Poll: Most Israelis, Palestinians agree on terms of new state
Ha'aretz, December 9, 2002
Most Palestinians and Israelis agree about setting up a Palestinian state in all or most of the West Bank and Gaza Strip, but each deeply mistrusts the other's intentions about peace and an end of violence.

Israel kills mentally-handicapped Palestinian; PA says Arafat should attend Christmas celebrations in Bethlehem
Al-Bawaba, December 9, 2002
Israeli soldiers killed a 28-year-old mentally-handicapped Palestinian Monday afternoon near the West Bank settlement of Einav. Israeli troops carrying out searches in the area called on the man to stop, when he continued to run the soldiers shot him.

Militant planning suicide attack nabbed; Palestinian woman killed in Nablus
Ha'aretz, December 9, 2002
Undercover Border Police troops arrested an Islamic Jihad activist Monday night near the West Bank town of Tul Karm on suspicion of planning to carry out a suicide attack inside Israel, military sources said.

6,000 U.S. Dollars for Every Israeli Since 1973
Islam Online, December 9, 2002
The total cost to the U.S. for backing Israel doubled the cost of Vietnam War -- WASHINGTON, December 9 (IslamOnline & News Agencies) – According to a report released Monday, December 9, Israel has, since 1973, cost the United States about $1.6 trillion, that is more than $5,700 per person if divided by today's population.

Canadian women enlist in 'army' of volunteer human shields
The Times, December 9, 2002 
Two Canadian women have left for Baghdad, the latest recruits for an army of human shields intent on stopping conflict.

Supreme Court orders halt to Hebron house demolitions
Jerusalem Post, December 9, 2002
The Supreme Court on Monday temporarily put on hold plans by the government to demolish 15 Palestinian homes in the West Bank city of Hebron.

Hardliners gain ground in Likud vote
BBC, December 9, 2002
"Over 2,000 Likud members were eligible to vote" -- Supporters of hawkish Israeli Foreign Minister Binyamin Netanyahu have gained ground in a ballot held to choose the Likud party's parliamentary candidates for January's general election.

Arab league renews plea for international protection for Palestinians
Alternative Information Center, December 9, 2002 
The Arab League on Sunday renewed appeals for an international presence to protect Palestinians in the West Bank and Gaza Strip following what it called a "barbaric Israeli raid" that left 10 people dead, AFP reported.

Hear Palestine, December 9, 2002
NEWS: Occupation Army Kills Disabled Man in Tulkarem / Youth Dies of Injuries in Khan Younis / Toubas, a 'Closed Military Zone' / Invasion of Beit Rima; Military Reinforcements between Ramallah and Jerusalem / Metal Gate Divides Nablus in 2 Parts / Tightened Closure Measures Around Salfeet / Occupation Soldiers Open Fire at Qalqilya Entrance / Occupation Army Escalates Oppressive Measures in Bethlehem / Occupation Army Closes Salah al-Din Road  FEATURES: Hebron: Demolition Tools Along Organized State Terrorism / Ramallah and Al-Bireh -  A Cage with Heavily Armed Guards Ready to Kill

New Poll: Maximalist Ideologies Marginalized In Both Israeli and Palestinian Communities
Search for Common Ground, December 2002
72% of Israelis and Palestinians Indicate Readiness to Move Beyond Cycle of Violence and Towards Two State Solution Based on 1967 Borders / Less than One in Five Palestinians Aspire to State on all of Historic Palestine; Less than One in Five Israelis Demand a Greater Israel.
News Release: http://www.sfcg.org/News/Dec2002PollRelease-English.pdf - Acrobat format
Poll Report: http://www.sfcg.org/Documents/Dec2002PollReport-English.pdf - Acrobat format

Palestinians: Arafat in Bethlehem a Must
Gainesville Sun, December 9, 2002
RAMALLAH, West Bank (AP) - Palestinians warned Monday of a "dangerous escalation" of tensions if Israel stops Palestinian leader Yasser Arafat from celebrating Christmas in Bethlehem for a second straight year.

