leader Ash-Sheikh Qassim As-Sa’di, arrested the man and removed him to an unknown location. Sources within Islamic Jihad said that a large military force stormed Jenin early Friday morning and surrounded the house of 55 year-old As-Sa’di. Isreali forces bound As-Sa’di, covering his face with a cloth, and forced his family members into a room while the home was ransacked. Qassem As-Sa’di is the father of released prisoners Rabi’ and Abdul Karim As-Sa’di, though his brother Ghassan is still in Israeli prison. The leader’s mother was killed by Israeli forces several years ago. [end]
Israel interrogates dozens of fleeing Fateh men on Shalit
Saed Bannoura & Agencies, International Middle East Media Center News 8/8/0200
The London-based Al Hayat Newspaper reported that it was informed by Egyptian sources that the Israeli security services interrogated dozens of Fateh men who fled out of the Gaza Strip following clashes with Hamas security forces. The Fateh men were interrogation on the whereabouts of the captured Israeli soldier, Gilad Shalit. The clashes took place last Saturday in a Gaza neighborhood and at least eleven Palestinian were killed in addition to dozens of injuries. The Hamas-controlled security forces in Gaza managed to gain control over the neighborhood which was considered a stronghold for Fateh movement, headed by Palestinian President, Mahmoud Abbas. The Fateh men fled to the Nahal Oz crossing and were taken by Israeli soldiers. Twenty-two of the Fateh men, who were wounded in the clashes, were hospitalized in an Israeli prison hospital. more.. e-mail
Israeli settlement plan to build 447 settlement units in the W. Bank exposed
Palestinian Information Center 8/8/2008
OCCUPIED JERUSALEM, (PIC)-- The Israeli housing ministry has announced on Thursday more construction tenders to build hundreds of settlement units in the occupied West Bank cities of Bethlehem and Jerusalem in clear undermining of the ongoing PA-Israeli negotiations. Hebrew sources revealed that the Israeli occupation government was planning to build 130 settlement units in the Har Homa settlement near Bethlehem, and another 317 units in the settlement of Betar Eileet near the occupied city of Jerusalem. The Israeli disclosure of such beddings come only one day after PA chief Mahmoud Abbas met Israeli premier Ehud Olmert in the occupied city of Jerusalem, which, according to political observers, constitutes a big blow to Abbas. Palestinian observers noted that the Israeli occupation government announces the construction of more settlement units after every meeting between Abbas and. . . more.. e-mail
816 new settlement homes to be constructed
Ma’an News Agency 8/8/2008
Bethlehem – Ma’an - Four hundred new homes will be constructed in the Israeli East Jerusalem settlement Neve Ya’akov, and another 416 are planned for other nearby settlements. The Israeli Interior Ministry announced the plans on Thursday, and is backed by the Jerusalem municipality, which had announced the project on 10 March 2008. The municipality presented funds to build 286 housing units in Betar Illit, a settlement west of Bethlehem, and 130 housing units on the Abu Ghneim Mountain of East Jerusalem. [end]
Israeli army invades West Bank cities, kidnapping 3 civilians
Marina Ayyoub, International Middle East Media Center News 8/8/0200
The Israeli army invaded the West Bank cities of Jenin, Nablus and Tulkarem on Friday at dawn, local sources reported. In the West Bank city of Jenin, a number of Israeli military vehicles invaded the city. Israeli troops targeted Qasem al Sa’di’s house, a leader in the Islamic Jihad party. Eyewitnesses reported that the Israeli troops locked the family in a room while they searched and ransacked the house. Israeli troops bound Qasem and blindfolded him before kidnapping him. Meanwhile, the Israeli army invaded the West Bank city of Tulkarem kidnapping two civilians and taking them to unknown detention camps for investigation. In addition to that, the Israeli forces raided the West Bank city of Nablus. more.. e-mail
Israeli forces detain two Palestinians in Tulkarem
Ma’an News Agency 8/8/2008
Bethlehem – Ma’an - Two Palestinians labeled "wanted" by the Israeli army were detained in Tulkarem early Friday morning. Israeli sources confirmed that their West Bank troops detained one man in Tulkarem and one from the nearby town of Shweika. Sources added that the detainees were taken to investigation centers for questioning. [end]
Israel: settlers arrested by our troops after entering Nablus illegally
Ma’an News Agency 8/8/2008
Bethlehem – Ma’an – Five Israeli settlers were arrested by Israeli army solders on Friday as they snuck into Joseph’s shrine in Nablus. Settlers must coordinate their movement in Palestinians areas with Israeli troops, who ensure that confrontations between locals and settlers are limited. Earlier Friday soldiers had escorted a bus of 50 settlers to the shrine where they prayed, and were escorted back to their settlements. Later Friday morning, however, the five settlers arrived in the area in private cars. This is a violation of the terms set out by the Israeli army. The individuals were all arrested. [end]
this week in Palestine week 32 2008
IMEMC News - Audio Dept, International Middle East Media Center News 8/8/0200
Click on Link to download or play MP3 file|| 11 m 0s || 10. 0MB || This Week in Palestine 32 2008 This Week In Palestine, a service of the International Middle East Media Center, www. IMEMC. org, for August 2nd, through August, 8th, 2008. Lead: Israeli Defense Minister, Ehud Barak, stated his belief on Thursday that a peace agreement between Palestinians and Israelis is unlikely by the end of this year. As the Palestinian ceasefire with Israel enters its seventh week death toll in Gaza reaches 227. These stories and more, coming up stay tuned. Nonviolent Resistance We begin our weekly report with recent nonviolent actions in the West Bank. IMEMC’s Rula Shahwan has the details: Nil’in On Monday morning, Palestinian medical sources in the central West Bank city of Ramallah told IMEMC that 17-year-old Yousif Amira, who was shot in the nearby Nil’in village on Wednesday evening, had been pronounced dead. more.. e-mail
Hamas arrests Fatah members sent back to Gaza
Sakher Abu El Oun, Agence France Presse - AFP, Daily Star 8/4/2008
GAZA CITY: Israel on Sunday began sending Fatah members who had fled deadly clashes in the Gaza Strip back to the territory, where they were immediately detained by Hamas-run security forces, officials said. The return of around 180 Gazans who fled to Israel on Saturday was at the request of Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas, who heads the Fatah party, Israeli security officials said. Hamas spokesman Sami Abu Zuhri said Hamas had received "dozens" of returnees and had detained them for questioning. "Those who are accused of breaking the law will be investigated and if found to be guilty they will be brought to justice. Those proven innocent will be released," Abu Zuhri told AFP. By Sunday afternoon, 32 people had been sent back, and the remainder of those who fled were expected to be returned later in the day, officials said. more.. e-mail
Settler teen suspected of injuring Palestinian girl, her mother
Efrat Weiss, YNetNews 8/4/2008
16-year-old Yitzhar resident suspected of throwing stone at passing Palestinian vehicle to be brought before judge -Judea and Samaria police arrested Sunday night a 16-year-old resident of the West Bank settlement of Yitzhar who is suspected of throwing a stone at a Palestinian vehicle on Friday, injuring a woman and her daughter. Police said additional suspects have also been detained. The Palestinian woman and her 7-year-old daughter were evacuated to a Nablus hospital, and later transferred to Israel. Police said they plan on bringing the main suspect before a Kfar Saba District Court judge on Monday. Reports of clashes between settlers and Palestinians have increased as of late. Residents of the Burin village in the northern West Bank claimed to have been attacked several times by settlers from nearby Bracha. more.. e-mail
Shadi Hillis in Israeli hospital: I will not return to Gaza for fear of death
Ma’an News Agency 8/3/2008
Gaza/Bethlehem – Ma’an – Twenty Seven-year-old Shadi Hillis is currently in Barzilai hospital in Ashkelon after being injured by de facto government forces in the Shuja’iyyah neighborhood of Gaza City during a bloody battle on Saturday. Shadi, after being injured, fled into Israel along with almost 200 others looking to escape injury or arrest by Hamas police. In a phone call with Ma’an Shadi confirmed that Ahmad Hillis, a leader in the Fatah movement living in Gaza, was hit with two Israeli bullets while heading to the borders. Al-Jazeera news had reported this on Saturday night, and Israeli media denied the claim. According to Shadi, Ahmad is being treated in Soroka Hospital in Beersheva and is in stable condition. Shadi himself was shot by de facto police forces in his left leg. Israeli hospital staff operated on his leg early Sunday morning. more.. e-mail
Fighting between Hamas and Fatah leaves four dead
Ibrahim Barzak in Gaza City, The Independent 8/3/2008
Four people were killed and at least 40 injured yesterday in the worst day of internal fighting in Gaza for weeks. Amid loud explosions and gunfire in Gaza City, Hamas security forces took control of a Fatah stronghold and arrested dozens of people. The fighting raged for most of the day in the Shijaiyeh neighbourhood, which is home to 100,000 people. It began after Hamas fighters raided the family home of the Fatah-linked Hilles clan, looking for suspects in a car-bomb attack a week earlier that killed six people. Yesterday hundreds of Hamas soldiers were patrolling the streets and searching houses in one of the biggest operations since the group seized power in Gaza from the Fatah-led Palestinian Authority in 2007. Meanwhile, five Palestinians were killed and 18 wounded in a tunnel used for smuggling under the Gaza-Egypt border after Egyptian troops blew up the entrance late on Friday. more.. e-mail
VIDEO - Hilles family: Hamas will pay for blood spilt
Ynet reporters, YNetNews 8/3/2008
(Video) Head of Fatah-affiliated clan who fled into Israel along with 180 of his men following day of battle in Gaza, tells Ynet, ’Hamas has removed itself from circles of national Palestinian organizations’ - VIDEO -Ahmed Hilles, head of the Fatah-affiliated clan, told Ynet on Sunday morning that Hamas started the recent infighting in Gaza "because it doesn’t want to see such a big and strong family like mine. " Video courtesy ofinfolive. tv The clan was involved Saturday in a deadly day of battle with Hamas’ security forces in the Gaza City neighborhood of Sajaiyeh. Some of the family members, however, appeared to be insecure and terrified of a possible return to the Strip. Early Sunday morning, the Israel Defense Forces beganreturning the dozens of Fatah members who escaped from Gaza on Saturday back to. . . more.. e-mail
Israeli forces arrest Palestinian near Jenin
Ma’an News Agency 8/3/2008
Jenin – Ma’an – Israeli forces arrested a Palestinian from the northern West Bank village of Zabuba, west of Jenin on Sunday and inspectedagricultural fields near the village. Palestinian security sources and eyewitnesses stated that Israeli troops ransacked the home of Ubada Zaghal and inspected it before apprehending Zaghal. [end]
PCBS: 39 times more settlers in Palestine then in 1972
Ma’an News Agency 8/3/2008
Bethlehem - Ma’an - The Palestinian Central Bureau of Statistics (PCBS) released a report on the number of illegal Israeli settlements in the Palestinian areas for the year 2007 on Sunday. The number of occupation sites in the West Bank totaled 440. Of this, 144 were settlements, 96 were outposts inside settlement boundaries, 109 were outposts outside settlement boundaries, 43 were occupation Sites classified as Other, and 48 were military bases. Most settlements, 26, were in the Jerusalem Governorate, 16 of which have been annexed by Israel. The amount of land in Palestinian areas in the West Bank that are inaccessible to Palestinians on account of the occupation sites is 38. 3. The area of built-up land on different occupation sites reached 2. 35 million square meters. The available data indicate that the number of settlers in the West Bank in 2007 reached to 483,453. more.. e-mail
VIDEO - Hamas arrests returning Fatah members
Ali Waked, YNetNews 8/3/2008
(Video) Security sources tell Ynet 32 Palestinians who escaped from Strip sent back to Gaza on Saturday night, following agreement reached between Defense Minister Barak, Palestinian President Abbas. Hamas sources say group detained by organization’s police officers, promise not to hurt them - VIDEO - The Israel Defense Forces on Sunday morning began returning the dozens of Fatah members who escaped from Gaza on Saturday back to the Strip, despite an earlier agreement betweenIsrael and the Palestinian Authority that the men would be transferred to the West Bank. Video courtesy ofinfolive. tv Hamas sources told Ynet that some of the group members were arrested upon their return, but their number and identity was unclear. Infighting9 killed as Hamas raids Fatah stronghold in Gaza /and AP Islamist group’ security. . . more.. e-mail
Israeli media: Hundreds of Fatah men flee to Israel from Gaza
Palestinian Information Center 8/3/2008
From Joseph Nakhla in the Gaza Strip GAZA, (PIC)-- The Israeli media has spoken of dozens of Fatah members and leaders fleeing Gaza Strip to Israel after Hamas forces reportedly closed in on their hideouts in the Shujaiya neighborhood on Saturday. Al-Shujaiya is an eastern suburb of Gaza City and has a population of more than 80,000. The Israeli state-run TV channel said as many as 150 Fatah members and loyalists fled to Israel through the Erez and Nahal Oz border crossings Saturday afternoon. Some of the fugitives reportedly were wounded, mostly lightly to moderately, during a 24-hour showdown with police forces seeking to apprehend suspected murders of six people at a Gaza beach eight days ago. The wounded were transferred to Israeli hospitals in Bir al Saba, 50 kilometers north east if Gaza. The perpetrators of Gaza beach bombing were believed to be hiding in the. . . more.. e-mail
9 killed as Hamas raids Fatah stronghold in Gaza
Ali Waked and AP, YNetNews 8/2/2008
Islamist group’ security forces raid stronghold of Fatah-allied Hilles clan in Gaza City. In retaliation, masked Fatah gunmen in West Bank briefly seized Hamas-linked university professor in West Bank. Earlier five Palestinians killed in smuggling tunnel’s collapse under Gaza-Egypt border -Hamas security forces asserted control in a Gaza stronghold of political rival Fatah on Saturday, following a day of battles with mortars and machine guns, ending with the surrender of the Fatah-linked Hilles clan. Nine Hamas gunmen and Hilles clan members were killed and at least 88 others were injured during the clashes. Among those injured were 12 children and a woman. Sources in Gaza said following the clashes that Hamas gunmen fired mortars at Palestinians who were trying to escape to the Gaza-Israel border fence, near Kibbutz Nahal Oz. more.. e-mail
IDF: Soldiers rescued Fatah men under fire
Hanan Greenberg, YNetNews 8/3/2008
Gaza brigade commander says forces waited till dark to complete rescue of fleeing Fatah members following surrender to Hamas; operation authorized by Barak at Abbas’ request -IDF forces rescued dozens of Fatah members who were fleeing Gaza City under heavy machine gun, sniper and mortar fire, Northern Gaza Brigade Commander Colonel Ron Ashrov told Ynet Saturday night. At around 5 pm, following thesurrender of the Fatah-affiliated Hilles clan to Hamas security forces in Gaza City, dozens of fleeing clan members began making their way toward the Gaza-Israel border, where they were rescued by IDF forces and taken into Israel. A total of 188 Palestinians were allowed entry into the country following the fierce clashes with Hamas, which left nine people dead and more than 80 wounded. more.. e-mail
Settlers attack a wedding in Hebron; throw a youth from the rooftop
Saed Bannoura, International Middle East Media Center News 8/3/0200
Israeli settlers attacked a wedding party in Hebron on Saturday evening and wounded two Palestinians, according to the Maan News Agency. One of the wounded residents is a youth who was thrown off of the rooftop of his home by the settlers. The youth suffered a broken back and is currently in serious condition. The agency added that dozens of settlers attacked the wedding party, which was being held at the home of Abdul-Karim Al Ja’bary, close to the illegal settlement of Kiryat Arba’, and hurled stones at the residents. The boy who was thrown from the rooftop by the settlers was identified as 15-year old Hamza Abu Hitta. The Israeli military, which arrived on the scene later, has a mandate to ’protect’ the settlers from the Palestinians, despite the fact that it is nearly always the Israeli settlers, who live illegally on Palestinian land in the Hebron area, who are the aggressors. more.. e-mail
Five deaths reported in Gaza tunnel collapse, nearly 15 wounded
Saed Bannoura & Agencies, International Middle East Media Center News 8/2/0200
Palestinian sources in the Gaza Strip reported that five Palestinians were killed and at least 15 others were wounded when a tunnel on the Gaza- Egypt border, near Rafah, collapsed on them on Friday at night. Eyewitnesses reported that several Palestinians were digging the tunnel but it suddenly collapsed on them trapping twenty under the rubble. Dr. Moawiya Hassanen, head of the Emergency Unit at the Palestinian Ministry of Health confirmed the report. He added that the accident was probably caused by a gas explosion. Dr. Hassanen added that most of the casualties suffocated after the tunnel collapsed on them. The Israeli government claims that the tunnels on the borders are meant for smuggling weapons and ammunition into the Gaza Strip, but the Palestinians say that these tunnels are a response to the Israeli siege on the impoverished Gaza Strip. more.. e-mail
Fatah affiliates abduct Hamas leader, threaten execution and release him 2 hours later
Ma’an News Agency 8/2/2008
Nablus – Ma’an – Gunmen who claimed to be affiliated with Fatah abducted Hamas leader Dr Muhammad Ghazal, member of the party’s politburo, in Nablus on Saturday and released him to the Nablus governor two hours later. Shortly after Ghazal was abducted, gunmen told Ma’an’s reporter via telephone, "Fatah will give Hamas in the Gaza Strip four hours to stop its assault against the Shuja’iyya neighborhood and against Fatah affiliates in the Gaza Strip. " Otherwise, said the gunman, "we will execute him immediately. " Ma’an’s reporter was permitted to speak with Dr Ghazal, who said that he was in good health. He continued, saying that he does not agree with any of the recent actions taken by any faction and in fact left the political scene years ago. Then the call was stopped. Dr Ghazal’s wife told Ma’an’s reporter, "A number of gunmen traveling in a Volkswagen. . . more.. e-mail
Hamas police dead and injured as internal fight continues
PNN, Palestine News Network 8/2/2008
Gaza City - Palestinian medical sources reported the killing of two policemen, with the third now confirmed dead, and the wounding of more than 20 from the Hamas government since dawn Saturday. The fighting between the Hamas government and the Palestinian Authority’s Fateh cadres is on again in the Strip. This comes in the wake of Friday’s bombings of Hamas members, which also took the life of a child. Since that incident numerous calls have come out to stop the mutual arrests in the West Bank and Gaza Strip between PA forces and the Hamas government and to stop the bloodshed. The leftist parties are calling for dialogue, as are most citizens. Hamas police launched a campaign early this morning in eastern Gaza City’s Al Shajayieh neighborhood to find who was conducted the bombings. They say that they will protect themselves no matter what the price. more.. e-mail
150 Fateh supporters flee Gaza into Israel
Saed Bannoura & Agencies, International Middle East Media Center News 8/3/0200
Israeli security sources reported on Saturday that at least 150 Palestinians, members and supporters of Fateh movement, fled the Gaza Strip into Israel after clashing with Palestinian security forces run by Hamas movement in the Gaza Strip. Among the Palestinians who fled into Israel, Ahmad Hallas, a prominent Fateh leader in the Gaza Strip. The sources added that nine of the Palestinians were wounded by the Hamas security forces and were moved to Barzilai hospital in Ashkelon and Soroka hospital in Be’er Shiva. An Israeli security official stated that the Fateh supporters were allowed into Israel through the Eretz and the Nahal Oz crossings after intensive talks between the Palestinian leadership in the West Bank, the Israeli Defense Ministry and Egyptian officials. The official added that Israel will arrest any person who is listed as wanted. more.. e-mail
Israeli forces shoot and kill Palestinian as he attempted to flee the internal Gaza fight
PNN, Palestine News Network 8/3/2008
Gaza City - Ahmed Halles feared for his life. He was among the residents of eastern Gaza City’s Al Shajayieh neighborhood. Much of that area is made up of the same family. The Hamas police specifically called for 21 of them to come in for questioning regarding last Friday’s bombings that killed five Hamas members and a child. The Halles family is known to be members of the Fateh party. Ahmed Halles went to the Israeli forces, who despite efforts to give a contrary view of the situation, do in fact still occupy the Gaza Strip. As he approached the Israelis, the occupiers, they opened fire and killed him. There are now at least six members of the Halles family dead. Eighteen from the Helles family are seriously injured. Three Hamas policemen died Saturday morning. Eighty-eight Palestinians are injured, including children. more.. e-mail
Israeli forces storm house of Al-Manar TV reporter, arest Ramattan news man
Ma’an News Agency 8/2/2008
Ramallah – Ma’an – Israeli forces stormed the home of Al-Manar TV correspondent Dib Horany in the West Bank early on Saturday morning. Sources said that Israeli forces ransacked the home and arrested Anis Jamil Saqqouri who works in the Ramattan news agency in Ramallah. [end]
Troops invade West Bank cities, kidnap 2 civilians
Rula Shahwan, International Middle East Media Center News 8/2/0200
Israeli soldiers invaded Ni’lin village, west of the central West Bank city of Ramallah and the northern West Bank city of Jenin on Saturday dawn, and kidnapped two civilians. Local sources reported that the army invaded Ni’lin village and kidnapped 2 civilians. Eye witnesses reported that the army kidnapped Fuad Shaker and Ibrahim Amir, members of the Popular Committee Against the Wall and Settlements in Nil’in village. Moreover, troops invaded Raba village, south of Jenin, and installed a roadblock at the entrance of the village hindering the movement of the civilians. [end]
Israeli settlers attack Hebron city
Rula Shahwan, International Middle East Media Center News 8/2/0200
