From: heb_roots_chr@mail.geocities.com
Sent: Monday, November 10, 1997 11:27 PM
To: Hebraic Heritage Newsgroup
Subject: Israel News: November 7-9, 1997
From: Arutz-7 Editor <editor7@virtual.co.il>
To: arutz-7@ploni.virtual.co.il
Subject: Arutz-7 News: Friday, November 7, 1997
Arutz Sheva News Service
Friday, November 7, 1997 / Cheshvan 7, 5758
TODAY'S HEADLINES:
1. NO BREAKTHROUGHS IN TALKS
2. REMEMBERING THE COVENANT
3. INCIDENTS CONTINUE
1. NO BREAKTHROUGHS IN TALKS
Foreign Minister David Levy returned this morning from his talks with the
Palestinians in Washington. Speaking to reporters at the airport here, he
denied that the talks had failed. Representatives of the two sides will
meet again next week, in Israel.
2. REMEMBERING THE COVENANT
A group of Jewish worshipers held a prayer service this morning on Mt. Dov,
in northern Israel, in commemoration of the Brit Bein HaBetarim (Covenant
of the Pieces). The Bible portion recounting this Divine promise made to
Abraham will be read by Jews all over the world tomorrow. According to one
tradition, the site of Mt. Dov was the point of entry of Abraham into the
Land of Israel.
3. INCIDENTS CONTINUE
Stones were thrown at Israeli cars south of Bethlehem this morning. The
unofficial news agency "Voice from the Field" reports that the
stone-throwers were seen leaving the scene by car. In another incident,
two Arabs managed to steal equipment from an IDF outpost in the Shomron,
which they later abandoned and ran away when they were noticed by the
soldiers.
***********************************************************************
From: Arutz-7 Editor <editor7@virtual.co.il>
To: arutz-7@ploni.virtual.co.il
Subject: Arutz-7 News: Sunday, November 9, 1997
TODAY'S HEADLINES:
1. 200,000 GATHER TO REMEMBER RABIN
2. HAR HOMA ON BUREAUCRATIC HOLD
3. ISRAEL TRANSFERS MONEY TO PA - REGARDLESS
4. IDF CLOTHING STORE OPEN FOR PALESTINIANS
5. TALKS LIMP ALONG
* * * SPECIAL INSERT: HOW ARAFAT RULES
1. 200,000 GATHER TO REMEMBER RABIN
Some 200,000 people gathered last night in Rabin Square in Tel Aviv
for a Yitzchak Rabin memorial rally. Although the Rabin family and
the organizers agreed that there would be no political speeches,
Meretz leader MK Yosi Sarid could not resist calling for Prime
Minister Netanyahu's resignation. "Yitzchak, ask forgiveness from Ben
Gurion and the other Prime Ministers for allowing Netanyahu to
endanger the Zionist enterprise," called Sarid. Minister Natan
Sharansky told the crowd, "I hesitated before coming here tonight,
because I know that there are many tens of thousands of people who are
also mourning tonight but who did not feel wanted here. This cannot
be!"
Yaakov Novick, head of Mateh Maamatz - the central group behind the
anti-Oslo demonstrations during the Rabin-Peres governments - told
Arutz-7 today that although the rally last night was successful, it
could not be called a political rally. He said that he is in favor of
holding a political rally in support of the Prime Minister. "Although
he has not done 100% of what we would want, he is the best we have.
We don't want to be in the position that many in the left now find
themselves, kicking themselves for not showing more support for their
Prime Minister," Novick said.
2. HAR HOMA ON BUREAUCRATIC HOLD
The Housing Ministry has decided to postpone the next stage of the Har
Homa construction project until the first quarter of next year.
According to the original plan, the tenders for construction of the
neighborhood were to have been issued this month, following the
completion of the infrastructure preparatory works. Sources in the
Ministry explained that the postponement is not the result of
political pressures, but is rather a calculated measure to include the
project in next year's budget. MK Michael Kleiner, leader of the
Knesset Land of Israel front, told Arutz-7 today that the Ministry's
assurances do not mollify him, and that regarding as sensitive an
issue as Har Homa, we should not agree to a postponement of even a few
months. He said that he will investigate the matter.
