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DEBKAfile Exclusive: Egyptian forces say they are fighting the “Tora Bora Battle of Sinai” against a new al Qaeda mountain stronghold

April 30, 2006, 10:33 PM (GMT+02:00)

Our military sources reveal the battle is raging on Jebel Magharah, 22km SW of El Arish and west of a former al Qaeda base on Jebel Hilal (alt. 654 meters). The fortified al Qaeda stronghold on Jebel Magharah is beating back an Egyptian assault on the mountain site. Signals passed among the troops describe the operation as the “Tora Bora of Sinai,” naming it after the fierce epic US-al Qaeda engagement in Afghanistan three years ago. Both sides have sustained casualties.

Egypt launched a large-scale clean-up operation against al Qaeda’s Sinai bases last week after three bomb blasts killed at least 34 people at the Sinai resort of Dahab Tuesday. They are also reported to be raiding more new al Qaeda havens around St. Catherine’s monastery and Wadi Paran in the south.


Copyright 2000-2006 DEBKAfile. All Rights Reserved.

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Israel’s top soldier Lt.-Gen Dan Halutz says “the world” is capable militarily of stopping Iran’s military program

May 2, 2006, 12:00 PM (GMT+02:00)

Asked in interviews marking Israel’s Remembrance Day for the Fallen about Israel’s involvement in a potential military operation, the chief of staff said: “We are part of the world.” He warned that Iran armed with a nuclear capability would constitute a threat to Israel’s existence.

In the Order of the Day he posted for the IDF Tuesday, he said the Iranian president’s refusal to recognize Israel’s right to live (in the region) as an independent state may not be treated lightly.

Halutz voiced opposition to re-occupying the Gaza Strip to stop Palestinian Qassam missile attacks. In his view, the price Israel would pay for re-entry would be much greater than any success in stopping the missiles.

Hamas as head of the Palestinian government is a threat as long as it does not amend its views, said Halutz. If it engages in terrorist acts, the IDF will mete out the same treatment as to any other terrorists. “Hamas has no immunity – quite the reverse,” he stressed. The chief of staff said he sees no confrontation with Hamas in the near future, but if its operatives’ join violent attacks, “we cannot rule out operations against them and that in itself would lead to escalation.

Copyright 2000-2006 DEBKAfile. All Rights Reserved.

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DEBKAfile: The new uranium deposits found in central Iran allow Tehran to enrich more uranium with reduced dependence on imported ore. Tehran again threatens Israel

May 2, 2006, 7:29 PM (GMT+02:00)

Mohammed Ghannadi, deputy chief for nuclear research presented the “good news” to a press conference in Tehran Tuesday, May 2, while in Paris, representatives of the five permanent Security Council members and Germany discussed the next steps after Iran spurned the UN call to halt enrichment.

The new sites of “economically viable” uranium deposits were found in central Iran’s Khoshoomi region, Charchooleh and Narigan, according to Ghannadi.

Iran’s principle source until now had been the Saghand mine, near Kashan, which has a reported capacity of 132,000 tons of ore a year.

DEBKAfile’s sources say the Saghand ore is of poor quality, not up to supporting the six to eight nuclear reactors president Mahmoud Ahmadinejad a month ago claimed Iran aspires to build in the next two decades. Tehran has spent many billions of dollars on a large-scale uranium enrichment program to fuel this ambitious project and was drawing up long-term contracts to import uranium ore from South Africa.

The discovery of the new deposits reduces the Islamic Republic’s dependence on outside sources which could be susceptible to American pressure and which could refuse to go through with sales.

Regarding potential US military action, Revolutionary Guards commander, Rear Admiral Mohammad-Ebrahim Dehqani said Tuesday: Whenever America does something evil, “the first place that we target will be Israel.”

Also in Tehran the head of the national atomic body, Gholamreza Aghazadeh claimed the level of enrichment carried out in Iran was 4.8%. Above 5%, he said, was “not on Iran’s agenda.” None of the experts credit this claim as anything more than another Iranian attempt to hoodwink the world.

He added that construction work and preparation of a cascade of 3,000 centrifuges to be installed by the end of this year is underway.

Iran announced at the end of April that it had enriched up to 3.6%. The level would have to be at least 80% to make nuclear weapons.

DEBKAfile’s Iranian sources add, however, that Tehran will very soon add 400 advanced P-2 centrifuges to the 1.600 already in place. This would be a giant leap forward as the P-2 type could triple or quadruple the speed of enrichment and accelerate progress towards the production of a bomb.

Our sources add: Week by week, a hitherto concealed breakthrough in Iran’s nuclear program comes to light. The cumulative effect is a build-up towards a militarization process that at some point will become irreversible – unless it is stopped. Iranian progress to that point appears to be accelerating.

Copyright 2000-2006 DEBKAfile. All Rights Reserved.

36 Palestinians Killed: 300 Arrested:

A report based on data collected from Palestinian humanitarian centers and press agencies revealed that Israeli soldiers shot and killed 36 Palestinians, including three children, in the West Bank and the Gaza Strip during the month of April; at least 300 residents were arrested in several areas in the West Bank
http://www.imemc.org/content/view/18404/1/

===
Blast kills two at Palestinian national security headquarters in Gaza town:

The Israeli army denied any involvement in the explosion. Israel has been firing artillery shells into northern Gaza in recent weeks in response to Palestinian rocket
http://www.startribune.com/722/story/406441.html

===
Mourning a West Bank wife :

Eitas Zalat was a mother of five. She was killed at dawn by an Israeli army bullet while sitting in her living room.
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/middle_east/4963598.stm

===
IDF chief: I will resist demands to reenter Gaza :

"We were in Gaza for 38 years. In all the years of fighting in Gaza, we never managed to cut the number of Qassams to zero.
http://www.haaretz.com/hasen/spages/711789.html

===
Quartet envoy questions Palestinian aid cuts:

International envoy James Wolfensohn, in his final report to Middle East mediators after stepping down, sharply questioned the decision of Western powers to cut off aid to the Hamas-led Palestinian government.
http://tinyurl.com/qmz26

===
A "Quiet Triumph" for Israel Activists at UC Berkeley:

It is the pro-Israel students, in fact, who are winning the battle on campus against Israel's detractors. Our success, though, even at a place such as UC Berkeley, will continue to be a quiet triumph.
http://tinyurl.com/mn83z

Hamas: We'll move toward peace if Israel leaves occupied lands:

Hamas could reciprocate moves toward peace if Israel agrees to withdraw from all lands occupied in 1967 and recognizes Palestinian rights, the group's leader Khaled Meshal said on Wednesday.
http://informationclearinghouse.info/article12937.htm

===
Gaza hospital fights for life after international aid cuts:

"If this continues, the majority of our services will cease to operate in two weeks' time," said Jumaa Al Saqqa, the spokesman at the impoverished Gaza Strip's main hospital.
http://tinyurl.com/e4w8g

Palestinian blames U.S. for lack of money:

Palestinian Prime Minister Ismail Haniyeh of Hamas said Wednesday that U.S. pressure foiled the latest attempt to pay 165,000 government workers by transferring money from abroad directly into their accounts. Haniyeh also appealed to Arab nations to counter the U.S. moves.
http://tinyurl.com/zbzut

===
In case you missed it:

One State Solution: A greater Palestine?:

Perhaps "Palestine" should be declared to include Israel, the West Bank, Gaza and Jordan
http://informationclearinghouse.info/article12874.htm

===
BBC's coverage of Israeli-Palestinian conflict 'misleading' :

The BBC's coverage of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict is "incomplete" and "misleading", including failing to adequately report the hardships of Palestinians living under occupation, an independent review commissioned by the corporation's board of governors has found.
http://www.guardian.co.uk/frontpage/story/0,,1766364,00.html

===
Brandeis pulls artwork by Palestinian youths : '

'This is outrageous," Halperin said yesterday. ''This an educational institution that is supposed to promote debate and dialogue. Let's talk about what it is: 12-year-olds from a Palestinian refugee camp. Obviously it's not going to be about flowers and balloons."
http://tinyurl.com/fmn86

Israel MPs approve Olmert cabinet BBC News
Israel's new government has been sworn in after parliament approved a cabinet list proposed by the incoming prime minister, Ehud Olmert. Earlier, the Mr Olmert vowed to fix the country's future borders, assuring MPs that major changes were on the way. His plan involves withdrawal from some parts of the occupied West Bank, with or without a deal with Palestinians. The Israeli leader has refused to hold talks with the Palestinians since militant group Hamas won elections. Members of the Knesset, Israel's parliament, voted by 65-49 in favour of Mr Olmert's 25-strong team. Mr Olmert, head of the Kadima party, said: "Negotiations with the Palestinian Authority is the desired basis to lead us to a peace agreement." "But a Palestinian government led by a terror organisation will not be partner for negotiations," he added, referring to Hamas, which won the Palestinian parliamentary election in January. He called the continued presence of isolated Jewish settlements in the West Bank, which is home to some two million Palestinians, a "threat to the existence of the state of Israel as a Jewish state". Israel would therefore create "desirable" borders, drawn unilaterally, while keeping the main settlement blocs "forever an inseparable part of the state of Israel". "The borders of Israel that will be formed in the coming years, will be significantly different than the territories under Israel's control today," Mr Olmert said. Israel occupied the West Bank during the 1967 Arab-Israeli war. Its settlements in the territory are considered illegal under international law, although Israel disputes this.