Local sources reported that a at least 20 settlers attacked the Wad Al Nasara and Wad Al Husen villages near the southern West bank city of Hebron on Saturday midday for the third day in a row. The settlers attacked several houses in the city with stones and guns, and wounded three civilians. Moreover, settlers attacked Palestinian civilians passing in the city’s roads. and tried to seize a peace of land in order to establish an illegal outpost there. [end]
IOA establishes synagogue at the Maghareba gate
Palestinian Information Center 8/2/2008
OCCUPIED JERUSALEM, (PIC)-- The Israeli occupation authority is planning to establish a Jewish synagogue for women at Bab el-Maghareba gate of the holy Aqsa Mosque in occupied Jerusalem, Hebrew press reports said. The Hebrew daily Ma’ariv said that the planning and construction committee of the Israeli interior ministry had approved the establishment of the synagogue under the new Maghareba bridge. The old bridge had collapsed in 2004 due to the excavations made by the Israeli archeological department. [end]
Ceasefire breached: 3 mortars land in western Negev
Hanan Greenberg, YNetNews 8/2/2008
Military forces, emergency unit from Kibbutz Nahal Oz dispatched to security fence area following Hamas-Fatah clashes -Three mortar shells fired by Hamas gunmen in Gaza late Saturday landed in the western Negev, causing no injuries or damage. The IDF was concerned that the concentration of Fatah members attempting to Hamas rocket attack in the area. Earlier Saturday, fire was opened at an IDF patrol operating in the area. The force fired back, and no injuries were reported amid the troops. Since Saturday afternoon, heavy military forces have been securing the area and overseeing the Palestinians’ entrance into [end]
Three mortar shells hit western Negev; no wounded reported
Jpost.com Staff, Jerusalem Post 8/2/1908
Three mortar shells struck the western Negev late Saturday night, causing neither damage nor injury. The shelling come amid fears that Palestinian infighting in the Gaza Strip would spark renewed rocket attacks against Israel. [end]
ANALYSIS / Gaza infighting could topple Israel-Hamas truce
Avi Issacharoff, and The Associated Press, Ha’aretz 8/3/2008
Some of the Fatah loyalists who fled from the Gaza Strip to the Palestinian Authority following Hamas’ takeover in June 2007 described Saturday’s events in the Shijaiyeh neighborhood of Gaza City - four Hamas dead and 80 others injured - as "poetic justice. "Ahmed Khiles, a senior Fatah strongman in the Gaza Strip, who was quick to blame another Fatah strongman, Mohammed Dahlan and his men, for Hamas’ violence in the Strip Saturday became the main target of the Islamist group. There is no particular reason for this turn of events, except that Khiles who had allied his clan with Hamas and was allowed to keep their arms is no longer perceived by Hamas as being useful. The blast on the Gaza beach last week, which claimed the lives of members of Hamas and for which there is still no certainty that Fatah was responsible, gave the Islamic group an. . . more.. e-mail
Injuries reported in renewed clashes in Gaza
Saed Bannoura & Agencies, International Middle East Media Center News 8/2/0200
Palestinian security forces, loyal to Hamas movement in the Gaza Strip, attacked several places said to be hideouts in Gaza for residents involved in last week’s blasts in Gaza in which five Hamas members and one child were killed. The forces attacked buildings that belong to Hallas family in Al Shujaeyya neighborhood, east of Gaza city; at least thirteen residents were wounded. The Associated Press reported that gunmen exchanged fire with the security forces, and that sounds of explosions were heard. Reporter of the Qatar-based Al Jazeera,Wa’el Al Dahdouh , said that at least thirteen residents were moved to the Al Shifa hospital in Gaza, one of them is an a serious condition. Al Dahdouh added that the number of injuries might increase as the clashes are still ongoing while the police are surrounding the area where the family is located. more.. e-mail
Palestinian woman stoned near West Bank settlement outside Nablus
Ma’an News Agency 8/1/2008
Bethlehem - Ma’an - A Palestinian woman and her daughter were seriously injured when a large stone was launched through the window of their car near the illegal West Bank Israeli settlement Yizhar south of Nablus. Israeli media sources reported an eyewitness as saying that a car with yellow Israeli license plates was seen driving away from the injured woman. It appears that Israeli settlers threw the rock at the car, carrying 31-year-old Filistine Sa’ad Mu’la, her husband, and her 7-year-old daughter Hadil Hazim. Medical sources say that Filistine is in critical condition, and her daughter sustained moderate head injuries. Palestinian Authority police said that the injured were transferred to Rafidah hospital in Nablus, but said they are coordinating with Israeli officials to have them moved to Tel Hashomer hospital north east of Tel Aviv. more.. e-mail
Israeli forces detain two north of Salfit, steal money
Ma’an News Agency 8/1/2008
Nablus – Ma’an – Israeli forces detained two young Palestinian men from the town of Kifl Haris, to the north of Salfit, on Thursday and stole three thousand Shekels from the house after destroying its contents, local sources told Ma’an. The sources told our correspondent that at 2:00am on Thursday more than 12 Israeli vehicles and 70 Israeli soldiers stormed the town of Kifl Haris and broke into Jamil Sharif Abu Yacoub’s house, where soldiers shouted abuse at the owners of the house and destroyed its contents. Israeli soldiers then stole three thousand shekels from on of the bedrooms of the house and detained Hamza Jamil Sharif 17 year-old, the sources claim. Israeli forces also stormed the house of Fayez Al-Qaq in the town and detained his 15 year-old son. more.. e-mail
Unknown assailants hurl brick at car in West Bank, injuring 7-year-old Palestinian girl
Yuval Azoulay, Ha’aretz 8/2/2008
A Palestinian woman and her 7-year-old daughter were wounded Friday when unknown assailants hurled a brick at their car as it was passing the West Bank settlement of Yitzhar. Security officials in the area told Haaretz the incident is severe, and they will investigate suspicions that the assailants are settlers who live in the area. Local authorities in the area of Judea and Samaria where the incident took place met with police Friday to demand they bring the assailants to justice. Civilian authorities allowed the mother and daughter to drive to Tel Aviv for medical treatment at Ichilov Hospital. The two victims, residents of Ramallah, were visiting relatives in Tul Karm and were on their way home when the incident took place. Recent weeks have seen an upturn in the number of reports of violent incidents against Palestinians by West Bank settlers. more.. e-mail
Vehicle stoned near Jerusalem
Efrat Weiss, YNetNews 8/1/2008
Police search for suspects after stones hurled at vehicle traveling on Jerusalem-Tel Aviv Highway - Vehicle stoned in heart of Israel: A car traveling on the Jerusalem-Tel Aviv Highway Friday was stoned close to the Abu-Gosh interchange near Jerusalem. No injuries were reported in the attack, but the vehicle’s windshield was damaged. Police received a call around 3:30 pm about stones being thrown at a vehicle traveling on the highway. Police forces were promptly dispatched to the scene and proceeded to scour the area in search of suspects. Friday’s incident is not the first of its kind on the Jerusalem-Tel Aviv Highway. At the end of June, stones were hurled at vehicles in the same area. A total of four cars were damaged at the time but no injuries were reported. Police scoured the area following the attack but no suspects were detained. more.. e-mail
Senior Border Guard officer faces damages suit
Efrat Weiss, YNetNews 8/1/2008
Yesha Council pursues legal action against Brig. -Gen. Shlomi Even-Paz for allegedly attacking photographer during incident at former settlement of Homesh. Suit filed after police decide to subject officer to mere disciplinary action - The Yesha Council’s human rights’ branch filed a damages suit against Brigadier-General Shlomi Even-Paz, who heads the Border Guard Command in Judea and Samaria, earlier in the week. According to the suit, filed with the Jerusalem Magistrate’s Court, Even-Paz attacked a photographer who was documenting the interaction between Border Guard forces and right-wing activists who were trying to re-settle the West Bank settlement of Homesh; ordered his soldiers to capture the camera and proceeded to destroy the camera’s memory card. ClashesYitzhar settlers riot in West Bank/ Residents of West Bank settlement clash with IDF,. . . more.. e-mail
Israeli army invades Jalazun Camp, arrest 5 injure 3 brothers
Ma’an News Agency 8/1/2008
Bethlehem – Ma’an – Five residents of Jalazun Refugee Camp were shot and three brothers arrested during an Israeli invasion of the camp north ofof Ramallah on Friday. The five shot sustained minor injuries and were transfered to an unknown location. The three brothers arrestedwere identified as Ashraf, Shareef and Mohamad Al-Bayid. The Israeli forces withdrew shortly after. Local witnesses told Ma’an that more than twenty Israeli militaryjeeps invaded the camp Friday evening and started firing rubber-coated metal bullets. [end]
15 rescued one missing after tunnel collapses in Rafah
Ma’an News Agency 8/1/2008
Gaza – Ma’an – Fifteen Palestinians suffocated and a sixteenth is missingafter the collapse of a tunnel in the Al– Barazil area of Rafah near the border with Egypt in the Gaza Strip Friday evening. Dr Mu’awiyah Hassanein, director general of ambulance and emergency services ifor the de facto ministry of health in the Gaza Strip told Ma’an that 15 residents were suffocated and moved to Abu Yousif An-Najjar Hospital in Rafah. Dr Hassanein said that the fate of the missing person inside the tunnel is not known. [end]
Rightists score legal victory over police
Aviad Glickman, YNetNews 8/1/2008
Itamar Ben-Gvir, two other extreme right-wing activists file wrongful arrest suit against police for detaining them at rally celebrating Yasser Arafat’s death. Jerusalem Magistrate’s Court finds in favor of plaintiffs, awards minor damages -The Jerusalem Magistrate’s Court ruled Friday that the State must pay extreme right-wing activists Itamar Ben-Gvir, Baruch Ben-Yosef and Israel Bramnson NIS 4,500 (approx. $1,300) each in restitution, after they were unduly arrested while celebrating the death of former Palestinian Authority Chairman Yasser Arafat, back in 2004. The three were arrested in November of 2004 at Jerusalem’s Paris Square, after staging a celebratory barbeque "in honor" of the news of Arafat’s death. Police forces who were called to the scene asked Ben-Gvir and his companions to vacate the premises, but they refused and were subsequently taken into questioning and held for three hours. more.. e-mail
Diplomacy
Abbas rejects Olmert’s bid to seal partial peace deal
Compiled by, Daily Star 9/1/2008
Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas rejected Israel’s idea of an interim peace agreement at a Sunday summit, a Palestinian negotiator said, insisting on an all-or-nothing approach that virtually ruled out an accord by a January target date. The latest meeting between Abbas and Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert was their shortest, lasting less than an hour. Neither side pointed to progress. Olmert entered the meeting in a weakened position after his decision to submit his resignation this month when his party picks a new leader. Just two days before Abbas arrived for talks at Olmert’s residence Sunday, Israeli police passed through the same entrance to interrogate Olmert for the seventh time in a series of corruption cases. Abbas, too, is not in a strong political position, having lost control of Gaza to the Islamist Hamas movement last year. more.. e-mail
Israel tells Hamas to soften its demand to free over 1,000 prisoners for Shalit
Barak Ravid and Jack Khoury, Ha’aretz 9/1/2008
Israel sent a message to Hamas on Sunday telling it to retract its demand that Israel free more than 1,000 Palestinian prisoners in exchange for the release of captive Israel Defense Forces soldier Gilad Shalit. Foreign Ministry director general Aharon Abramovitz sent the message during a meeting in Cairo on Sunday with Egyptian intelligence chief Omar Suleiman and Egyptian Foreign Minister Ahmed Abul Gheit, in which he said Hamas must stop raising the price for Shalit’s freedom. Hamas spokesman Abu Obeida said Saturday the group would not settle for its earlier demand for 450 Palestinian prisoners, but is seeking the release of more than 1,000 in exchange for Shalit. Last week, Egyptian officials told Defense Minister Ehud Barak that Hamas wants 1,500 Palestinian prisoners set free in exchange for Shalit, with the release of 450 prisoners considered only the first of two stages of the deal. more.. e-mail
Olmert to Abbas: You’re not supposed to meet killers
Roni Sofer, YNetNews 8/31/2008
Prime Minister Olmert reprimands Palestinian leader over his meeting with released murderer Samir Kuntar; Abbas requests another prisoner release but Olmert’s associates say PM made no such pledge - Prime Minister Ehud Olmert reprimanded Palestinian leader Mahmoud Abbas Sunday for meeting with released murderer Samir Kuntar in Lebanon. "You’re not supposed to meet with killers," Olmert said during a meeting between the two in Jerusalem. In his visit to Beirut three days ago, the Palestinian leader expressed his support for the right of return and said that the 400,000 Palestinians residing in 12 refugee camps in Lebanon have the right to "return home. " During Sunday’s meeting, Abbas requested that Israel release more Palestinian prisoners and remove West Bank roadblocks. However, PM Olmert’s associates said he did not pledge any further releases. more.. e-mail
Abbas and Olmert: negotiations to continue to end of 2008
Ma’an News Agency 8/31/2008
Bethlehem – Ma’an – During their Sunday meeting Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas and Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert agreed that despite the latter’s imminent departure from office, the sides will push forward with peace negotiations. Olmert’s spokesperson Mark Regev told the Israeli press on Sunday that the two leaders would work to ensure that the negotiation process continues until the end of 2008. Regev also noted that while there has been considerable progress in the series of talks, there are still "considerable gaps between sides. The meeting came in the wake of US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice’s visit to the region that began 25 August. Rice traveled to Jerusalem and Ramallah to speak with Palestinian and Israeli leaders with the hope of advancing the negotiation process between the two. more.. e-mail
President Abbas focusing on release of prisoners and return of deportees
PNN, Palestine News Network 8/31/2008
Jerusalem -- President Abbas is meeting with Israeli Prime Minister Olmert in Jerusalem today. They will continue discussing Final Status issues and last week’s visit by US Secretary of State Rice. Also present in Sunday’s meeting are Palestinian negotiator and former Prime Minister Ahmed Qureia and Israeli Foreign Minister Tzipi Livni. This meeting comes before Abbas meets in New York with US President Bush on the sidelines of a United Nations General Assembly session. President Abbas is calling for an end to settlement expansion, a withdrawal of Israeli forces from the West Bank and East Jerusalem in order to establish an independent state on 1967 boundaries which include East Jerusalem, and the release of more Palestinians from Israeli prisons. There are approximately 11,000. Last week 198 were released in what was called a "good-will gesture" toward President Abbas. more.. e-mail
Families of Nativity Church exiles living in Gaza protest in Bethlehem
Ma’an News Agency 8/31/2008
Bethlehem – Ma’an – Families of Bethlehem activists who were deported to the Gaza Strip in 2002 organized a sit-in strike in Bethlehem in front of offices of the Fatah offices in the Palestinian Legislative Council (PLC) buildings. Protestors demanded Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas place pressure on Israel to allow the deportees back into the West Bank. In April 2002, 39 Palestinians claimed sanctuary in Bethlehem’s Nativity Church as they were being chased down by Israeli solders. The incident lead to a month long standoff and ended when an agreement between the Palestinian Authority and Israel saw 26 of the men temporarily exiled to Gaza, and 13 sent to Europe. Muhammad Lahham, the PLC member from Bethlehem representing Fatah, met with the protestors and listened to their demands. He telephoned Fatah’s parliamentary speaker Azzam Al-Ahmad, and was assured that the. . . more.. e-mail
Officials: PM not pushing joint document
Herb Keinon, Jerusalem Post 8/31/2008
Prime Minister Ehud Olmert and Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas met in Jerusalem on Sunday in what could be their final meeting. Kadima elects a new leader in less than three weeks, and Abbas’s term ends in January. Slideshow:Despite pledges to continue working for a "shelf agreement" by the end of the year, they gave no indication that progress had been made to render this possible. Olmert’s spokesman Mark Regev said after the two-hour meeting - one hour with the negotiating teams present and another one-on-one - that the two sides reiterated their "commitment to the Annapolis process, to continuing negotiations, and toward a historic document. " Regev emphatically denied as "erroneous" reports that Olmert was interested in pushing for an interim document with the Palestinians that would chart progress that had been made up until now and serve as a framework. . . more.. e-mail
Israel, Palestinians seek quick ’understandings’
Roni Sofer and Reuters, YNetNews 8/31/2008
Olmert, Abbas to meet in Jerusalem, try to draw up preliminary document of understandings to present to Washington next month. Livni: We mustn’t let timetables dictate concessions on issues crucial to Israel -Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert andPalestinian President Mahmoud Abbas will try to draw up a preliminary document of understandings to present to Washington next month, Israeli media reported on Sunday. Olmert and Abbas meet again in Jerusalem on Sunday to pursue US-brokered talks with a goal of achieving a limited peace agreement before President George Bush leaves office in January. Their last talks were Aug. 6. Mark Regev, a spokesman for Olmert, confirmed the Israeli leader was pressing to reach a deal, but not necessarily by as soon as next month. "We will continue all our efforts to reach an historic joint Palestinian-Israeli agreement," Regev said. more.. e-mail
Shin Bet chief: Abbas’ time as PA President is running out
Barak Ravid, Ha’aretz 9/1/2008
Shin Bet chief Yuval Diskin on Sunday told the cabinet that Mahmoud Abbas’ time as Palestinian President was nearing its end as elections in the Palestinian Authority approach. Diskin added that, "Hamas knows that Abu Mazen’s time is running out,", referring to Abbas by his nom de guerre. He told the ministers that Israel has to monitor closely developments in the PA that are likely to turn into a political crisis. "Given the fractious state of the Palestinian Authority, presidential elections are impossible [to hold]," Diskin said. The Shin Bet chief said PA officials are mulling a number of alternatives. One option is for Abbas to retire from politics. Another is for the PA to adopt a constitutional amendment which would permit Abbas to continue his term beyond the allotted period. more.. e-mail
Erekat: Abbas told Olmert PA won’t accept interim peace deal
Aluf Benn Barak Ravid and Avi Issacharoff and News Agencies, Ha’aretz 9/1/2008
Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas rejected Israel’s idea of an interim peace agreement at summit with Prime Minister Ehud Olmert Sunday, a Palestinian negotiator said, insisting on an all-or-nothing approach that virtually ruled out an accord by a January target date. The latest meeting between Abbas and Olmert was their shortest, lasting less than an hour. Before the talks in Jerusalem, Olmert’s aides had said earlier the premier hoped the Palestinians would sign a document outlining any agreements reached with Israel before he leaves office. But Palestinian negotiator Saeb Erekat said Abbas flatly rejected that at the brief summit on Sunday. "We want an agreement to end the occupation and establish an independent Palestinian state with Jerusalem as its capital," Erekat told The Associated Press. more.. e-mail
Israel, PA to aim for peace deal by year’s end
Barak Ravid, Ha’aretz 9/1/2008
Prime Minister Ehud Olmert and Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas agreed yesterday that Israel and the Palestinians would continue to aim for a peace agreement by the end of the year, despite Olmert’s plans to step down after a September primary in his Kadima party. At a meeting in Jerusalem, the two decided the deal would be a full agreement rather than an outline of the disputed issues. Yesterday’s Olmert-Abbas meeting is likely to be their final session before the Kadima primary on September 17, after which Olmert will leave his post. Foreign Minister Tzipi Livni, the front-runner in the race to replace Olmert as Kadima leader, warned yesterday that the two sides must not let time constraints set the agenda for talks. "I support negotiations, but a final agreement has to explicitly reflect Israel’s interests," she said. more.. e-mail
Diskin: PA heading for tumultuous times
Ronen Medzini, YNetNews 8/31/2008
Shin Bet chief briefs cabinet on current security, political situation in Palestinian Authority, says end of Abbas’ presidency may plunge PA into political turmoil -The situation in the Palestinian Authority is volatile and may result in political turmoil, Shin Bet Chief Yuval Diskin told cabinet ministers Sunday. Diskin noted that as Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas will end his tenure in early 2009, the PA will face another potentially stormy presidential election. "With therift between the Palestinian factions so deep it will be nearly impossible to hold an election," he said. The current situation, he added, has four possible solutions: Abbas can end his tenure as planned; the factions can devise a constitutional solution which would allow him to remain in power; Fatah and Hamas can agree on an election date; or Abbas can choose to declare. . . more.. e-mail
President Abbas meets with Olmert in Jerusalem
Rami Almeghari & Agencies, International Middle East Media Center News 8/31/2008
Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas and Israeli Prime Minister, Ehud Olmert, will be meeting in Jerusalem Sunday for talks over contentious outstanding negotiations issues. Their meeting follows a visit by U. S Secretary of State, Condoleezza Rice, last week, as negotiations teams of both sides will be part of such an expected meeting, Israeli radio reported. The radio pointed out that the teams will be discussing the possibility of releasing more Palestinian prisoners from Israeli jails, after Israel had released 198 prisoners in the past few days, in what Israel said a ’gesture of good-will towards President Mahmoud Abbas’. According to senior Palestinian negotiator, Saeb Eriqat, President Abbas will request Olmert to allow the return back of the Church of Nativity’s deportees, who Israel expelled to the Gaza Strip and abroad in 2002. more.. e-mail