3. ISRAEL TRANSFERS MONEY TO PA - REGARDLESS
Israel transfers $50 million to the PA every month, ostensibly the
return of taxes it collects for the tens of thousands of Arabs who
work in pre-1967 Israel. Arutz-7 correspondent Haggai Huberman
reports, however, that this long-held belief is apparently only a
myth. He cites the fact that Israel remits the same sum even for the
months that the territories were under closure and no workers were
permitted to cross over. This fact was revealed during a session in
New York last week with the donor countries to the PA. The PA
representatives complained of the damage caused to their economy by
the closures, and the Israelis retorted, "You know that we give you
$50 million every month, whether there is a closure or not."
4. IDF CLOTHING STORE OPEN FOR PALESTINIANS
An IDF arrest of a Palestinian Arab this morning lead to the discovery
of a large supply of IDF clothing in an Arab house. The man was
arrested while wearing an IDF coat. Following a short questioning, he
led the soldiers to a house in the Arab village Kfar Bidu, near
Maaleh HaHamishah, where they found dozens of articles of IDF
clothing. The owner of the home was detained for questioning.
5. TALKS LIMP ALONG
Israel will be willing to consider suspending the building of new
communities in Yesha during permanent-status negotiations. The
Palestinians, however, demand that Israel commit itself to a timetable
of withdrawals that it will execute during such talks. Another
dispute between the two sides is over the success of last week's talks
in New York: Yasser Arafat blames Israel for their failure, while
Foreign Minister David Levy insists that they were conducted in "a
positive atmosphere." The committees discussing the implementation
of the interim arrangement will resume their talks today.
* * * *
SPECIAL INSERT: HOW ARAFAT RULES
Excerpts from an article in the latest issue of the English-language
weekly Al-Ahram, published in Cairo: "The Return of the Tribes" by
Graham Usher
The governor's house in Rafah on the southern tip of the Gaza Strip
used to be a gleaming white, three-storied apartment block on the edge
of the town's main square. No longer. Today the house is a gutted
shell, its vacant window frames smeared with soot and its ground floor
garages protected by armed khaki-clad Palestinian soldiers.
The destruction is the result of a chain of events in Rafah which,
last week, saw thousands of Palestinians storm the governor's
residence in violent protest over the way they are governed. But it
is also emblematic of all that is wrong with Yasser Arafat's
Palestinian Authority(PA) in the areas it commands and perhaps, of
what is in store should political reforms (as much as economic
prosperity) not be forthcoming.
Palestinians say the trouble started in "a fight over money" between
two of Rafah's biggest clans, the Al-Dhair and Abu Samhadanah
families. It should have been resolved between them or by the legal
system of the Palestinian Authority(PA). But, in Rafah, divisions
between civil and political authority are not so neat, which is why a
spat over money can -- in the words of one Palestinian from Rafah --
"become a tribal war in which one of the tribes is the PA."
Last year Yasser Arafat appointed Abdallah Abu Samhadanah Governor of
Rafah. It was not a popular choice. In January 1996, Abdallah stood
for the Palestinian Legislative Council(PLC) but failed to muster
enough votes to be elected. His appointment as governor -- an
entirely new position in Gaza, without historical precedent -- was
widely seen to be due to the weight of his family and their loyalty to
Arafat rather than as representing any mandate from the people.
Abdallah certainly seemed to see it this way.
Within months of his appointment, Abdallah's brother Odeh, was made
chief of the Political Department in the PA's Interior Ministry.
Another brother, Sulliman, was put in charge of the PA's Electricity
Company for Gaza's southern area. . . . The dispensation of power and
position in Rafah thus became a matter of family connections rather
than any other criteria.
And so, it appeared, was the administration of justice. To settle
his quarrels with the Al-Dhairs, Abdallah last month arrived at the
latter's house escorted by a bevy of heavily armed policemen. Unable
to enter the house, the police opened fire, severely wounding Mussa
Al-Dhair, the clan's muktar. The Al-Dhair family placed a notice in
Palestine's main Al-Quds newspaper, calling on the "masses and the
governing authority ... not to permit the law of the jungle to rule
our nation". The call went unheeded -- until 22 October, when Musa
Al-Dhair died from his wounds.
Following his funeral the next day, about 2,000 Palestinians marched
on the governor's house. The march was led by the Al-Dhair family but
supported by others, including Palestinians from Rafah's Shabura
refugee camp, whose poverty stands in provocative contrast to the
house's opulence. "It was neither a demonstration against the PA nor
simply a clan dispute", said one Palestinian. "It was a cocktail of
both."
