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Palestine Diaries

courtesy The Electronic Intifada

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Map of Israel's planned "security fence", adapted for clarity from Gush Shalom map. Gush Shalom notes: The Israeli government did not publish full, official maps of the wall. The path of the Eastern wall was compiled by the Land Research Center and the Palestinian Hydrology Group, based on expropriation orders issued to Palestinian land owners.

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Video Archives
Audio Archives

VIDEO
BBC:
Gap Between CIA
And Bush Stories
posted 10/9/02

VIDEO
BBC:
Region As
Unsettled As It's
Ever Been
10/9/02

VIDEO
BBC:
"No compromise
here"
posted 10/8/02

VIDEO
BBC:
Another Gaza
Attack
posted 10/6/02

VIDEO
BBC:
PA's Erekat: We
Need International
Protection Now
posted 10/6/02

VIDEO
BBC:
Khalil Shikaki, CPR:
'Chances slim for
negotiation'
posted 9/28/02

PHOTOS
Islam Online:
Arafat HQ
Destroyed
posted 9/25/02

PHOTOS
Islam Online:
Nine Palestinians Killed In Gaza
posted 9/24/02

VIDEO
Konscious:
Metal of Dishonor
The Face of US
War on Iraq
posted 9/18/02

VIDEO
BBC:
Sabra & Shatila
Is Sharon A
War Criminal?
posted 9/13/02

VIDEO
CBC:
Israeli
Army Was
Embarrassed
By Release
of Video
released 3/18/02
posted 9/6/02

Video Archives

Conflict..