Released Fatah member aims to reform faction
Jerusalem Post 9/1/1908
A large banner at the entrance to Husam Khader’s three-story home here reads: The occupation and corruption are two faces to the same coin. This slogan sums up the story of Khader, a young Fatah member of the Palestinian Legislative Council who was released from an Israeli prison last week along with 197 other security prisoners. Prior to his arrest by the IDF in 2002, Khader was an outspoken critic of financial corruption in the Palestinian Authority. His recurring attacks on Yasser Arafat and the veteran Fatah leadership earned him many enemies over the years. Khader is even convinced that his arrest by the IDF was part of a plot by senior Fatah security officials to get rid of him. He was sentenced to 12 years in prison after being found guilty of financing and directing armed Fatah cells in Nablus. more.. e-mail
CIA papers show Arafat ordered murder of American diplomats in Sudan
Amir Oren, Ha’aretz 9/1/2008
Henry Kissinger instructed the CIA to continue diplomatic contacts with Yassir Arafat’s PLO representatives before the 1973 Yom Kippur War, even after Arafat ordered the kidnapping and murder of the American ambassador and his deputy in Khartoum, Sudan. The diplomatic contacts, described only as related to security issues - which had been revealed previously but not their contents - were exposed in the papers of former CIA chief Richard Helms that were made available to the public last week. The documents mainly relate to the period Helms was the U. S. ambassador in Iran, 1973-1976, after he completed six years as the head of the CIA. The newly-released material contains, among other things, information on the Egyptian effort in the spring of 1973 to plead with the U. S. , through Iranian channels, to reach a peace arrangement with Israel "on the basis of the. . . more.. e-mail
Popular committee: We hope to bring Palestinians together
Palestinian Information Center 8/31/2008
BEIRUT, (PIC)-- The popular committee formed to prepare for celebrating Jerusalem as the capital of Arab culture in 2009 said that it was not founded to widen the inter-Palestinian discord but rather to serve as a bridge that would bring together all Palestinians. The committee added that it aims to gather all spectra of the Arab nation around occupied Jerusalem and the dream of its liberation. These comments were made during a meeting held on Saturday in Beirut by the preparatory committee in the presence of members of the administrative board of the international Quds institution. During the meeting, Dr. Mohamed Al-Adlouni, the secretary-general of the Quds institution, called on the organization of the Islamic conference and the Arab League to declare Sheikh Ra’ed Salah, the head of the Islamic Movement in 1948 occupied lands, and father Attalla Hanna, the bishop of Sebastia. . . more.. e-mail
High-level PFLP delegation heads to Cairo for unity talks
Ma’an News Agency 8/31/2008
Gaza – Ma’an – A delegation of the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine (PFLP) left the Gaza Strip for Egypt following an official invitation to participate in national unity talks. The delegation includes member the political office Rabah Mohanna and central committee Kayed Al-Ghoul, who will be joined shortly by Deputy Secretary General of PFLP Abdel Rahim Mallouh along with political office member Nasser Kafarnah. A high-ranking official within the party said that the delegation expects that talks with Egypt will "focus on ways of ending internal split and commencing a comprehensive national dialogue," in addition to other issues like the truce and blockade in Gaza. The delegation will present suggestions to Egyptian mediators aimed at ending split and starting dialogue. The source explained that PFLP will push for partners in the dialogue to put together. . . more.. e-mail
RCA allocates Dh2.6 million for Ramadan charity programmes in Palestine
Government of the United Arab Emirates, ReliefWeb 8/27/2008
The Red Crescent Authority (RCA) will deliver best services to fasters during the holy month of Ramadan in all Palestine with emphasis on the under-siege Gaza Strip. ’Acting upon directive of HH Sheikh Hamdan bin Zayed Al Nahyan, Deputy Prime Minister and Chairman of the RCA, the UAE premier charity and aid organisation said it has allocated an initial budget of Dh2. 6 million to the fast-breaking programme in Palestinian territories and Diaspora camps in Jordan, Lebanon and Yemen," said Dr. Saleh Al Taie, RCA Secretary General. ’We have drawn an elaborate plan to expand the umbrella of beneficiaries of Ramadan charity programmes. It will be carried out in coordination with the Palestinian Ministry of Social Affairs and UNRWA as well as UAE embassies in the three said countries,’ he added. According to a breakdown of the budget, he explained a fast-breaking programme will be carried inside the Aqsa Mosque in tune of Dh558,000. more.. e-mail
Al Khudari: use the month of Ramadan to break the siege on Gaza
PNN, Palestine News Network 8/31/2008
Gaza -- Jamal Al Khudari, Chairperson of the People’s Committee against the Siege, called the Arab and Islamic nations, along with the Palestinian people, to "take the blessed month of Ramadan and break the siege on the Gaza Strip. " To the press on Sunday, Al Khudari called on Arab and Islamic countries to "support the beleaguered residents of the Gaza Strip to live a free and dignified life. "He said that recent events signal a beginning of the end. Al Khudari pointed to last week’s arrival and departure of the Free Gaza boats that symbolically broke the Israeli siege and the two-day opening of the Rafah crossing with Egypt. "Hundreds of medical patients and students were able to travel," said Al Khudari. "The beginning of the internal dialogue in Egypt is another factor in some hope being returned to the people regarding the situation in Gaza. more.. e-mail
Rafah crossing operational for second day
PNN, Palestine News Network 8/31/2008
Gaza -- The Rafah Border Crossing with Egypt is operational in both directions for the second consecutive day. The two-day opening is the first in a year and a half, Spokesperson for the General Administration of Crossings in Gaza, Mohammad Radwan, told PNN yesterday. The criteria for passage are specific but the Egyptian authorities did allow 3,500 people to cross in and out of the southern Gaza Strip border that is shared with Egypt. According to Palestinian officials the border remained open for about two hours after the end of the specified period on Saturday. Yesterday 2,500 exited and 1,000 entered the Gaza Strip. Prime Minister in the Gaza government Ismail Haniya called on the Egyptians to extend the opening longer than two-days in order to "end the tragedy faced by hundreds of families. " more.. e-mail
More than 2,800 passengers cross Rafah during first day
Palestinian Information Center 8/31/2008
BEIRUT, (PIC)-- Mohamed Edwan, a spokesman for the interior ministry, stated that on Saturday1952 passengers were able to travel through the Rafah border crossing into the Egyptian territories, while 882 Palestinians stranded in Egypt crossed into the Palestinian side, pointing out that the ministry managed to operate the crossing at ease. In an exclusive statement to the PIC, Edwan hailed Egyptian authorities for facilitating the movement of citizens and helping in the success of the first day. The spokesman added that 400 Palestinian patients along with stranded people would be transported on Sunday by buses into the Egyptian side. In another context, the international media commission for the defense of Jerusalem appealed to all Arab and Islamic satellite channels to televise on air the Taraweeh prayers (the night prayers during Ramadan) and the Friday Khutba performed in the Aqsa Mosque during the holy month of Ramadan. more.. e-mail
Hamas angered by Egypt’s statement of deploying Arab forces in Gaza
Saed Bannoura & Agencies, International Middle East Media Center News 9/1/1902
In what appeared as an angry objection letter from Hamas against the statements of Egypt’s Foreign Minister Ahmad Abu Al Gheit who spoke of the possibility of sending Arab b forces to Gaza in order to end the tension and internal unrest, Hamas said that it totally rejects this idea and will fight any Arab or foreign forces that tries to deploy in Gaza. Hamas stated that it rejects the deployment of any Arab of foreign forces in the Gaza Strip and added that there is a legitimate government in Gaza. Yahia Mousa, a Hamas leader and member of the Palestinian Legislative Council, threatened that Hamas will fight any Arab force that tries to deploy in Gaza, and added that the Palestinian are capable of defending themselves and are capable of resolving their internal differences. Mousa added that any foreign force which deploys in Gaza will be considered as an occupation force which will be facing resistance. more.. e-mail
Hamas reasserts rejection of foreign force in the Gaza Strip
Palestinian Information Center 8/31/2008
GAZA, (PIC)-- Hamas on Sunday reasserted its previous position of rejecting the entry of Arab or foreign troops into the Gaza Strip under any circumstances or any pretexts. Fawzi Barhoum, the Movement’s spokesman, said in a press statement that a national, legitimate government is present in the Strip and oversees the supremacy of law and order. He pointed out that the current security apparatuses in the Strip are professional and legal and work for the interest of the Palestinian citizens after wiping out corruption, security chaos, systematic murder and all kinds of violence, which were rampant during the reign of previous security apparatuses. "If the Arabs want to come and help the Palestinian people, let them send forces to fight alongside the Mujahideen and liberate the Aqsa and protect Jerusalem and the Palestinian lands," Barhoum said, adding, "But if they want to send. . . more.. e-mail
Hamas rejects Egypt’s suggestion to send troops to Gaza
Ma’an News Agency 8/31/2008
Gaza – Ma’an – Hamas slammed Egypt’s suggestion that troops be sent into Gaza to stabilize the situation. The statements of Egyptian Foreign Minister Ahmad Abu Al-Gheit were published in the Egyptian daily newspaper Ash-Sharq Al-Awsat on Saturday. He commented that he believed Arab forces would help end internal clashes, and make Israel pause before braking the truce in Gaza. While Abu Al-Gheit affirmed that his suggestion did not represent an initiative, he said that it should be something considered by the Arab League. In a press conference on Sunday in Gaza City Hamas spokesperson Sami Abu Zuhri rejected Abu Al-Gheit’s suggestion and described it as “unjustified and unbalanced. ”During his speech Abu Zuhri said that Hamas was prepared to re-form either Arab or Palestinian committees to work out the details of releasing all political detainees. more.. e-mail
Abu Al-Ghait: Sending Arab troops to Gaza is an attractive idea
Palestinian Information Center 8/30/2008
CAIRO, (PIC)-- Egyptian foreign minister Ahmad Abu Al-Ghait has described on Saturday the idea of sending Arab troops to control the Gaza Strip as an "attractive" idea that should be seriously taken into consideration. According to Abu Al-Ghait, the presence of Arab troops in the tiny Gaza Strip would help prevent inter-Palestinian fighting, and it would serve as buffer between the Palestinians and the Israeli occupation army that, according to him, would give the Palestinians enough time to rebuild their capabilities inside the populated Strip. The statements of Abu Al-Ghait harmonize with the call of PA chief Mahmoud Abbas who welcomed the idea of dispatching Arab troops into Gaza Strip. Hamas Movement took over security in Gaza Strip after it succeeded in defeating elements of the mutiny trend in Fatah faction and the defunct PA security apparatuses that were working on command. . . more.. e-mail
’J’lem has agreed to release Barghouti’
Khaled Abu Toameh And Mark Weiss, Jerusalem Post 8/31/2008
The Israeli government has informed the Palestinian Authority that it has no objections to the release of jailed Fatah operative Marwan Barghouti, a senior PA official in Ramallah said over the weekend. Slideshow:The official told The Jerusalem Post that Barghouti and several other prominent security prisoners could be released in the coming days or weeks. Barghouti is serving five life sentences for the murders of four Israelis and a Greek monk. But an official in Jerusalem said Saturday night that "the release of Marwan Barghouti is simply not on the table today. "The official also said that last week’s release of 198 Palestinian detainees freed "was not the first prisoner release and will not be the last. " The question of an additional prisoner release will be one of the items on the agenda at talks in Jerusalem on Sunday between Prime Minister Ehud Olmert and Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas. more.. e-mail
Ramon: Hamas may scuttle Schalit deal
Tovah Lazaroff, Herb Keinon And Gil Hoffman, Jerusalem Post 8/31/2008
Vice Premier Haim Ramon warned Hamas on Sunday that its refusal to reduce its demands would doom a deal to swap Palestinian prisoners for captive soldier Gilad Schalit. Slideshow:Ramon spoke at the end of a ministerial meeting that debated relaxing the criteria for the release of Hamas prisoners, in hopes of concluding a swap for Schalit. Ramon said the onus was not just on Israel. "If there is no flexibility in Hamas’ demands as well, it won’t be possible to reach a deal," he said. According to Channel 10, a Hamas representative warned on Sunday that if Israel did not agree to a deal, Schalit was in danger of suffering the same fate as airman Ron Arad, who disappeared in 1988 after he had been held captive in Lebanon for two years. Hamas is reportedly demanding some 1,000 Palestinian prisoners for the release of Schalit, who was kidnapped by the group along the Gaza border in June 2006. more.. e-mail
Noam Shalit: Gestures to PA haven’t advanced deal for my son’s release
Ahiya Raved, YNetNews 8/31/2008
Captive soldier’s father says supports the release of many Palestinian prisoners, ’but only after Gilad returns home’ -The father of captive IDF soldier Gilad Shalit said Sunday he was opposed to the release of any additional Palestinian prisoners unless it is guaranteed that such a gesture would advance a deal for his son’s release. Shalit was captured during in a cross border raid on an IDF base bear Gaza on June 25, 2006. Noam Shalit’s comment came in response to reports that during the scheduled meeting between Prime Minister Ehud Olmert and Mahmoud Abbas in Jerusalem later in the day, the Palestinian leader is expected to ask that Israel release more prisoners. "Ever since my son fell captive more than two years ago, Israel has released thousands of Palestinians as a gesture (to Abbas)," Noam Shalit said. more.. e-mail
Hamas calls for release of Al Barghouti and Sa’adat, Israel rejects
Palestine News Network 8/31/2008
PNN -- The Israeli Ministerial Committee is meeting to change the criteria for releasing Palestinian political prisoners. Negotiation on the prisoner exchange is ongoing between Gaza, Cairo and Tel Aviv. According to political sources the latest proposal is to increase the number to be released by introducing a new standard: those released should not have lengthy sentences or serious charges levied against them. If the names on the list change, the Israelis will accept a higher number. A higher number will also be accepted if the people are elderly or ill, meaning they will not be able to return to armed resistance if they were ever involved. The Hamas government in Gaza increased the number of Palestinians to be released from Israeli prison in exchange for the soldier captured while invading the southern Strip two years ago to 1,500. more.. e-mail
Israel ready to mull leaving part of northern border town of Ghajar
Barak Ravid, Ha’aretz 9/1/2008
Israel told the United States on Sunday it was prepared to withdraw from the northern part of Ghajar on the Lebanese border, a change in its policy for the past year and a half of not wanting to discuss the issue. A government source in Jerusalem said the decision was made after the Lebanese government delivered written assurances that UNIFIL would be given security and civilian control over the northern part of the village, which is in Lebanese territory. "The Americans have been asking us for a long time to move ahead on the Lebanon issue and after receiving the letter, it was decided to show a more positive stance," the source also said, referring to the written assurances by Lebanon. The Israel Defense Forces Planning Branch and the Northern Command are now at work on the details of the withdrawal from the northern part of Ghajar. more.. e-mail
Report of the Lebanon Independent Border Assessment Team
Daily Star 9/1/2008
Report - Executive Summary - 1. Security Council resolution 1701 (2006) called upon the Government of Lebanon to secure its borders and all entry points to prevent the entry into Lebanon without its consent of arms or related material. 2. At the invitation of the Security Council, and in close liaison with the Government of Lebanon, the Secretary-General dispatched to Lebanon a team of border security experts, (the Lebanon Independent Border Assessment Team (LIBAT I), to fully assess the monitoring of Lebanon’s border with the Syrian Arab Republic and to report back to the Council on its findings and recommendations in this regard. The team visited Lebanon from 27 May to 15 June 2007 and submitted its report (hereinafter referred to as the LIBAT I report) to the Secretary-General on 22 June 2007. The report was forwarded to the Security Council on 26 June 2007. more.. e-mail
Jewish Agency cedes North America aliyah operations to Nefesh B’Nefesh
Anshel Pfeffer, Ha’aretz 9/1/2008
The Jewish Agency has ceded its Aliyah operations in North America to the private organization Nefesh B’Nefesh. The Agency will continue to be in charge of the eligibility process of prospective immigrants. The details of the impending deal were revealed in Haaretz a month and a half ago. The Agency, which has managed Israel’s Aliyah campaign from the State’s inception, has been at logger-heads with newcomer Nefesh B’Nefesh over the last two years. The Agency accused Nefesh B’Nefesh of selecting the most successful candidates for Aliyah while it continued its commitment to bring every eligible immigrant and for taking credit for a rise in Aliyah from North America and Britain which was not of their creation. Nefesh B’Nefesh accused the Agency of hindering their efforts, jealousy of their success and not fulfilling its obligation to pay the airfare of every immigrant. more.. e-mail
North American aliya officially ceded to Nefesh B’Nefesh
Haviv Rettig, Jerusalem Post 9/1/1908
For the first time in its history, the Jewish Agency for Israel has ceded its function of promoting aliya to a private organization. According to an agreement signed on August 22 but only announced on Sunday, aliya promotion in the United States and Canada will be handled by the private Nefesh B’Nefesh organization. The Jewish Agency will maintain sole rights to determine eligibility and to open files in official Israeli agencies, but this function will be made accessible through the NBN Web site. The agreement marks a shift of responsibility from the large, history-laden Jewish Agency, whose leadership is appointed by political coalitions of Zionist groups in the World Zionist Organization, to a tech-savvy organization utilizing up-to-date business models and marketing strategies. According to officials in the Jewish Agency, the shift will include largely dismantling the network. . . more.. e-mail
West fears Russia will supply anti-aircraft missiles to Iran
Ynet, YNetNews 8/31/2008
Sunday Telegraph says proposed deal between Moscow, Tehran ’causing huge alarm’ in US and Israel. ’Purchase of S-300 missiles would ’change the game’, significantly improve Iranian defenses against any air strike on its nuclear sites, Pentagon official quoted as saying -"US intelligence fears the Kremlin will supply the sophisticated S-300 system to Iran if Washington pushes through NATO membership for its pro-Western neighbors Georgia and Ukraine", The Sunday Telegraph reported. According to the report, the proposed deal is causing huge alarm in the US and Israel as the S-300 "can track 100 targets at once and fire on planes up to 75 miles away". The UK-based newspaper quoted Pentagon adviser Dan Goure as saying that the acquisition of S-300 missiles would "change the game", as it would significantly improve Iranian defenses against any air strike on its nuclear sites. more.. e-mail
Shalev to leave for UN post
Greer Fay Cashman, Jerusalem Post 8/31/2008
Gabriela Shalev, Israel’s incoming ambassador to the United Nations, met with President Shimon Peres on Sunday and said she intends to represent the country at the UN General Assembly this month. Although the working meeting was strictly tete-a-tete, without any of the president’s aides present in the room, Shalev, when asked by The Jerusalem Post whether she intended to be in New York on September 23, replied, "I intend to be there tomorrow [Monday]. " September 23 is the date for the convening of the 63rd session of the UN General Assembly, where the Iranian nuclear program is set to be the central issue. Because of the political upheavals in Israel and the Kadima primaries on September 17, it is unclear whether Prime Minister Ehud Olmert will be representing Israel as was originally planned. Shalev, who has familiarized herself with the Iranian issue, got a few more. . . more.. e-mail
ME Arabs ’reject’ idea of Iran strike
Brenda Gazzar, Jerusalem Post 8/31/2008
By and large, Arabs in the Middle East "absolutely reject" an Israeli or American strike on Iran or its nuclear facilities and believe the Islamic Republic is being "targeted" for reasons other than its nuclear program, an Egyptian expert on Iran has told The Jerusalem Post. Slideshow:Unlike the US-led Iraq War of 2003, an attack on Iran would likely fail to garner any Arab support and any country that chooses to participate in such a strike would be branded a traitor, said Mohammed Said Idris, head of the Gulf Studies department at the Cairo-based Al-Ahram Center for Political and Strategic Studies and editor of Iran Digest. "It is considered the right of Iran to pursue a peaceful nuclear program and it is a legitimate right and there is nothing that confirms with convincing evidence, and especially for the experts of the International Atomic Energy Agency, that the Iranian. . . more.. e-mail
Analysis: Israel’s view of McCain unchanged by VP choice
Herb Keinon, Jerusalem Post 8/31/2008