The cocktail ignited . In a street battle lasting seven hours,
Palestinians threw rocks and Molotov cocktails, torching the
governor's residence and two more houses belonging to Yasser and
Tayssir Samhadanah, both officers in the Palestinian police. In a
desperate attempt to maintain order, the police opened fire with live
ammunition, killing one Palestinian and wounding four others. . . .
Since the PA was installed in 1994, Arafat has based his rule on two
crucial constituencies. One was his Fatah movement, many of whose
cadres were absorbed into the PA's burgeoning and often lawless
security forces. But the other was Arafat's deliberate re-empowerment
of Palestine's traditional or tribal families, like the Abu
Samhadanahs or, for that matter, the Al-Dhairs. In Rafah, the two
constituencies have become one, with tribal and political loyalties so
interwoven as to be inseparable.
For Palestinian analysts like the sociologist, Isah Jad, the PA's
"revival of tribal structures" is not only inimical to Palestinian
hopes for a law based and democratic society. It is corrosive of the
modern national consciousness Palestinians have forged out of their
conflict with Israel. For 30 years, says Jad, "the national movement
conducted a long struggle to weaken loyalty to the family and the
tribe and strengthen the concept of nationalism and loyalty to the
homeland. Any rebuilding of tribal structures will reinstate the
family and the tribe as the individual's first loyalty."
Many Palestinians in Rafah agree. "During the intifada, people forgot
about the tribes," commented a Palestinian from Shabura. "Resident or
refugee, Christian or Muslim, we were one people. But now the tribes
are back." (With thanks to IMRA)
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From: newsdesk@iipub.com (MED News Desk)
To: headline@iipub.com (Mid-East Dispatch)
Subject: MED Daily Headline News
Reply-to: newsdesk@iipub.com
THE MID-EAST DISPATCH
DAILY HEADLINES NEWS REPORT
** 1 IDF Bars Jews from Holy Places?
** 2 US Earmarks $1.8bn Military Aid for 1999
** 3 Arafat Asked Terror Groups to Attack Israel
-*-
** 1. IDF BARS JEWS FROM HOLY PLACES?
The ultra-orthodox "Hamodia" reports today that the IDF effectively
bars Jews from visiting a number of sites in the West Bank which Jews
are guaranteed free access to under Article 32 of Appendix I of the
Interim Agreement.
Among the locations listed in the article are the tombs of Natan the
Prophet and Gad the Seer in Halhul, the Cave of Othniel ben Knaz in
Hebron, and the site of Elazar's Tomb, Ittamar's Tomb and the Tomb of
the 70 Elders in Awarta.
The article claims that while the IDF says the locations can be
visited as long as the visitors coordinate with the IDF and get
permission, such permission is never granted for "security reasons".
The IDF Spokesman's Office confirmed that, while in principle, there
is access to these places, security restrictions may prevent them from
being open to the public.
The Spokesman's Office declined to comment if the IDF does not have
the technical capability to provide security in the locations or if,
instead, it is a question of priorities.
The Office also declined to estimate what resources would be required
to make the sites secure enough to allow for free access for visitors.
{IMRA 11/6 H}
** 2. US EARMARKS $1.8bn MILITARY AID FOR 1999
Defense Minister Yitzhak Mordechai, currently visiting the US, has
asked for American sponsorship for a third Arrow missile battery,
costing $150 million.
The Israeli-made weapon is an anti-missile missile which was
instituted in response to the threat of long-range missiles aimed at
Israel.
Mordechai also reports that the US agreed to his requests for military
assistance and that the military aid budget for 1999 has been set at
$1.8 billion. {MED 11/6 H}
** 3. ARAFAT ASKED TERROR GROUPS TO ATTACK ISRAEL
Yasser Arafat has asked some Palestinian organizations to carry out
fedayeen operations against Israel but the leaders of these
organizations replied: We do not wish to place the blood of our
martyrs at the service of an authority that will sell us out at the
first opportunity.