Israeli missile strike kills one, injures 25 The Guardian 9/1/2003 Israeli helicopters fired at least four missiles at a car in Gaza city today, killing one person and wounding at least 25 others, paramedics and witnesses said. The target of the attack was not immediately known, but Israel has killed 10 members of the Islamic militant group, Hamas, and three bystanders in similar attacks over the last two weeks.  Israeli Defense Minister Threatens Gaza Invasion Arab News 9/1/2003 OCCUPIED JERUSALEM, 1 September 2003 — Israel’s defense minister yesterday raised the specter of an Israeli invasion in the Gaza Strip, where Palestinian militants already face a deadly air campaign. Israeli military commentators say a ground offensive in the densely populated Gaza Strip, home to more than one million people under Palestinian control, would cause heavy Israeli and Palestinian casualties. Israel Kills Palestinian Girl, Injures 5 Children Islam Online 8/31/2003 GAZA CITY, August 31 (IslamOnline.net) – A nine-year-old Palestinian girl was shot dead and five children wounded by Israeli troops in Khan Yunis refugee camp in the central Gaza Strip late Saturday, August 30. Aaya Mahmmoud Fayaad was hit by bullets fired from an Israeli observation post on the edge of the Neve Dkalim settlement which lies very close to the camp. Fayaad was rushed to Naser hospital with bullets riddling her chest and neck. Mohammad Hammad, 14, Nagah Allam, 12, Naser Abul Kheir, 12, Abdullah Abu Amra 12, Hanin Shakoura, 12, and Nabil al-Ghalban, 24 were all wounded in the unbridled Israeli attack. “Mira”... Latest Victim Of Israeli Barriers On Palestinian Land Islam Online 9/1/2003 RAMALLAH, September 1 (IslamOnline.net & News Agencies) - A woman in labor walks beside her husband who speaks Hebrew fluently and asks for a permission to pass the military barrier in order to get in a car that will drive them quickly to the hospital but Israeli soldiers refuse and order the couple to return. At a loss, the couple waits for a long time until the wife starts to give birth. She hides behind a pile of stones and delivers a baby girl, who soon dies due to lack of the necessary medical care. This is not a scene of a movie but a reality that occurred with Rola Ashtiya, 29, and her husband Dawood, 43, Friday, August 29, at the military barrier to the east of Nablus, West Bank. IOF Wounds Two Civilians, Arrests Others, Demolishes Homes International Press Center 9/1/2003 OCCUPIED TERRITORIES, August 31, 2003 (IPC+Agencies)—Israeli occupation forces (IOF) shot and wounded Sunday two Palestinian civilians, arrested others and demolished homes in separate incidents in the West Bank. In the West Bank city of Hebron, local hospital sources told IPC correspondent that Mahran Al-Ja’bary was admitted to the governmental hospital of Alia after sustaining severe fractures in different parts of his body as Israeli soldiers assaulted on him.....In the West Bank refugee camp of Balata, an outskirt of Nablus, Yousef Hannoun, was shot and wounded in the head after Israeli soldiers opened fire randomly and indiscriminately amid a tight curfew imposed on the city for the third consecutive day....Meanwhile, IOF demolished early on Sunday several Palestinian-owned homes and shops in the Nazlat Esa town, north of West Bank city of Tulkarem, under the pretext of building the separation barrier.  Separation Wall Worker Shot & Wounded, Qalqyliah Under Curfew International Middle East Media Center 9/1/2003 Israeli troops entered the Palestinian West Bank city of Qalqylia on Sunday and imposed a curfew following a shooting attack in which an Israeli working on the separation wall was moderately wounded. Israeli security sources believe that the 40 year-old Israeli Arab worker from Be’er Sheva, who was moved to Kfar Sava hospital for treatment, was shot by a Palestinian sniper. On the First day of School Israeli Troops Detain Bethlehem Deputy Governor, Head of Bethlehem Education Office International Middle East Media Center 9/1/2003 At noon on Monday, Israeli troops broke into the girls school in Alkhader village southwest of Bethlehem and detained Bethlehem Deputy Governor Ismael Faraj and the Director of the Bethlehem Education Office, who were visiting on its opening day. The two were detained for hours before being released....The Bethlehem Education Office said this type of harassment is common on the first day of school, saying that they believe soldiers do it just to scare the kids. Palestinian Children Go Back to School The Guardian 9/1/2003 NABLUS, West Bank (AP) - In what's become a grim back-to-school ritual, hundreds of Palestinians heading to the first day of class dropped their backpacks and threw rocks at Israeli soldiers, who fired tear gas and shots to scare them off. Violence has become so familiar to young students that they seem to shrug off the risks, even though many have seen classmates hurt or even killed. On Monday, as a tank moved toward a crowd of students, a flaming Molotov cocktail was thrown, and a soldier from the tank shot back, critically wounding a teenage boy, a rescue worker said. Israeli Army Commandeers Nablus Bible Society Bookshop Come And See 8/30/2003 The only Bible bookshop in Nablus was commandeered by the Israeli army last Friday night as a control operation base. “Pray for the soldiers who spent two days in our center, that God may touch their hearts with what they read or saw,” the Bible Society’s East Jerusalem office requested in an appeal....According to local staff of the Bible Society in the West Bank, their Bible Center in downtown Nablus was commandeered by the Israeli army last Friday night as a control operation base. Two civilians hurt in separate attacks Ha'aretz 9/1/2003 Two Israeli civilians were wounded in two separate shooting attacks yesterday - one while driving in the Gaza Strip, and the other, an Israeli Arab, while working on construction of the separation fence near the West Bank city of Qalqilyah. The first incident occurred shortly before 7 A.M. Meir Ohayoun, a truck driver from Ofakim, was driving through the southern part of the Gush Katif settlement bloc in Gaza when a burst of fire hit his vehicle. Settlers dedicate new neighborhood oblivious to Peace Now protest Jerusalem Post 9/1/2003 In what seemed the official death knell to the road map, the settlement movement festively celebrated the dedication of a new neighborhood in the Samaria settlement of Kdumim Sunday, almost oblivious to several dozen Peace Now protestors huddled down the road calling for a settlement freeze. Tulkarem Depressingly Affected by the “Apartheid Wall” International Press Center 8/30/2003 TULKAREM , August 30,03 (IPC+Agencies)--The Apartheid Wall (also called, the snaky, segregation and the fence-off wall) zigzagging about 30 Km in length, snakes the most fertile lands of Tulkarem city of the West Bank, starting from Qefein in the north to finally spot at Kfar Jamal south. The wall chews and isolated further 50,000 dunums of 17 villages of Tulkarem, besides the devastation of more than 50,000 trees of olive, citrus and almonds. Almost thousands of the Palestinian families there were underprivileged their livelihood. Israeli assassins kill hopes of peace for Palestinians The Guardian 8/31/2003 Two Palestinians were killed and others wounded yesterday in the latest Israeli assassination attack on Hamas members in the Gaza Strip. The men died after an Apache helicopter gunship fired four missiles at a van on a road between two refugee camps in central Gaza. Initial reports said at least two bystanders were injured. Hospital officials identified the dead as Farid Mlayet, 21, and Abdullah Akel, 24, and Hamas sources said both were members