With his brash and bold pick of Alaska Governor Sarah Palin as his running mate, presumptive Republican nominee John McCain sewed up the Eskimo vote (her husband is part Yup’ik Eskimo) as well as the ballots from University of Idaho alumni (where Palin earned a degree in journalism). But it will take some time, and some getting to know Palin, before it will be possible to gage the impact on other key US constituencies, like the Jews. On the surface, McCain’s choice seems designed to realize a couple of key campaign objectives. First, it is widely expected to galvanize the right-wing Evangelical vote, a key vote McCain will need if he is to win the White House. On the surface it would seem that the "religious right" in the US really has no option but to vote McCain in November. True, they might not be in love with the maverick Arizona senator, who admitted. . . more.. e-mail
Evangelicals in Israel back McCain
Jerusalem Post 8/31/2008
Evangelical Christians living in Jerusalem on Sunday voiced unflinching support for presumptive Republican nominee John McCain, and heaped praise on his surprise selection of Alaska Governor Sarah Palin as his running mate. "McCain has a depth of understanding of foreign policy - including in the Middle East - which makes him the best choice for Israel," said Michael Mott, a native of Colorado who has lived in Israel for the past 12 years. McCain’s choice of Palin was a "strategic move" that "blew away" last week’s Democratic National Convention, he said, adding that it was certain to win him more votes in the November election. The selection of Palin, who is anti-abortion and pro-gun rights, electrified social conservatives, including Evangelicals, who had previously been tepid about McCain’s candidacy. more.. e-mail
Hundreds cross from Gaza into Egypt
Al Jazeera 8/30/2008
Hundreds of Palestinians are reported to have crossed into Egypt after Cairo opened the border with the Gaza Strip for two days. The opening on Saturday comes ahead of the Muslim holy month of Ramadan, but only people with pressing humanitarian needs and foreign residency permits are being allowed to cross. Egyptian security said the Rafah crossing would stay open for two days. Al Jazeera’s Ashraf Amritti, reporting from Gaza, said at least 1,000 people had crossed the border into Egypt so far, most of them residents of Egypt who have been stranded in the Hamas-controlled territory since January. About 500 people had also crossed from Egypt to Gaza, according to Egyptian and Palestinian officials, he said. ’Alleviating suffering’Egypt closed the Rafah crossing more than a year. . . more.. e-mail
Israel Hails Egypt’s ’Effective’ Crackdown on Gaza Tunnels
Agence France Presse, MIFTAH 8/30/2008
Israeli Defense Minister Ehud Barak during talks with President Hosni Mubarak on Tuesday voiced rare praise for Egypt’s efforts to stem weapons smuggling into the Hamas-run Gaza Strip. Barak hailed Egyptian efforts along the porous border which "have visibly been effective," said a statement from the Israeli Defense Ministry after the talks at one of Mubarak’s palaces in the Mediterranean port city of Alexandria. But Barak also said that "more effort should be put in order to further reduce" weapons smuggling into Gaza which has been effectively sealed off by Israel since Hamas took control of the territory in June 2007. Israel has in the past repeatedly accused Egypt of not doing enough to combat the tunnels used to smuggle food, fuel, weapons and cigarettes into the impoverished territory. Egyptian Foreign Minister Ahmad Abu al-Gheit, who attended the talks, said Mubarak had asked more.. e-mail
Hamas to Israel: We won’t compromise, we want 1,000 prisoners for Shalit
Barak Ravid and Haaretz Service, Ha’aretz 8/31/2008
A spokesman for Hamas’ military wing, the Izz al-Din al-Qassam Brigades, said that the Islamic group would not settle for a list of 450 Palestinian prisoners Israel will offer to release in exchange for captive Israel Defense Forces soldier Gilad Shalit, but will rather demand the release of more than 1,000 prisoners, according to a report published Saturday in the London-based Arabic language daily newspaper Asharq al-Awsat. Shalit has been held captive in the Gaza Strip, ruled by Hamas, since his abduction by militants in June 2006. The spokesman, Abu Obeida, made his remarks ahead of a planned meeting of an Israeli ministerial panel, headed by Vice Premier Haim Ramon, set to compose a list of prisoners, including those considered as having "blood on their hands", on Sunday. more.. e-mail
Olmert pressing Abbas to accept framework deal
Aluf Benn Barak Ravid and Avi Issacharoff, Ha’aretz 8/31/2008
Prime Minister Ehud Olmert and Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas are scheduled to meet today in Jerusalem, in what will most likely be their final meeting before the Kadima primary on September 17. Olmert will seek to convince the Palestinian leader to accept an agreement of principles on the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, that will represent a framework for a two-state solution. As far as Olmert is concerned, the talks with Abbas have entered the "final straight" and there are about two weeks left to reach an agreement before the prime minister steps down. However, veteran Palestinian negotiator Saeb Erekat said yesterday that he does not expect the two sides to conclude a joint document during September. Erekat made the comments yesterday following various reports that the Bush administration would like to present a joint document of understandings between Israel and the PA before the UN General Assembly in September. more.. e-mail
Dr. Erekat: Final Status issues are not for marketing, they are about humans who need their rights
PNN, Palestine News Network 8/30/2008
Ramallah -- Head of Negotiations Affairs in the Palestine Liberation Organization, Dr. Sa’eb Erekat said Saturday it is highly unlikely that there will be any agreement between Palestinians and Israelis during September as some rumors have suggested. "The gap between Palestinian and Israeli positions on Final Status issues such as Jerusalem, borders, refugees, settlements, water and security is wide. . . . . . I doubt there will be any kind of written document or agreement. This is not an issue to be used for marketing. This is a human issue and we must ensure that our rights are protected in any agreement reached. "Dr. Erekat was referring to Israeli reports that a written document would be ready before the United Nations General Assembly session scheduled for New York in late September. A meeting is expected to take place on its sidelines between the Quartet. more.. e-mail
Abbas to Hold Further Talks with Israel’s Olmert
Reuters, MIFTAH 8/30/2008
Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas will meet again with Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert on Sunday, Israeli and Palestinian officials said. The next round of talks in Jerusalem will come days after a visit by U. S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice that made little progress toward a goal of a limited peace accord before President George W. Bush leaves office in January. Palestinian negotiator Saeb Erekat toldon Friday Abbas and Olmert would meet to "review the negotiations and the final status issues". The leaders would also discuss a Western-backed peace "road map" that demands Israel halt settlement building in occupied territory and that Palestinians rein in militants, Erekat said. An Israeli official confirmed the talks would take place, saying they would be held in Jerusalem. The leaders last met on Aug. 6. Israel freed 198 Palestinian prisoners from its jails on Monday, in a gesture that sought to boost the Western-backed Abbas, who faces challenges from the Islamist Hamas group that seized control of Gaza last year. more.. e-mail
Former advisor to Arafat: 'time for a third intifadah'
Ma’an News Agency 8/30/2008
Bethlehem – Ma’an – An advisor to the late Palestinian President Yaser Arafat has urged Palestinian youth to begin a third intifadah and popular strike to force the international community to re-evaluate their position on Israel and strengthen the Palestinian negotiating position. Former presidential advisor Basam Abu Sharif sent a statement to Ma’an on Saturday which addressed the Palestinian position in negotiations with Israel, and the role of the United States in this year’s talks. Abu Sharif urged the youth of all of the Palestinian factions to carry out peaceful demonstrations and sit-ins until the end of Ramdan with the aim of igniting a popular intifada (uprising) and a comprehensive strike demanding "freedom and independence in peaceful ways. " If Palestinians resist peacefully en masse, he said "the entire world will become convinced of the necessity to bring justice to the Palestinians. " more.. e-mail
Opposition factions call for sparing service sectors political wrangling
Palestinian Information Center 8/30/2008
GAZA, (PIC)-- The Palestinian opposition factions called Saturday for sparing the health and education sectors the political wrangling between the West Bank and the Gaza Strip, describing the PA illegitimate government’s strike calls as subversive and politicized. In a press conference, the opposition factions said that these politicized strikes come in the context of obstructing the dialog efforts made by Egypt to heal the internal rift. The factions expressed support for the Palestinian government headed by premier Ismail Haneyya, and urged it to protect the citizens from the attempts to manipulate civil services. In a press release received by the PIC, the health ministry in Gaza warned Saturday all municipal and private health institutions in the Strip of recruiting or hiring any striking individuals who refrained from reporting to their duties in the governmental health sectors. more.. e-mail
Hamas: The PA seeks to please US through escalating political arrests
Palestinian Information Center 8/30/2008
RAMALLAH, (PIC)-- The Hamas Movement stated that the escalation of political arrests against Hamas cadres and supporters in the West Bank in the wake of the visit of US secretary of state Condoleezza Rice bears out the swift compliance of PA chief Mahmoud Abbas and his security apparatuses with the American dictates. In a press release received by the PIC, Fawzi Barhoum, a Hamas spokesman, said that the eradication campaign waged against Hamas in the West Bank comes in the framework of a scheme jointly prepared by the PA, Israel and the US and aims at achieving the aspirations of the Israeli occupation and the American administration at the expense of the hopes and sacrifices of the Palestinian people. Barhoum also underlined that the magnitude of the political arrest at this particular time reflects that Abbas is not concerned at all with the dialog efforts made by Egypt and rides. . . more.. e-mail
WCDA: broadcast Al-Aqsa prayers to Muslim world this Ramadan
Ma’an News Agency 8/30/2008
Gaza – Ma’an – The World Committee for the Defense of the Al-Aqsa mosque (WCDA) appealed to Arab and Islamic satellite channels to transmit the night prayers (around 8:30pm) and the Friday sermon from the Al-Aqsa mosque during the holy month of Ramadan. The committee said in a statement "the city of Jerusalem is exposed to Israeli violations," which plan on "hiding the Palestinian character of Jerusalem. " The committee said it would help coordinate all efforts to serve the holy city, saying that they would highlight the issues in Jerusalem and in Palestine as a whole. [end]
Radwan to PNN: suffering of hundreds of families lessened as Rafah crossing operates
exclusive / PNN, Palestine News Network 8/30/2008
Ali Samoudi -- Spokesperson for the General Administration of Crossings in Gaza, Mohammad Radwan, confirmed with PNN Saturday that "since early morning traffic is coming and going easily from Gaza to Egypt, with buses ready to come in. "Radwan said that the Hamas Interior Ministry is facilitating the movement of traffic and that he is pleased with the progress. "If they continue this work until the end of the day we can expect the passage of a high number of citizens which will end much of the tragedy faced by hundreds of families in Egypt and Palestine who have been stranded for eight months. "Prime Minister in the Gaza government, Ismail Haniya thanked the Egyptians for opening the crossing for this two-day period slated for today and tomorrow and said that he hopes it will remain open longer. more.. e-mail
Egypt opens the Rafah crossing for two days
Rula Shahwan, International Middle East Media Center News 8/30/2008
The Rafah border crossing between Egypt and the Gaza Strip was opened on Saturday morning temporarily ending a six month blockade for Egyptians stranded in the Gaza Strip since Egypt sealed the border with Gaza in February, media outlets reported on Saturday. Starting at 8:00am on Saturday morning, 6 buses carrying about 300 Egyptian citizens and residency holders waited to cross the border at Rafah. The crossing will be open on Saturday and Sunday from 8am to 8pm. 400 patients from the Gaza Strip who have transfer permissions will to Egyptian hospitals will leave through Rafah crossing for treatment abroad on Sunday, medical sources in Gaza reported. The crossing will allow Egyptians stranded in Gaza and the 400 Palestinians seeking treatment into Egypt, and will also allow Palestinians stranded in Egypt to return to Gaza. more.. e-mail
Khudari: Partial opening of Rafah crossing important step towards full opening
Palestinian Information Center 8/30/2008
GAZA, (PIC)-- MP Jamal Al-Khudari, the head of the popular anti siege committee, on Saturday said that the partial opening of the Rafah border crossing between the Gaza Strip and Egypt was an important step towards fully opening it. The MP in a press statement said that the opening of this "important artery" for the people of the Strip would greatly ease their pains and the negative effects of the Israeli occupation authority’s tight siege imposed on the Strip. Opening Rafah terminal permanently would open the way wide open before patients, students and the stranded citizens who are living very difficult conditions, he elaborated. He advocated periodical opening of the crossing in a prelude to opening it permanently, and stressed that it should be converted into a commercial crossing as well to get rid of the IOF blockade and to serve as an outlet for Gaza to the Arab and Islamic world. more.. e-mail
Egypt: 'Deploying Arab forces in Gaza could end violence'¯
IMEMC News, International Middle East Media Center News 8/31/2008
The Egyptian Middle East News Agency reported on Saturday that the Egyptian Foreign Minister, Ahmad Abu Al Gheit, said that he believes that deploying Arab forces in the Gaza Strip could help in ending the violence in the coastal region, and added that this idea should be seriously considered. Abu Al Gheit stated in an interview with the October Egyptian magazine that the existence of Arab forces may help in ending internal clashes, may help in baring Palestinian-Israeli clashes, and may allow the Palestinians to rebuild the Gaza Strip. Abu Al Gheit s said that this idea is not an initiative but should be seriously considered in the Arab League. Regarding Palestinian national dialogue, Abu Al Gheit stated that this issue cannot be discussed before the Palestinians manage to regain their national unity. It is worth mentioning that representatives of several Palestinian factions. . . more.. e-mail
Egypt: Arab force for Gaza may help stop violence
Reuters, YNetNews 8/30/2008
Egyptian foreign minister says ’presence of Arab forces on ground can help in preventing the fighting’ - Egyptian Foreign Minister Ahmed Aboul Gheit said on Saturday an Arab force for the Gaza Strip could help stop violence there, and the idea should be taken seriously, Egypt’s state news agency MENA reported. But Aboul Gheit, whose country is sponsoring unity talks between rival Palestinian groups, stopped short of directly calling for such a force in the Hamas-controlled territory. " The presence of Arab forces on the ground can help in preventing the fighting and stopping the Israeli-Palestinian conflict," Aboul Gheit told Egypt’s October magazine, according to excerpts that ran on MENA ahead of the magazine piece, due out on Sunday. "The matter has not been studied yet, but it is an attractive idea that deserves to be taken seriously when we consider. . . more.. e-mail
Egyptian officials: Israeli flexibility on prisoner swap will pressure Hamas
Ali Waked, YNetNews 8/30/2008
Hamas spokesman says list of prisoners it demands Israel release as part of deal for Shalit final, but Egyptian, Palestinian officials say should Israel agree to free more prisoners ’with blood on their hands’ Hamas may consider shortening list -A spokesman for Hamas’ armed wing, the Izz al-Din al-Qassam Brigades, said Saturday that the list of Palestinian prisoners the Islamist group demandsIsrael release in exchange for captive IDF soldier Gilad Shalit was final, adding that it included over 1,000 prisoners. "We’ve decided not to discuss the Shalit issue and do not intend to consider any list formulated by the occupation regime (Israel)," Abu Obeida was quoted as saying by the London-based Arabic-language newspaper Asharq al-Awsat, "Israel must comply with the list we relayed to it. " Abu Obeida is not associated with any Hamas officials involved. . . more.. e-mail
Hamas: list of 1000 names for release not negotiable if Israel wants Shalit
Ma’an News Agency 8/30/2008
Bethlehem – Ma’an –Hamas told a Dutch newspaper that they would not give up on the list of prisoners they want free in exchange with captured Israeli soldier Gilad Shalit. The statement came from Abu Ubaydah, spokesperson for the Al-Qassam Brigades, Hamas’ military wing. He said that the list of prisoners delivered to Israel includes all of the imprisoned Palestinian leaders and women prisoners. The comments were published the morning of the scheduled Israeli Knesset security cabinet meeting set to discuss the names on the list that Israel would be willing to free in order to move forward with a prisoners swap with Hamas. The Israeli daily newspaper Maariv quoted Abu Ubaydah as saying that Hamas has submitted to the Israelis a list of 1000 Palestinian prisoners Hamas wants free. He asserted that Hamas would not negotiate on the list, nor would they agree on an alternate list. more.. e-mail
Israeli government to discuss expanding the list of Palestinians for release
Ma’an News Agency 8/30/2008
Bethlehem - Ma’an - Israeli Radio reported that a Knesset committee will meet about a possible expansion of the list of Palestinian prisoners to be released in a swap deal with Hamas. The Israeli government has so far approved the release of eighty Palestinian prisoners out a list of 400 initially given to Israel. The list was intended as the ransom for captured Israeli soldier Gilad Shalit. In later months Hamas upped their demands to 1,000 prisoners, and then 1,500 after Israel said they would not release prisoners with "blood on their hands. " [end]
Hamas piping in fuel from Egypt
Avi Issacharoff, Ha’aretz 8/31/2008
Arab sources report that Hamas recently laid a pipeline for supplying the blockaded Gaza Strip with fuel from Egypt. In a move that indicates that Hamas is trying to place the smuggling operation between Egyptian and Palestinian Rafah on an official footing, the pipeline was laid in one of several tunnels dug specifically for this purpose. At a conference last week in Rafah to discuss the tunnels phenomenon, Hamas government officials made it clear that they mean to prevent any new tunnels from operating, and to increase oversight of some 200 tunnels already in use. Hamas wants to thwart use of the tunnels for drug smuggling, and the exploitation of child labor in digging the tunnels. The conference was organized by a Gazan human rights group under the banner: "The tunnels - advantages and disadvantages. more.. e-mail
If Russia shows interest in the conflict
Zvi Bar'el, Ha’aretz 8/31/2008
The spark was in Georgia, which made an unwise decision that set off a chain reaction. The response by America and other NATO members was diplomatic but employed the language of war. Russia, Britain said, may take over Ukraine, Moldova and the Crimean peninsula; France proposed imposing sanctions; and nine NATO warships began exercises in the Black Sea, offGeorgia’s shores. Russia not only ignored the West’s demands and warnings, it added threats of its own and warned of a conflagration in the Black Sea. On Wednesday, Russia poked Washington in the eye one more time and caused a stir in Israel. The charge d’affaires at the Russian embassy in Damascus announced that Moscow would beef up its naval forces in the Mediterranean and that warships would visit the Syrian port of Tartus more frequently. more.. e-mail
Former Assad aide: Eli Cohen’s burial site unknown
Ynet, YNetNews 8/30/2008
Syrian leader’s ex-bureau chief tells al-Arabiya that executed Israeli spy was buried three times - Nobody in Syria knows where Israeli spy Eli Cohen is buried today, the former bureau chief of late Syrian leader Hafez al-Assad told the al-Arabiya network. Monjer Motsley, who met Cohen before he was executed, said Friday that Syria buried Cohen three times, in three different locations. "The grave was changed after a day or two," he said. "We were scared that Israel will send forces that would take away the body. " "It is difficult to find Cohen’s bones," the former Syrian official said. "Assad promised to return Cohen’s bones, but when he asked about it security officials told him: ’Sir, we don’t know where the grave is,’ so he couldn’t promise. " Eli Cohen operated in Syria on behalf of the Mossad before being captured and executed. more.. e-mail
Analyze This: Ninja turtle mogul Saban rallies around Obama
Calev Ben-david, Jerusalem Post 8/31/2008
At least he can rest easy that he now has the single most important American-Jewish Democrat of this ilk firmly in his quarter: Haim Saban - Barack Obama went to Denver last week to reassure mainstream America voters that, despite his "funny-sounding name," he’s a regular guy just like them. A small but key component of that group is those Jewish Democrats with particular reason to need that reassurance. Despite their party ties and approval of Obama’s liberal domestic policies, they remain nervous over Obama’s links to radical African-American circles where sympathy for the Palestinians shades into deep enmity toward Israel; concerned he won’t take a tough line against Iran; and disappointed in the simple fact that his name, even if it were just plain Joe Smith, is still not Hillary Clinton. How many of these voters Obama managed to nail down by his performance at the Democratic convention and his selection of Sen. Joe Biden as his running mate, remains to be seen. more.. e-mail
’Iran plotting Gaza cease-fire demise’
Yaakov Lappin, Jerusalem Post 8/31/2008