When Arafat asked what makes them think he will sell them out, they
answered: "You (Arafat) will be the first person to arrest our leaders
in the West Bank and Gaza in order to be able to tell the Jews: These
are the people who are fighting you. The leaders continued: After you
release them, our heroes will become easy targets for pursuit by the
Zionist security agencies. We will not hand over this opportunity to
you or to them. If you want to fight Israel, you have thousands of
troops, employees, and security personnel whom you can use." {A-SHIRA
(Beirut) 11/6 H}
**********************************************************************
From: newsdesk@iipub.com (MED News Desk)
To: headline@iipub.com (Mid-East Dispatch)
Subject: MED Daily Headline News
Reply-to: newsdesk@iipub.com
THE MID-EAST DISPATCH
DAILY HEADLINES NEWS REPORT
** 1 Israel Blames PA For Lack of Progress
** 2 Shamgar Report Given to Ministers
** 3 IAF to Receive First F15-I
** 4 Iraqi-Palestinian Relations Tighten
** 5 Hamas Calls on All Arabs to Support Iraq
** 6 Rabin Memorials Continue
** 7 PM to Meet Albright in London
** 8 Firebombs in Hebron
** 9 Sharon to Visit Jordan Today
-*-
** 1. ISRAEL BLAMES PA FOR LACK OF PROGRESS
Government sources in Jerusalem are blaming the Palestinians for lack
of progress in the Washington talks. They said the Palestinians were
attempting to isolate Israel in advance of the economic conference to
be held in Qatar.
The source said agreements could have been reached on a number of
issues, including the Raffach airfield and the Carmei industrial zone
but the Palestinians prevented this by raising obstacles.
He said there will be no further handing over of territories to the
Palestinians for the time being. "The decision taken after the
Jerusalem bombings still stand" said the official. {KOL ISRAEL 11/7 H}
** 2. SHAMGAR REPORT GIVEN TO MINISTERS
A copy of the classified findings of the Shamgar Commission, which
investigated the Rabin assassination, was made available this morning
for government ministers to peruse.
The first to arrive was Science Minister Michael Eitan, who has been
demanding an investigation into the activities of GSS
agent-provocateur Avishai Raviv for the past year.
After reading over several of the classified documents, he told
reporters, "There is no doubt that hundreds of acts maligning Yitzchak
Rabin were carried out by Raviv."
Similar remarks were made by Deputy Defense Minister Sylvan Shalom,
who also looked at the documents. Minister Eitan later said that the
report confirms all of his claims on the matter, and that he sees no
reason why 90% of the secret report should not be declassified.
Eitan further said that he has additional information on Raviv which
did not reach the Shamgar Commission. "We must look into the
responsibility of the political echelons of that time for the manner
in which Raviv was employed within right-wing circles," said Eitan.
The secret part of the Shamgar findings state that Raviv acted without
his handlers' supervision, and sometimes even broke contact with them.
It stated that Raviv initiated provocations on his own, and never
should have been allowed to do the things that he did MK Chanan Porat
(NRP) and party colleagues have requested that Prime Minister
Netanyahu establish a public commission of inquiry to look into the
entire Avishai Raviv affair.
Porat says that we cannot suffice with the Shamgar committee's
findings, because much new information has been revealed that the
commission did not have. MK Shaul Yahalom (NRP) succinctly summed up
the topic while speaking on television yesterday: "For two years the
left has been screaming about the terrible right-wing incitement that
led to the abominable murder of the Prime Minister, and here it
becomes clear that a large part of this incitement and headlines in
this regard was caused by none other than a GSS agent, under the Labor
government! How can we let this go un-examined?"
Former Police Minister Moshe Shachal (Labor) has joined the chorus of
those demanding that Avishai Raviv be made to stand trial. Shachal
said that he bases this opinion on what he read of the classified
sections when he was in the government.
On the other hand, MK Yossi Sarid (Meretz), who served as Environment
Minister in the previous government, said that the right-wing will not
find what it wants to find in the document.
* In London, Saturday's Daily Telegraph reported that Avishai Raviv
has left Israel for the USA. The paper described Raviv as an 'extreme
right-wing informer' who, although 'out of control', was allowed to
remain on the GSS payroll because his information was so useful.
{ARUTZ 7/MED 11/7 H|P}
** 3. IAF TO RECEIVE FIRST F15-I
The Israel Air Force is expected to receive its first F15-I aircraft
from the United States today. The McDonnell-Douglas F15-I has been
dubbed Ra'am (thunder) by the Israelis.
Twenty-four F15-Is are scheduled to arrive next year to complete the
$2.1 billion order.