of the Hamas military wing. It was the fourth Israeli attack in the 11 days since the Palestinian suicide bombing of a Jerusalem bus which killed 21 people. Palestinian leadership split as Israel attacks Gaza The Independent 9/1/2003 Efforts to keep the Middle East peace process on track were facing an uphill struggle yesterday amid continuing violence in Gaza and a fresh crisis in relations between Yasser Arafat, the Palestinian Authority chairman, and Abu Mazen, the Prime Minister. Shaul Mofaz, Israel's Defence Minister, raised the prospect of a ground offensive into the Gaza Strip, in addition to a growing air campaign to assassinate Hamas militants. Before his warning, an eight-year-old Palestinian girl was reported by Palestinian security and medical sources to have been killed by an Israeli tank shell while riding her bicycle near her home in the Gaza city of Khan Younis. Fringe figures come to the fore in new version of terrorist Jewish underground Ha'aretz 8/31/2003 Unlike figures from the Jewish underground group whose activities came to light in the early 1980s, members of the "new underground" who are suspected of planning and carrying out attacks on Arabs are not deeply intergrated in the Jewish settlercommunity in the territories. In the settler world, no members of the new cell have the stature of 1980s underground figures such as Yehuda Etzion or Menahem Livni - these prime players in the earlier underground cell had close family, work or social ties with the leaders of the settlement movement, and even with prominent government figures of the time (in the days of the early 1980s Likud government).  Hard Clashes On the First Day of School International Middle East Media Center 9/1/2003 In yet another invasion, Israeli forces in jeeps and military vehicles snaked through the city of Nablus early Tuesday morning to reach the main square of the city. Clashes erupted between the military and frustrated residents of the city. The invasion was launched while school children were beginning their first day of classes in Nablus, creating massive problems on the street as kids tried to reach their classrooms. Israeli Troops Impose Curfew, Search homes, Blow up Caves in Yamoon Village International Middle East Media Center 9/1/2003 Israeli troops invaded the town of Yamoon west of the West Bank city of Jenin and forced a curfew that kept all the town residents under house arrest. Eyewitnesses reported that Israeli tanks and APCs entered the town, imposed a curfew, and conducted a home-to-home search. At the same time another Israeli army unit searched the mountain caves around the town looking for “wanted” Palestinians, where sounds of huge explosions were heard. High Alert in Bethlehem Over Expected Israeli Invasion International Middle East Media Center 9/1/2003 Israeli troops declared the northern part of Bethlehem a closed military zone on Sunday, forced Palestinian citizens, including the Isamic Waqf employees, out of the region, and began uprooting trees preparing for the construction of the separation wall. Palestinian national security forces also reported that they received information that Israel is planning to invade Bethlehem soon. Israeli sources indicated that the invasion of Bethlehem, accompanied by a forced curfew over the city, is necessary to start the construction of the separation wall. IOF Helicopters Extrajudicially Execute One Palestinian, Wound 25 Others International Press Center 9/1/2003 GAZA, Palestine, September 1, 2003 (IPC) - - Israeli military helicopters fired Monday four rockets at a civilian car traveling down a crowded Gaza street, killing one Palestinian and wounding nearly 25 others, most of which are children and in critical condition.Palestinian security sources told IPC that a Palestinian citizen was extrajudicially executed Monday, when an Israeli military helicopter fired four rockets at his car while he was driving down Al Wehda crowded street in Gaza City. Two more Palestinians were traveling in the same car, and were wounded seriously, according to the same sources....The execution occurred at a time where school children were returning home after their first day at school. PNIC: 69 Palestinians Killed, 2760 houses demolished in the North of Gaza International Press Center 8/31/2003 GAZA, Palestine, August 31, 2003, (IPC)-- 169 Palestinian citizens were killed and 1428 were injured by Israeli occupation forces (IOF) in the northern Governorate of the Gaza Strip since the breaking out of Al-Aqsa Intifada on September 28, 2003 up to July 30,2003 of the last June, the Palestinian National Information Centre (PNIC) reported Sunday. PNIC’s report said that 260 houses were completely destroyed while 2500 others were damaged. Palestinian arrested for attacking Jew on Temple Mount Jerusalem Post 9/1/2003 A Palestinian suspected of attacking a Jewish visitor on the Temple Mount on Sunday afternoon was under arrest, police said Monday. The suspect was apprehended Sunday night as he made his way out of the bitterly contested Jerusalem holy site, accompanied by a group of several dozen Palestinians. During his arrest, the Palestinian and several of his friends attacked policemen, and lightly injured two of them, police said. A Tale of Two Villages International Press Center 8/29/2003 QALQILIA, Palestine, August 29, 2003 (IPC + Agencies) - - If you try and visit the villages of Ras Al Tira and Kherbet Al Sabgha, in Qalqilia governorate, you'd be surprised how the situation has changed for those, once prosperous, villages. As you approach the two villages, you become more reminded of the famous "Alcatraz" prison in the United States: barbed wire, deep trenches, military watchtowers, and steel gates at the entrances of the villages. The villagers of both Ras Al Tira and Kherbet Al Sabgha, who are nearly 600, say that they now consider themselves prisoners of their own lands, after the Israeli occupying authorities started building the separation barrier. Israeli Army Sweeps Into Al-Aqsa Compound Islam Online 9/1/2003 GAZA CITY, September 1 (IslamOnline.net & News Agencies) – One day after Israeli defense Minister threatened an invasion of the Gaza Strip, occupation forces staged on Monday, September 1, a fresh incursion into the central Gaza Strip on Monday shortly after sweeping into the compound of Al-Aqsa mosque, one of Islam’s most holiest sites. The Israeli army swept into the Deir al-Balah refugee camp in the central Gaza Strip and opened fire in the residential area, Palestinian security sources said. Israeli Soldiers Kill a Palestinian Little Girl International Press Center 8/30/2003 KHAN-YOUNIS, Palestine, August 30, 2003, (IPC)- - A nine-year-old Palestinian girl was killed and six other citizens were wounded Saturday afternoon by Israeli occupation forces in the Gaza Strip city of Khan-younis, Palestine News Agency (WAFA) reported. Israeli troops, stationed at the illegitimate Jewish settlement of Naveh Dkalim, closed to Khan-Younis, opened their heavy machine guns on the Al-Namsawi neighborhood, west of Khan-Younis, killing one child and injuring several, Palestinian security sources said. Three Jews expelled from Temple Mount for praying Ha'aretz 9/1/2003 Police in Jerusalem yesterday expelled three Jews from the Temple Mount because they began to pray and bow down at the spot. Hizbullah honors martyrs, fires on Israeli aircraft Daily Star 9/1/2003 Hizbullah commemorated the Bint Jbeil “martyrs” in the Salah Ghandour square in Bint Jbeil on Sunday....Meanwhile, a Hizbullah statement issued Sunday said the resistance opened fire with anti-aircraft guns on Israeli warplanes which violated Lebanese airspace at 12.45pm. Shin Bet captures suspects in June terror