To: arutz-7@arutzsheva.org
From: Arutz-7 Net Editor <neteditor@arutzsheva.org>
Subject: Arutz-7 News Brief: Friday, October 8,
1999
Arutz Sheva News Service
<http://www.arutzsheva.org>
Friday, October 8, 1999 / Tishrei 28, 5760
------------------------------------------------
TODAY'S HEADLINES:
1. ILLEGAL JEWISH CONSTRUCTION - NOT ARAB - TO BE DISCUSSED
2. TERRORISTS WILL REMAIN IN PRISON A BIT LONGER
3. AMERICAN-JEWISH PRIZE TO ARAFAT?
1. ILLEGAL JEWISH CONSTRUCTION - NOT ARAB - TO BE DISCUSSED
The Ministerial Committee for Settlement Affairs will convene this Sunday
to discuss the future of recently-built Jewish outposts in Judea and
Samaria. Peace Now claims that 38 additional caravans (mobile homes
without wheels) have been added to Yesha hilltops since the elections.
This contrasts with many times more illegal Arab structures in Judea and
Samaria, but Committee member Minister Yossi Sarid said today that these
will not be discussed.
The Yesha Council released a strong statement yesterday to the effect that
"the uprooting of even one caravan is the same as evacuating an entire
community." The Council plans to rebuild any outpost that may be
evacuated, and will even transfer some of its offices to the outposts.
Yesha Council leaders have asked the residents to take part in the struggle
for the outposts - "without engaging in physical conflict with the security
forces."
2. TERRORISTS WILL REMAIN IN PRISON A BIT LONGER
The release of the Arab terrorists that was to have taken place today has
been postponed. The Palestinians object to Israel's dictating the list of
prisoners to be released, and refused to accept their unilateral release.
The Palestinians rejected approximately 30 of the 150 names, and demanded
that they be replaced with others - but the government said that there were
"no other prisoners available who meet the criteria set by the Cabinet,
i.e., who have not killed or seriously wounded Israelis."
Public Security Minister Shlomo Ben-Ami said last night that there is no
crisis, but rather "we are attempting to better understand the
Palestinians' position on this matter. We will not change our basic
policy, but we want the Palestinians to know that we are listening to their
concerns." Ben-Ami added that the choice of whom to release is Israel's
sole prerogative.
3. AMERICAN-JEWISH PRIZE TO ARAFAT?
The Boston Jewish Advocate reports that the American-Jewish organization
UJC (United Jewish Communities) is considering presenting PLO leader Yasser
Arafat with its prestigious Isaiah award. The UJC confirmed this past
Tuesday that it had decided to grant the award to Arafat, but later in the
day announced that "since Arafat would be in Tokyo next week" he would not
receive the award.
UJC President Stephen Solender and UJC spokeswoman Gail Hyman later went
one step further, and denied that Arafat was ever the recipient. "[The
committee members are] still thinking about it," said Hyman. "They say
they were talking about it in committee, and they were planning to do it,
[but] they didn't finish the decision making," she added.
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To: arutz-7@arutzsheva.org
From: Arutz-7 Net Editor <neteditor@arutzsheva.org>
Subject: Arutz-7 News: Sunday, October 10, 1999
Arutz Sheva News Service
<http://www.arutzsheva.org>
Sunday, October 10, 1999 / Rosh Chodesh Cheshvan 5760
------------------------------------------------
TODAY'S HEADLINES:
1. YESHA-OUTPOSTS SHOWDOWN
2. A TASTE OF RAIN
3. 25TH ANNIVERSARY OF SCHINDLER'S DEATH
4. U.S. FOR HAWATME
1. YESHA-OUTPOSTS SHOWDOWN
The special ministerial committee for settlement will convene this
afternoon for its first session. Its members include Prime Minister
Ehud Barak, and Ministers Sharansky, Yitzchak Levy, Sarid, Suissa,
Shachak, and Ben-Eliezer. Deputy Defense Minister Ephraim Sneh will
present data on 41 Jewish civilian outposts throughout Judea and
Samaria, including when and by whom they were approved. Sharansky,
Levy, and Suissa will apparently object to the removal of any of them,
while Sarid will demand that at least several be evacuated.