'Bleak view'
After weeks of talks the prime minister-designate has a narrow majority, with the support of just 67 members of the 120-seat Knesset. Mr Olmert was made acting prime minister after Ariel Sharon suffered a stroke on 4 January. His centrist Kadima party came out on top in a 28 March election, but without a parliamentary majority. After being sworn in, ministers will take their seats at the Knesset's cabinet table, and Mr Olmert will occupy the prime minister's chair for the first time since Mr Sharon was incapacitated. Earlier the Knesset session chose Dalia Itzik as its first woman speaker. Speaking as opposition leader, Binyamin Netanyahu said the Kadima programme would only strengthen Palestinian militancy. "There has never been a government that has given up so much ahead of time and relieves the other side of its obligations," the Likud party head said. For their part, Palestinians take a very bleak view of the implications of Mr Olmert's policies, according to the BBC's Alan Johnston, in Gaza. Although the new Hamas-controlled government refuses to recognise the state of Israel, Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas continually appeals for a resumption of peace talks. But the overwhelming view among Palestinians is that Mr Olmert is not interested in talking, our correspondent adds.

Israeli Occupation Forces Kill Palestinian Taxi Driver:

IOF spokesmen Thursday evening said they are investigating reports from Palestinian Authority (PA) sources that soldiers shot and killed an Arab taxi driver
http://www.israelnn.com/news.php3?id=103070

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Olmert warns Israel ready to rewrite Mideast map:

Olmert said that it was vital to maintain its Jewish majority by separating from the Palestinians.
http://www.middle-east-online.com/english/?id=16382

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Palestinian Government: Olmert's Speech a 'Declaration of War' :

The Palestinian Authority (PA) said Thursday afternoon that Prime Minister Ehud Olmert's speech launching his new administration is a "declaration of war." Hamas spokesman Sami Abu-Zuhri was referring to Olmert's position of retaining several Jewish communities in Judea and Samaria.
http://www.israelnn.com/news.php3?id=103054

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Lieberman: Arab MKs who talk with Hamas should be executed:

Israel Our Home Chairman Avigdor Lieberman said that the law should be enforced on Arab Knesset Members who travel to Arab countries and meet with representatives of Hizbullah and Hamas.
http://www.ynetnews.com/articles/0,7340,L-3247038,00.html

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Hamas: We'll move toward peace if Israel leaves occupied lands :

Hamas could reciprocate moves toward peace if Israel agrees to withdraw from all lands occupied in 1967 and recognizes Palestinian rights, the group's leader Khaled Meshal said on Wednesday.
http://www.haaretz.com/hasen/spages/712083.html

===
Hamas: US blocking PA funds :

The new Palestinian prime minister has charged the US with blocking money to pay 165,000 of its public sector workers.
http://tinyurl.com/fhlto

THE LIE OF VICTORY BRADLEY BURSTON (HAARETZ, MAY 3): In the Mideast, today's victory is tomorrow's nightmare. In a situation pitting Western concepts of defeat and victory against the Islamist view of martyrdom, no one can win.
http://www.haaretz.com/hasen/pages/ShArt.j...21&contrassID=2

BACKPEDALING IN EGYPT: THAT WAS A SHORT SEASON OF REFORM ? EDITORIAL (WASHINGTON POST, MAY 4): If the administration and Congress want to help Egypt, aid should go to that nation's civic society and democratic reformers, not the corrupt regime that persecutes those who favor a freedom agenda.
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/conte...6050302184.html

BUSH'S FAILURE IN THE MIDDLE EAST - THIERRY DE MONTBRIAL (LE MONDE, MAY 3/TRUTHOUT): George W. Bush's record in the Middle East -- the region presently the most important for international policy -- seems calamitous.
http://www.truthout.org/docs_2006/050406H.shtml

Israel shuts down all crossings on Israel-Gaza borders :

Director of Palestinian Crossing Security Salim Abu Safiea told reporters in Gaza that the Israeli side has closed Karni commercial terminal and forced Palestinian workers and merchants out.
http://news.xinhuanet.com/english/2006-05/...ent_4518956.htm

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Israel Prevents Patients from Receiving Treatment :

Israeli Occupation Forces (IOF) prevented 274 patients from passing through Beit Hanoun (Erez) checkpoint for receiving critical medical treatment in hospitals of West Bank and Israel.
http://english.wafa.ps/body.asp?id=6204

===
Amira Hass: Hungry and Shell-Shocked:

Hamas is busy trying to quell false rumors that abound in the streets. One such rumor is that salaries were paid but only to those who support Hamas.
http://www.palestinechronicle.com/story.php?sid=042506230831

===
Diana Buttu: On Journalism and Media:

Watching Western television or reading newspaper reports of Palestine always leaves me perplexed. If I did not live in Palestine and bear witness to Israel’s military occupation, I would be left with the impression that Palestinians and Israelis are equals – with no occupation existing – and that this conflict simply requires “concessions” on both sides.
http://informationclearinghouse.info/article12966.htm

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U.S.-Israel-Jordan Pact Created Near-Slavery Conditions:

Major U.S. companies, including Wal-Mart, Gloria Vanderbilt, Target, Kohl's, Victoria's Secret and L.L. Bean, are buying apparel from sweatshops in Jordan under a three-way trade deal that binds the Arab nation to Israel and the United States, according to a new report.
http://informationclearinghouse.info/article12967.htm

http://news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20060507/bs_nm/...HE0BHNlYwN0bWE-




Buffett deal sparks Israeli hopes for more
By Tova CohenSun May 7, 11:43 AM ET

Warren Buffett's acquisition of a majority stake in an Israeli engineering firm for $4 billion sparked hopes on Sunday that more foreign investors will follow suit.

Buffett, widely regarded as one of the world's savviest investors, announced on Friday that his company Berkshire Hathaway Inc. (NYSE:BRKA - news) (NYSE:BRKB - news) would use some of its nearly $43 billion in cash to boost its international presence, acquiring 80 percent of privately held Iscar Metalworking Cos.

The purchase is one of the largest deals involving an Israeli company and Buffett's biggest investment outside the United States.

The deal looked set to raise awareness among foreign investors about the potentials of the Israeli economy, which grew 5.2 percent in 2005 and is forecast to expand 4-4.5 percent this year on the heels of global growth and a shift to free-market policies.

"This is certainly a vote of confidence in Israel and reduces the risk factors that some investors might associate with investing in Israel. Some investors view Israel as a risky place but Buffett is not a risk taker by any means," said Richard Gussow, a senior analyst at the Excellence Nessuah brokerage in Tel Aviv.

However, Gussow said that future investments will also depend on economic and political developments in Israel.

Berkshire's deal follows an announcement by Intel Corp. (Nasdaq:INTC - news) in December that it will build a chip plant costing more than $3.5 billion in the southern Israeli town of Kiryat Gat, home to an existing Intel plant.

Foreigners invested nearly $10 billion in Israel last year, including almost $6 billion in direct investment as the tech-rich economy rebounded from a global downturn earlier in the decade and as violence between Israel and the Palestinians eased.

Vered Dar, chief economist at the Psagot Ofek brokerage, said Buffett's moves were widely watched.

"If he is investing in Israel such a substantial sum, he obviously knows something that we should learn from," she said. "This type of publicity is worth a lot to Israel's economy and capital market."

STOCKS, SHEKEL GAIN

Israeli shares surged on the news, with the main indices gaining over 2.5 percent on Sunday to record levels. Since the March 28 Israeli election, shares have risen about 8 percent.

The currency market is closed on Sunday but trading in shekel dollar options on the bourse indicated a rate of 4.44 shekels per dollar, compared with Friday's official rate of 4.4710. The shekel has strengthened from 4.70 on March 29.

"The huge increase in capital inflows as a result of the Iscar deal of $4 billion, even if not all of the amount is converted to shekels, is expected to contribute to the continued strengthening of the shekel," Tel Aviv brokerage Leader Capital Markets said in a report.

Iscar, based in Tefen in northern Israel, manufactures metalworking tools used by makers of heavy equipment such as cars and planes. It has facilities in Tefen, the United States, Brazil, China, Germany, India, Italy, Japan and South Korea.

Stef Wertheimer founded Iscar 50 years ago and his family will retain 20 percent of the company.