shootings Ha'aretz 9/1/2003 The Shin Bet security service recently arrested two people suspected of involvement in three deadly terror attacks committed several weeks ago, before the declaration of the hudna (cease-fire). Two Israeli citizens and a foreign worker from Bulgaria were killed in these attacks. The suspects were recently indicted for murder in an Israel Defense Forces court in Samaria, located at the Salam checkpoint. One suspect is "S," a teenage male not yet 16 years old, from a village in the Jenin region. Slain settler symbolized efforts to revitalize troubled communities Ha'aretz 9/1/2003 Over a ten-day period in summer 2001, three residents of Homesh, an isolated, secular West Bank settlement, were murdered. The first to be killed was Danny Yehuda. After shooting at his car, the terrorists came up to him and fired point-blank. Yehuda's neighbor, Alex Briskin, traveled in the same automobile and saved himself by playing dead. A few days later Ilya Krivitz, 62, was murdered; then came the murder of Boris Krover. After this terrifying sequence, Homesh residents started to leave the settlement. Half of the community decamped, and out of an original total of 64 families, only 32 remained....Shalom Harmelech.. who was murdered on Friday..and peers moved to such settlements in the hope of bringing them back to life.       Tense times at Jerusalem holy site BBC 9/1/2003 Al-Aqsa Mosque is back on the political agenda, having been largely out of sight during the three-year Palestinian uprising named after it - the al-Aqsa Intifada. The Israeli authorities have begun allowing non-Muslims to enter the mosque compound for the first time since the intifada broke out in September, 2000. Israeli security forces control the gates to the compound - but inside is under the authority of the Islamic Waqf, or religious trust, which has taken a stand against the decision to let non-Muslims in. Hizbullah intercepts Israeli warplanes in south Lebanon Arabic News 9/1/2003 Fighters of the Lebanese Hizbullah party intercepted two Israeli warplanes which violated the Lebanese airspace yesterday. The anti- aircraft missiles of the Lebanese resistance opened fire at the two planes which were not hit. In a statement, the Hizbullah party said the two warplanes flew over the areas of Marjyounb, Hasbaya and al-Khayyam in south Lebanon. Video: "Israel's advice to the EU - freeze the bank accounts of Hamas" BBC 8/31/2003 The BBC's Steve Rosenburg reports from Jerusalem Israeli strike kills two militants BBC 8/30/2003 Israeli helicopters have carried out missile strikes in the Gaza Strip killing two Hamas militants, Palestinian sources and eyewitnesses say. Hospital officials named the two men as Abdullah Akel and Farid Mayet. Elsewhere, hospital sources said an eight-year-old girl had been killed in the Khan Younis refugee camp by shots fired from a nearby Israeli army observation post. Video: "As ambulances rushed victims to hospital, angry crowds gathered" BBC 9/1/2003 The BBC's David Chazan reports from Gaza Israeli strikes 'kill militant' BBC 9/1/2003 An Israeli missile strike on a car in Gaza City is said to have killed a suspected member of Palestinian militant group Hamas and injured at least 25 other people. A car in which he was travelling was struck by several missiles and a witness said the vehicle burst into flames, setting those inside on fire. At least one other car was reported to have been hit in the attack by Israeli helicopter gunships, backed by F-16 fighter planes. Three Palestinians killed in Gaza by Israel, one settler wounded by al-Qassam Brigade Arabic News 9/1/2003 The Brigade of Ezz Eddine al-Qassam, the military wing of the Hamas movement, retaliated the assassination attempt of two of its members on Saturday in a raid in Gaza, by attacking a car for settlers near Rafah Yam settlement that resulted in gravely wounding one settler, while Israel renewed its threat to invade Gaza. An Israeli military source said that the "Israeli was wounded by a bullet fired by Palestinians while he was driving a truck loaded with vegetables near the Israeli Rafah Yam settlement to the south of Gaza," near the border with Egypt. Israeli Strikes in Gaza Kill 2 Militants and Girl New York Times 8/31/2003 JERUSALEM, Aug. 30 — In separate incidents, Israeli troops killed two militants from Hamas with an airstrike and an 8-year-old girl with tank fire in the Gaza Strip today, Palestinian witnesses and officials said. The Israeli Army said it was checking reports of the girl's death, but it said a tank fired shells in the area after an explosive was detonated under an armored vehicle, causing damage but wounding no one....Palestinian officials said seven other people had been wounded by the Israeli fire. They said the girl, Aya Fayad, died after being struck in the chest. Two Hamas militants killed in Gaza missile strike Ha'aretz 9/1/2003 Israeli helicopters fired four missiles at a car in Gaza City on Monday afternoon, killing two Hamas operatives military sources said. According to Palestinian sources, however, only one militant, Husari, was killed and 12 bystanders were wounded after being hit by shrapnel. Army Radio reported the two killed militants are Hader Husari, 36, and Munsar Knita, 32....In the past two weeks, Israel has killed 10 Hamas members and three bystanders in five such attacks.      Israeli defense minister threatens Gaza invasion Financial Times 8/31/2003 Israel's defense minister on Sunday raised the specter of an Israeli invasion in the Gaza Strip, where Palestinian militants already face a deadly air campaign. Israeli military commentators say a ground offensive in the densely populated Gaza Strip, home to more than one million people under Palestinian control, would cause heavy Israeli and Palestinian casualties. "We always have the option of a ground operation in Gaza," Shaul Mofaz said. "We will exercise it when we decide it is right to do so, at the appropriate time." Two Hamas men killed in Gaza; 3 bombings foiled Ha'aretz 8/31/2003 An Israel Air Force helicopter missile strike yesterday killed two leading Hamas field operatives in the Gaza Strip. The attack was the fifth such missile attack undertaken in the past 10 days, since Israel's cabinet decided to mount wide-ranging operations against the Hamas leadership. Also yesterday in the Gaza Strip, an 8-year-old Palestinian girl was killed after an Israel Defense Forces tank shell hit her house.      Israel Plans to Invade Gaza Strip As its Warplanes Keep on Targeted Killing International Press Center 9/1/2003 TEL-AVIV, September 1, 2003 (IPC+ Agencies)-- Israeli Chief of Staff, Moshe Ya’lon said Monday that the Israeli occupation army is prepared to invade the Gaza Strip, Israeli army radio reported. Earlier, on Sunday, Mofaz expressed his willingness to invade the Gaza Strip under the pretext of Palestinian National Authority’s inability to curb Palestinian resistance groups. New Air Raid Kills Hamas Member, Injures 30 Civilians Islam Online 9/1/2003 GAZA CITY, September 1 (IslamOnline.net & News Agencies) - A Palestinian Hamas activist was killed and 30 civilians were injured in the latest Israeli air strike against the resistance group in Gaza Monday, September 1, as the European Union's top diplomat sought to restrain Israel from assassinating Palestinian activists. Occupation Chronicle Events in Palestine August 31, 2003 Palestine Media Center 8/31/2003 Israeli Occupation Forces (IOF) assassinated two Palestinians in an air raid in al-Bureij refugee camp. IOF also shot dead an eight-year-old child in the Khan Younis refugee camp, in the southern Gaza Strip. IOF Raid Ramoun Village. Israeli Occupation Troops Detain 3 Palestinians in Tulkarem.