Israel's Likud challenges Sharon on Palestinian state
Reuters, December 9, 2002
JERUSALEM (Reuters) - Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon found himself under attack from right-wingers in his own Likud party on Monday and faced diehard opposition to the very notion of any Palestinian state.

Report: 25-year-old Palestinian woman killed in Nablus
Jerusalem Post, December 9, 2002
According to Palestinian sources, a 25-year-old woman was killed by IDF fire in Nablus on Monday, reports Israel Radio.

IDF tank kills woman, injures her 3 children
Ha'aretz, December 9, 2002 
A Palestinian woman was killed by Israel Defense Forces tank fire yesterday evening, close to the southern Gaza settlement of Rafiah Yam. The woman was identified as Nahla Ajel, 36, a resident of Rafah.

Saddam Hussein to transfer $500,000 to Palestinian bombers, Intifada victims
Jerusalem Post, December 9, 2002
Iraqi president Saddam Hussein will give $500,000 to the families of Palestinian Intifada victims, the Popular Democratic Front for the Liberation of Palestine told the Arab daily Al-Ayyam.

Israeli Arab jailed for transporting Palestinian without permit
Jerusalem Post, December 9, 2002 
An Israeli Arab has been sentenced to five months in jail for transporting a resident of the territories who did not have a permit to be in Israel.

Palestinians' Right to Return Discussed at Copenhagen Conference
Islam Online, December 9, 2002
STOCKHOLM, December 9 (IslamOnline) - The third conference discussing the right of return of the Palestinian refugees to their occupied homeland will be held in the Danish capital of Copenhagen from 12 to 15 December 2002.

Mordechai Vanunu tries to pass message to public
Ha'aretz, December 9, 2002
Mordechai Vanunu, who is serving an 18-year sentence for leaking information about Israel's nuclear program, apparently tried to pass a message Monday while being photographed at the Supreme Court prior to an appeals hearing.

Arafat says next month elections should be delayed
Al-Bawaba, December 9, 2002  
Palestinian leader Yasser Arafat charged Sunday Israel with using accusations of Palestinian links to al-Qaeda and the US threats of war on Iraq as cover for stepping up its military campaign against the Palestinians.

2 refuseniks receive 6th prison sentence 
Alternative Information Center, December 9, 2002 
Yonatan Ben-Artzi and Uri Ya’akobi have been sentenced for the 6th time for refusing to be drafted. Yonatan was sentenced to 35 days, bringing him to a total of 161 days. Uri was sentenced to 28 days, bringing him to a total of 133 days.

Netanyahu's Nephew Jailed over Refusal to Join 'Israeli Occupation Army'
Islam Online, December 9, 2002
OCCUPIED JERUSALEM, December 9 (IslamOnline & News Agencies) - The Israeli army sentenced Jonathan Ben Artzi to a 35-day prison term Sunday, December 8, for refusing to serve in the army, his sixth sentence since he was first jailed on August 8. He has since spent 126 days in prison, in what his father says is a record in Israel for a conscientious objector.

Israel’s aid request to US: $12b over 10 years
Globes, December 9, 2002
Israel is asking the US for $12 billion in aid, Ministry of Finance Accountant General Nir Gilad told a meeting of Israel Bonds leaders from North America today.

Defense Ministry signs 3-year agreement with Microsoft
Globes, December 9, 2002 
Israel’s military procurement from Microsoft will be financed mainly with US aid. -- The Ministry of Defense has signed a framework agreement with Microsoft (Nasdaq: MSFT), which will enable the Israeli defense establishment to use Microsoft desktop and enterprise software for three years.

Israeli forces break into Dar al-Salaam in Bethlehem, prevent worshippers access to shrines
Arabic News, December 9, 2002
One Palestinian woman was killed yesterday evening when she was hit by the Israeli forces fire in Rafah. A Palestinian medical source said that Naela Aqel ( 41 year old) was fatally hit when Israeli soldiers from a tank opened fire at her house.