Diplomatic sources were quoted today as saying that some ten outposts
will be removed. The Yesha Council said that the removal of these
sites would be viewed as the evacuation of full-fledged communities,
and would represent the "crossing of a red line." Minister Eli Yeshai
of Shas called upon the Prime Minister not to repeat the mistakes of
the Rabin era, and to "conduct an open dialogue with the Yesha
residents." Demonstrations by Peace Now and by Yesha organizations
were held this morning opposite the Prime Minister's office.
Peace Now head Mossi Raz stated his case on Arutz-7 today: "The
problem is that ever since former Foreign Minister Ariel Sharon called
upon the settlers to 'seize the hilltops,' there has been no law and
order in this matter. We will demand that the law be strictly
enforced, and that any hilltops temporarily and illegally populated by
settlers be evacuated immediately... Even Yesha Council spokesman are
saying that some of the outposts are 'in the process of receiving
approval' - which means that they are currently not approved... The
Barak government has said that in the final status, most settlers
would remain in place - meaning that tens of thousands of Jews will be
taken from their homes for the sake of peace. If this government
cannot even evacuate a couple of dozen settlers, then the peace
process is in a sorry state."
Arutz-7's Ariel Kahane then spoke with a resident of one of the
outposts - Shivi Drori of Givat Harel, named after terrorist victim
Harel Bin-Nun, murdered in the Shomron community of Yitzhar over a
year ago. "The vast majority of the outposts are located on land in
possession of the Settlement Wing of the Jewish Agency," Drori said.
"Some of the others may be a bit more problematic, but even those can
be explained. The truth is that legality has nothing to do with it;
if the government wants to evacuate us, they'll find a way to do so.
The issue is rather 'Eretz Yisrael, yes or no.'"
Drori said that in case of a decision to evacuate, "a network of
communications will immediately be activated, and thousands of people
will come out to express their opposition. I call on everyone to
realize that the fight for the Land of Israel is going on right now -
a year from now we may wake up to find that the Land has slipped out
from under us - and to come and join us here." He added that any
outpost that is evacuated will be re-populated, "in accordance with a
decision by the Yesha Council."
2. A TASTE OF RAIN
Yesterday's rains did not have much of an impact on the Kinneret (Sea
of Galilee), which has again fallen below the red line. The Kinneret,
Israel's main water reservoir, is expected to drop 15 centimeters
below the red line before the rainy season begins. Amos Porat of the
Meteorological Service, said that a "nice amount" of 5-10 mm of rain
had fallen in the north, and a bit less elsewhere. The rains
continued lightly in some places today, but are expected to taper off
over the next two days. The official winter forecast will be
published in early November.
3. 25TH ANNIVERSARY OF SCHINDLER'S DEATH
Yesterday marked the 25th anniversary of the death of Oscar
Schindler, who personally saved close to 1,200 Jews during the
Holocaust. Although described as a "greedy Nazi exploiter of slave
workers, a black-marketeer, and womanizer," he was declared a
"Righteous Gentile" in Israel in the 1960's. Today there are more
than 6,000 descendants of "Schindler`s Jews" living in the USA,
Europe, and Israel. Following Germany's deep economic depression of
the 1930s, his family firm became bankrupt, and Schindler joined the
Nazi party. He became successful there, and took control of a
Jewish-owned factory, where he principally employed Jewish workers.
Slowly, however, he came to see the Jews not only as cheap labor, but
also as mothers, fathers, and children exposed to ruthless slaughter.