Diplomacy..

Hamas, PA meet in Egypt to discuss possibility of new truce Ha'aretz 9/1/2003 The Egyptian government is holding talks with Hamas and Palestinian Authority leaders in an attempt to arrange a new truce that could help clear the way for progress on a U.S.-backed peace plan, a Palestinian official said Monday. Egyptian leaders held separate talks Sunday with Hamas representative Osama Hamdan and Palestinian Authority legislator Ziad Abu Amr, and then arranged for the two to meet directly late Sunday, a Palestinian official close to the talks said on condition of anonymity. October: Al-Baz: Hope not lost in Roadmap Arabic News 9/1/2003 "In fact, we can't say that the Middle East peace process has already been dead and buried! We should not lose hope in the "roadmap." Both the Palestinian and the Israeli sides fear such obsession. Both parties are frustrated and are less confident in the future despite achieving great strides along the way for peace so far" said Osama Al-Baz the political advisor to Egypt's President Hosni Mubarak. Interviewed by "October" weekly, Al-Baz stated that after "Oslo accords" the two sides began to feel that there is a glimpse of hope. EU rejects cutting Arafat links BBC 8/31/2003 The European Union's foreign policy chief, Javier Solana, has rejected demands by Israel to cut relations with Palestinian leader Yasser Arafat. Mr Solana held talks with Israeli Foreign Minister Silvan Shalom in Tel Aviv on Sunday to try to bolster the beleaguered peace plan known as the roadmap in the face of continuing violence. Chirac backs Beirut stance Daily Star 9/1/2003 French President Jacques Chirac showed his support for Lebanon and Syria in his address at the annual conference of France’s ambassadors, which was held in Paris on Friday. The president, who was speaking about the Middle East peace process, called once again for treating Beirut and Damascus on par with the Palestinians in the current peace talks, sources said. The reiterated French call was aimed primarily at the US, which is interested in dealing only with the Palestinian-Israeli track as laid down in the “road map.” Israel says it won't talk with any gov't picked by Arafat Ha'aretz 9/1/2003 Israel will not negotiate with a new government hand-picked by Yasser Arafat, Foreign Minister Silvan Shalom said yesterday in Israel's first public warning to those trying to topple beleaguered Palestinian Prime Minister Mahmoud Abbas. The power struggle between Arafat, the Palestinian Authority's chairman, and Abbas has intensified in recent days, with clashes over key appointments and control of the security forces. U.S. Backs Abbas, EU Supports Arafat, Palestinians Suffer Islam Online 8/31/2003 RAMALLAH, West Bank, August 31 (IslamOnline.net & News Agencies) - While Washington has reportedly warned the Palestinian Legislative Council against dropping Mahmud Abbas government, the European Union declared it will continue to talk to Palestinian President Yasser Arafat.....Further fueling inter-Palestinian differences, U.S. envoy John Wolf “has warned the Palestinians that Washington would not tolerate the collapse of the government of Abbas,” according to Palestinian sources Sunday, August 31, reported Agence France-Presse (AFP). Sharon is a punk, says ambassador Middle East Peace 9/1/2003 The new French ambassador to Israel was involved in a diplomatic row yesterday after a report that he had called Israel a "paranoid country" and its Prime Minister, Ariel Sharon, "a punk". Silvan Shalom,Israel's Foreign Minister, ordered its embassy in Paris to seek official "clarification" of the report in Yedioth Ahronoth. Israel: World must halt "nightmare scenario" of nuclear Iran Jerusalem Post 9/1/2003 Israel said a nuclear Iran would pose a grave danger to the world and urged the European Union and the international community Sunday to help halt a "nightmare scenario" from becoming reality. Israeli Foreign Minister Silvan Shalom discussed the concerns in a meeting Sunday with EU foreign policy chief Javier Solana, who arrived earlier after talks in Tehran.  Israel Seeks Closer Ties With Morocco The Guardian 9/1/2003 RABAT, Morocco (AP) - Israel's foreign minister called for closer ties with Morocco after arriving here Monday for the first visit by an Israeli diplomatic chief since relations broke down at the start of spiraling Middle East violence in 2000. ``I hope that after this visit, Morocco and Israel will draw closer together,'' Silvan Shalom said on arrival in Morocco's largest city, Casablanca, for a two-day working visit....``Morocco can be a bridge between the Israelis and the Palestinians,'' Shalom said.      PNA Rejects Israeli, US Meddling in Palestinian Affairs Palestine Media Center 9/1/2003 The Palestine National Authority (PNA) Cabinet on Sunday condemned Israeli and other foreign intrusion into internal Palestinian politics amid escalating US political pressure to tighten siege on President Yasser Arafat and Israeli threats to reoccupy the Gaza Strip....Outside Support for PM Abbas Complicates the Crisis: PLC Speaker - Meanwhile, the speaker of the Palestinian parliament (PLC) Ahmad Qurei’ said the current “situation” affects the “entire process.” Jerusalem Christian Leaders Oppose Israel’s Separation Wall Palestine Media Center 8/30/2003 Christian leaders in the holy land criticized the building of Israel’s Apartheid Segregation Wall (ASW), adding that the Wall is posing an obstacle to the internationally - adopted “roadmap” for peace, which calls for establishment of an independent Palestinian state living peacefully alongside Israel. “For both nations, the fencing will cause a feeling of isolation,” they said in a joint statement signed on Tuesday and issued today. EU Rejects Severing Contacts with Arafat, Solana Confirms Palestine Media Center 9/1/2003 No Alternative to Roadmap, Ivanov Tells Palestinian President -- European Union foreign policy chief Javier Solana on Sunday rejected demands by Israel to sever contacts with the elected Palestinian President Yasser Arafat during talks with Israeli officials aimed at reviving the “roadmap” peace plan, as Russia intensified its efforts to support the fragile Middle East peace process by sending high-ranking diplomats to the region.....Russian Foreign Minister Igor Ivanov telephoned President Arafat on Saturday. Ivanov informed Arafat that he dispatched Andrei Vdovin, his special representative on Middle East settlement, to the region, Pravda reported. The minister indicated that Andrei Vdovin left for the region to provide further assistance to overcome the critical situation in Palestinian-Israeli relations. Shaath Asks Delhi to Reason With Sharon Arab News 9/1/2003 NEW DELHI, 1 September 2003 — Palestinian Foreign Minister Nabil Shaath urged India yesterday to use its warming relationship with Israel to push forward the US-backed peace road map when Prime Minister Ariel Sharon visits next week. “At a time when the peace process is in jeopardy, I hope India will also utilize the opportunity to push (it) forward,” Shaath told reporters at the end of a three-day visit to New Delhi. India hands over defence shopping list to Israel Jang Group 9/1/2003 BRUSSELS: India has handed over a huge ‘defence shopping list’ to Israel before Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon’s visit to India on September 9-11. Prior to Israeli prime minister’s visit, a high-level Israeli delegation negotiated in New Delhi the prospects of enhanced Indo-Israel cooperation and assured the Indian defence authorities that Israel is willing to go the whole length for developing defence and strategic partnership, European defence sources told The News. International defence sources privy to the Indian defence shopping list have revealed some crucial elements of the list which consists of some very sophisticated defence equipment to be purchased from Israel for the Indian army navy and air force. Berri urges action against Libya Daily Star 9/1/2003 Speaker wants legal case started over missing Imam Sadr -- Speaker Nabih Berri called on the Lebanese authorities to start international legal proceedings against Libya in connection with the disappearance of Shiite Imam Moussa Sadr in 1978 during a visit to Libya. In an address he delivered Sunday in a commemoration for Sadr in Baalbek, Berri called on Foreign Minister Jean Obeid to send a memorandum against Libya to the United Nations, the UN Security Council and the Arab League calling on them to “find out what happened to the imam.”...The speaker said that as Libya has offered to pay $10 million as compensation for each victim of the 1988 Lockerbie disaster, “then what price should the victims of the 1996 Qana massacre get?” Sidon MP fears US, Israel trying to impose terms Daily Star 9/1/2003 Sidon MP Osama Saad highlighted Saturday US-Israeli attempts to impose their terms on Lebanon to destroy the resistance and settle the Palestinians. Saad made the comment during a ceremony held at the Ain al-Hilweh refugee camp to commemorate the death of the secretary-general of the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine, Abu Ali Mustafa, and Hamas’ politburo member Ismail Bou Shanab. The MP praised the Palestinian people who fought for their human rights, which were violated by the “US-Zionist alliance.” Erikat: Israeli Operations are Part of a Comprehensive Assault Against Palestinians International Middle East Media Center 9/1/2003 The PLC and higher negotiations committee member Dr. Saeb Erikat told IMEMC on Sunday that the Palestinian-Israeli conflict has the potential to escalate more, describing the current conditions as extremely dangerous. Erikat dismissed allegations that Israeli escalations are reactive and said that Israel is engaged in a “comprehensive war to destroy Palestinians” and is waiting for the chance to “get rid” of Palestinian President Yasser Arafat, re-occupy all Palestinian cities, and bring back pre-Oslo conditions. Solana to meet Israelis only Ha'aretz 8/31/2003 European Union foreign policy chief Javier Solana is to arrive in Israel today to meet with Foreign Minister Silvan Shalom. He is to meet Prime Minister Ariel Sharon tomorrow. Solana's visit came about after the EU decided to have its delegate hold meetings with only the Israeli side on this trip. This approach bypassed Israel's opposition to the holding of diplomatic meetings with Palestinian Authority Chairman Yasser Arafat. Shalom embarks on Moroccan mission Ha'aretz 9/1/2003 Foreign Minister Silvan Shalom will embark today on his first visit to Morocco. During his meetings with King Mohammed VI and Foreign Minister Mohamed Benaissa, Shalom will call for a normalization of relations between the two countries, including a re-opening of the liaison offices in Rabat and Tel Aviv that were closed after the outbreak of the intifada. Solana Rejects Israeli Demand to Boycott Arafat, Criticizes Separation Wall International Middle East Media Center 9/1/2003 European Union Foreign Policy Chief Javier Solana met Sunday with Israeli Defense Minister Shaul Mofaz in Tel Aviv after his meeting, earlier in the day, with the Israeli Foreign Minister Silvan Shalom. In order to avoid a crisis with the Israeli government, Solana refrained to meet any Palestinian Authority official abiding to the Israeli government ban on meeting with foreign officials who meet with the Palestinian President Yasser Arafat....“The EU could understand a security fence in some places, but not one that can change borders”. Solana also criticized the Israeli policy of assassinations. Israel threatens to halt negotiations The Telegraph 9/1/2003 JERUSALEM – Israel will not negotiate with a new government hand-picked by Yasser Arafat, its foreign minister said Sunday – the first public warning to those trying to topple beleaguered Palestinian Prime Minister Mahmoud Abbas. A power struggle between Arafat and Abbas has intensified in recent days, with clashes over key appointments and control of security forces.