Israel to block Arafat Christmas visit again
The Guardian, December 9, 2002
For the second year running, Israel has said it will bar Yasser Arafat from his Christmas pilgrimage to Bethlehem.

Iran, Syria call for action against Israel's arms arsenal
Jerusalem Post, December 8, 2002
DAMASCUS, Syria - Iran's Foreign Minister Kamal K1harrazi and Syrian President Bashar Assad held talks Sunday centering on Iraq and Palestinian-Israeli violence, Syria's official news agency reported.

Thousands join US cyber-rehearsal for war
The Times, December 9, 2002
A UNITED STATES military exercise that could shape the tactics in any war against Iraq begins today at the sprawling al-Sayliyah army camp in the desert outside Doha, the capital of Qatar.

Kuwait becomes an armed camp as US prepares to go back into action
The Independent, December 9, 2002
War may not have been declared, but the mobilisation against Iraq is already well under way.

'Declaration' Slows Iraqi Crisis
The Guardian, December 9, 2002
BAGHDAD, Iraq (AP) - Smoking guns or ironclad explanations. Telltale clues or believable excuses. The world will look for many things in the suitcase full of words known as the Baghdad arms declaration.

Iraq Weapons Declaration Arrives in NY
The Guardian, Monday December 9, 2002
UNITED NATIONS (AP) - Iraq's massive dossier detailing its chemical, biological and nuclear programs arrived Sunday in New York, where U.N. weapons inspectors plan to comb through it to determine whether Baghdad is complying with Security Council resolutions.

Iraqi Challenges U.S. on Evidence Claim
The Guardian, Monday December 9, 2002
BAGHDAD, Iraq (AP) - A senior Iraqi official challenged Washington on Sunday to ``come up'' with evidence it claims to have that Baghdad still holds weapons of mass destruction.

Iraqi opposition leaders meet in Iran as U.S. forces launch war game in Qatar
Al-Bawaba, December 9, 2002
A U.S. war game believed to be a rehearsal for an invasion of Iraq started Monday in Qatar with senior commanders and battle planners conducting a computer-assisted exercise aimed at improving their ability to fight a war in the region.

UN inspectors search former nuclear facility
The Guardian, December 9, 2002
UN arms inspectors today returned to an Iraqi weapons complex used to produce nuclear material in the 80s to check on new construction at the site.

UN weapons inspections
The Guardian, December 9, 2002
UN inspectors are again working in Iraq - but, given the failure of previous efforts to gauge Saddam Hussein's weapons capabilities, what are their chances of success this time around?

Iraq dossier under scrutiny
BBC, December 9, 2002
United Nations weapons experts have begun ploughing through Iraq's massive weapons dossier to assess whether it complies with Security Council resolutions.

Security Council To Release Iraqi Arms Declaration to Some Members
Palestine Chronicle, December 9, 2002
NEW YORK - With Iraq’s 12,000-page declaration on its arms programme having arrived at United Nations Headquarters in New York, the Security Council Presidency has decided to release the document to those members with the expertise to assess the risks of proliferation and other sensitive information in a bid to jumpstart its own review of the text.

Palestinians: There is no alternative to Arafat
Oakland Tribune, December 8, 2002
RAMALLAH, West Bank -- A senior Palestinian official on Saturday rejected as "baseless" claims by Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon that his government is negotiating "secretly" with Palestinians other than Yasser Arafat.

Israel’s thriving sex industry records one billion dollars a year
MENA Report, December 9, 2002
Israel’s sex business is booming. The one billion dollar industry is fueled by an annual inflow of 3,000 foreign women, smuggled into the country by sex traffickers and enslaved at one of Tel Aviv’s 250 brothels, reveals a Parliamentary (Knesset) report released Monday, December 9.