Iscar will continue to be managed by its current team, including Chairman Eitan Wertheimer, son of the founder.

Israeli newspapers quoted Buffett as saying over the weekend in Omaha, Nebraska, where Berkshire is based, that he plans further acquisitions of Israeli companies and will visit in September to inspect his investment and examine the local business scene.

Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert hailed Buffett's acquisition as a boon to the Israeli economy.

"He is saying he supports and believes in the stability of the Israeli economy and says what we only say in our dreams," Olmert told reporters.

The deal will be a windfall for Olmert's new government, which is expected to reap about $1 billion in taxes from the deal, or more than 2.5 percent of annual tax revenues in Israel.

If the entire sum is received this year, the government could close the year without a budget deficit, Dar said, though she noted that budget surpluses often lead to political pressures to expand public spending.

The additional revenues will facilitate the government's plans to lower taxes and could also reduce the amount of funds the government will need to raise, which would support Israeli bond prices.

ALESTINIAN PAIN, ONE KID AT A TIME - FAREED TAAMALLAH (LOS ANGELES TIMES, MAY 6): Every day, world leaders think of new ways to punish the Palestinians for electing Hamas.
http://www.latimes.com/news/opinion/commen...omment-opinions

DEBKAfile reports: New focus on Iran prompts appointment of deputy Mossad chief Ilan Mizrahi, 56, as Israel’s next National Security Council chief

May 8, 2006, 11:10 AM (GMT+02:00)

He replaces Gen. Giora Eiland who asked to be relieved of the post last year. DEBKAfile’s intelligence sources report the new appointee, an experienced field operative, is a world class authority on Iran and expert on Muslim and Arab affairs, although less conversant with Palestinian issues. Selecting Mizrahi for the job signposts PM Olmert’s order of strategic priorities.

The NSC’s relocation from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem places a security-clandestine branch directly alongside the incoming prime minister. He acquires an ace in secret diplomacy should he wish to bypass defense minister Amir Peretz, foreign minister Tzipi Livni or his inner security cabinet, for discreet exchanges with Washington, foreign intelligence chiefs, or key Arab officials. Mizrahi knows how to reach the right person without go-betweens. He also prefers to keep a low personal profile, a rare attribute in Israeli officialdom. Father of three, the prime minister’s new national security adviser spent four years as deputy Mossad chief. He has a master’s degree in Oriental Studies.

Copyright 2000-2006 DEBKAfile. All Rights Reserved.

Olmert: We will ensure Jewish majority:

The obligation of the national leadership is to be responsible to the vision of Herzl and to ensure a Jewish majority in the State."
http://www.ynetnews.com/articles/0,7340,L-3248515,00.html

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World Bank says underestimated depth of Palestinian crisis :

The World Bank warned donors on Sunday that the financial crisis gripping the Palestinian Authority since Hamas won election was deeper than it first thought and could render the West Bank and Gaza ungovernable.
http://www.haaretz.com/hasen/spages/713239.html

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Israeli Arabs send 250 tons of food, medicine to West Bank :

Israeli Arabs on Monday transferred 250 tons of food and medical supplies to the Palestinians in the West Bank via the Jalama roadblock, at the northern entrance to Jenin.
http://www.haaretz.com/hasen/spages/713637.html

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EU plans to go it alone with aid for Palestinians:

The EU is preparing to go it alone and channel emergency funds to the Palestinians if talks with the US, Russia and United Nations on setting up an international mechanism for easing their financial plight fail this week, senior officials indicated at the weekend.
http://www.guardian.co.uk/print/0,,329474674-103552,00.html

Civil war in the Gaza strip: Channel 4 Video report: :

As aid runs dry, the guns and pent-up frustrations of factions for and against Hamas have taken to the streets of Gaza. Video may take a moment to load.
http://www.channel4.com/player/playerwindo...=4919&vert=news

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President Abbas Sends a Letter to the Quartet Demanding Support to PNA:

A new World Bank report warns that the authority might collapse if the salary issue is not resolved quickly.
http://www.ipc.gov.ps/ipc_new/english/details.asp?name=15870

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Haniyeh to Jihad: End rocket attacks:

Hamas leader reportedly pleads with Islamic Jihad to cease Qassam attacks against Israel
http://www.ynetnews.com/articles/0,7340,L-3248754,00.html

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More than half of Israelis favor ethnic cleansing: :

More than half of Israelis think the government should encourage its Arab citizens to emigrate from Israel, according to an annual survey by the Israel Democracy Institute.
http://www.haaretz.com/hasen/spages/714005.html

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Arab MK: Israel world's most racist state:

Israeli Arab Knesset members slam results of Israel Democracy Institute's survey showing 62 percent of Israelis want to encourage Arab emigration;
http://www.ynetnews.com/articles/0,7340,L-3248807,00.html

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PA health care teeters on total collapse Jerusalem Post
Israel must immediately lift its economic siege of the Hamas-led Palestinian Authority if a total collapse of the Palestinian health care system is to be avoided, according to a position paper released by Physicians for Human Rights Tuesday. Thousands of people are likely to die in the short term if funds are not transferred to the PA Ministry of Health to pay for medicine and other supplies, as well as the salaries of doctors and nurses, according to the paper. The paper comes on the heels of a string of reports of rapidly deteriorating conditions in hospitals throughout the Palestinian territories, particularly in the Gaza Strip. Hospitals there say they are running dangerously low on basic medical supplies and that as a result they are unable to provide patients with important treatments like kidney dialysis. Their warning comes as reports of Palestinian children being sent by their parents to beg in Israel have increased substantially in the last two weeks. Though the phenomenon has been observed for the last two-and-a-half years, said Yitzhak Kadman, the executive director for National Council for the Child, his organization has been "flooded with phone calls and e-mails more recently, indicating it is on the rise." The declining quality of health care in Gaza comes despite what a Civil Administration spokesman said were at least eight truck loads of humanitarian supplies delivered through the Karnei crossing in the last three days. The spokesman said that at least 20 truck loads of medicine passed through Karnei in April, despite an attack on the crossing and many security warnings. Foreign Ministry spokesman Mark Regev said Israel had no interest in seeing the Palestinian health care system collapse and was trying to prevent this while at the same time working to prevent funds from reaching the Hamas-led PA. "We are encouraging donations and transfers of medicines and other vitally needed products [to Palestinian health facilities,]" Regev said, adding that the shortages of supplies were probably the result of the PA's empty coffers. "It is a challenge that we have to deal with." Nearly all of the PA's non-salary medical costs, totaling around $7.7 million per month, were previously funded by foreign donors. Since Hamas took over the Palestinian Legislative Council and government, that money has completely dried up. Israel and the international community, Regev said, were considering buying medical supplies directly and delivering them to the PA, rather than giving money to the PA to make the purchases itself. "We will do everything we can to make sure medicines expeditiously reach the relevant health facilities in the PA," he said. Israel is less inclined to help where the salaries of PA health workers are concerned. They total around $5.8m. per month. That funding previously came from international donors (30%), taxes collected by Israel on the PA's behalf (50%), and PA collected tax revenue (20%). "Israel and the Quartet don't want to do anything that will require contact with a Hamas-controlled PA government, that will require giving legitimacy to a Hamas-controlled PA government, or that will require strengthening a Hamas-controlled PA government," Regev said. Physicians for Human Rights said in its paper that this policy would eventually cause the collapse of the PA health system and that, under international law, Israel would then be directly responsible for providing care to the Palestinians. "In this situation, the State of Israel will be required to finance the health needs of 3.5m. Palestinians living under its control. Although it continues to bear such responsibility every day in the occupied territories, and although it denies this responsibility, Israel will no longer be able to stand back as a humanitarian disaster occurs," the report reads. The drafters of the report rejected proposals by Israel and the international community to transfer responsibility for the PA health system to the World Health Organization or other non-governmental bodies, saying it was "unfeasible in the short term." That same message was delivered by a group of 36 NGOs operating in Gaza in a joint report on the conditions there eight months after disengagement. According to their report, 78% of Gazans live below the poverty line and 10% of children under the age of five suffer from chronic malnutrition. Despite efforts by Israel and the international community to use NGOs to provide direct humanitarian aid to the Palestinians, bypassing the PA, the humanitarian situation there will worsen significantly as it is impossible to provide a substitute for the services that were provided by the PA, the report said. "All the international aid agencies put together will not be able to replace the services that the Palestinian Authority provides to the people in the Gaza Strip," said David Shearer, head of the United Nations Office for Humanitarian Affairs.
UN, US, EU, Russia Agree to Give Direct Aid to Palestinians Bloomberg
Hamas, Fatah agree to halt violence Xinhua
TIME - Voice of America - FOX News - Online Journal - all 1,133 related »

SYRIA: Damascus opens doors to Palestinian refugees on border:

Some 244 Palestinian refugees, the majority of whom had been stranded at the Iraq-Jordan border for nearly two months after fleeing violence in Iraq, have been allowed to cross into Syrian territory.
http://tinyurl.com/my5ka

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Patients die as doctors run out of drugs to treat them :

Physicians for Human Rights - Israel, an independent medical charity, warned yesterday that the Palestinian health system faced collapse if aid continued to be withheld.
http://informationclearinghouse.info/article12997.htm

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Cash-strapped Gaza hospital cuts dialysis, cancer treatments :

At least four people suffering from kidney diseases died in the Gaza Strip in April, after the cash-strapped Palestinian Authority Health Ministry cut the Shifa Hospital's budget for the necessary dialysis treatments.
http://www.haaretz.com/hasen/spages/714071.html

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Palestinian Pain, One Kid at a Time :

Every day, world leaders think of new ways to punish the Palestinians for electing Hamas. But the people who suffer most are children like my daughter, Lina.
http://informationclearinghouse.info/article12992.htm

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Israeli petrol company, Dor Alon, halts fuel supplies to PA :

Dor Energy, the Israeli company that provides fuel to the Palestinian areas, is cutting off supplies due to growing debts, Palestinian officials said Wednesday, warning the move would deepen a humanitarian crisis brewing in the West Bank and Gaza Strip.
http://www.haaretz.com/hasen/spages/714488.html

===
America bows to EU pressure to allow aid for Palestinians :

The United States has bowed to pressure from the European Union and agreed to find a "temporary international mechanism" to channel humanitarian aid to the Palestinian people.
http://news.independent.co.uk/world/americ...ticle363144.ece

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Payout plan to bypass Hamas:

KEY international peace brokers will pay the salaries of cash-strapped Palestinian civil servants by setting up a trust fund through the office of President Mahmoud Abbas that bypasses the Hamas Government.
http://www.theaustralian.news.com.au/story...98-2703,00.html

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Israeli Ambassador Ayalon: We’ll oppose paying PA workers :

Israel will oppose paying salaries to Hamas government employees in the Palestinian Authority (PA), via the humanitarian mechanism that the Quartet (the US, UN, EU and Russia) announced yesterday, Israel Ambassador to the US Daniel Ayalon told “Globes” last night.
http://tinyurl.com/kflhh

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A Response to Critics of 'The Israel

We wrote "The Israel Lobby" in order to begin a discussion of a subject that had become difficult to address openly in the United States. We knew it was likely to generate a strong reaction, and we are not surprised that some of our critics have chosen to attack our characters or misrepresent our arguments.
http://www.alternet.org/story/35925

US freeze on medical aid takes its toll :

The United States has stopped providing medical supplies to Palestinian hospitals as part of Washington's sanctions against Hamas.
http://tinyurl.com/m8r9o

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Emergency aid may be too little, too late for Palestinians trying to survive a crisis :

Zarifa Abdel Khadr came in secret to Gaza City's jewellery souk this week to sell the two gold rings she has owned for half a century.
http://news.independent.co.uk/world/middle...ticle363793.ece

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Banks told to process Palestinian funds:

A leading Islamic scholar has threatened to call for a boycott of Arab banks that refuse to process funds meant for the new Hamas-led Palestinian Authority.
http://tinyurl.com/ekjzj

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Hamas decries strings to aid:

"The government appreciates the efforts deployed by the international parties to alleviate the economic siege imposed on the Palestinian people ... but deeply regrets the Quartet's insistence on attaching pre-conditions to the Palestinian government."
http://tinyurl.com/rbjs5

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Prisoners soften stance on Israel:

Jailed members of Hamas and Fatah have developed a peace plan that accepts of a Palestinian state alongside Israel, Mahmoud Abbas says. However, it was unclear whether Hamas, particularly the group's leaders abroad, would back the proposals.
http://tinyurl.com/psbwq

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Abbas strikes petrol deal:

Mujahed Salameh, the head of the Palestinian Petroleum Agency, said on Thursday that the deal was reached after Mahmoud Abbas sent a letter to Dor Alon guaranteeing to send funds within 10 days.
http://tinyurl.com/p6frh

===
Israeli Poll: Gov't should help Arab citizens emigrate :

Some 62 percent of Israelis believe the government should encourage the country's Arab citizens to emigrate, according to a survey by the Israel Democracy Institute that will be published today as part of its annual Democracy Index project.
http://www.haaretz.com/hasen/spages/714099.html

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Israeli rabbis awarded Japan peace prize:

Israel's Rabbis for Human Rights, which has built up a reputation for battling abuses by soldiers and settlers in the Palestinian territories, was honoured in Japan with a leading peace prize.
http://tinyurl.com/ootdx

===
U.K. academics to back sweeping boycott of Israeli universities :

The largest university and college lecturers union in Britain is likely to decide shortly to recommend that its 67,000 members boycott Israeli lecturers and academic institutions that do not publicly declare their opposition to Israeli policy in the territories.
http://www.haaretz.com/hasen/spages/713681.html

Israel crosses the threshold :

The Kennedy and Johnson administrations fashioned a complex scheme of annual inspections at Dimona to assure that Israel would not develop nuclear weapons. But the Israelis were adept at concealing their activities. By late 1966, Israel had reached the nuclear threshold, although it decided not to conduct an atomic test.
http://www.thebulletin.org/print.php?art_ofn=mj06cohen

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In case you missed it:

Secret sale of UK plutonium to Israel :

The UK supplied Israel with quantities of plutonium while Harold Wilson was prime minister, BBC Newsnight can reveal.
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/programmes/newsnight/4789832.stm

===
In case you missed it:

Britain's dirty secret :

Secret papers show how Britain helped Israel make the A-bomb in the 1960s, supplying tons of vital chemicals including plutonium and uranium. And it looks as though Harold Wilson and his ministers knew nothing about it.
http://www.newstatesman.com/200603130011

===
Israel Kilsl Nine Palestinians, Injures 31 Others:

A recent report monitoring the Israeli violations against the Palestinian people asserted that Israeli occupation forces have killed nine Palestinians and injured 31 others during the last week, in 768 violations
http://www.ipc.gov.ps/ipc_new/english/details.asp?name=15928

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Muslim Scholars Threaten Boycott Over Palestinian Aid:

Leading Muslim scholar threatened to rally Muslims to boycott countries that refuse to deal with the Hamas-led government.
http://www.palestinechronicle.com/story.php?sid=05120620637

===
Norway announces 50 percent boost for UN Palestinian aid :

Norway on Friday announced a 50-percent hike in its funding for United Nations Palestinian relief efforts to help ease an economic crisis in the occupied territories after a Hamas-led government took office
http://www.haaretz.com/hasen/spages/715378.html

===

Gideon Levy: Not without my daughter:

She was a communist in her youth and an Islamic Jihad activist when she grew up, whose brother was beaten to death by soldiers in 1976 and whose uncle was shot and died in her father's arms in their lost village of Hulda in 1948.
http://www.haaretzdaily.com/hasen/pages/Sh...l?itemNo=715026

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The only way out: It is the time of decision.

Mustafa Barghouti makes an impassioned call for national unity and the end to internal Palestinian conflicts
http://weekly.ahram.org.eg/print/2006/794/op37.htm

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Israeli leaders avoid subject of anti-Arab racism:

The IDI survey, which showed that only 28% of the Israeli public oppose efforts which encourage the emigration of the Arab sector, Azaiza queried the place of the Arab population in Israeli democracy.
http://tinyurl.com/oosb3

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Rabbi Bruce Warshal: 'Israel Lobby' bad for Israel, the U.S. :

Beware of these self-appointed guardians of Israel and Jewish values. In the end they will destroy everything that makes Judaism a compassionate religion, and if in their zeal they do not destroy Israel, they certainly will not make it more secure.
http://informationclearinghouse.info/article13014.htm

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The great catastrophe :

In the last week of April 1948, combined Irgun-Haganah forces launched an offensive to drive the Palestinian people out of the beautiful port city of Jaffa, forcing the remaining inhabitants to flee by sea; many drowned in the process.
http://informationclearinghouse.info/article13015.htm

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Israeli general skips U.K. trip over arrest fears:

The Israeli Army scrapped plans Thursday to send one of its generals to a course at a British military academy over fears he could be arrested on war-crime allegations, military sources said.
http://tinyurl.com/kh4d4

WHY ARE HAMAS PEACE MOVES IGNORED? IRA CHERNUS (COMMON DREAMS, MAY 12): As we watch peace moves by Hamas get ignored, just as conciliatory statements from Iran's government are ignored, it becomes harder and harder to argue with the gloomy assessment that American and Israeli leaders don?t really want peace; they want power and control.
http://www.commondreams.org/views06/0512-34.htm