Iran is mobilizing Islamic Jihad in Gaza in an effort to sabotage the cease-fire between Hamas and Israel, the London-based Arabic daily Al-Quds al-Arabi claimed in a report on Friday. Hours after the report appeared, a spokesman for Islamic Jihad’s al-Quds Brigades in Gaza, Abu Anas, warned on Saturday evening that the truce’s end was nearing. Commenting on the report, senior security analyst Yaakov Amidror told The Jerusalem Post that Hamas would not hesitate to use force to shut down Islamic Jihad to defend the cease-fire. "Islamic Jihad lives off of Iran. It is more similar to Hizbullah than to Hamas in this respect. Hamas cooperates with Iran, but Islamic Jihad is dependent on it. If Islamic Jihad attempts to undermine the cease-fire, Hamas will explain to them - in terms they understand - that it will have to pay for such a move," Amidror said. more.. e-mail
’Revenge for Mughniyeh is legitimate’
Jerusalem Post 8/30/2008
Revenge for the death of Hizbullah terror chief Imad Mughniyeh is a legitimate right of the guerilla group, and will come as a "surprise to the Israelis" when it happens, Hizbullah deputy secretary-general Sheikh Na’im Kassem warned on Friday. Slideshow:"Revenge is the legitimate right," Kassem told the Hizbullah-affiliated Al-Manar television station during an interview. "Why is Israel allowed to murder and to assassinate and the world looks away? " "For everything there is a time, God willing," he continued. "We won’t get into details, but the Israelis will be surprised. " During the interview, Kassem was also presented with questions on other issues, including whether Hizbullah’s cross-border attack in July 2006 provided Israel an excuse to open the situation into a full-blown war. "We kidnapped the two soldiers in order to release prisoners, and not to provoke a war," Kassem responded. more.. e-mail
Top Iran general says attack on Tehran would ignite ’world war’
Haaretz Service and The Associated Press, Ha’aretz 8/31/2008
A senior Iranian military commander has warned that a "world war" would erupt in the event the United States or Israel launch an offensive against his country, AFP quoted the state news agency IRNA as reporting on Saturday. "Any aggression against Iran will start a world war," deputy chief of staff for defence publicity, Brigadier General Masoud Jazayeri, said in a statement carried by IRNA. The general also lashed out at "the unrestrained greed of the U. S. leadership and global Zionism," accusing Jerusalem and Washington of "gradually leading the world to the edge of a precipice. " "It is evident that if such a challenge occurs, the fake and artificial regimes will be eliminated before anything," AFP reported Jazayeri as saying, without naming any countries. The Islamic Republic is facing growing Western pressure to cease its nuclear energy program, which it insists is for peaceful purposes. more.. e-mail
Iran warns any attack would start ’world war’
Middle East Online 8/30/2008
TEHRAN - A senior Iranian military commander has warned that any US or Israeli attack on the Islamic republic would start a world war, the state news agency IRNA reported on Saturday. "Any aggression against Iran will start a world war," deputy chief of staff for defence publicity, Brigadier General Masoud Jazayeri, said in a statement carried by the agency. Iran is under international pressure to halt uranium enrichment, a process which lies at the core of fears about Iran’s nuclear programme as it can make nuclear fuel as well as the fissile core of an atom bomb. "The unrestrained greed of the US leadership and global Zionism. . . is gradually leading the world to the edge of a precipice," Jazayeri said, citing the unrest in Afghanistan, Iraq, Sudan and Georgia. "It is evident that if such a challenge occurs, the fake and artificial regimes will be eliminated before anything," he said, without naming any countries. more.. e-mail
Top Iranian general: Any attack against us will lead to world war
Dudi Cohen, YNetNews 8/30/2008
’Unbridled greediness of American, Zionist leadership pushing world to edge of the cliff,’ says Brigadier General Masoud Jazayeri, deputy head of Iran’s Armed Forces Headquarters, ’should such a conflict erupt, the phony and artificial regimes will be annihilated’ -Any attack on Iran will lead to a world war, the Mehr news agency quoted a top Iranian general as saying Saturday. "The unbridled greediness of the American and Zionist leadership is pushing the world to the edge of the cliff," Brigadier General Masoud Jazayeri said in relation to the crises in Iraq, Afghanistan, Sudan and Georgia, "should such a (conflict) erupt, the phony and artificial regimes will be annihilated. " Brigadier General Jazayeri, the deputy head of Iran’s Armed Forces Headquarters, did not specifically mention Israel, but the Jewish state is often referred to by Iranian officials as a "phony regime". more.. e-mail
’Attack on Iran would cause WWIII’
Jerusalem Post 8/30/2008
Should Israel or the United States attack Iran, it would be the start of another World War, Iranian Deputy chief of staff General Masoud Jazayeri warned on Saturday. Slideshow:"Any aggression against Iran will start a world war," the Iranian state news agency IRNA quoted the top Iranian official as saying. "The unrestrained greed of the US leadership and global Zionism. . . is leading the world to the brink of a precipice. " "It is evident that if such a challenge occurs, the fake and artificial regimes will be eliminated before anything," he said. The news agency also quoted Jordan’s King Abdullah II as saying that if an attack was launched against Iran, it would fail to achieve its objectives. RELATEDIranian deputy FM: New strides in enrichmentIsrael reaches strategic decision not to let Iran go nuclear. . . more.. e-mail
ADL slams Shell, Austrian energy giant for taking part in Iran conference
Benjamin Weinthal, and Haaretz Service, Ha’aretz 8/31/2008
Two oil conglomerates participating in an energy conference in Iran are guilty of "hindering efforts to isolate" the Islamic Republic, the Anti-Defamation League charged on Friday. Officials from Austrian energy giant OMV and the multinational Shell corporation are scheduled to attend a conference in Tehran sponsored by Iran’s state-run energy firm. The meet is set to take place in early October. "These two companies are co-sponsoring a conference by the state-owned energy company of the leading state-sponsor of terrorism and human rights violator," the ADL said. "By promoting one of Iran’s strategic industries, natural gas, OMV and Shell are hindering the effort of responsible states and corporations to isolate Iran. "OMV, Austria’s state-owned energy and gas company, negotiated a 22 billion euro agreement to develop Iranian gas and oil fields. more.. e-mail
Egypt opens sealed Gaza crossing as goodwill gesture before Ramadan
The Associated Press, Ha’aretz 8/31/2008
Palestinian officials say Egypt has opened its border crossing with the Gaza Strip, allowing hundreds of people to enter and leave the coastal territory. Egypt has opened the Rafah crossing for two days beginning Saturday. Thousands of Egyptian citizens had been stuck in Gaza with the border sealed. Egypt closed the crossing last year after militant Muslim group Hamas seized power of the territory. Palestinian officials say they believe Egypt is opening the crossing as a goodwill gesture before the holy Muslim month of Ramadan which begins next week. Officials will allow hundreds of Palestinians needing medical treatment to enter Egypt. Palestinians with foreign residency permits can also leave Gaza, while Palestinians who had been stuck in Egypt will be able to return home. more.. e-mail
Egypt opens sealed Gaza crossing
News agencies, YNetNews 8/30/2008
Rafah crossing to remain open for two days, allowing thousands of Egyptian citizens stuck in Gaza to return home. Palestinians: Reopening crossing goodwill gesture ahead of Ramadan -Palestinian officials said Egypt has opened its sealed border crossing with the Gaza Strip, allowing hundreds of people to enter and leave the coastal territory. Egypt opened the Rafah crossing on Saturday for two days, allowing thousands of Egyptian citizens stuck in Gaza to return home. They are also allowing hundreds of Palestinians needing medical treatment to enter Egypt. Palestinians with foreign residency permits will also leave Gaza. Palestinians stuck in Egypt will be able to return to Gaza. Egyptian sources said some 100 people have crossed into Egypt and 200 Palestinians have returned home to Gaza, while Palestinian officials said more than 500 Egyptians and Gazans. . . more.. e-mail
Egypt opens Gaza border for two days
Associated Press, Jerusalem Post 8/30/2008
Egypt opened its sealed border crossing with the Gaza Strip on Saturday, allowing hundreds of people to enter and leave the coastal territory in a goodwill gesture before a holy Muslim month, officials said. Slideshow:Palestinians who live abroad and Egyptians stuck in Gaza because of the sealed border, gathered at dawn in a nearby sporting center, where Hamas police shipped them to the Gaza-Egypt crossing in buses. The Rafah crossing was sealed after Hamas seized power of the Gaza Strip in June last year, effectively penning in 1. 5 million Gaza residents into the tiny coastal territory. Egyptian officials have infrequently opened the crossing since. Israel has also sealed its crossings with Gaza, only allowing in humanitarian aid and a trickle of commercial goods. Hamas’ interior ministry, eager to demonstrate its ability to control security on the Gaza side of. . . more.. e-mail
Gazans accepted to international universities to register at Khan Younis for travel Sunday
Ma’an News Agency 8/30/2008
Gaza – Ma’an – Gazan students who have been accepted to overseas universities or given scholarships have been instructed to go to the Abu Yousef An-Najjar Hall in the city of Khan Younis on Saturday evening so they can be registered to leave to Egypt via the Rafah crossing and then travel on to their universities. Dr Mohammad Abu Shuqeir, the secretary of the de facto ministry of Education, announced Saturday that the Rafah crossing would open to let the approximately 150 students accepted at international universities through the crossing on Sunday. The de facto Ministry of Education said that 35 busses were allowed to pass through to Egypt on Saturday, and there was not enough time to send through the students and the ill awaiting treatment. General Manager of the media office of the de facto ministry of the interior Ihab Al-Ghusein said that on Sunday the 400 patients. . . more.. e-mail
Hundreds leave Gaza as Egypt opens border
Reuters Foundation, ReliefWeb 8/30/2008
By Nidal al-Mughrabi GAZA, Aug 30 (Reuters) - Egypt opened its border crossing with the Gaza Strip on Saturday, allowing hundreds of people to leave the Hamas-controlled territory, Palestinian officials said. Egyptian security and border sources said the Rafah crossing would stay open for two days to allow Gazans with foreign residence permits and humanitarian cases to cross into Egypt. Egypt closed Rafah after the Islamist movement Hamas seized control of the Gaza Strip more than a year ago, and hundreds of Egyptian citizens have been stuck in the coastal enclave. With the reopening, some 500 people have crossed into Egypt and 700 have returned home to Gaza, the Egyptian sources said. Palestinian officials said more than 1,000 Egyptians and Gazans with foreign residency permits had crossed into Egypt. more.. e-mail
Israel’s Political Limbo is Just as Thorny for Rice
Barak Ravid, MIFTAH 8/30/2008
U. S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice may have arrived in Israel with the intention of advancing talks between Israel and the Palestinian Authority, but her meetings have also dealt with trying to understand Israel’s political limbo. An Israeli government source said a key issue Rice’s aides discussed with their Israeli counterparts was what happens the day after the Kadima party primary. U. S. officials were trying hard to understand the constitutional ramifications of the Kadima race. They discussed Prime Minister Ehud Olmert’s role in an interim government and whether he could carry out significant political decisions. Rice’s aides concluded that it is highly likely that Israel will not have a stable new government before the end of 2008, around the time the Bush administration comes to a close. Rice held two one-on-one meetings with Foreign Minister Tzipi Livni, who is running in the Kadima election. more.. e-mail
Hamas demands 1,500 Palestinian prisoners for Shalit, who turned 22 Thursday
Ma’an News Agency 8/29/2008
Bethlehem – Ma’an – Gilad Shalit turned 22 on Thursday, then on Friday Hamas officials say 15,000 prisoners are the ticket for his return. Initial demands were for 450 prisoners, but recent months saw the demand rise to 1,000 and now, according to Israeli government sources who were informed by Egyptian officials, Shalit’s captors will not release him for fewer than 1,500 Palestinian prisoners. Israeli press reports their government officials as blaming the truce with Hamas as having strengthened the party, saying that when Israel stopped exerting "pressure" on the Gaza Strip, their demands became stronger. , the Hizbullah swap andOfer Dekel, charged with Shalit’s portfolio, is reported to have suggested closing all Gaza crossings for fuel imports. This would come despite the approach of the holy month of Ramadan, and the truce agreement which promised to open crossings for basic supplies. more.. e-mail
Olmert ’willing’ to release 450 Palestinian prisoners for Shalit
The Daily Star, Daily Star 8/30/2008
OCCUPIED JERUSALEM: Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert is willing to release some 450 Palestinian prisoners in exchange for an Israeli soldier held by militants in the Gaza Strip, an Israeli newspaper reported Friday. Olmert has asked the five ministers dealing with the proposed swap with the Hamas movement to draw up the list which would increase from about 80 the number of prisoners Israel is willing to release in exchange for Gilad Shalit, the Haaretz newspaper said. The Israeli corporal, who turned 22 on Wednesday, was captured in a deadly cross-border raid from Gaza in June 2006 and is believed to be held by Hamas. The Islamist movement routed the rival Fatah movement from the impoverished Palestinian territory in June 2007 after reports emerged in the Arab press of an impending Fatah-led takeover. Hamas soundly beat Hamas in legislative elections in early 2006. more.. e-mail
Jerusalem official: Hamas ups ante in Shalit deal
Barak Ravid, Ha’aretz 8/30/2008
Hamas recently jacked up the number of Palestinian prisoners it wants Israel to release in exchange for kidnapped soldier Gilad Shalit, from 1,000 to 1,500, a senior government source said. At a meeting with senior cabinet ministers on Wednesday, both Shin Bet security service chief Yuval Diskin and Ofer Dekel, who was appointed by Prime Minister Ehud Olmert to oversee the negotiations, blamed the sudden increase in Hamas’ demands on Israel’s agreement to a cease-fire with the organization in the Gaza Strip. Last month’s deal with Hezbollah, in which Israel freed terrorist Samir Kuntar and four other Lebanese in exchange for the bodies of two kidnapped soldiers, also hardened Hamas’ stance, defense officials said. A ministerial committee headed by Vice Premier Haim Ramon is slated to discuss the Shalit deal on Sunday, and Olmert has. . . more.. e-mail
’Gilad is still alive’
Vered Lee, Ha’aretz 8/29/2008
The people who gathered yesterday at Gilad Shalit’s home in Mitzpe Hila to mark his 22nd birthday came simply to show their love and support for the kidnapped soldier’s family. "Gilad is in captivity because the bad guys got him," explains 4-year-old Segev Mashav of Kibbutz Snir, then turns to his mother: "I’m waiting for the birthday party to start. " Keren Mashav, 40, smiles forgivingly at her son and tries to explain to him "it’s not really a birthday party. "She says she understand’s the Shalits’ pain and has come with her own family to express solidarity. At 6 P. M. , the small community was already humming with people. Local teenagers manned the entrance gate, welcoming the hundreds who arrived from all over the country and distributing torches and white shirts, stickers and signs reading "Gilad is still alive. more.. e-mail
The Key for Hamas – Israel POWs Deal Is in Cairo
Amos Harel, Haaretz, Palestine Media Center 8/28/2008
The third birthday of Gilad Shalit in Hamas captivity does not bode well. What is publicly known so far - in negotiations of this sort there is always a chance that a deal is being reached away from the media - is that there is no break in the talks with Hamas. Senior Israeli officials are of the opinion that Hamas has toughened its position, and that only energetic intervention on the part of the Egyptian mediators may change the situation for the better. The way the Israeli media tells it, Hamas is demanding the release of 450 Palestinians, many of them killers. The Arab media talks of 1,000 prisoners. The additional 550 prisoners, most of them considered "lightweight" compared with the first batch, are expected to be released at a later stage, indirectly linking their release to the deal over Shalit. It is therefore no surprise that Israel prefers to note the smaller figure. The formula of 1,000 Palestinian prisoners in exchange for Shalit is a hard one to swallow. more.. e-mail
Security and Defense: Prisoner to his policies?
Yaakov Katz, Jerusalem Post 8/28/2008
The last time an Israeli official was invited to the Ras al-Teen presidential palace in Alexandria was in 2001. It was the beginning of the second intifada, and President Hosni Mubarak had summoned then-defense minister Binyamin Ben-Eliezer, who was begged to scale down IDF operations in the territories. On Tuesday, Defense Minister Ehud Barak flew to Mubarak’s seaside palace, although this time it was he who was making the pleas - for Egypt to exert more pressure on Hamas to reduce its demands and renew negotiations for the release of kidnapped soldier Gilad Schalit. Barak had hoped to return from Alexandria with the news of renewed negotiations as a type of conciliatory birthday present for Schalit - who turned 22 on Thursday. Instead, he walked away from his meetings with Mubarak and intelligence chief Omar Suleiman with the reinforced assessment that Hamas will not. . . more.. e-mail
Rafah border will open Saturday and Sunday; strict procedures to be in effect
Ma’an News Agency 8/29/2008
Gaza – Ma’an – Terms have been set for Gazans wishing to cross into Egypt via the Raffa crossing, which will open on Saturday and Sunday. Gazans, as well as Egyptians stranded in the Strip, have been asked to gather at the playground in front of Nasser Hospital in Khan Younis, where criteria for those permitted to cross will be explained in detail. The plan for the opening, as explained by Muhammad Edwan, spokesperson for the borders administration affiliated with the de facto government on Friday, was that after conditions are explained to waiting citizens; those matching the criteria will begin the crossing process. The crossing, he added, will be completed in several stages, as an effort to ensure that the crossing is not stormed as it was in January. On Thursday Gazan officials confirmed the rumor that a small number of Palestinians would be allowed through the crossing,. . . more.. e-mail
Egyptian MP calls for breaking the siege on the 10th of Ramadan
Palestinian Information Center 8/29/2008
CAIRO, (PIC)-- Dr. Hamdi Hassan, an Egyptian MP affiliated with the Muslim Brotherhood bloc at the Egyptian Parliament called on all human rights and relief organisations as well as Egyptians of all persuasions to answer his call and head on the 10th of Ramadan to the Rafah border to break the siege which has been in place for the past year. He said Ramadan should mark the start of a popular Islamic and Arab awakening towards this issue and called upon everyone to head to the Rafah crossing carrying with them what they could by way of food, clothes and medicine. He said in his call which he made on Thursday: "I am going alone in my car which I will fill with food and medicine, anyone who wants to coordinate with me is welcome. " He called on the Egyptian people to make of the 10th of Ramadan a special day that will go down in history as the day on which the will of the Egyptian. . . more.. e-mail
Saudi Cabinet to Palestinians: Unify Ranks
Saudi Gazette, Palestine Media Center 8/26/2008
TAIF - The Saudi Arabian Council of Ministers on Monday appealed to different Palestinian factions to narrow down their differences and jointly face the problems confronting their nation, the Saudi Press Agency (SPA) said. The Council said all Palestinian groups should benefit from Egypt’s efforts and unify their ranks. The Cabinet meeting, presided over by King Abdullah, Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques, was briefed on talks and consultations the Monarch made with Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas. The Cabinet underlined the results of the meeting and stressed the importance of alleviating the suffering of the Palestinian people and working seriously to achieve a comprehensive Palestinian national dialogue, said Dr. Saud Bin Sa’eed Al-Mithami, Minister of State, Member of the Council of Ministers for Shoura Affairs and Acting Minister of Culture and Information. more.. e-mail
Palestinian and Israeli leaders to meet for talks on Sunday
Saed Bannoura, International Middle East Media Center News 8/30/2008
The Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas will meet with the Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert on Sunday for continued ’peace talks’, according to officials. The talks come just days after a visit by US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice, in which little progress was made toward lifting the roadblocks to peace that Israeli leaders have imposed. The timing also coincides with the release of a report by Reuters News Agency that the US government is providing tax breaks to organizations that fund illegal Israeli settlements on occupied Palestinian land, in direct violation of the statements made by Rice and George W. Bush. According to Palestinian negotiator Saeb Erekat, the meeting will be to "review the negotiations and the final status issues". Israel agreed in 2000 to stop the expansion of settlements on Palestinian land, as part of the peace talks at that time. more.. e-mail
The hour of the judge
Alexander Yakobson, Ha’aretz 8/29/2008
The hour of the judge. By Alexander Yakobson. Tags. courts. Israel. A gesture to Abu Mazen? I’m not convinced," said Justice Edmond Levy to the representative of the State Prosecutor’s Office during a discussion in the High Court of Justice on a petition against the release of Palestinian prisoners. The petition was rejected in the end, but justices Levy and Ayala Procaccia greatly criticized the government’s decision. Levy said he was not convinced by the prosecutors’ declaration that the government wants, for diplomatic reasons, to make a gesture to Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas. The justices complained that the diplomatic considerations had not been clearly presented to them and that what was said was unconvincing. According to Justice Procaccia: "There is something new in this release process. more.. e-mail
Obama: You don’t protect Israel, deter Iran by talking tough in D.C.