From then until the end of the war, he did everything he could -
mostly using massive bribery - to save "his Jews" from death in nearby
Auschwitz. Because of his money and connections, he received
permission to run a mini-concentration camp of his own, into which no
one was allowed without permission from Schindler. No one in the camp
was murdered, or transported, or starved to death. He later received
unprecedented permission to move the whole of his factory to occupied
Czechoslovakia. Later accounts revealed that Schindler spent the
enormous sum of close to four million German marks keeping "his Jews"
out of the death camps.
Although he lived in Germany for most of his life after the war, where
he was reviled for his activities in support of Jews, he was invited
to Israel each year, where "his Jews" attempted to show their
gratitude for what he had done. He was buried in the Catholic
churchyard on Mount Zion in Jerusalem, in accordance with his wishes.
[Sources: <http://home8.inet.tele.dk/aaaa/index.htm>
]
4. U.S. FOR HAWATME
The U.S. has made its position clear regarding the request by the PA
to Israel to allow Naif Hawatme to enter the autonomy via Israel.
Hawatme's organization, the Democratic Front for the Liberation of
Palestine, is no longer included on the State Department list of
terrorist groups. The DFLP is responsible for 12 terrorist attacks in
Israel over the years, including the slaughter of 22 schoolchildren
and two adults in Ma'alot in 1974. GSS head Ami Ayalon has advised
Prime Minister Barak that granting an entry permit to Hawatme, who has
made pro-Oslo statements over the past two years, will weaken Hamas
and strengthen the PA.
5. TIDBITS
The talks between Israel and the Palestinian Authority on the release
of 151 imprisoned terrorists will resume today. The Palestinians
demand the release of terrorists who killed Israelis...
Following the desecration of Berlin's Jewish cemetery last week, 30
Jewish gravestones were overturned last night in the town of Alsheim,
in south-western Germany. The vandals spray-painted swastikas and
anti-Semitic epithets...
********************************************************************
To: arutz-7@arutzsheva.org
From: Arutz-7 Net Editor <neteditor@arutzsheva.org>
Subject: Arutz-7 News: Monday, October 11, 1999
Arutz Sheva News Service
<http://www.arutzsheva.org>
Monday, October 11, 1999 / Rosh Chodesh Cheshvan, 5760
TODAY'S HEADLINES:
1. BARAK TO DECIDE ON YESHA OUTPOSTS
2. ILLEGAL PALESTINIAN STRUCTURES STILL STAND
3. PA INCITEMENT CONTINUES
4. ANOTHER DROUGHT COULD BE DISASTROUS
1. BARAK TO DECIDE ON YESHA OUTPOSTS
Yesterday's session of the Ministerial Committee for Settlement did
not produce any practical decisions regarding the Jewish civilian
outposts in Yesha. Prime Minister Barak took it upon himself to
decide which of them, if any, to evacuate. Deputy Defense Minister
Ephraim Sneh said that Barak will examine 35 outposts for their
legality.
Minister Amnon Lipkin-Shachak, a member of the committee, complained
that the information submitted by O.C. Central Command Gen. Moshe
Ya'alon indicates that far fewer outposts are problematic from a legal
standpoint than had been leaked to the press by government sources.
Minister Yossi Sarid was the lone voice in the committee demanding the
immediate evacuation of outposts.
Yesha Council Secretary-General Shlomo Filber said that Barak's policy
of freezing the outposts is acceptable, but warned that the Council
would not accept the evacuation of any existing outposts. In
reaction, Deputy Minister Sneh told Arutz-7 that he assumes that there
will be some outposts "that will be frozen, but there will be others
for which new arrangements will have to be found - and I hope that
there will not be unnecessary friction." He denied that the objective
of removing some outposts was political, and insisted that it was
exclusively a legal issue.