MAKING (NON) SENSE OF THE FUNDING CUT-OFF HAMAS AND ISRAEL'S "RIGHT TO EXIST" - VIRGINIA TILLEY (COUNTERPUNCH, MAY 12): To the great consternation of most of the world, the European Union, followed now by Norway and Canada, has halted payments to the Hamas-led government of the Palestinian Authority (PA). Let us first be clear: no conceivable good can come from this policy.
http://www.counterpunch.org/tilley05112006.html

AMERICA EMBRACES THE HAMAS FANTASY - CAROLINE GLICK (JERUSALEM POST, MAY 11): Rice's decision to enable the funding of the Hamas-led PA is disastrous.
http://www.jpost.com/servlet/Satellite?cid...icle%2FShowFull

HAMAS' CHALLENGE OF RESPONSIBILITY - CLAUDE SALHANI (WASHINGTON TIMES, MAY 13): Today, the Hamas leadership is directly responsible for the lives and the well-being of the entire population of Gaza and the West Bank. It's a rude awakening.
http://www.washtimes.com/commentary/200605...90153-9719r.htm

ESCALATING PROTESTS IN EGYPT MARC LYNCH (ABU AARDVARK, MAY 11): What's happening right now in Egypt is really important. As I read things, the last few months have seen the steady counter-attack by the regime against the various protest movements which had become increasingly active over the last year and a half ... . The Bush administration could hardly be bothered to pretend to care.
http://abuaardvark.typepad.com/abuaardvark...ating_prot.html

NEW JORDANIAN TV STATION COMING SOON MARC LYNCH
http://abuaardvark.typepad.com/abuaardvark...ordanian_t.html

IS THE 'ISRAEL LOBBY' A DANGER? LETTERS TO THE EDITOR (BALTIMORE SUN, MAY 13)
http://www.baltimoresun.com/news/opinion/l...-oped-headlines

Court upholds Israeli spouse ban BBC News
Israel's Supreme Court has upheld a controversial law barring West Bank Palestinians from living with their spouses and children in Israel itself. By a six-to-five majority, the court rejected petitions brought by civil rights groups, members of the Israeli parliament and Arab Israeli families. The government says the law, passed at a time of rising violence in 2002, is based on security concerns. But critics say it is discriminatory and violates rights to a family life. The case has been described as one of the most important questions the Supreme Court has dealt with in recent years. One of the groups that challenged the law said thousands of families were affected, that they have been forced to move abroad or live apart. Orna Kohn, a lawyer for a group defending Israeli Arabs, said Sunday's ruling caused "grave damage to the basic rights of thousands of people". But the Israeli state says the recent election victory of the militant group Hamas strengthened its case that Palestinians were a security risk and should not be allowed into the country. There are some 1.3 million Arab citizens in Israel - just under 20% of the population.

Haniyeh stresses right of return:

Palestinian Prime Minister Ismail Haniyeh of Hamas says right of return for Palestinian refugees is 'holy' for Palestinian people; Hamas will make no concessions on issue to international peace brokers, he hints
http://www.ynetnews.com/articles/0,7340,L-3250260,00.html

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Haifa mayor: I agree to refugees' return :

In interview to Israeli-Arab newspaper, town's Head Yahav says he does not object to Palestinians going back to Haifa in framework of peace deal between Israel and PA
http://www.ynetnews.com/articles/0,7340,L-3250019,00.html

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Hamas and Israel's "Right to Exist":

To the great consternation of most of the world, the European Union, followed now by Norway and Canada, has halted payments to the Hamas-led government of the Palestinian Authority (PA). The stated reason is that Hamas has not recognized Israel's "right to exist" or "renounced violence," but the action so violates all common sense that its logic requires our closer scrutiny.
http://informationclearinghouse.info/article13025.htm

===
MK Barakeh: Court gave racism an alibi:

Law blocks entry of Palestinians to marry Israeli citizens; MK: It is unbelievable Israeli, Jewish judges accept law based solely on racism
http://tinyurl.com/pgbbr

===
Israel, U.S. to start discussing convergence plan this week :

The working assumption among senior Israeli officials is that the administration supports the plan and views it as "the only game in town."
http://www.haaretz.com/hasen/spages/715457.html

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Why Americans Can't Support "Palestinian Anti-Terrorism Act" :

AIPAC's 290 Congressional co-sponsors and staffers are facing massive opposition in their bid to pass punitive legislation on Palestinians.
http://www.irmep.org/hr4681.htm

===
Pro-Israel congresswoman addresses AIPAC:

Florida Congresswoman Ileana Ros-Lehtinen Congresswoman discusses the Iran Freedom Support and Palestinian Anti-Terrorism Acts in Boston
http://tinyurl.com/pcmwv

===
Noam Chomsky: Hezbollah's insistence on keeping its arms is justified:

Noam Chomsky the famous US intellectual anti Israel and US foreign policies visits Hezbollah's Headquarters and meets Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah in the South suburb of Beirut which was once called by the former US Secretary George Shultz as the plague of the Middle East.
http://informationclearinghouse.info/article13033.htm

Israel Court Bars Residency for Palestinians

JERUSALEM-Israel's Supreme Court upheld a controversial law that
prevents Palestinians in the West Bank and Gaza Strip from gaining
legal residency to join spouses and children who are Israeli
citizens. By Ken Ellingwood.
http://email.latimes.com/cgi-bin1/DM/y/e2m...Io30G2B0HXFO0Ea

http://usinfo.state.gov/mena/Archive/2006/May/11-603000.html

U.S. Expresses Deep Concern on Egypt's Crushing of Demonstrations
State's McCormack says as Egypt's friend, U.S. supports political reforms


Washington -- The United States has expressed deep concern about reports of Egyptian security forces crushing peaceful demonstrations protesting election fraud and calling for an independent judiciary.

"[A]ctions such as these are incongruous with the Egyptian government's professed commitment to increased political openness and dialogue within Egyptian society," State Department spokesman Sean McCormack said at the May 11 State Department briefing. "We support the rights of Egyptians and people throughout the Middle East to peacefully advocate for democracy and political reform."

Answering reporters' questions about the statement, McCormack said the root issue of the demonstrations was a demand for an independent judiciary in Egypt that could oversee the implementation of election laws.

McCormack described Egypt as a good friend and ally sharing many common concerns with the United States, such as fighting terrorism and working for peace in the Middle East. As a friend of Egypt, the United States will continue speaking out "very plainly" about the right of people to demonstrate peacefully. McCormack said.

The protests were called to support two judges from Egypt's highest court who went public with claims of fraud during parliamentary elections in 2005. The two have been ordered before a court panel for possible disciplinary action. The elections in November 2005 and December 2005 were marred by violence that killed 14 people.

In April, the government renewed emergency laws that it had promised to lift, a longtime demand of human rights groups because of the broad powers of arrest the laws give security forces.

The transcript of the State Department briefing is available on the State Department’s Web site.

US renews ties with Libya Yahoo! News
The United States restored full diplomatic ties with Libya on Monday, rewarding the longtime pariah nation for scrapping its weapons of mass destruction programs and signaling incentives for Iran and North Korea should they do the same. Culminating a years-long rapprochement with the OPEC member, Washington will reopen an embassy and remove Libya from a list of state sponsors of terrorism. U.S.-Libya relations turned around after Tripoli decided in December 2003 to give up its weapons program, and the two nations have repeatedly said since then they would work to restore ties as Libya followed through on its pledge. "Just as 2003 marked a turning point for the Libyan people, so too could 2006 mark turning points for the peoples of Iran and North Korea," Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice, who is leading international pressure on the two countries to limit their nuclear programs, said in a statement. Libya, which is led by one-time U.S. antagonist Muammar Gaddafi, badly needs foreign investment in its energy industry. The OPEC member welcomed the move, with its Foreign Ministry called it a "significant step" toward improving all areas of bilateral cooperation. And Ali Aujali, the Libyan Liaison Office chief in Washington, said the decision would benefit U.S. oil companies because it meant an end of U.S. sanctions against Libya. "Now I think they can compete with the other companies and they can go ahead with their job in Libya," he said. As ties warmed, U.S. companies such as Marathon Oil Corp., ConocoPhillips and Amerada Hess Corp. last year agreed to terms letting them resume oil and gas production in Libya after a 19-year absence.