Natasha Mozgovaya and The Associated Press, Ha’aretz 8/30/2008
Democratic presidential nominee Barack Obama accused his presumptive Republican opponent John McCain of "follow[ing] George Bush with more tough talk and bad strategy," telling the Democratic convention in Denver that rhetoric alone will not neutralize the Iranian threat to Israel. "You don’t defeat a terrorist network that operates in 80 countries by occupying Iraq," Obama said. "You don’t protect Israel and deter Iran just by talking tough in Washington. You can’t truly stand up for Georgia when you’ve strained our oldest alliances. " "If John McCain wants to follow George Bush with more tough talk and bad strategy, that is his choice, but that is not the change that America needs," Obama said. The Illinois senator also vowed on Thursday to end U. S. energy dependence on Middle East sources within 10 years if elected in November. more.. e-mail
Lavrov: It Is Important That Palestinian-Israeli Dialogue Is Continuing
Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Russian Federation, Palestine Media Center 8/27/2008
Interview of Russian Minister of Foreign Affairs Sergey Lavrov, Published in the Pan-Arab Newspaper Al-Hayat, August 2008 Question: How do you assess progress in the Middle East negotiation process? Foreign Minister Lavrov: As is known, the Palestinian and Israeli parties in Annapolis set a task for themselves – to reach a peace agreement before the end of 2008. It was already then hard to expect that the path to achieving this goal would not be thorny or that the search for a sought-for compromise would not require considerable effort. All the more so when it is about such sensitive issues for both parties as borders, Jerusalem and refugees. Despite all the complexities, Palestinian-Israeli dialogue is continuing, which is, undoubtedly, important. It is another matter how realistic in the present conditions it is for the negotiators to get through within the time frame they set themselves. more.. e-mail
Abbas, Gemayel cite need to improve refugees’ conditions
Daily Star correspondent, Daily Star 8/30/2008
BEIRUT: Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas concluded his two-day trip to Beirut on Friday by holding talks with an array of Lebanese, Palestinian and Arab figures. Abbas met former President Amine Gemayel at the Habtoor Grand Hotel in Sin al-Fil to discuss issues related to Palestinian refugees in Lebanon. "President Abbas and we agree that it is imperative to introduce drastic improvements to the living conditions of Palestinian refugees in Lebanon and we also agree on rejecting the settlement of Palestinians," Gemayel told reporters. Gemayel dubbed Abbas’ trip to Beirut as "historic," adding that he hoped the visit would strengthen relations between the two countries and help lead "to a comprehensive solution in Palestine and Lebanon. ""We are fighting a battle together for common peace and stability in the region," he said. more.. e-mail
’Israel won’t allow a nuclear Iran’
Jerusalem Post 8/29/2008
Israel will not allow Iran to attain nuclear capability and if time begins to run out, Jerusalem will not hesitate to take whatever means necessary to prevent Iran from achieving its nuclear goals, the government has recently decided in a special discussion. According to the Israeli daily Ma’ariv, whether the United States and Western countries succeed in thwarting the Islamic Republic’s nuclear ambitions diplomatically, through sanctions, or whether a US strike on Iran is eventually decided upon, Jerusalem has begun preparing for a separate, independent military strike. So far, Israel has not received American authorization to use US-controlled Iraqi airspace, nor has the defense establishment been successful in securing the purchase of advanced US-made warplanes which could facilitate an Israeli strike. more.. e-mail
Israel: Assad not serious about peace
Herb Keinon, Jerusalem Post 8/28/2008
Syria’s rush to take advantage of the conflict in Georgia and the Russia-US rift to cozy up to Moscow seems to indicate that it is not interested in serious negotiations with Israel even with US participation, diplomatic officials in Jerusalem said on Thursday. Slideshow:The officials’ comments came amid speculation that Israel and Syria would not renew indirect talks in Turkey next week, as scheduled, until after French President Nicolas Sarkozy’s visit to Damascus next Wednesday and Thursday. The Israeli-Syrian track is expected to be one focus, but not the primary one, of the talks between Sarkozy and Syrian President Bashar Assad. The main agenda item is expected to be the situation in Lebanon. David Ignatius of The Washington Post wrote Wednesday that advisers to Assad, as well as top French officials, said Syria would be ready for direct peace talks with Israel if the US and France would serve as co-sponsors. more.. e-mail
US refuses to talk with Syria
Middle East Online 8/29/2008
WASHINGTON - The United States refuses to follow France’s lead and will not talk to Syria until it decides to take a "positive role" in international affairs, State Department spokesman Robert Wood said Thursday. Wood declined to comment on French President Nicolas Sarkozy’s announcement Wednesday that he would visit Damascus on September 3-4, after welcoming Syrian President Bashar al-Assad to Paris last month. The spokesman, however, restated US policy that precludes any dialogue with Syria unless it decides "to play a positive role, stay out of the internal affairs of Lebanon, stop supporting terrorists and be a productive player on the world scene. " "Today, it has not been" the case, Wood added. "Until Syria plays a positive role in the region, it is going to continue to isolate itself," he said. Washington continues to blacklist Damascus as a state sponsor of terrorism. more.. e-mail
Report: Hezbollah’s new missiles have range ’Israel can’t fathom’
Yoav Stern and Haaretz Service, Ha’aretz 8/30/2008
Hezbollah is armed with advanced Iranian-supplied missiles capable of reaching targets deep inside Israel, according to a report in Friday’s edition of the London-based pan-Arab daily Al-Quds al-Arabi. The report quotes senior Arab sources who claim that the Lebanon-based militia plans to use the missiles in the event Israel decides to attack Iranian nuclear facilities, or if the United States launches an offensive that has the potential to ignite a regional war. The sources added that the new missiles have a range that Israel "cannot even fathom," and that the new arms are the "surprise" that Hezbollah secretary general Hassan Nasrallah alluded to in his recent statements to the public. The report says the missiles are armed with a precision-guided mechanism that increases their accuracy. more.. e-mail
Report: Iran supplied Hizbullah with advanced missiles
Roee Nahmias, YNetNews 8/29/2008
Al-Quds al-Arabi reports missiles can accurately hit targets in Israel, weapons to be used by Lebanese organization in event that Israel or US launch attack against Islamic republic - Iran has supplied Hizbullah with advanced missiles which can accurately hit extensive targets inside Israel, the London-based Arabic-language newspaper al-Quds al-Arabi reported Friday, quoting Arab sources. According to the report, the missiles will be operational at any moment Israel "thinks of acting adventurously and attacking Iran" or when the United States launches a regional war against the Tehran government. The Arab sources said that the new missiles are capable of reaching a range "Israel cannot even imagine" and are one of the "surprises" promised by Hizbullah Secretary-General more.. e-mail
IDF: Missile threat on bases not grave
Yaakov Katz, Jerusalem Post 8/28/2008
The ballistic missile threat to IDF bases in the Central region and South is not as grave as once thought and the bases would not need to be evacuated in the event of a war in the North, according to a recent study conducted by the army’s Planning Division, The Jerusalem Post has learned. The study was conducted by a team of officers and included an advanced analysis of the missiles in the arsenals of Israel’s enemies, particularly Syria and Hizbullah. It was initiated following the Second Lebanon War, when 4,000 Hizbullah rockets struck northern Israel, leading the IDF to conclude that in the next war the country should expect to come under a massive missile onslaught. Syria is known to have thousands of short-range rockets - as does Hizbullah in Lebanon - and also has several hundred advanced and long-range Scud-C and Scud-D ballistic missiles. more.. e-mail
’Abductors want $12 million for Israeli’
Jpost.com Staff, Jerusalem Post 8/29/2008
The abductors of an Israeli man kidnapped in Nigeria Tuesday are demanding $12 million for his release, an Israeli embassy official told Reuters Friday. Nigerian kidnappers demand ransomThe unnamed official said there was no deadline given for the ransom payment. The Israeli businessman was snatched from the driveway of his home in the Nigerian city of Port Harcourt on Tuesday night. The victim’s family has asked that his name be withheld from publication. "My biggest concern is for the man’s health," Port Harcourt police Commissioner Hassan Bala told The Jerusalem Post on Thursday afternoon. "The abducted man is diabetic and we call on the abductors to at least contact us for the sake of the man’s health. " Police were searching for an accomplice who knew the victim, Bala said. In 90 percent of these cases someone from the inside helped the abductors with information, including the schedule of the kidnap victim, he said. more.. e-mail
Nigerian abductors demand $12 million for release of Israeli man
Roni Gal, YNetNews 8/29/2008
Gilmor Engineering, company employing Israeli businessman abducted on Tuesday, receives call from kidnappers demanding ransom; family says they have not yet been updated -The gunmen who kidnapped an Israeli businessman in Nigeria are demanding $12 million for his release, an Israeli embassy source stated Friday. According to the statement, which confirmed a report by Haaretz news, the demand was made to the man’s company, Gilmor Engineering Limited. The man’s family told Ynet that they have not received this latest update yet. The ransom was demanded during a telephone conversation between the gunmen an Gilmor’s representatives in Nigeria. The company’s CEO, Eli Golder, is currently managing the negotiations and will have to decide whether or not to pay the ransom. Most kidnapping cases in Nigeria end with the companies’ payment, despite the Nigerian government’s official condemnation of this. more.. e-mail
Nigerian group demands $12m ransom for kidnapped Israeli
Yossi Melman, Ha’aretz 8/29/2008
The Nigerian gang that kidnapped an Israeli employee of a construction company operating in Nigeria has demanded $12 million in ransom - the highest demand of this kind in the country’s history, Haaretz revealed Friday. It is likely that the high ransom bid is due to the Israeli’s position as an employee for Gilmor - a company dealing with large-scale projects and major accounts. A Nigerian source emphasized that the ransom request is now being handled by the hostage’s employer. The company’s CEO and owner, Eli Golder, on Thursday declined to go into detail, saying only that "the situation is delicate. "He called on Israeli media outlets to restrain their coverage of the case, warning that "any publication might hurt the chances of releasing the hostage. " Earlier Thursday, a spokesman for an armed group in the region claimed. . . more.. e-mail
India promises health sector aid
Ma’an News Agency 8/29/2008
Nablus – Ma’an – The ambassador of India to the Palestinian National Authority (PNA) expressed his country’s interest in working with Palestinians to improve health services in the West Bank and Gaza. Mr. B. D. Day made the comments to Palestinian Minister of Health Dr Fathi Abu Moghli during a Thursday meeting in which Moghli briefed the representative on the health situation in both the West Bank and Gaza. [end]
Forbes features Livni on list of world’s most powerful women
Haaretz Service and The Associated Press, Ha’aretz 8/29/2008
Foreign Minister Tzipi Livni is featured in Forbes magazine’s list of the world’s 100 most powerful women, placing in at No. 52. This is the second year running in which the foreign minister was ranked among the most influential women worldwide by the renowned American business magazine, after slipping a few spots from her No. 39 entry last year. German Chancellor Angela Merkel topped the list for the third year running, while U. S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice slipped to seventh from fourth last year. Merkel, who became chancellor of Germany in November 2005, was cited by the magazine in its latest edition for her efforts to streamline Europe’s biggest economy, increasing the national retirement age and putting more women in senior government posts. Sheila C. more.. e-mail
European campaign calls for more sea voyages to break Gaza siege
Palestinian Information Center 8/29/2008
BRUSSELS, (PIC)-- The European campaign for lifting the siege on Gaza has deeply appreciated on Thursday efforts of the foreign supporters who boarded two boats and went to the besieged Gaza Strip, considering such attempt as the first step in breaking the wall of the unjust blockade. "The success of the two boats in breaking a circle in the chain of the oppressive [Israeli] siege spurs us into unleashing more ships to the Strip in order to save the besieged people there who have lost nearly 241 patients out of 1500 citizens whom their lives were at risk due to lack of medicine [in Gaza Strip], in addition to Israeli closure of all Gaza crossing points", asserted Dr. Arafat Madi, head of the campaign in a statement he issued in the Belgium capital Brussels, and a copy of which was obtained by the PIC. He also stressed the necessity of turning such successful attempt into a first step. . . more.. e-mail
Israel to reopen Gaza crossings, let in Palestinians for medical care
Yuval Azoulay, Ha’aretz 8/28/2008
Israel will open border crossings with the Gaza Strip Thursday morning and permit Palestinians requiring medical treatment to enter Israel via the Erez crossing. Fuel, merchandise and humanitarian aid will be brought to Gaza via the Karni, Sufa and Kerem Shalom crossings. The crossings had been closed on Monday at Defense Minister Ehud Barak’s order, following a Palestinian rocket attack. Barak discussed the crossings during a meeting with Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak on Wednesday in Alexandria, Egypt. They discussed ways to maintain the truce between Israel and Hamas and negotiations to release abducted soldier Gilad Shalit. Related articles: Barak orders Gaza crossings closed after Qassam hits NegevGaza crossings under attack: gunfire at Karni, suicide bomb bid thwarted at Erez Egypt: Gaza crossing will remain. . . more.. e-mail
Abbas firmly opposes any plan to resettle Palestinians in Lebanon
The Daily Star and Agence France Presse - AFP, Daily Star 8/29/2008
BEIRUT: Palestinian refugees in Lebanon should not be permanently resettled in the country, and they should abide by their host country’s rules, Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas said Thursday after talks in Beirut with Lebanese President Michel Sleiman. "The Palestinians have the right of return and this is an issue we are discussing with the Israelis," Abbas told a media conference after the meeting. "We are against the resettlement of Palestinians in Lebanon," he added. An estimated 400,000 Palestinian refugees live in 12 camps in Lebanon. According to the UN agency responsible for Palestinian refugees (UNRWA), there are around 4. 6 million Palestinian refugees worldwide. Most of Palestinian refugees came to Lebanon when the state of Israel was created in 1948. There are fears among the Lebanese that their settlement will be permanent, shifting the country’s delicate sectarian balance. more.. e-mail
UNRWA asks Egypt, Israel to open Gaza crossings
Palestinian Information Center 8/28/2008
GAZA, (PIC)-- John Ging, the director of UNRWA operations in the Gaza Strip, has asked Egypt and Israel to respond to humanitarian calls and open the Rafah and Beit Hanoun crossings before ordinary Palestinians. He said that those crossings are open only for a certain sector of people, and added that all should move to exert pressure for opening those crossings and alleviate the desperation and frustration in Gaza. The UNRWA official said that around 300 students are trapped in Gaza for the second year running and could not join their universities; which is a violation of their human rights and defies logic. Ging, who was addressing a ceremony in Gaza organized by his Agency for students who passed the exams, announced that UNRWA would deliver around 6 million dollars to students in its schools to help them meet their school needs. more.. e-mail
Egypt promises Rafah crossing to be reopened before Ramadan
Rula Shahwan & Agencies, International Middle East Media Center News 8/28/2008
Egypt said will reopen the Rafah crossing with the Gaza Strip on Saturday and Sunday to in order to end the plight of 200 Egyptians stranded in the Gaza Strip for the past seven months, media outlets reported on Thursday. The Karm Abu Salem broder crossing, also known as, "Kerem Shalom" will also be open to a small number of Palestinians, especially for those stranded on the Egyptian side and those in need of immediate medical care. The Egyptian gesture as the Moslem Holy month of Ramadan nears. While Israel had allowed some goods, such as construction materials, into Gaza, the blockade has remained in place, and the 1. 5 million residents of Gaza remain trapped inside, lacking essential medical and food supplies. The Interior Ministry of the deposed Hamas government in Gaza will clarify later this week exactly who will be allowed to cross. more.. e-mail
Gaza commercial crossings reopen, Rafah to open for humanitarian cases
PNN, Palestine News Network 8/28/2008
Gaza -- Gaza Strip commercial crossings are reopening today after three days of closure after the Israeli Defense Minister, Ehud Barak issued the mandate for both the closure and the opening. The Egyptian Foreign Minister, Ahmed Aboul Gheit said the Rafah Border Crossing will also be opened for several special cases, fearing that Palestinians will storm the border without Egypt’s consent. Well over 200 Palestinians have died duing the siege awaiting Israeli permission to leave the Gaza Strip for medical treatment, while Egypt has opened its border on several occasions for some of the critically ill. Many in the Palestinian government and street have derided Cairo for not keeping the border permanently open during the Israeli siege. During the past 14 months the border was stormed as thousands of people tried to get out. more.. e-mail
Khudari: We are seeking establishment of Cyprus-Gaza sea route
Palestinian Information Center 8/28/2008
GAZA, (PIC)-- MP Jamal Al-Khudari, the chairman of the popular anti siege committee, has disclosed that his committee, in cooperation with foreign solidarity activists, was seeking to establish a sea route connecting between Gaza Strip and Cyprus to break the siege imposed on the Strip. Khudari told Quds Press that his committee was trying to establish a permanent sea line between Gaza and Cyprus that would serve as an outlet for Gazans to Europe in coordination with the Cypriot authorities. He said that the issue was not easy and would take time and effort, but pointed out that it would be legal and would fall in line with the legal framework organizing such activity. The step would be taken in stages and the siege-breaking sea voyages would continue at the same time, the MP elaborated. Khudari said that agreement was reached with the foreign sympathizers to coordinate all. . . more.. e-mail
Israel to ease criteria for prisoner swap in order free Shalit
Ma’an News Agency 8/28/2008
Bethlehem – Ma’an – The Israeli government decided on Wednesday to ease its criteria for what kind of Palestinian prisoners it is willing to release in order to secure the freedom of captured Israeli soldier Gilad Shalit. Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert and Foreign Minister Tzipi Livni met with Defense Minister Ehud Barak, who had recently returned from a trip to Egypt where he met with the officials who are mediating the prisoner negotiations with Hamas. The Hebrew website of the newspaper Yediot Ahronot reported that the changes were agreed on during this meeting. The Israeli ministerial committee tasked with designating prisoners for release will meet this coming Sunday and compose a list of prisoners recommended for release. Yediot Ahronot expects the proposed list to include those charged with deadly attacks on Israelis, whose names were originally proposed by Hamas, as well as seventy previously-approved names. more.. e-mail
Israel: Egypt must press Hamas to ease stance on Shalit deal
Amos Harel, Ha’aretz 8/28/2008
The third birthday of Gilad Shalit in Hamas captivity does not bode well. What is publicly known so far - in negotiations of this sort there is always a chance that a deal is being reached away from the media - is that there is no break in the talks with Hamas. Senior Israeli officials are of the opinion that Hamas has toughened its position, and that only energetic intervention on the part of the Egyptian mediators may change the situation for the better. The way the Israeli media tells it, Hamas is demanding the release of 450 Palestinians, many of them killers. The Arab media talks of 1,000 prisoners. The additional 550 prisoners, most of them considered "lightweight" compared with the first batch, are expected to be released at a later stage, indirectly linking their release to the deal over Shalit. more.. e-mail
A casually deployed radar system
Aluf Benn, Ha’aretz 8/28/2008
Significant strategic changes often occur surprisingly quietly, without drawing the deserved attention. A clear example of this is the agreement last month for the deployment of a U. S. radar system in the Negev, which will bolster Israel’s defense against Iranian or Syrian surface-to-surface ballistic missiles. The radar deployment will have historical significance: the first American base on Israeli territory. Israel has always had reservations about such a possibility and preferred to "defend itself by itself" and retain maximum freedom of action. This time the deployment will be for the long term. The radar will be operated by civilians employed by the company that builds the system, contracted by the Pentagon, and by two U. S. soldiers. Military sources say that in the future the system will be handed over to the Israel Defense Forces. more.. e-mail
US government offers tax breaks for Jewish settlers
International Middle East Media Center, Palestine Monitor 8/28/2008
While US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice has been pressuring Israel to stop the expansion of Israeli settlements on Palestinian land, the US government has, at the same time, been offering tax breaks to US-based organizations who engage in settlement expansion. This news comes from a report produced by Reuters news agency, which conducted an investigation of the tax records of 13 US-based non-profit organizations whose stated goal is to expand Israeli settlements on Palestinian land. The news agency found that these organizations have raised more than $35 million in the last five years alone. When Reuters asked a State Department spokesman about the inconsistency, he stated that the tax breaks were in a different government department, and thus were not the concern of the Department of State. more.. e-mail
PA, Germany sign agreement to establish 55 police stations in West Bank
Ma’an News Agency 8/28/2008
Bethlehem – Ma’an – Palestinian Interior Minister Abd Ar-Razaq Al-Yahyaand German Representative to the Palestinian Authority Klaus Burkhardt signed a joint agreement to establish a total 55 new police stations in the West Bank on Thursday. The agreement is part of a joint project of the Palestinian Interior Ministry, the European Union mission to support the Palestinian police, and the United Nations. Five of the new police stations will be in Jenin, where the Palestinian security forces recently redeployed. Over 80% of Palestinian police stations in the West Bank currently work out of rented buildings. The German representative released a statement in Arabic praising “Efforts exerted by Palestinian police in establishing a police system committed to the principles of rule of law. ”He added that Palestinian police funding, training, and other forms of support. more.. e-mail
400 Druze cross into Syria through Golan for annual pilgrimage
The Associated Press, Ha’aretz 8/28/2008