2. ILLEGAL PALESTINIAN STRUCTURES STILL STAND
The Barak government has not demolished even a single illegal
Palestinian structure in Judea and Samaria, by explicit order of the
Prime Minister. Arutz-7 correspondent Haggai Huberman reports that
some 1,000 illegal structures whose razing had been previously ordered
are thus still standing. They are all in Area C, under total Israeli
control. The government is scheduled to discuss the matter of illegal
Palestinian construction within the near future.
3. PA INCITEMENT CONTINUES
Palestinian Authority media incitement continues unabated, despite the
PA's Wye commitments to the contrary. So says the director of the
Palestinian Media Watch, Itamar Marcus, who noted specifically that
"the most recent edition of Al-Ayam, a newspaper edited by a former
close advisor of Arafat, published the following poem by a 16-year-old
girl on its children's page:
Here am I, my tolerance broken and dreams shattered -
Here am I, in my hand the knife of revenge.
In the past, they killed me daily, stabbing me hundreds of times.
Here I stand, my right hand holds the knife
My left hand - a machine gun
And a bomb in my brain due to the fear."
Marcus noted that the poem's style is typical of other messages in
Palestinian school textbooks and on official PA television. The
Palestinian press also appears to encourage a bellicose stance on the
part of Palestinian negotiators. "The phrase, 'There will be no peace
unless...' is used repeatedly. This means that the press is far from
the position that peace has already been somewhat achieved and that
only the details need to be worked out. Instead, the opposite message
is clear: 'We will resume the war if our demands are not met.'"
Marcus observed that this is the message, too, of Arafat's "moderate"
Fatah wing of the PLO: "The Fatah Secretary-General was quoted in the
press last week as praising suicide bombers, adding that an ongoing
battle must be waged against Israel until the return [of Palestinian
Arabs to present-day Israel] is complete."
4. ANOTHER DROUGHT COULD BE DISASTROUS
"Another dry winter will force us to cut agricultural water use by 80%
- spelling the destruction of Israel's agriculture." So said Water
Commissioner Meir Ben-Meir today at a session of the Knesset Audit
Committee dedicated to the country's water economy. Ben-Meir said
that Israel's lack of water is serious, but not unduly so, and that
mass desalination of ocean water must be financed. Other experts
present at the meeting harshly criticized Ben-Meir's policies -
including his continuing to draw water from the Kinneret even though
it has fallen below the "red line." The level of the Kinneret, as
measured this morning by Mekorot National Water Company, is 213.01
meters below sea level - one centimeter below the "red line."
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To: arutz-7@arutzsheva.org
From: Arutz-7 Net Editor <neteditor@arutzsheva.org>
Subject: Arutz-7 News: Tuesday, October 12, 1999
Arutz Sheva News Service
<http://www.arutzsheva.org>
Tuesday, October 12, 1999 / Cheshvan 2, 5760
------------------------------------------------
TODAY'S HEADLINES:
1. "BAD FEELING" AMONG YESHA LEADERS REGARDING OUTPOSTS
2. ABU ABBAS FREE TO ENTER P.A.
1. "BAD FEELING" AMONG YESHA LEADERS REGARDING OUTPOSTS
Yesha Council leaders who met today with Deputy Defense Minister
Ephraim Sneh regarding the future of the Yesha civilian outposts came
away with a "bad feeling." The Council announced that Sneh's report
contrasts with the spirit of appeasement and dialogue that the Prime
Minister promised to conduct with the Yesha residents. Barak, who has
taken it upon himself to decide which, if any, of the outposts to
uproot, will meet with the Yesha Council leaders tonight, after he met
with top IDF officers on the issue last night. It is possible that
several outposts will be evacuated and uprooted as early as this week.
2. ABU ABBAS FREE TO ENTER P.A.
The Supreme Court has rejected a petition demanding that terrorist Abu
Abbas be made to stand trial. Abu Abbas was responsible for the
hijacking of the Achille Lauro and the murder there of
wheelchair-bound Leon Klinghoffer. He was sentenced in absentia by an
Italian court, and the U.S. Senate passed a unanimous resolution in
1996 calling for his extradition from the Palestinian Authority.