Israel is planning to purchase additional F15-I or F16-D American
warplanes. Lockhart-Martin and McDonnell-Douglas are currently
competing for the new order. {MA'ARIV 11/7 H}
** 4. IRAQI-PALESTINIAN RELATIONS TIGHTEN
A group of Palestinians held a pro-Saddam Hussein demonstration
yesterday in Samaria. This was just the latest of several signs of a
close relationship between the Palestinians and Iraq.
The Jerusalem Post reports today that Yasser Arafat's home in Baghdad
- recently designated as the PA Embassy in Iraq - is being used to
store secret documents related to Iraq's buildup of mass destruction
weapons.
It was recently reported in the Palestinian press that $100 million in
aid from Iraq is being blocked by the UN. In addition, policemen in
the Palestinian force were trained in Iraq, and Arafat has met with a
top Iraqi figure in Amman.
The Post also reported that five Palestinian organizations, including
Fatah and the Popular Front, sent a joint message to Saddam yesterday
stating their opposition to American "aggression" against Iraq. {ARUTZ
7 11/7 H}
** 5. HAMAS CALLS ON ALL ARABS TO SUPPORT IRAQ
In Gaza, Hamas leader Abdul Haziz Rantisi has called on Arab and
Muslim states to rally to the support of Iraq in its struggle against
the US. The US has warned Iraq that its continued violation of UN
mandates and obstructions of arms inspections would prompt further
economic sanctions or military action.
President Bill Clinton urged Iraq to comply with the UN inspections
program. At the same time US officials refused to rule out the
possibility of military action against Baghdad. The US is keeping the
aircraft carrier "Nimitz" in the Gulf, postponing a scheduled call in
the United Arab Emirates, in anticipation of a military need. {KOL
ISRAEL 11/7 H}
** 6. RABIN MEMORIALS CONTINUE
A massive memorial celebration took place in Tel Aviv last night. One
hundred thousand participants, mainly 17-23 years old, came from the
very north to the southern tip of Israel to attend.
The organizers managed to keep the assembly quiet and subdued until
Cabinet minister Natan Sharansky spoke. In his speech, Yossi Sarid
admitted they don't blame the whole right-wing for the Rabin
assassination, but, he added "Benyamin Netanyahu, go home, we're sick
of you."
Shimon Peres declared it was possible to murder Yitzhak Rabin, the
man. But the spirit could not be killed.
Rabbi Yoel Ben Nun, a friend of Yitzhak Rabin from the settlement of
Ofra said there was as much need for peace talks among the Israelis as
with the Palestinians.
Leah Rabin told the crowd that if peace dies, many of us will die with
it. She declared that the huge turnout was the best guarantee that
Rabin's quest for peace would go on.
According to some participants, the ceremony was to protest against
Prime Minister Netanyahu more than a memorial for Rabin. {KOL ISRAEL
11/9 H}
** 7. PM TO MEET ALBRIGHT IN LONDON
Sources confirmed that Prime Minister Benyamin Netanyahu and US
Secretary Madeleine Albright will meet in London on Friday.
The Prime Minister will be on his way to the Illinois conference of
the American Jewish Federation and Albright is on her way to the Qatar
economic conference. {KOL ISRAEL 11/9 H}
** 8. FIREBOMBS IN HEBRON
Two firebombs were thrown at Jewish residences tonight in Hebron. One
firebomb exploded on the outside wall of Beit Fink and caught on fire.
Fortunately it did not cause any damage. The other fire bomb landed in
the courtyard of the nursery school, in back of Beit Shneerson.
In reaction to the attack, Hebron residents attempted to enter the H1
- Arafat-controlled part of Hebron via the Shallalah Street. Israeli
army units prevented them from reaching their destination.
Following the protest a Hebron spokesman released a statement
demanding that the army take firm action to prevent continued attacks
against Jews in Hebron. {HEBRON PRESS OFFICE 11/9 H}
** 9. SHARON TO VISIT JORDAN TODAY
Infrastructure Minister Ariel Sharon will be in Jordan today to meet
with Crown Prince Hassan and other senior Jordanian officials. The
visit will focus on the water treaty between the two countries and new
projects in the Jordan Valley. {GALEI TZAHAL 11/9 H}
****
Copyright (c) The MidEast Dispatch, 1997. The MidEast Dispatch is an
independent news service, and is not affiliated with any political
party or government agency.
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