PRAISE AND OUTRAGE
As an interim step in 2004, the United States ended a broad trade embargo placed on Libya in 1986. The U.S. embassy in Libya was set on fire by a mob in 1979. After declaring Libya a "state sponsor of terrorism," a designation which triggers sanctions, the United States closed its embassy there in 1980, effectively cutting off ties. A leading Democrat on U.S. foreign policy also praised the decision as signaling an incentive to Iran. "Libya has thoroughly altered its behavior," Rep. Tom Lantos (news, bio, voting record), the ranking Democrat on the House International Relations Committee, said in a statement. "In taking these actions, the United States dramatically demonstrates to the remaining rogue states -- and particularly to Iran -- that our country takes note of positive changes in behavior and is more than willing to reciprocate," the California Democrat added. But some of the American relatives of those killed in the 1988 Pan Am airliner bombing over Lockerbie, Scotland, which Libya accepted responsibility for, voiced outrage and complained they had not been told in advance. "It is a dangerous move and now they have rewarded the terrorists," said Susan Cohen, whose 20-year-old daughter was killed in the attack. "The only reason they are doing this is oil," she added. But Saad Djebbar, an Algerian human rights lawyer, who was closely involved in the Lockerbie negotiations, predicted Monday's move would usher in a trade boom. "The Libyan market will open up to U.S. companies, especially in pharmaceuticals, agricultural products and high-tech equipment, not just oil," he said. "Thousands of Libyans will head to America for business, holidays and studies."
By Saul Hudson

Report: Pakistan supplied nukes to Syria : -

U.S. intelligence agencies suspect Syria was offered and received nuclear weapons technology from the covert Pakistani supplier group headed by A.Q. Khan, according to an intelligence report.
http://www.informationclearinghouse.info/article13051.htm

U.S. TO RENEW DIPLOMATIC TIES WITH LIBYA - DEBBI WILGOREN (WASHINGTON POST, MAY 15)
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/conte...6051500457.html


LETTING LIBYA UP: THE NATION'S ATONEMENT FOR ITS TERRORIST PAST SHOWS THAT TOUGH U.S. DIPLOMACY CAN WORK IN THE ARAB WORLD EDITORIAL (LOS ANGELES TIMES, MAY 16)
http://www.latimes.com/news/opinion/editor...ment-editorials


THE KHADAFY PARADIGM EDITORIAL (BOSTON GLOBE, MAY 16): If President Bush wants to have any chance of persuading Iran and North Korea to strike the kind of deal Khadafy struck, he will have to put on the table the economic and security incentives they desire.
http://www.boston.com/news/globe/editorial...adafy_paradigm/

KADAFI KILLED MY CHILD: THE U.S. HAS FORGIVEN HIM, BUT WE'LL NEVER FORGET WHO BOMBED PAN AM FLIGHT 103 - DANIEL COHEN (LOS ANGELES TIMES, MAY 16):(Daniel Cohen and his wife, Susan, are authors of "Pan Am 103: The Bombing, the Betrayals, and the Bereaved Family's Search for Justice.)
http://www.latimes.com/news/opinion/commen...home-commentary


HOW GADHAFI LOST HIS GROOVE: THE COMPLEX SURRENDER OF LIBYA'S WMD - JUDITH MILLER (OPINION JOURNAL FROM THE WALL STREET JOURNAL EDITORIAL PAGE, MAY 16)
http://www.opinionjournal.com/editorial/fe...ml?id=110008381


EGYPTIAN EMERGENCY: MUBARAK RESPONDS TO TERROR BY GOING AFTER THE REFORMERS - KHAIRI ABAZA (NATIONAL REVIEW)
http://article.nationalreview.com/?q=NGU1Y...DNjYzdkMDM0YjI=


ALL RISE FOR THE JUDGES OF EGYPT - MONITOR'S VIEW (CHRISTIAN SCIENCE MONITOR, MAY 16): The Bush administration must provide more support for those activists who clearly advocate democracy for Egypt.
http://www.csmonitor.com/2006/0516/p08s02-comv.html


THE REGION: WHY BAIL HAMAS OUT - BARRY RUBIN (JERUSALEM POST, MAY 15): Something about the Middle East makes people dopey. The latest example of this phenomenon is the plan, apparently endorsed by EU countries, to pay Palestinian Authority employees out of their own taxpayers' money.
http://www.jpost.com/servlet/Satellite?cid...icle%2FShowFull


WHERE IS THE GLOBAL OUTCRY AT THIS CONTINUING CRUELTY NEARLY 60 YEARS AFTER MOST PALESTINIANS WERE FIRST FORCED FROM OUR HOMES, THE KILLINGS AND BLOCKADES CARRY ON WITH IMPUNITY - GHADA KARMI (GUARDIAN/UK, MAY 15/COMMON DREAMS): Israel pulled off an amazing stunt: the creation of a state for one people on the land of another -- and at their massive expense -- without incurring effective sanction.
http://www.commondreams.org/views06/0515-27.htm


FOR ISRAEL AND HAMAS, A CASE FOR ACCOMMODATION - ROBERT MALLEY AND AARON DAVID MILLER (WASHINGTON POST, MAY 15): While Hamas's and Israel's long-term designs remain at loggerheads, their immediate agendas dovetail. As a result, a combination of economic recovery and restoration of law and order for the Palestinians, West Bank withdrawals for Israel, and an informal truce for both appears within reach.
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/conte...6051400807.html

Abbas warns of Palestinian anger "explosion" on aid
http://www.alertnet.org/thenews/newsdesk/L16155389.htm

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Israeli sources: U.S. working behind scenes to bolster Abbas ;

The United States administration is working behind the scenes to bolster the security forces under the control of Palestinian Authority Chairman Mahmoud Abbas, according to Israeli sources.
http://www.haaretz.com/hasen/spages/716270.html

===
Fatah official: Israel poisoned Arafat who sought peace:

The Secretary of Fatah's Intifada movement in Lebanon Abu Fadi Hamad today said that the prospect for solving the Palestinian issue is not bright due to the policies and plans of the Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert.
http://www.arabicnews.com/ansub/Daily/Day/...2006051606.html

===
Norway grants entry permits to 2 Hamas delegates:

In early May Israel warned Norway that if it grants entry to the Hamas members, the move will be considered a “political gesture” to the Hamas government
http://www.ynetnews.com/articles/0,7340,L-3251766,00.html

Israel assassinates two Jihad activists:

Eyewitnesses told KUNA that during an incursion into Nablus, a large Israeli army force besieged a house in Rafidiyah neighborhood, and confrontations occurred with resistance fighters inside the house during which Othman Sadaqa and Mustafa Abdulghani were killed.
http://www.kuna.net.kw/Home/Story.aspx?Lan...=en&DSNO=866739

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Palestinians Send Militant Force Into Streets:

The Palestinians' defiant Hamas-led government sent a new militant force into the streets of Gaza on Wednesday, disregarding President Mahmoud Abbas' order banning the creation of the security body and raising the stakes in their deepening power struggle.
http://tinyurl.com/j8nz2

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Fmr. US Pres. Carter Called Convergence Plan "Illegal" :

Former US President Jimmy Carter has called Prime Minister Ehud Olmert's unilateral Convergence Plan "illegal" and a violation of the Camp David Accords he brokered between Prime Minister Menachem Begin and Egyptian President Anwar Sadat in 1978. Carter further characterized the plan to retain large Jewish communities under Israeli sovereignty as a "confiscation of land".
http://www.israelnn.com/news.php3?id=103814

===
US to Israel: Don't request funds for convergence:

Olmert did not plan on asking the US administration for any economic support for the future West Bank pullout plan on this trip.
http://tinyurl.com/kfrgo

===
The convergence bluff :

The new Israeli prime minister's "convergence plan" is a Trojan horse, Ehud Olmert's record in office shows that he is not preparing for peace.
http://tinyurl.com/j5266

===
Palestinian art exhibit (banned by Brandeis Univ):

One wonders why this was banned?
http://student.cs.ucc.ie/cs1064/jabowen/IP...s/BrandeisExpo1

WEB COMMUNITY RALLIES TO FREE EGYPTIAN BLOGGER: A YOUNG ACTIVIST'S CASE IS BEING USED TO SPOTLIGHT THE PLIGHT OF HUNDREDS OF DETAINEES - URSULA LINDSEY (CHRISTIAN SCIENCE MONITOR, MAY 17)
http://www.csmonitor.com/2006/0517/p01s04-wome.html

A FINE POINT: ON MUSLIM BROTHERHOOD -- A GROWING POLITICAL FORCE IN EGYPT - MICHAEL TACKETT (CHICAGO TRIBUNE, MAY 14)
http://www.chicagotribune.com/news/opinion...perspective-hed

THE MOROCCAN MODEL: A BEACON OF HOPE IN THE ISLAMIC WORLD - JOSEPH LOCONTE (WEEKLY STANDARD)
http://www.weeklystandard.com/Content/Publ...12/227blgql.asp

ISRAEL TO PALESTINIAN HUSBANDS AND WIVES OF ISRAELIS: STAY OUT! EDWARD M. GOMEZ (WORLD VIEWS, SF GATE, MAY 17): Israel's Supreme Court has upheld the country's Citizenship and Entry Law, "which prohibits Palestinian spouses of Israeli citizens from living within the Green Line" (Jerusalem Post).
http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/blogs/sfgate...ogid=15&cat=669