Israel's Supreme Court ruled today that the Oslo Agreement Law grants
immunity to terrorists who have received Israeli permission to enter
the autonomous areas.
************************************************************************
To: arutz-7@arutzsheva.org
From: Arutz-7 Net Editor <neteditor@arutzsheva.org>
Subject: Arutz-7 News: Wednesday, October 13, 1999
Arutz Sheva News Service
<http://www.arutzsheva.org>
Wednesday, October 13, 1999 / Cheshvan 3, 5760
------------------------------------------------
TODAY'S HEADLINES:
1. FIFTEEN OUTPOSTS ON THE LINE
2. KNESSET REACTIONS
3. NRP AND UNIVERSITY REACTIONS
1. FIFTEEN OUTPOSTS ON THE LINE
Prime Minister Barak plans to uproot 15 civilian outposts in Judea and
Samaria. Uri Ariel, Mayor of Beit El, claims that the reason is not
the legality or illegality of the outposts, but rather the Palestinian
threat not to begin the final-status talks. A similar point was made
by opposition leader Ariel Sharon, who said that he is becoming more
certain that Barak promised the Palestinians that he would uproot
Jewish points in Yesha.
The 15 threatened outposts are:
* Shuna, near Eli <eli1@netvision.net.il>
* Mitzpeh Kramim, adjacent to Kokhav HaShachar (six families)
* Haresha, one mile from Talmon, on a hilltop overlooking all of the
neighboring communities (10 families) * Maon Farm, where Dov Dribben
was killed, outside Maon (6 buildings) * Adei Ad, one mile from Shvut
Rachel (11 buildings) * Har Kabir, near Elon Moreh * Mitzpeh Danny, in
memory of terrorist victim Danny Frei, 700 meters from Ma'aleh
Michmash (15 buildings) * Mitzpeh Chagit, in memory of terrorist
victim Chagit Zavitsky, two miles from Ma'aleh Michmash (7 buildings)
* N'vei Erez, in memory of Brig.-Gen. Erez Gerstein, killed in
southern Lebanon eight months ago, one mile from Ma'aleh Michmash *
Magen David, one mile from Susia * HaChayil, near Itamar (7 buildings)
* Hill 827, near Brachah * Tzufit Farm, near N'vei Tzuf * Itur 26,
east of Kiryat Arba * Areas 51 and 52, outside Kiryat Arba
Yesha Council leaders, who held a three-and-a-half-hour emergency
session this morning, plan to meet with Barak again tonight in an
attempt to change the decision. It was decided at the meeting to
strengthen and expand the outposts. A special task force will be
established in each community that has a threatened outpost, and plans
for re-populating evacuated sites will be prepared.
The Council heads met this morning with Interior Minister Natan
Sharansky (Yisrael B'Aliyah), and with Ministers Eli Yeshai (Shas) and
Rabbi Yitzchak Levy (NRP) this afternoon. Council heads say that they
will fight to preserve the outposts "with full force, within the law;"
they expect thousands of people to arrive at the threatened outposts
in protest of the evacuations. Yesha Council head Benny Kashriel
said, "Every single settlement and outpost is necessary. We will
fight for each outpost - but we will act only after meeting with the
Prime Minister tonight."
Arutz-7 correspondent Kobi Sela reports that the pressures by the Dor
HaHemshekh (Next Generation) movement are those which have
strengthened the Yesha Council not to agree to the evacuation of even
one outpost. Various grass-root groups sympathetic to the Yesha cause
will convene for an emergency meeting tonight, discussing immediate
plans for a public campaign against the uprooting of the outposts.
Dor HaHemshekh has publicly called for people to come and strengthen
the endangered sites. A large spontaneous gathering is taking place
in Maon today to plan ways to prevent the removal of the farm there.