Human Rights..

30 Palestinian Fetuses Died at Israeli Checkpoints International Press Center 8/31/2003 GAZA, Palestine, August 31, 2003, (IPC)-- The Palestinian Ministry of Health (PMH) declared Saturday that 30 Palestinian fetuses died, since the beginning of Al-Aqsa Intifada 36 months ago, as Israeli soldiers stationed at the military check points prevented Palestinian-in labor- women from arriving hospitals. 53 delivery cases took place on sand. Several women delivered on the roundabouts as Israeli soldiers prevented them from accessing the main road reaching to clinics, PMH said in in a press statement issued Saturday afternoon. Seventh Israeli assassination in 11 days kills one Palestinian and wounds at least 20 Palestinian Centre for Human Rights 9/1/2003 PCHR condemns in the strongest terms the latest assassination by Israeli occupying forces in Gaza city this afternoon in which at least one Palestinian was killed and at least 25 passersby were wounded, including 7 children. In the wake of this renewed escalation in attacks by the Israeli occupying forces on Palestinian civilians, PCHR reiterates its calls to the international community, particularly to the High Contracting Parties to the Fourth Geneva Convention, to take immediate measures to intervene to protect Palestinian civilians. 3 Palestinian activists assassinated and a 9 year-old child killed by Israeli occupying forces in the Gaza Strip in 72 hours Palestinian Centre for Human Rights 8/31/2003 PCHR condemns the most recent escalation in military attacks perpetrated by Israeli occupying forces, leaving 4 Palestinians, including a 9 year-old child, dead and 12 others wounded, including 3 seriously. PCHR is concerned that these attacks may be a prelude to a larger-scale military attack on the Palestinian civilian population. PCHR calls upon the international community to immediately intervene to halt further deterioration in the humanitarian and human rights situation in the OPTs. 5000 Prisoners on Hunger Strike In Solidarity With Bargouthi & Dudin International Middle East Media Center 9/1/2003 More than 5000 Palestinian prisoners started a one day hunger strike in solidarity with prisoner Musa Dudin and Ahmed Bargouthi. Both Dudin and Bargouthi are on a hunger strike for the 20th consecutive day and, according to prisoner’s reports, have arrived at life threatening health conditions. Responses to the Or Commission of Inquiry Final Report Adalah 8/28/2003 On Monday, 1 September 2003, the official Commission of Inquiry into the October 2000 protest demonstrations ("Or Commission") will issue its final conclusions and recommendations. This report marks the culmination of the Or Commission's two-year investigation into the October 2000 demonstrations, which resulted in the killing of 13 unarmed Palestinian citizens of Israel and the injury of hundreds of others by the police. Or panel timeline: The families lost all faith in the committee Ha'aretz 9/1/2003 October 21, 2000: In the shadow of violence and reports that live fire had been used against civilians, then-prime minister Ehud Barak decides to appoint a public commission of inquiry "to examine the police's behavior during the clashes with Arab demonstrators." Following pressure from the families of those killed in the October clashes, the Supreme Arab Monitoring committee announces that it will not cooperate with the commission of inquiry and demands the appointment of a state commission of inquiry. Draft board refuses to review Ben Artzi case Ha'aretz 9/1/2003 The Israel Defense Forces draft board has rejected a military court's proposal to let Yoni Ben Artzi appear before its conscience committee again and present his arguments for exemption from service as a conscientious objector. The recommendation to allow Ben Artzi to restate his case was forwarded by the IDF court three weeks ago, ahead of the final phase of a trial dealingwith his refusal to serve. In three previous discussions of Ben Artzi's case, the draft board's conscience committee has refused to recognize him as a pacifist eligible for draft exemption.