About 400 Druze clergymen living in the Golan Heights crossed into Syria on Thursday for an annual pilgrimage. The clerics, in traditional uniforms of white turbans, black robes and bushy mustaches, walked across a 300-meter buffer zone between Israeli and Syrian checkpoints at the Quneitra border crossing. For the first time, about a dozen women joined them to visit relatives in Syria. "The group was smaller than planned, because Israel turned down applications from other pilgrims," said Medhat Saleh, head of Golan affairs in the Syrian Cabinet. He did not specify how many other Druze were denied entry, or for what reason. More than 20,000 Arabs who follow the minority Druze sect, an offshoot ofIslam, live in the Golan, along with 15,000 Israeli settlers. more.. e-mail
Barak to Mubarak: Egypt is Central Factor in Return of Shalit
Amoss Harel, MIFTAH 8/28/2008
Defense Minister Ehud Barak told Egyptian President Husni Mubarak on Tuesday that Israel views Egypt as a central factor in the return of kidnapped Israel Defense Forces soldier Gilad Shalit. Shalit was abducted by Gaza militants in a cross-border raid in 2006. Egyptian-mediated talks with Hamas for his release have apparently reached a standstill. " We hope it will not take very long before we see concrete intensive negotiations leading to [Shalit’s] release," Barak said at the meeting in Alexandria. He stressed that the release of the abducted soldier occupies a place of prime importance on Israel’s national agenda and said "all efforts should go toward making the negotiations a success and bringing the soldier back home. " The pair also discussed the ceasefire between Israel and Hamas in Gaza, and efforts by Egypt to curb arms smuggling into the coastal strip. Barak said that Egyptian authorities had cracked down on smuggling across the border into the Gaza Strip in recent weeks but the measures were still not enough. more.. e-mail
Shalit’s father slams Israeli government
Agence France Presse - AFP, Daily Star 8/29/2008
OCCUPIED JERUSALEM: The father of Israeli soldier Gilad Shalit who was captured by Gaza militants in 2006 accused the government of failing to do enough to seek the release of his son, who turned 22 on Thursday. "Politicians are dragging their feet. The prime minister [Ehud Olmert], who pledged to get Gilad released. . . might not be determined enough, otherwise he would have resolved the issue," Noam Shalit told Israeli public radio. Corporal Gilad Shalit was captured in a deadly cross-border raid on June 25, 2006, and is believed to be held in the Gaza Strip by Hamas. The Islamist movement took control of the territory after trouncing the rival Fatah party in Palestinian legislative elections in early 2006. On Wednesday a group of Shalit supporters demonstrated near the border with the Gaza Strip to mark the soldier’s birthday and demand the government do its utmost to get him freed. more.. e-mail
Aviva Shalit: Politicians too busy with their own affairs to free my son
Haaretz Service, Ha’aretz 8/28/2008
The event marking Shalit’s 22nd birthday took place at his home in Mitzpeh Hila in the Galilee. He was kidnapped from his IDF post in 2006 by Gaza militants in a cross-border raid, and is believed to be still held in the coastal strip. The abducted soldier’s mother referred to comments made by politicians about the number of Palestinian prisoners Hamas has demanded in return for freeing Shalit: "Whoever wants to avoid [paying] a high price - you had all the time in the world to do this. A country that forgets its soldiers will eventually be forgotten by its soldiers. "Addressing her son, Aviva Shalit said: "Giladi be strong and don’t break. We are with you and for you and will get you out of there. . . You don’t deserve a third year in this awful captivity. This wonderful nation and we will work [for you]. Even though the politicians are unfortunately occupied with their own agendas and personal affairs. " more.. e-mail
Abbas: All Palestinians should be given right to return home
The Associated Press, Ha’aretz 8/28/2008
Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas told reporters in Lebanon on Thursday that all Palestinians should be given the right to return home. The highly contentious notion of a Palestinian "right of return" is one key issues in negotiations between Israel and the Palestinians for peace agreement. "The refugees should have the right of return to their homeland and we are negotiating this with the Israelis. I have to say we are not with permanent settlement of Palestinian refugees in Lebanon. We are against permanent resettlement," Abbas told reporters after meeting Lebanese President Michel Suleiman on a visit to Beirut. Abbas also said he rejects the idea that Palestinian refugees might be forced to stay in Lebanon permanently. The Palestinian president added that he supports all decisions made by the Lebanese government on how to deal with Palestinian militants outside the refugee camps. more.. e-mail
Zaki to PNN: Abbas in Lebanon for round of official talks, DFLP calls for refugee solution
PNN, Palestine News Network 8/28/2008
Fadi Yacoub -- President Abbas arrived in Beirut Thursday to begin a two-day period of official talks. He is meeting with senior Lebanese officials regarding bilateral relations, refugees, the internal situation, and negotiations with the Israelis. Representative of the Executive Committee of the Palestine Liberation Organization in Lebanon, Abbas Zaki, told PNN via telephone that meetings are beginning immediately as the Lebanese President greeted his Palestinian counterpart at the airport. Abbas reported later than a quick agreement was reached regarding Palestinian refugees. Numerous officials were also on hand for Abbas’ arrival this afternoon. Thursday’s schedule includes meetings with the Lebanese President, the Parliament Speaker, and the Prime Minister. The meeting with Prime Minister Fuad Siniora will deal with the most prominent issues of mutual interest, Zaki told PNN. more.. e-mail
Abbas: Right of return for all refugees
Associated Press, Jerusalem Post 8/28/2008
Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas said Thursday that he rejects the idea that Palestinian refugees living in Lebanon might be forced to stay there permanently. Abbas visits LebanonAbbas said all Palestinians should have the right to return home. When it comes to armed Palestinian factions, however, Abbas said he supports any decisions the Lebanese government makes on how to deal with militants outside refugee camps. Abbas spoke to reporters Thursday in Lebanon’s capital, Beirut. About 400,000 Palestinian refugees and their descendants live in a dozen refugee camps in Lebanon, which were set up when Israel was created in 1948. Many Lebanese also oppose the permanent resettlement of Palestinian refugees, fearing they would tip the country’s delicate sectarian balance. more.. e-mail
Abbas rejects permanent Palestinian resettlement in Lebanon
Associated Press, YNetNews 8/28/2008
Palestinian president says during visit to Beirut refugees residing in Lebanon should be able to return home; Lebanese fear they are liable to tip country’s sectarian balance - Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas said he rejects the idea that Palestinian refugees living inLebanon might be forced to stay there permanently. He emphasized that all Palestinians should have the right to return home. When it comes to armed Palestinian factions, however, Abbas says he supports any decisions the Lebanese government makes on how to deal with militants outside refugee camps. Abbas spoke to reporters Thursday in Lebanon’s capital, Beirut. About 400,000 Palestinian refugees and their descendants live in a dozen refugee camps in Lebanon, which were set up when Israel was created in 1948. more.. e-mail
Abbas demands right of return to all refugees
Saed Bannoura & Agencies, International Middle East Media Center News 8/28/2008
During a Thursday press conference with reporters in Lebanon, Palestinian President, Mahmoud Abbas, said all Palestinian refugees should have the right to return home, and added the internationally guaranteed Right of Return is one of the key issues in peace talks with Israel. Abbas stated that any peace deal between Israel and the Palestinian must include the right o return of all refugees. "Palestinian refugees must have the right to return to their homeland", Abbas said, "We are negotiating on this base with Israel". The Palestinian president also said that he opposes the permanent settlement of Palestinian refugees in Lebanon, and added that he rejects the idea of forcing the refugees to remain there. The Lebanese president, Michael Suleiman, was with Abbas at the press conference. Abbas also said that he supports the Lebanese government in its decisions on how to deal with armed groups that are outside of the refugee camps. more.. e-mail
Az Zahhar to PNN: internal unity rests on end of US control, thanks Free Gaza movement
PNN, Palestine News Network 8/28/2008
Gaza -- A leader in the Hamas government, Dr. Mahmoud Az Zahhar, told PNN on Thursday that true reconciliation will not occur while the United States has the power to veto internal politics. As individual faction meetings take place in Cairo before the comprehensive internal dialogue, several members of the Hamas leadership have said that there will be no internal unity until after the US presidential elections. The US dismissed the coalition government because Hamas was involved. The party was elected to the Palestinian Legislative Council and immediately the US imposed a boycott. "As long as the US veto stands the issue is at a dead-end," Az Zahhar told PNN today referring to both the strife between Hamas and Fateh, and the plug to put Arab forces in the Gaza Strip. He also said, "The release of 198 captives was just a game that the Israelis tried to market to the world. more.. e-mail
US security officials fear Hizbullah’s reach in Venezuela - report
The Daily Star, Daily Star 8/29/2008
ABEIRUT: Fears run high that Venezuela could become a base of operations for Hizbullah, the Los Angeles Times reported on Thursday. Western anti-terrorism officials say they are concerned Hizbullah may use Venezuela as a base of operations, according to the report. The daily quoted an unidentified United States government terrorism expert as saying that Hizbullah may try to take advantage of Venezuela’s ties with Iran to move "people and things" into the Americas. As part of his anti-American foreign policy, Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez has established warm diplomatic relations with Iran and has traveled there several times. The paper said the US administration, Israel and other governments worry that Venezuela is emerging as a base for anti-US militant groups and spy services, including Hizbullah and its Iranian allies. more.. e-mail
Report: West fears Hezbollah setting up cells in Venezuela
Barak Ravid , Haaretz Service, and Agencies, Ha’aretz 8/28/2008
The budding strategic partnership between Venezuela and Iran has prompted fears from Western governments that Hezbollah is establishing a growing number of operational cells in the South American country, the Los Angeles Times reported on its Web site on Thursday. The Lebanon-based Shi’ite organization is believed to be one of a number of anti-Western terrorist and non-state actors that have moved "people and things" into South America, an anti-terrorism expert told the Times. Officials in the Bush administration and Jerusalem have expressed concern that Hezbollah is taking advantage of the close relationship between its Iranian patrons and Venezuela’s anti-American president, Hugo Chavez, the LA Times said. Iran is long believed to have undertaken covert activity in South America in concert with Hezbollah. more.. e-mail
Tehran exploits US-Russian tensions
Jim Lobe, Asia Times 8/29/2008
WASHINGTON - Iran could emerge as a big winner, at least in the short term, from the rapidly escalating tensions between the United States and Russia over Moscow’s intervention in Georgia, according to analysts here. Whatever waning chances remained of a US military attack on Iran before President George W Bush leaves office next January have all but vanished, given the still-uncertain outcome of the Georgia crisis, according to most of these observers. Similarly, the likelihood that Moscow will cooperate with US and European efforts to impose additional sanctions on Tehran through the UN Security Council, where Russia holds a veto, for not complying with the council’s demands to halt its uranium-enrichment program has been sharply reduced. Not only has Washington’s confrontation with its old superpower rival displaced Tehran at the top of the administration’s and US media foreign policy more.. e-mail
Nigerian militants say Israeli hostage located
Reuters, YNetNews 8/28/2008
Militants withdraw offer to help rescue hostage until Israeli news outlet apologizes for branding them as ’terrorists’ - Nigerian militants said on Thursday they knew where an Israeli kidnapped by gunmen was being held but withdrew their offer to help rescue him, accusing an Israeli news outlet of branding them as "terrorists". Four gunmen abducted the 60-year-old project manager, who works for Israeli construction firm Gilmor Engineering Limited, from his home in the southern oil city of Port Harcourt late on Tuesday and fled by stealing his vehicle. " (The hostage) Mr Advi has been located and seems to be a diabetic patient," the Movement for the Emancipation of the Niger Delta (MEND), the main militant group in Nigeria’s oil-producing south, said in an e-mail. " MEND will only plead with his captors to be humane but will not allow the security. . . more.. e-mail
Nigerian group slams Arutz Sheva
Shelly Paz And Jpost.com Staff, Jerusalem Post 8/28/2008
The armed Nigerian group, the Movement for the Emancipation of the Niger Delta (MEND), said Thursday it knew where a kidnapped Israeli businessman was being held. The militants stated they also knew the identity of the four men who snatched the Israeli from the driveway of his home in the Nigerian city of Port Harcourt on Tuesday night. However, the group stated it had decided not to mediate in efforts to release the man because the Right-wing Arutz Sehva Internet news site referred to the group as "terrorists. " The group reported it had approached Israel and suggested to mediate in the negotiations with the kidnappers, but that it is withdrawing the proposal. The group stated it would be willing to mediate in the release negotiations if the Israeli site published a formal apology. Later, Arutz Sheva removed the phrase "terrorists" from its description of MEND. more.. e-mail
Israel Settlement Surge Draws Rice Criticism
Arshad Mohammed, MIFTAH 8/28/2008
Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice called on Israel on Tuesday not to undermine peace talks with the Palestinians after a report found it had nearly doubled Jewish settlement construction. On her seventh visit this year in a long-shot push for a peace deal by January, Rice said the two sides were "somewhat closer" in their talks despite deep public skepticism about the chances of ending the six-decade conflict. Rice offered no further details, but said: "God willing, and with the goodwill of the parties and the tireless work of the parties, we have a good chance to succeed. " At a joint news conference in the West Bank city of Ramallah, Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas described the Bush administration as "determined" to reach a peace deal this year and said he hoped the next U. S. president would "continue what we have started". more.. e-mail
Palestinians: IDF detained pardoned Fatah member
Ali Waked, YNetNews 8/28/2008
Sources in West Bank say Al-Aqsa Brigades man previously taken off Israel’s most wanted list nabbed by soldiers in Nablus; Palestinian say Mahmoud Lubada did not resume terror activity -Palestinian sources said an IDF force operating in the West Bank town of Nablus during the early hours of Thursday morning apprehended Mahmoud Lubada, a member of Fatah’s Al-Aqsa Brigades who was pardoned by Israel as part of the recent Amnesty deal with the Palestinian Authority. In the framework of the agreement some 270 West Bank gunmen began a three-month probation period. Those who refrained from engaging in terror activity during this time were subsequently removed from Israel’s most wanted list and allowed to move freely within Palestinian controlled Zone-A without fear of IDF arrest. However, Israel reserved the right to arrest any al-Aqsa members who resume their terror-related activities. more.. e-mail
Egypt officially declares Rafah crossing open for two days
Palestinian Information Center 8/28/2008
GAZA, (PIC)-- The interior ministry in the PA caretaker government in Gaza announced on Thursday that Egypt has agreed to open the Rafah crossing between it and Gaza for two days before the fasting month of Ramadan. The ministry said in a press release that Egypt would open the crossing on Saturday and Sunday for all Egyptians stranded in Gaza, who are carrying valid IDs or passports along with holders of Palestinian passports who have valid Egyptian residence permits. It added that on Saturday an announcement would be made on those to be allowed to travel on Sunday, stressing that no other category would be allowed to travel abroad via the Rafah crossing on Saturday and would not be allowed to reach the border terminal. more.. e-mail
Egypt to open Rafah crossing for two days on occasion of Ramadan
Palestinian Information Center 8/27/2008
GAZA, (PIC)-- An Egyptian media source has stated that Cairo will officially open the Rafah border crossing on next Saturday and Sunday before the Gaza citizens especially patients on the occasion of the holy month of Ramadan. In a press statement to the Quds Press, Egyptian specialist in the Palestinian affairs Ibrahim Al-Darawi, said that the decision taken by Cairo to open the Rafah crossing is considered a humanitarian gesture and a step to absorb the Arab and Egyptian popular pressure on the Egyptian leadership especially during a distinctive religious month like Ramadan. In another context, Darawi revealed that the visit of the delegations of the popular and democratic fronts to Cairo, which had been scheduled on Wednesday, was postponed until next Sunday. He pointed out that the democratic front’s delegation will be headed by its secretary-general Nayef Hawatmeh and the popular front by its undersecretary-general Abdelrahim Mallouh. more.. e-mail
Israel to reopen Gaza border crossings
Xinhua News Agency, ReliefWeb 8/27/2008
JERUSALEM, Aug 27, 2008 (Xinhua via COMTEX News Network) -- Israeli defense ministry said Wednesday evening that it will reopen the border crossings with the Gaza Strip Thursday, allowing goods to enter the Hamas-ruled enclave. The Jewish state shut down the gateways on Tuesday in response to two rockets fired from the coastal territory, which landed in Western Negev but caused no damage or casualties. Rocket attacks have become rare since an Egyptian-brokered ceasefire took effect on June 19, which calls on both sides to stop cross-border violence and requires Israel to ease its blockade on the strip. To the sporadic rocket attacks that have happened, Israel has been responding by temporarily closing its border crossings, halting the flow of supplies for the some 1. 4 million Palestinians living in the poverty-stricken coastal area. more.. e-mail
’There’s no price for a soldier’s life’
Tovah Lazaroff, Herb Keinon, And Yaakov Katz, Jerusalem Post 8/28/2008
On her son’s 22nd birthday Thursday, Aviva Schalit did not bake a cake or blow up balloons and place them in his room as she might have in years past. Gilad’s third birthday in captivityInstead she found herself talking to the crowd of supporters who gathered in the family’s hometown of Mitzpe Hila, in the Upper Galilee, to mark St. -Sgt. Gilad Schalit’s third birthday in captivity. There were no flowers to arrange and no presents to buy, she said. For Gilad, who is being held by Hamas in Gaza, it was just one more day spent in captivity, alone in the dark, in an airless room without a window. "I didn’t deliberate over what he would want or when to congratulate him," she said. RELATEDMiki Goldwasser: Push aside the primariesInstead she wrote down this plea: "I asked just one thing, ’Giladi, be strong, in the way that you know to be, and don’t break. more.. e-mail
On Shalit’s 22nd birthday, gov’t blamed for not doing enough
Jack Khoury Amos Harel, Ha’aretz 8/28/2008
Barak Ravid andMijal Grinberg On Gilad Shalit’s third birthday in captivity, Israel’s political leaders seem to agree: Only flexibility on the Palestinian prisoner list will achieve progress in releasing the soldier held by Hamas in the Gaza Strip. But at a rally yesterday, Miki Goldwasser, mother of Ehud Goldwasser, one of two Israeli soldiers kidnapped by Hezbollah in July 2006, said the leaders only care about their political survival. Miki Goldwasser, whose son Ehud and comrade Eldad Regev were killed by Hezbollah during their abduction, was speaking at a ceremony at a Gaza-Israel border crossing to mark Shalit’s 22nd birthday. She called on all mothers in Gaza with sons in Israeli jails to demand thatHamas secure their release as part of a swap for Shalit. "A mother does not send her son to die, she sends herself to die for her son," said Goldwasser. more.. e-mail
Israel to ease conditions on prisoner release criterion
Saed Bannoura & Agencies, International Middle East Media Center News 8/28/2008
After returning from Egypt following a Wednesday meeting with Egypt’s President, Hosny Mubarak, Israel’s Defense Minister, Ehud Barak, sad that Israel will ease the conditions it imposes on the criterion that determinism which detainees are eligible to be freed in return for releasing the captured Israeli soldier Gilad Shalit. Egypt’s Intelligence Chief, Omar Suleiman, and Israel’s Foreign Minister, Tzipi Livni, also attended the meeting. The Israeli Ministerial Committee is expected to convene on Sunday to change the criteria which determines which detainees will be freed in the anticipated prisoner swap deal. The committee is headed by Haim Ramon and includes Avi Dichter, Ami Ayalon, Gideon Ezra and Daniel Firedman. The committee will present the Israeli cabinet with additional names of Palestinian detainees; this list includes 70 more detainees which Israel labels as detainees with blood on their hands. more.. e-mail
’Most Americans may back strike on Iran’
Jerusalem Post 8/28/2008
Sixty-three percent of Americans say that if diplomacy fails to solve the Iranian nuclear crisis, they would approve of an Israeli strike on Iran’s nuclear sites, a new poll has found. The poll, conducted by Public Opinion Strategies and Greenberg Quinlan Rosner Research and commissioned by The Israel Project, also finds that 87% of US voters feel that a nuclear-armed Iran would pose a threat to the US. Meanwhile, 80% of Americans said it was likely Iran would use nuclear weapons if it acquired them. The threat of Iran is apparently felt across the political spectrum, with 85% of Democrats and 97% of Republicans believing the Islamic Republic represents a serious threat to the US. However, 62% of those polled also felt that it was still possible to find a diplomatic solution to the crisis. more.. e-mail
Brand Israel
Haskell Nussbaum, Jerusalem Post 8/27/2008
After 60 years of Diaspora Jews complaining that Israel’s hasbara efforts fall flat, there is finally reason for Jews worldwide to believe that the Foreign Ministry is beginning to get it. September marks the beginning of an ambitious new pilot program, being run by the consul-general in Toronto, Amir Gissin, to "rebrand" Israel. Starting with print ads that will be featured prominently in bus shelters and billboards across the city, and continuing with radio and editorial content, Torontonians can expect to see Israel being portrayed as an innovative leader in technology that brings real benefits to their own lives. One ad, for example, depicts an Indian mother and daughter smiling under the words "Coronary stent. Lifesaver. "At the bottom is a new iconic logo, "Innovation Israel," and the tag line "Touching lives. more.. e-mail
New Israeli settlements ’erase the green line’
Missionary International Service News Agency - MISNA, ReliefWeb 8/26/2008
"Israel is erasing the Green Line through the massive construction of illegal homes in Palestinian territories", said a report by Peace Now, an Israeli pro-peace NGO, according to which "in the first half of 2008, Israeli construction activity in the West Bank has almost doubled even though Israel had promised, at the Annapolis conference of 2007, to freeze settlements". The study proves that "over half of the new homes built since the start of the year is located east of the green Line (established by the UN after the 1967 war), reaching the suburbs the Bethlehem and Ramallah"; a similar trend was noted in the eastern part of Jerusalem where a drastic increase of Israeli construction has been noted. The report says that there has been an overall construction increase of some 550% compared to the same period in 2007. "By negotiating with the Palestinians on the one hand, while continuing. . . " more.. e-mail
MIDEAST: Israel Pushes Ahead with Settlement Expansion
Mel Frykberg, Inter Press Service 8/27/2008