Knesset report: 3,000 women 'sold' by white slavers here every year
Jerusalem Post, December 9, 2002
Some 3,000 women are brought into the country every year by white slavers to work in the billion-dollar-a-year sex industry, according to an interim report of the Knesset Committee of Inquiry into Trafficking in Women.

Britain calls for a peace force
The Times, December 5, 2002
BRITAIN has proposed a controversial plan to deploy a US-led peacekeeping mission to the Middle East to halt more than two years of violence between Israelis and Palestinians.

UK beefs up Jordan’s tank fleet
MENA Report, December 9, 2002 
The British Defense Ministry will present Jordan’s army with a contribution of up to 400 surplus Challenger-1 tanks. The offering is an extension of a 288-tank order confirmed between the two parties in 1999. Each tank is valued at £385,000 ($607,491).

Lebanon, Iran rule out any links between Hizbullah and al-Qaeda
Al-Bawaba, December 9, 2002 
Iran and Lebanon on Monday expressed their opposition to a probable US attack on Iraq, saying Washington used the threat to cover Israeli atrocities in the Middle East and boost American presence in the region.

Second thoughts
Al-Ahram Weekly On-Line, 5 - 11 December 2002
Graham Usher: The increasingly jittery Palestinian Authority is powerless to affect the electoral prospects of either Ariel Sharon or Avram Mitzna.

Jimmy Carter Accepts Nobel Peace Prize
The Guardian, December 9, 2002
OSLO, Norway (AP) - Former President Jimmy Carter, in Oslo to collect his Nobel Peace Prize, said Monday that his support of President Bush is solid, provided he keeps working through the United Nations and weapons inspectors for a solution in Iraq.

Italian deputy foreign trade minister: Italy sees Israel as important strategic partner
Globes, December 9, 2002
Italy views Israel as an important strategic partner, as evinced by the senior business delegation attending the Israel Business Conference 2002, Italian deputy minister for productive activities (foreign trade) Adolfo Urso said today.

Celebrating Eid Al-Fitr, American-style
Arab News, December 9, 2002
WASHINGTON, 9 December 2002 — Eid Al-Fitr- American style was held at the Washington D.C. Convention Center this year, where an estimated 15,000 Muslims came to celebrate. The atmosphere was festive, United Nations-style.

Moussa discusses with Russian officials Iraqi and Palestinian developments
Arabic News, December 9, 2002
The secretary general of the Arab League Amr Moussa has stressed that the developments of the Iraqi issue and the deteriorated conditions in the occupied Palestinian territories and means of tackling them will be the focal for the discussions he will hold with the Russian foreign minister Igor Ivanov and high ranking Russian officials during his visit to the Russian capital, Moscow, which started yesterday and will last for three days.

Tehran to Fingerprint U.S. Journalists
The Guardian, December 9, 2002
TEHRAN, Iran (AP) - Iran will fingerprint U.S. journalists arriving in Iran in response to American officials imposing similar requirements on Iranian visitors, state-run radio said Monday.

Germany talks with Israel about providing broader military support
Jerusalem Post, December 9, 2002 
BERLIN - German Chancellor Gerhard Schroeder pledged broader military support for Israel after meeting Monday with President Moshe Katsav, but the two sidestepped whether Germany would provide armored personnel carriers requested by Israel.

54% voter turnout in Labor primary; Mitzna blasts Likud list
Ha'aretz, December 9, 2002
The final turnout for the Labor primary to determine the party's list of Knesset candidates was 54 percent when polling stations closed Monday evening. But turnout was a markedly lower among Arab and Druze members of the Labor Party. The final turnout for Arab voters was 40 percent.

Background / Likud pulls to right, PM keeps aim at center
Ha'aretz, December 9, 2002
The Likud took an apparent lurch to the right in naming its Knesset candidates in a primary held Sunday, but the step only underscored the extent to which Sharon has stayed a course aimed at winning the crucial, guardedly moderate center of the Israeli electorate.