Economy..

Klein vs. Finance Ministry: Less than 1% growth in 2004 Globes 9/1/2003 Governor of the Bank of Israel David Klein: Changes will be made very soon to the Bank of Israel Law. -- The confrontation between the Bank of Israel and Ministry of Finance and the government is sharpening as the cabinet held its first meeting on the 2004 budget today. Governor of the Bank of Israel David Klein disputes the Ministry of Finance's optimistic forecast about economic recovery next year. Klein believes economic growth will be less than 1% in 2004, and the budget deficit will reach 4.5% of GDP, or NIS 22.5 billion, far above the official target. The Ministry of Finance predicts a more optimistic 2.5% GDP growth in 2004. Knafo threatens hunger strike in her fight for single moms Ha'aretz 9/1/2003 Vicki Knafo, the leader of the single mothers' campaign against government cutbacks in social welfare benefits, announced yesterday that she would begin a hunger strike next week if Finance Minister Benjamin Netanyahu does not agree to resume negotiations with her. Treasury proposes closing down Merkava project Ha'aretz 8/31/2003 In recent weeks, the Israel Defense Forces has closed a series of regular and reserve units, grounded airplanes and agreed to fire thousands of career soldiers as part of its reforms. However, this is not enough for the treasury, which is proposing to shut down the Merkava tank project, whose annual cost reaches some NIS 1 billion.....The project's opponents assumethe probability of armored battles in the coming years is very low and if it gets new tanks, it is better to buy them from the UnitedStates with the American aid money. First half exports to Arab countries up 4% Globes 9/1/2003 Israeli exports to Arab countries totaled $50.7 million. Imports from Arab countries rose 13% to $30.3 million. -- Israeli exports to Arab countries rose 4% in the first half of 2003 to $50.7 million, compared with the first half of 2002. Israeli-Arab trade plummeted in 2002, due to the security-diplomatic situation.

People..