JERUSALEM, Aug 27(IPS) - Israel has published tenders for the construction of 1,761 illegal housing units for Israeli settlers in occupied east Jerusalem alone, according to the Israeli rights group Peace Now. The expansion plans come despite promises by the Israeli government at last year’s peace summit at Annapolis, Maryland (in the U. S. ) to freeze all settlement growth. "Once again this government has shown that its words and commitments are meaningless, and they have no intention of keeping to their word," says Peace Now. United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon has stressed repeatedly that settlement construction or expansion in the West Bank is contrary to international law and Israel’s commitments under the ’road map’ peace process. more.. e-mail
Israel radio bans ad rapping sanctions on Gaza students
The Daily Star, Daily Star 8/28/2008
OCCUPIED JERUSALEM: Israel’s national broadcast authority has rejected radio ads criticizing the government for stranding Palestinian university students in the Gaza Strip, a broadcasting official said Wednesday, calling them too controversial. Submitted by a group working for freedom of movement for Palestinians, the ads target Israeli sanctions that have trapped hundreds of Gaza students who hoped to study abroad. The group, Gisha, is appealing the decision. The ads feature two prominent Israeli authors and a former Cabinet minister calling on Israel to let the students out. In one, author Yonatan Geffen recounts how as a young man he was given a scholarship to study English literature in Cambridge, England and met his first girlfriend there - "Anne, an incredibly beautiful blonde. ""The right to study crosses borders and conflict. more.. e-mail
Egypt urges Israel to stop threatening Lebanon
Middle East Online 8/27/2008
BEIRUT - Egypt has urged Israel to stop making threats against Lebanon, Egyptian Foreign Minister Ahmed Abul Gheit said on a visit to Beirut on Wednesday. "We reject any threat to the unity and sovereignty of Lebanon. . . especially from Israel," he told a news conference after meeting Lebanese President Michel Sleiman. "Yesterday (Tuesday) we spoke with the Israelis during Defence Minister Ehud Barak’s visit to Egypt, and asked them to stop thinking about threatening this friendly Arab country," Abul Gheit said. Israeli leaders have issued several warnings to Lebanon since the formation of a national unity government in Beirut in which the Hezbollah-led opposition has 11 ministries and the power of veto over cabinet decisions. "The moment the Lebanese government confers legitimacy on Hezbollah, it must understand that the entire Lebanese state will be a target in the same. . . more.. e-mail
UN extends UNIFIL mandate
Yitzhak Benhorin, YNetNews 8/27/2008
But meanwhile Israel, Lebanon both blame other side of failing to abide by Security Council’s resolution ending Second Lebanon War - The United Nations’ Security Council voted on Wednesday evening to extend the mandate of UNIFIL in southern Lebanon, which was to expire at the end of the montThis the meeting was mostly a technical discussion, Israeli representative utilized the opportunity to note that Resolution 1701, which brought theSecond Lebanon War to an end, is not being fully implemented. Israeli Ambassador to the UN Daniel Carmon said, "It has been over two years since the adoption of Resolution 1701 and the situation in Lebanon appears to be one of ongoing concern. Today, more than ever, we are witnessing challenges to UNIFIL’s activity and mandate. " ¯He also said, "Instead of encouraging one of the main elements of Resolution. . . more.. e-mail
UNIFIL, Lebanese Army conduct joint maneuvers along border
Daily Star 8/28/2008
SOUTH LEBANON: The United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL) and the Lebanese Armed Forces (LAF) carried out a joint military maneuver along the Lebanese border Wednesday in a bid to "build up the skills of fighting groups and preserve their efficiency," the peacekeeping force said in a statement. The drill took place in the region located between the border region of Ras Naqoura and the Naqoura village and included UNIFIL and LAF field artillery. It was conducted in the presence of high-ranking Lebanese, French, Italian, Chinese and Spanish commanders. "What was remarkable in this maneuver was that six field guns were firing several shots toward the sea at the same time," the statement said. "While planning for this maneuver, our priority was to avoid bothering the local population in residential areas. more.. e-mail
Egyptian FM, Suleiman discuss ’Israeli threats’
Brenda Gazzar, Jerusalem Post 8/27/2008
A visit to Beirut by the Egyptian foreign minister on Wednesday is another sign that Egypt, along with other Arab countries, has an increasing interest in Lebanon as the region braces for change with the upcoming American elections, an Egyptian political expert told The Jerusalem Post. Egyptian Foreign Minister Ahmed Aboul Gheit said he had discussed "Israeli threats" against Lebanon with the country’s president, Michel Suleiman. He had also offered assistance in helping to build up the capabilities of the Lebanese Army to help it shoulder its responsibilities, according to the Lebanese news site Naharnet. "It’s an indication of increasing Egyptian interest in Lebanon - Egypt’s interest not to be marginalized in Lebanon [and] to strengthen ties with different actors, particularly those that can be potential allies, and those that have working relations with Egypt," said. . . more.. e-mail
Security Council renews UNIFIL mandate by 1 year
Herb Keinon And Allison Hoffman, Jerusalem Post 8/27/2008
Israel welcomed the Security Council’s decision Wednesday to renew UNIFIL’s mandate in southern Lebanon, even though Jerusalem would have liked - and indeed has raised the matter in numerous capitals over the last few months - to see the peacekeepers’ rules of engagement strengthened. The 15-member council voted unanimously to extend the mission until August 31, 2009. Meanwhile, no progress has been made securing large swaths of Lebanon’s eastern border with Syria and security at the main Masnaa border crossing to Damascus is "disorganized and highly unsystematic," according to an independent inspection team dispatched last month by the United Nations. UNIFIL operates according to a UN Charter Chapter 6 mandate that only allows it to open fire in self-defense and prevents it from entering Lebanese villages without an escort from the Lebanese Armed Forces. more.. e-mail
Egypt holds separate bilateral talks with Palestinian groups
Deutsche Presse Agentur - DPA, ReliefWeb 8/26/2008
Cairo_(dpa) _ Palestinian officials holding talks in Egypt on ending divisions among the various Palestinian groups said Tuesday that talks between all Palestinian groups are to resume at the end of next month. Egypt is to hold separate talks with individual Palestinian factions throughout the Muslim holy month of Ramadan, which starts September 1, Mohamad al-Hindi, a senior official of the Islamic Jihad group, told Deutsche Presse-Agentur dpa. But the all-inclusive round of talks would resume after the Eid el-Fitr feast, during the first three days after the Muslim holy month of Ramadan. "Both Hamas and Fatah are invited to these separate talks," al-Hindi said. Islamic Jihad held a second day of talks with Egyptian officials in Cairo on Tuesday that al-Hindi told dpa had focused on the presence of Egyptian security advisors in the Gaza Strip. more.. e-mail
Officials: Cairo Talks Unlikely to Reconcile Hamas and Fatah
Reuters, MIFTAH 8/27/2008
A new round of Egyptian mediation starting on Monday and aimed at reconciling the rival Hamas and Fatah factions is unlikely to produce a breakthrough, officials familiar with the talks told. Sharp differences between Egypt and Hamas on two key issues will make it even harder for Cairo to broker a deal between the Islamic militant group that now rules the Gaza Strip and Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas’s Fatah movement, they said. " Egypt is not happy because Hamas suspended the talks on a Gilad Shalit prisoner swap and Hamas is angry because Egypt remained reluctant to host talks over the reopening of [Egypt’s] Rafah crossing with the Gaza Strip," one official said. Shalit is an Israel Defense Forces soldier kidnapped by Gaza militants in a cross-border raid in June 2006. He is believed to be still held in the coastal strip. Hamas and other groups that took part in his capture have offered to trade him for hundreds of Palestinians in Israeli jails. more.. e-mail
As Rice Arrives in Region, Israel and PA Far from Peace Accord
Aluf Benn, MIFTAH 8/27/2008
The visit of Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice will seek to determine whether it will be possible to present an Israeli-Palestinian accord to the world, or even a partial document of agreement, before the end of the current year. Nine months have passed since the Annapolis conference, which was held at the behest of Rice and where the participants promised to "make every effort" to reach a settlement by the end of 2008. Any attempt to redeem that promise will take place in the shadow of a political crisis in Israel. Is a settlement possible? There are serious disagreements in the Israeli leadership over the answer to this. Before bridging the differences between Israelis and Palestinians, Rice will have to pave the way between the contradictory viewpoints of her hosts in Jerusalem. Prime Minister Ehud Olmert believes that it is possible and necessary to reach a "shelf agreement" now - a deal whose implementation will be spread over a decade. more.. e-mail
Israel Releases 198 Palestinian Prisoners as Rice Visits
Mohammed Assadi, MIFTAH 8/27/2008
Israel freed nearly 200 Palestinian prisoners to a hero’s welcome in the West Bank on Monday, seeking to bolster President Mahmoud Abbas as Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice began a new peace mission. Making her seventh visit to Israel and the Palestinian territories this year in the long-shot U. S. effort to secure a peace agreement by December, Rice welcomed the release as "something that matters a lot to the Palestinians. " She said she still aimed for a peace deal before President George W. Bush leaves office in January but played down chances of any partial accord in time for the September U. N. General Assembly. " It’s extremely important just to keep making forward progress rather than trying prematurely to come to some set of conclusions," Rice told reporters as she flew to Tel Aviv. " We continue to have the same goal which is to reach agreement by the end of the year," Rice said. She added later Washington was not pressuring the sides to "bridge the gaps," and acknowledged it would be hard to strike a deal this year. more.. e-mail
Rice to Make New Push for Mideast Peace Agreement
Agence France Presse, MIFTAH 8/27/2008
US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice left for Israel and the Palestinian territories on Sunday in another bid to push the stalled Arab-Israeli peace process forward. Rice "will travel to Israel and the Palestinian Territories on August 24," said spokesman Sean McCormack. McCormack said Rice’s talks would include senior Israeli and Palestinian officials and would cover "ongoing efforts to create positive and lasting peace in the region and progress towards the shared goal of a peace agreement in 2008. " Senior Palestinian negotiator Saeb Erakat told AFP on August 17 that Rice will meet with Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas, then hold three-way talks with Israeli Foreign Minister Tzipi Livni and senior Palestinian diplomat Ahmad Qorei. The two sides formally relaunched the peace process after a seven-year hiatus at a US conference in November, with the goal of signing a full peace deal by the time President George W. Bush leaves office in January 2009. more.. e-mail
Hamas: Rice-Livni-Qurei meeting aims to tighten siege on Gaza
Palestinian Information Center 8/26/2008
GAZA, (PIC)-- The Hamas Movement on Tuesday charged that the meeting in Jerusalem between American secretary of state Condoleezza Rice, Israeli foreign minister Tzipi Livni and former PA premier who is in charge of negotiations with Israel Ahmed Qurei is aimed at pressuring the Palestinians. Ayman Taha, one of the Hamas leaders, said in a press statement that the Americans are trying to pressure the Palestinians into accepting more concessions benefiting from the political discord in the Palestinian arena. He added that the tripartite meeting falls in line with attempts to tighten the siege on Gaza and isolate it from the outside world. "Regretfully the meeting does not fall in the interest of the Palestinian people," he said. Palestinian national dialog is still an American red line, Taha said, adding that the talks currently being held in Cairo were no more than exploration. . . more.. e-mail
Masri: Rice visit desperate attempt to bring life to a dead 'peace process'
Palestinian Information Center 8/26/2008
GAZA, (PIC)-- MP Mushir Al-Masri, the secretary of Hamas’s parliamentary bloc, has said that American secretary of state Condoleezza Rice’s visit to the region bore "bad omens" with only the "Zionist enemy" benefiting from her visits. Masri told PIC on Tuesday that the visit constituted a "desperate attempt to bring life to the dead "peace process" with the nearing end of tenure of the three weak leaders [PA chief Mahmoud] Abbas, [American president George] Bush and [Israeli premier Ehud] Olmert". He expressed conviction that the visit would not offer anything in the interest of the Palestinian people. He accused those who rush to meet Rice as the "owners of the failed project that did not succeed in realizing the minimum aspirations of the Palestinian people and is not expected to achieve any progress in face of the Zionist arrogance and the American bias". more.. e-mail
Rice: 'Deal with PA still possible in 2008'
Rula Shahwan, International Middle East Media Center News 8/26/0200
US Secretary of State, Condoleezza Rice, does not believe that the Israeli government is intentionally expanding settlements in the West Bank and believes that a peace deal with the PA is possible this year, media sources reported on Tuesday. Israel accelerated the expansion of illegal West Bank settlements, deemed to be one of the primary obstacles to a Peace agreement. In spite of this, Rice made a remark during a press conference with the Israeli Foreign Minister, Tzipi Livni, and sdad that she has faith in the Israeli intentions. "I don’t believe that it is Israel’s policy to increase activity in the settlements, rather it is to decrease activity", she stated. Rice also stated that she considers settlements an obstacle to the peace process. After meeting on Tuesday morning in Jerusalem, Rice and the Israeli Prime Minister Olmert released a joint statement claiming "progress" in negotiations with the Palestinian Authority. more.. e-mail
Abbas to meet with Bush in September
PNN, Palestine News Network 8/27/2008
Ramallah -- President Abbas is slated to meet with Israeli Prime Minister Olmert next week in preparation for a meeting in New York with US President Bush to be held later in September. Former Palestinian Prime Minister and current negotiator, Ahmed Qureia, made the announcement to the press that the meeting between Abbas and Bush will be held on the sidelines of a United Nations General Assembly meeting in Manhattan. The last time that President Abbas met with the Israeli Prime Minister was 6 August. [end]
Egypt discovers 140 smuggling tunnels under Gaza border
Ma’an News Agency 8/27/2008
Bethlehem – Ma’an – Egyptian security forces recently discovered 140 smuggling tunnels under the borders with the Gaza Strip, thanks to high-tech equipment Egypt received from the United States, Israeli radio reported on Wednesday. These details were related to Israeli Defense Minister Ehud Barak during his meeting on Tuesday with Egyptian Defense minister Hussein Tantawi and director of Egyptian intelligence Umar Sulaiman in Alexandria. During that meeting, the officials tackled the perception that Hamas is showing no flexibility regarding the list of prisoners they want released in exchange for captured Israeli soldier Gilad Shalit. The reason for that inflexibility is believed to be the prisoners swap between Israel and Hizbullah in July, which has emboldened Hamas to be firm with its demands. more.. e-mail
Awaida to PNN: never know if crossings will be open until night before
PNN, Palestine News Network 8/27/2008
Gaza -- Israeli forces continue the closure of all commercial crossings in the Gaza Strip for the second day running. The Director General of the Ministry of Economy in the Hamas government, Hatem Awaida, told PNN on Wednesday, "The Israelis continually close the crossings. We don’t know until night if they will be open the next day. " The District Coordinating Office that deals with the Israelis reported that the closure will last until further notice because of a rumored projectile launch on Monday, however no damage or injuries were reported by any source. The Palestinian security forces announced today that the information about possibly opening the crossings on Thursday came from Israeli forces late last night. Local radio stations in Gaza are reporting that the closure of the three commercial crossings will continue until further notice based on a directive of the Israeli Defense Minister Ehud Barak. more.. e-mail
IOA closes down Gaza crossings claiming 2 rockets were fired on Israeli targets
Palestinian Information Center 8/26/2008
GAZA, (PIC)-- The Israeli occupation authority declared that all Gaza commercial closings would be shut down on Tuesday at the pretext that two locally made missiles were fired from Gaza into Israeli areas adjacent to it. The Hebrew radio said that a meeting between war minister Ehud Barak and his deputy last night ended with the decision to close all crossings. The Israeli occupation forces said that a projectile slammed west of Sderot and another rocket fell in the western Negev without causing any damage or casualties. No Palestinian faction adopted responsibility for firing the two missiles. Meanwhile, in the West Bank IOF soldiers broke into a prisoner’s home in Balata refugee camp near Nablus and searched it thoroughly. In Jenin district, a group of settlers last night roamed the streets of a number of villages, escorted by IOF soldiers, and terrorized inhabitants. more.. e-mail
Following ’warm return’ policy, IDF sends African refugees back to Egypt
Mijal Grinberg, Ha’aretz 8/27/2008
The Israel Defense Forces has in recent days returned to Egypt African refugees who tried to infiltrate into Israel, after being instructed to do so by the government in accordance with the policy called "warm return. "IDF soldiers stationed along the border with Egypt informed Haaretz on Tuesday of the refugees’ deportation. An army spokesman confirmed the report and said that "the IDF returned illegal infiltrators in recent days following instruction in recent months from the political echelon to do so, and following bilateral agreements between Israel and Egypt. The return was made possible by Egypt’s willingness to absorb the infiltrators. "Human rights organizations said in response that the IDF’s actions came in opposition to what the state had told the High Court of Justice. more.. e-mail
Egypt arrests 33 migrants crossing illegally into Israel
Agence France Presse - AFP, Daily Star 8/28/2008
AL-ARISH, Egypt: Egyptian authorities have arrested 33 African migrants, including four children, who were trying to cross the border illegally into Israel, a security official said on Wednesday. "The group, which included four children aged three to eight, was arrested on Tuesday evening in central Sinai near the border with Israel," the official told AFP. The porous 250-kilometer Egypt-Israel border has become a major transit route for migrants, asylum-seekers and drug smugglers. So far this year, 20 migrants have been killed attempting the crossing and 641 have been arrested, according to an AFP count. In a report published last week, Amnesty International urged the Egyptian government to launch an investigation into the shooting dead by police of people crossing the border illegally. - AFP more.. e-mail
Egypt to open Rafah crossing for two days on occasion of Ramadan
Palestinian Information Center 8/27/2008
GAZA, (PIC)-- An Egyptian media source has stated that Cairo will officially open the Rafah border crossing on next Saturday and Sunday before the Gaza citizens especially patients on the occasion of the holy month of Ramadan. In a press statement to the Quds Press, Egyptian specialist in the Palestinian affairs Ibrahim Al-Darawi, said that the decision taken by Cairo to open the Rafah crossing is considered a humanitarian gesture and a step to absorb the Arab and Egyptian popular pressure on the Egyptian leadership especially during a distinctive religious month like Ramadan. In another context, Darawi revealed that the visit of the delegations of the popular and democratic fronts to Cairo, which had been scheduled on Wednesday, was postponed until next Sunday. He pointed out that the democratic front’s delegation will be headed by its secretary-general Nayef Hawatmeh and the popular front by its undersecretary-general Abdelrahim Mallouh. more.. e-mail
Iran: Israel too vulnerable to attack
Dudi Cohen, YNetNews 8/27/2008
Revolutionary Guards commander says Tehran’s ballistic capabilities act as deterrent to any Israeli strike, warns Iran’s allies will also retaliate in event of attack -Israel would not dare launch an attack onIran for fear of the Islamic Republic’s missile array and the support of its Islamic allies in the region, the head of Iran’s Revolutionary Guards, General Mohammad Ali Jafari, said on Wednesday. "In the event of an attack against Iran, the Israelis know that with the capabilities that the Islamic world and the Shiite world have in the region, they will suffer deadly strikes," the Mehr news agency quoted Jafari as saying, in an apparent reference to Hizbullah. " Our strategic assessment shows that if the Zionist regime took action, whether alone or with the United States, in minimal time all of its territory would be vulnerable because this country. . . more.. e-mail
Iran’s Republican Guard: Zionist Entity in range of our missiles
Reuters, Ha’aretz 8/27/2008
Iran could hit back with missiles if Israel attacked it and could also rely on allies in the region to strike, the commander of the Islamic Republic’s Revolutionary Guards said on Wednesday. Israel, like the United States, has not ruled out military action against Iran if diplomacy fails to resolve a row over Tehran’s nuclear ambitions. The West and Israel accuse Iran of seeking to build nuclear weapons, despite Iran’s insistence that it wants technology to make electricity so that it can save more of its vast oil and gas resources for export. "Our strategic calculations show that if the Zionist regime wants to make the smallest move against our interests, either independently or with America, in the shortest time all the territories under the Zionist regime’s control will become unsafe," Guards commander-in-chief Mohammad Ali Jafari said. more.. e-mail
Iran-Israel arms race heats up, both boost naval capabilities
Haaretz Staff and Channel 10, Ha’aretz 8/27/2008
Haaretz. com/Channel 10 daily feature for August 26, 2008. The arms race between Israel and Iran is moving to the sea. In Iran, the production of domestically-made submarines recently began. The Iranian defense minister, who visited the production line Monday, said the purpose of the submarines would be to defend the oil pipelines in the Strait of Hormuz, through which up to 40 percent of the world’s oil supply passes. But of particular interest to Israel is the fact that the submarines will have the capability to launch what the Iranian state media called "various kinds of missiles. "No further details were provided. Meanwhile, the Israel Navy has its own plans. Two years after Hezbollah almost sank one of Israel’s top warships in the Second Lebanon War, naval supremacy has moved up on the military’s list of priorities. more.. e-mail
Jordan reaches out to Hamas
Associated Press, YNetNews 8/27/2008
Amman changes approach to Palestinian Islamic group amid fears collapse of peace efforts may bring untold thousands of refugees into country. Israel slams move as ’unhelpful’ while worried Fatah dispatches envoy to Jordan - In an about-face, Jordan is reaching out to Hamas amid fears that a collapse of Mideast peacemaking would bring an influx of refugees. But the US ally must walk a delicate line to avoid angering the West. Hamas is outlawed in Jordan, which has accused the group in the past of trying to destabilize it. But Jordanian intelligence chief Mohammed al-Dahabi held two covert meetings with top Hamas leaders this month, ending a nearly decade-long banishment of the group. The talks don’t mean Jordan, which signed a 1994 peace deal with Israel, is embracing the Islamist group or is turning its back on Arab-Israeli negotiations.