Likud votes into the night; Labor primaries today
Ha'aretz, December 9, 2002 
The combined efforts of the Tel Aviv District Court in the morning and the Likud's election committee late last night, kept the ruling party's primaries polls open until 1 A.M. today, while the party convened at Tel Aviv's Exhibition Grounds to pick its list of nominees for the Knesset.

Syrian lawmaker goes on hunger strike to protest treatment in prison
Jerusalem Post, December 9, 2002 
An ex-Syrian lawmaker jailed for demanding greater freedoms has begun a hunger strike to protest the "inhumane" treatment he has received behind bars, a human rights activist said Monday.

Tax officials go to U.S. to calm those worried by reform
Ha'aretz, December 9, 2002 
"..the commission received reports that the reform was causing great concern among three groups: Israelis living or working in the U.S.; Jewish and non-Jewish Americans investing in Israel; and Jews wishing to immigrate to Israel." -- A high-level Income Tax Commission delegation left Sunday for the United States to calm investors' nerves about the forthcoming tax reform, which comes into force on January 1, 2003.

IMF to recommend gradual interest rate cuts
Ha'aretz, December 9, 2002 
Representatives of the International Monetary Fund on a visit to Israel will reportedly recommend that the Bank of Israel gradually lower interest rates.

Israel welcomes IMF recommendations
Jerusalem Post, December 9, 2002
International Monetary Fund (IMF) recommendations that Israel cut interest rates and be prepared to revise the 2003 budget were welcomed Monday by the Finance Ministry, reports Israel Radio.

Civil war between Fatah and Hamas is a real threat, says Palestinian official
Jerusalem Post, December 9, 2002 
A senior Palestinian Authority official on Monday called for putting an end to the continued fighting between Hamas and Fatah gunmen in the Gaza Strip and warned that the clashes, which are occurring almost on a daily basis, could spark off a civil war.

Sha'ath: Fatah, Hamas to renew discussions on halting attacks
Ha'aretz, December 9, 2002 
Palestinian Authority minister Nabil Sha'ath said Sunday that Fatah and Hamas will renew discussions regarding a halt to attacks against Israeli citizens within a few days. The talks are expected to take place in the Gaza Strip and Cairo.

Assad tells US senators American policy in the mideast causes hatred
Jerusalem Post, December 9, 2002 
DAMASCUS, Syria - Syrian President Bashar Assad and two visiting US senators held talks Monday on the Iraqi crisis, the Arab-Israeli conflict and US Mideast policy, the official Syrian Arab News Agency reported.

Erdogan-Bush Bargain" Refused By Most Turks
Islam Online, December 9, 2002
Erdogan dismissed "the bargaining description" of his Washington visit -- ANKARA, December 9 (IslamOnline) - The scheduled visit by the leader of Turkey's ruling party, Recep Tayyip Erdogan, Tuesday, December 10, caused bitter criticism from Turkish media and political opponents that called it "a mere bargaining process'.

Two IDF refuseniks sentenced to prison terms for sixth time
Ha'aretz, December 9, 2002
Yonatan Ben-Artzi and Ori Ya'akov, two youths who refuse to be drafted into the IDF in protest of the army's activities in the territories, were sentenced Sunday to jail terms for the sixth time. Ben Artzi was sentenced for 35 days in prison, bringing his total to 161 consecutive days in jail, while Ya'akov was sentenced to 28 days, bringing his total to 134 consecutive.

Lod high school guard discovered to be illegal Palestinian
Ha'aretz, December 9, 2002 
A security guard at a Lod high school was exposed yesterday as a 22-year-old Palestinian in Israel illegally. Another security guard was suspicious of the Palestinian and reported the suspicions to the school principal, who reported to city hall, which sent inspectors, who called the police.

Neo-Nazis march in Berlin during President Katsav's visit
Ha'aretz, December 9, 2002 
BERLIN - German neo-Nazis marched in Berlin on Monday to protest the visit of Israeli President Moshe Katsav, compounding awkwardness for a German government already under pressure to supply military hardware to its ally.