THE PALESTINIAN CRISIS CAN END - JAMES ZOGBY (ARAB AMERICAN INSTITUTE, MAY 15): The West must be told, and not quietly, to make it clear to Israel's leadership that their behavior toward the Palestinians is not just an obstacle to peace, it is criminal and will not be tolerated and because the consequences of this behavior are not only killing Palestinians and aggravating Israeli-Palestinian tensions, it is also fostering extremism and deepening the divide between the Arab world and the West.
http://www.aaiusa.org/washington-watch

Hamas, Abbas forces parade before concerned Gazans Yahoo! News
Security forces from rival Palestinian factions paraded through the streets of Gaza on Thursday, sometimes within feet of one another, intensifying fears of a showdown between the heavily armed groups. Bearded young men armed with AK-47s and dressed in military fatigues, part of a new 3,000-strong Hamas-allied force, held ground on many streets, while a bolstered police force loyal to Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas paraded nearby. For residents of Gaza City, there was a mix of confusion and concern, with some unsure exactly which armed men were loyal to which faction, and whether the extra presence would mean greater security or an inevitable showdown between the groups. "I wonder when the zero hour will come," one passerby said as he watched the two forces manoeuvre in Gaza City. One elderly man wasn't sure who was who. "Are you police or are you Hamas?" 65-year-old Abu Ahmed asked some gunmen. "We are the executive force," a bearded young man from Hamas replied, leaving 65-year-old Abu Ahmed little the wiser. The Hamas-backed force, formed under the authority of Interior Minister Saeed Seyam, was deployed on Wednesday in a challenge to the authority of Abbas, whose Fatah movement was defeated by Hamas in elections in January. In response, Abbas ordered the deployment of a bolstered, Fatah-loyal police force, a show of force that was still taking place on the streets of Gaza City on Thursday. The decision marked the latest step in a deepening power struggle between Abbas and Prime Minister Ismail Haniyeh, whose Hamas Islamic militant movement took power in March. In a speech to several hundred policemen on Thursday, Haniyeh defended the deployment of the new Hamas force. "The force which was formed by a decision of the minister of interior is a backup force," he said. "It was formed in accordance with the law and the constitution and with the agreement of brother Abu Mazen," he added, referring to Abbas. "This force will be according to the law and integrated into the security services. The force is not directed against anyone. As they were in the forefront of resistance, they are now protecting the land and security."

"CAT AND MOUSE"
In parts of Gaza, members of the Hamas force stood within feet of regular policemen. At one point, hundreds of Fatah-loyal gunmen marched by Hamas men as part of the training course. The rival displays come amid growing insecurity in Gaza, with at least five rival gunmen killed this month. Salaries to the 165,000 people employed by the Palestinian Authority have not been paid for more than two months after funding to the Hamas-led administration was severed. Among those unpaid are 70,000 security staff. "We have become a people with two heads, Abbas and Haniyeh," Abu Ahmed said as he walked past the Hamas force in Gaza. "I really do not know whether those young men are a solution to the chaos or a recipe for war." Palestinian political analyst Hani Habib said residents' fears were real and legitimate. "I am also worried that friction between the forces will lead Gaza toward catastrophe. "It is a wrestling match between the two sides," he said. Hours after the Hamas force deployed on Wednesday, some of its members forcefully ejected students demonstrating at the Education Ministry in the southern Gaza town of Khan Younis. But some Palestinians said neither force seemed intent on fighting crime or resolving feuds, pointing out that the equipment they were carrying -- automatic weapons and hand grenades -- was more suited to fighting wars. "It is not a recipe for internal stability," one senior Fatah official said referring to the Hamas deployment. "It is a recipe for a civil war when you ask a militia to rule the street and you ignore your own police forces."
By Nidal al-Mughrabi

Lebanon army and militants clash BBC News
One Lebanese soldier and a Palestinian militant were wounded in clashes on Wednesday between the Lebanese army and Palestinian militants in east Lebanon. The clashes broke out after an army patrol was attacked by the militants, the army said. The AFP news agency reported on Thursday that both sides sent reinforcements to the area overnight. The militants were from Fatah-Intifada, a secular, Syrian-backed group that has opposed peace agreements with Israel. The group has a camp on Lebanese soil, about two kilometres from the border with Syria.

Reinforcements
Lebanese police told AFP that the Palestinian group smuggled 15 military vehicles carrying fighters, arms and ammunition into Lebanon from Syria overnight on Wednesday. AFP also reported that the militants took up positions in the mountains overlooking the camps in which clashes took place yesterday. Fatah-Intifada, led by radical Palestinian militant Abu Moussa, was established in 1983. Its headquarters are based in Damascus. During Wednesday's clashes, a Lebanese soldier was kidnapped by the militants. He was later released, after the army threatened to break up one of the Palestinian group's camps.

UN resolution
On Wednesday, the UN Security Council adopted a resolution calling on Syria to forge formal ties with Lebanon and demarcate the border between the two countries. The 15-member council adopted the resolution by 13-0 with Russia and China abstaining. Resolution 1680 seeks full implementation of a 2004 resolution urging a complete end to external influence in Lebanon. It was co-sponsored by the United States, France and Britain. In 2005, Syria withdrew its troops from Lebanon following 29 years of military and political rule over its smaller neighbour, in line with Resolution 1559 of 2004. The move came after Damascus faced massive international pressure following the assassination of ex-Lebanese PM Rafik Hariri, in a bombing with which it denied any connection.

Border issue
However, Damascus has so far refused to formalise diplomatic contacts with Lebanon or open a Syrian embassy in Beirut. Nor has it responded to Lebanese requests that the border between the two countries be officially demarcated. Several Palestinian groups have camps in Lebanon, where about 400,000 Palestinian refugees live. Lebanese factions who have been gathering for a national dialogue conference have agreed to disarm Palestinian groups active in Lebanon outside of the Palestinian refugee camps.

Palestinian PM defends new force BBC News
Palestinian PM Ismail Haniya has defended the setting up of a new security force dominated by militants. He insisted the force, deployed for the first time on Wednesday, was legal and would provide support for the police and the Palestinian people. Palestinian leader Mahmoud Abbas has asked the Hamas-led government to withdraw the force. He ordered the existing security forces onto the streets in the Gaza Strip in a show of strength. Several thousand members of the services paraded through Gaza chanting slogans in support of Mr Abbas. A senior aide to Mr Abbas, Saeb Erekat, said there would be a crisis if Hamas failed to disband the new force.

'Parallel authority'
He said the creation of what he called a parallel authority would deepen, not end, security problems in Gaza and the West Bank."I think the situation is a pressure-cooker situation. The situation is very fragile. And we don't want anything that may endanger the situation or push it from bad to worse," Mr Erekat told the BBC's World Update. He dismissed the claim by Hamas that the new force was needed to end the chaos in Gaza. "They can get a grip on the chaos in Gaza with the... full support of the president and the Palestinian people by co-ordinating with the interior minister and the national security forces, by exercising the rule of law," Mr Erekat said. "I don't think we can end chaos by creating parallel authorities and further separate guns from the Palestinian Authority and the Palestinian police."

Tension
Large numbers of Palestinian police were deployed in the Gaza Strip on Wednesday after Interior Minister Said Siyam declared the 3,000-strong force operational. The move to create the force is in defiance of a veto by Mr Abbas and heightens tensions between his Fatah party and the Hamas-led government. The unit is led by Jamal Abu Samhadana, a militant who is wanted by Israel. It includes some members of Hamas' military wing as well as others from existing security forces. Its role will be to ensure the safety of citizens and protect property amid a wave of instability and violence. Hamas officials announced the creation of the new force in April, after Mr Abbas appointed one of his supporters to lead the most important of the three branches of the security services that report to the interior ministry.