Al-Quds Identity Comes First: Jordanian Islam Online 8/31/2003 AMMAN, August 31 (IslamOnline.net & News Agencies) - In what he saw as a humble contribution to sincere Arab and Islamic efforts to fight back Israeli attempts to Judaise occupied Jerusalem, which houses the third holiest shrine in Islam, a Jordanian spurned enticing offers to sell a piece of land he owns in the holy city. Suspecting the offers, all in the tunes of millions of dinars (1 dinar= $1.4), were made by Jewish-driven parties, the man voluntarily sold his priceless land to an Arab organization championing the cause of defending the holy city Arab-Islamic identity for "one dinar", reported the Jordanian Al-Dustor daily Saturday, August 30. Thousands of ultra-Orthodox protest Beit Shemesh-J'lem bus Ha'aretz 9/1/2003 Thousands of ultra-Orthodox Jews were demonstrating and throwing stones Monday afternoon in Beit Shemesh to protest the Egged bus company's new line to Jersualem, along a route through which a private ultra-Orthodox line currently runs. Threepolicemen were lightly wounded. The protests, which began Sunday, aim to put an end to new Egged bus line 418, which seats men and women separately and travels between the ultra-Orthodox neighborhood of Bet Shemesh and Jerusalem. Demonstrators fear that the new line will negatively impact profits of the private line, which has ultra-Orthodox owners. Diary: Jerusalem's bus roulette BBC 8/29/2003 On assignment in Jerusalem, our correspondent has been sending a daily diary on his experiences working at the heart of the Middle East conflict. "Don't ride on any buses" was the advice that came from a number of friends and family before my trip - and even here people have looked at me strangely when I said I wanted to take one. Art Beat beach party: talent, timing and diversity – but lose the freebies Daily Star 9/1/2003 Commercialism mars otherwise innovative event featuring performance by Soap Kills -- To see Soap Kills perform in the tiny Monnot Street bar called Mint is to experience a rough defiance in the rules of space, atmosphere and acoustics. The much-loved Lebanese trip-hop and electro-funk group has played at Mint every Wednesday night for the past few weeks now. A predictable but ruthlessly loyal young crowd packs into the dank, raw space and literally swarms Soap Kills’ sultry vocalist Yasmine Hamdan, impish guitarist Zeid Hamdan and their assortment of co-conspirators on flute, trumpet, bass and drums. Giant lizard terrorises Beirut BBC 8/31/2003 He's big, he's a carnivore, he's terrorising the neighbourhood's residents, he's been swimming in people's pools and he's already claimed victims - several cats, a dog and apparently even a horse. In Lebanon, a giant lizard has been roaming the streets of a Beirut suburb for several weeks, eluding all the attempts by the authorities to catch it. He's Lebanon's own Komodo Dragon, or so say the witnesses who have seen him.

International..

France, Libya Reach Deal on Compensation Arab News 9/1/2003 PARIS, 1 September 2003 — Libya has agreed to increase compensation to families of the 170 people killed in the 1989 bombing of a French airliner over Africa, a lawyer advising Libya told Reuters yesterday. “The deal is done, the terms will be announced tomorrow. The representatives of the families have left Libya and are on their way home,” said Saad Djebbar, a London-based lawyer who also worked with Libya over the 1988 bombing of a Pan Am airliner over Lockerbie, Scotland. Owners of seized ship deny dealings with Israel Daily Star 9/1/2003 Vessel held off Sidon as probe continues -- The state commissioner at the military court, Judge Brigadier General Maher Saffeiddine, is to resume investigation on Monday into the ship Sentinel Maroni, which was intercepted 11 days ago by Lebanese authorities in the country’s territorial waters. The ship is still being held off the coast of Sidon after Lebanese authorities were informed by the Syria-based anti-Israeli Arab Boycott Committee that it had been blacklisted by the committee for visiting Israel. Will Tehran Sign the Nuke Protocol? Arab News 9/1/2003 TEHRAN, 1 September 2003 — The international community has stepped up the pressure on Iran to accept unconditional and snap International Atomic Energy Agency inspections of its nuclear sites, but just days ahead of a crucial IAEA meeting, uncertainty reigns as to Tehran’s intentions. An IAEA report on Iran will be presented to the IAEA’s board of governors in Vienna at a Sept. 8-11 meeting, and were Iran to be found in breach of its commitments the matter could be referred to the UN Security Council. Saudi-EU Agreement Latest Hurdle Crossed in WTO Drive Arab News 9/1/2003 JEDDAH, 1 September 2003 — Saudi Arabia and the European Union have signed a bilateral agreement for free access of goods and services as part of the Kingdom’s bid to join the World Trade Organization as early as 2004. Commerce Minister Hashim Yamani and EU Trade Commissioner Pascal Lamy signed the agreement here yesterday. Jordanian king visits Iran tomorrow for the first time Arabic News 9/1/2003 An official in the Jordanian Royal palace said yesterday that the Jordanian King Abdullah II will pay a visit tomorrow ( Tuesday), his first visit, to Iran since he assumed rule in Jordan in 1999 to discuss conditions in the region and discuss bilateral relations, foremost being encouraging Iranian religious tourism to Jordan. Team Of Saudi Lawyers Discuss In Washington Case Of 124 Detainees in Guantanamo Al-Hayat 9/1/2003 A team of Saudi lawyers assigned to defend the Saudi detainees in Guantanamo initiated talks with U.S. officials today in Washington, in a bid to reach a settlement that would put an end to the detainees' suffering and have them delivered to their country where they would be put on trial, said the Secretary General of the lawyers' team, Khaled Fahd Salem. Iran attacks nuclear 'pressure' BBC 9/1/2003 The UN nuclear watchdog should not let other countries pressure Tehran over signing up to tougher nuclear inspections, an Iranian official has said. The warning came as Iran prepared to negotiate the Additional Protocol to the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty that would allow snap inspections of its nuclear facilities. US offers $9bn arms sale to Pakistan Jang Group 9/1/2003