Volunteers have arrived in several other locations as well.
2. KNESSET REACTIONS
The National Union party has submitted a no-confidence motion in the
Knesset, on the backdrop of the outposts issue. A Knesset Forum for
the Yesha Outposts has been established, headed by Ariel Sharon.
Yesha Council head Benny Kashriel will meet with One Israel Knesset
faction head MK Ophir Paz in the Knesset this afternoon. Paz said
that he wishes to prevent a deterioration in the relations with the
Yesha residents, "as occurred in the events that led to the
assassination of Yitzchak Rabin," in his words.
MK David Azulai (Shas) said that he is in favor of uprooting the
outposts if "this will advance the peace process," and advises the
Yesha Council to accept the decision "in good spirit." He said,
however, that "Barak seems to think that he is still in the army. He
must not deliver ultimatum, but rather make decisions together with
the Yesha people."
MK Yuli Edelstein (Yisrael B'Aliyah): "All outposts approved by the
Netanyahu government should remain, and the remaining 11 that were
established shortly before the elections should be checked, with an
aim towards approving them. If they are not approved, we'll have to
meet with the Yesha leaders and army leaders, and have a party meeting
on the topic, and decide on our next steps."
Likud leader Ariel Sharon: "The legality of the outposts is a
secondary problem; in my opinion they are all legal. The main issue
that must be examined is the necessity of the settlements. I appeal
to the Prime Minister, who himself comes from the settlements, who
was raised on pioneering and Zionist values, not to make this move -
which is anti-security, anti-pioneering, and anti-Zionist - of
evacuating settlements."
Ra'anan Cohen, Labor party Secretary-General: "We in the Labor party,
will not permit the street to fall back again in the hands of the
right-wing. The right speaks today of war instead of speaking about a
real public struggle for what they believe in. We won't allow - we
condemn those settlers that plan to engage in protests the way they
did against Rabin. We thought that the lesson had been learned."
3. NRP AND UNIVERSITY REACTIONS
Arutz-7's Haggai Seri reports that he received a particularly reaction
from the National Religious Party. MK Rabbi Chaim Druckman said that
the outposts are crucial for the Jewish communities in Yesha. In
answer to a question, he said that he has red lines, but that he
prefers to share them first with the Prime Minister. On the other
hand, MK Zevulun Orlev said that only the extreme right-wing objects
to any compromise whatsoever. MK Nachum Langental said, "We knew from
the beginning that the Prime Minister is not exactly a great supporter
of the National Religious Party platform. Our strategy is not built
around questions such as 'what will you do if this or that place is
evacuated?' but is rather built on a long-range strategy, on the
desire to influence the final-status agreement, on the desire to bring
about unity in the nation, and on the desire not to isolate the Yesha
communities and their residents from the rest of the nation." Seri
then said, "In conclusion, the bottom line is that the NRP plans to
remain in the coalition even if the government evacuates 15 outposts?"
Langental responded, "I didn't say that. I said only that our
struggle is not whether to leave the government or not, but rather to
facilitate as many outposts as possible."
Opposition to the uprooting of the Yesha outposts is not limited to
residents of Judea and Samaria. A group of professionals, writers and
other intellectuals has signed a petition against the move. One
professor who signed the petition, Prof. Aryeh Zaritsky of Ben Gurion
University in Be'er Sheva, sees the evacuation of the southern Mt.
Hevron neighborhoods as a strategically dangerous move: "In
principle, I am opposed to surrendering even one centimeter of the
Land of Israel. But from a purely defensive perspective, with a war
quickly approaching, retreating from these hills reduces the total
area within which Israeli tanks could freely move. If the policy of
surrender around major cities continues, we will not only not be able
to defend Be'er Sheva, but Tel Aviv as well... These areas are not
settled by Arabs, and there is no reason to transfer Jews from plots
of land on which they are raising livestock or caring for and
cultivating the Land of Israel."
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