ISRAEL'S HALF-PLAN - GERSHOM GORENBERG (WASHINGTON POST, MAY 18): Evacuated settlers must move to Israel proper, not to other settlements.
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/conte...6051701879.html

David Halpin: Siege of 1.4 Million Souls in Gaza v International Law:

The US has driven this policy of isolation with the clear intention of destabilising the elected government so that it is overturned.
http://www.informationclearinghouse.info/article13102.htm

===
Remi Kanazi: The Existing Question:

One cannot expect the Palestinian Authority to recognize Israel’s “right to exist.”
http://www.informationclearinghouse.info/article13103.htm

===
Palestinian PM defends new force :

Palestinian PM Ismail Haniya has defended the setting up of a new security force dominated by militants.
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/middle_east/4993480.stm

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Rival Palestinian forces parade through Gaza:

Security forces from rival Palestinian factions paraded through the streets of Gaza on Thursday, sometimes within feet of one another, intensifying fears of a showdown between the heavily armed groups.
http://tinyurl.com/j3lgb

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U.S. urges Olmert to take lower profile on convergence plan :

As Prime Minister Ehud Olmert prepares for his first official trip to Washington next week, he appears to be taking a step back from vocally advocating the convergence plan.
http://www.haaretz.com/hasen/spages/717182.html

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Aipac Case Impacting Security Clearance:

The Pentagon is invoking the prosecution of two pro-Israel lobbyists and a Defense Department analyst for illegal use of classified information as a basis for stripping security clearances from government contractor employees who have dual citizenship in America and Israel or family members living in the Jewish state.
http://www.informationclearinghouse.info/article13092.htm

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Appointment of monitor adds teeth:

The U.S. State Department just added a set of teeth to its fledgling office monitoring anti-Semitism.
http://tinyurl.com/euyqv

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Egypt: Police Assault Demonstrators, Journalists :

Thousands of Egyptian security forces sealed off much of downtown Cairo on Thursday and violently attacked protestors attempting to demonstrate in support of reformist judges, Human Rights Watch said today.
http://tinyurl.com/jlt9o

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A welcome at the White House:

Why is Bush cosying up to the Egyptian president while government thugs are beating up demonstrators in Cairo?
http://tinyurl.com/gzp74

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Turkey in shock, government under fire after attack on top court:

Turkey was in shock on Thursday after a Muslim fundamentalist gunman's shooting spree that left one judge dead and four wounded at the country's top administrative court, while the Islamist-rooted government of Recep Tayyip Erdogan came under a barrage of criticism.
http://www.metimes.com/print.php?StoryID=2...18-063329-1490r

http://usinfo.state.gov/mena/Archive/2006/May/18-612461.html

Bush Administration Supports Continued Assistance to Egypt
But U.S. officials voice concern over nation's slow pace of political reform

By Jane Morse
Washington File Staff Writer

Washington -- Egypt is "a cornerstone" of U.S. foreign policy in the Middle East and deserves ongoing assistance, despite its slow pace of political reform, senior U.S. officials say.

David Welch, assistant secretary of state for Near Eastern affairs, and Michael Coulter, the deputy assistant secretary of state for political-military affairs, testified May 17 before the House Committee on International Relations' Subcommittee on the Middle East and Central Asia.

"We have been concerned by the postponement of municipal polls, the extension by two years of the Emergency Law, the prosecution of whistleblower judges, and the recent violence against peaceful demonstrators and round-ups of democracy activists," Welch said in prepared testimony. (See related article.)

Welch praised Egyptian President Mohammed HosniMubarak for amending Egypt's Constitution and holding multicandidate elections in September 2005 -- the country's first. But the parliamentary polls were marred by "irregularities" and "serious incidents of violence" in the last two rounds, he said.

Egypt's prime minister, Ahmed Mohamed Nazif, however, has appointed "a strong team of reformers to steer the key economic and social portfolios," Welch said. "The new Cabinet is working to implement an ambitious economic reform agenda designed to generate jobs and attract foreign investment," he said.

"We would like to see Egypt make the same kind of progress on political reform that it has made on economic reform, where gains have been impressive," Welch said.

Both Welch and Coulter noted Egypt's critical role in helping resolve the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. Egypt actively has engaged both parties, facilitated Israel's unilateral withdrawal from Gaza in summer 2005, and effectively curbed the smuggling of weapons into Gaza, they said.

Coulter voiced U.S. gratitude for Egypt's support to U.S. forces in Iraq and Afghanistan, and noted that Egypt's support of U.S. goals in Iraq has not been without cost.

"After Egypt took the bold step of being the first Arab nation to send an ambassador to Iraq, the Egyptian ambassador was assassinated in Baghdad in July 2005," Coulter said.

Coulter said U.S. military assistance is "a key element" to the U.S.-Egypt strategic partnership. In addition to helping Egypt modernize its military and fight terrorism, U.S. military assistance provides training opportunities that foster mutual understanding and strong civil-military relations, reinforce the concept of civilian rule, and contribute to Egypt's stability, he said.

Each year the United States provides Egypt with $1.3 billion in foreign military financing (FMF) and approximately $1.2 million for international military education training (IMET) programs, Coulter said.

"Our assistance to Egypt," Coulter said, "contributes positively to U.S. goals in the region."

The full text of Welch's and Coulter's prepared testimony is available on the Web site of the Committee on International Relations' Subcommittee on the Middle East and Central Asia.

Hamas official seized with $800k BBC News
Palestinian border police briefly detained a Hamas official accused of smuggling more than $800,000 (£427,000) into the Gaza Strip from Egypt. Dozens of Hamas gunmen rushed to the border, guarded by presidential troops, raising fears of fresh fighting. Latest reports say the money has been released and put under the control of the Hamas-run interior ministry. The Hamas-led Palestinian Authority faces a severe financial crisis because of an international aid embargo. Israel has also been withholding about $55m in tax collected monthly on behalf of the authority since Hamas came to power in January. The Hamas official, Sami Abu Zuhri, was apparently trying to smuggle the money under his clothes. Hamas says it is unable to transfer cash to Palestinian territory to fund government activities and pay salaries, as banks fear US sanctions for dealing with the militant group. Overnight, two police officers were wounded in a gun battle between Palestinian factions in Gaza City.

Well-known figure
Mr Abu Zuhri is a well known figure because of his frequent appearances in the Arabic media. "Sami Abu Zuhri did not declare the money. The Palestinian security and customs officials found it and confiscated it," the observer, Julio de la Guardia, said. Travellers crossing through Rafah must declare all sums over $2,000 and explain the origin of the cash, Mr de la Guardia told reporters. Mr Zuhri was said to have been returning to the Gaza Strip from Qatar, which has previously pledged to donate $50m to the Palestinian Authority. Hamas has complained that US and European sanctions make it impossible for Qatar and other donors to transfer money to the Palestinian government because of the fears of financial institutions. The US and EU consider Hamas a terrorist organisation.

Shadow force
Overnight clashes came after two rival security forces - regular police and a newly deployed force established by Hamas - paraded through the streets in a show of strength. Hamas has formed its shadow security force in defiance of a veto by Mr Abbas. The unit is led by Jamal Abu Samhadana, a militant who is wanted by Israel. The force includes some members of Hamas' military wing as well as others from existing security forces. Its stated role is to ensure the safety of citizens and protect property amid a wave of instability and violence. Hamas officials announced the creation of the new force in April, after Mr Abbas appointed one of his supporters to lead the most important of the three branches of the security services that report to the interior ministry. US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice warned that the rival Palestinian forces were creating a dangerous situation. "We obviously believe that President Abbas, who we believe has the confidence of the Palestinian people, should be able to exercise his responsibilities as president of the country," Ms Rice said. In a separate development, the Israeli military has said it arrested six suspected Palestinian militants in overnight raids across the West Bank. Raids were said to have been carried out in the Nablus and Bethlehem areas. The official Palestinian news agency said a member of the national security forces had been detained in Bethlehem.

Intelligence boss injured in Gaza BBC News
The Palestinian intelligence service's chief has been seriously injured in a blast at the organisation's main office in Gaza City, officials said. General Tareq Abu Rajab's staff said he was the victim of a bomb attack they called an assassination attempt. At least one person died and several others were injured in the blast, after they stepped into a lift. Correspondents say the incident is set to stoke rising tensions between the rival Hamas and Fatah factions. A spokesman for Palestinian President Mahmud Abbas condemned the blast. "The assassination attempt... is a serious escalation and an attempt to undermine national security," he said.

'Bomb' blast
The injured in Saturday's incident at the sea-front intelligence headquarters were rushed to a nearby hospital, officials said. Gen Rajab underwent surgery and was reported to be in a stable condition. Gen Rajab - seen as loyal to Palestinian leader Mahmoud Abbas - had very fraught relations with Hamas and other militant groups in the past and was the victim of a mystery assassination attempt in 2004, the BBC's Alan Johnston in Gaza reports. An officer in the intelligence service said the blast was caused by a bomb. This contradicted an earlier statement from the interior ministry which suggested the explosion had been an accident of some kind. Officials from the Palestinian health ministry initially reported two deaths, but medics later said one person was killed. Until more details emerge, the incident can only serve to add to the current considerable tension in the area, our correspondent says. The Hamas-controlled government recently deployed a major force of its militants on the streets. This was despite intense opposition to the move from the Palestinian presidency which is controlled by Hamas's rival, the Fatah party. Several people were wounded in clashes between the two factions earlier this week.

Israeli air strike kills four Palestinians in Gaza Yahoo! News
An Israeli air strike in Gaza killed four Palestinians, including a top Islamic Jihad militant, on Saturday, prompting calls of revenge by the armed group to continue targeting Israel in rocket attacks. The missile strike occurred hours after Palestinian General Intelligence chief Tareq Abu Rajab was brought to Israel to treat wounds sustained in an explosion in an elevator at his Gaza Strip headquarters. His ally President Mahmoud Abbas called the blast, which killed one of Abu Rajab's aides and wounded 10 people, an assassination bid. If confirmed as a targeted attack, it would mark the highest-profile internal assassination attempt in the West Bank and Gaza Strip and could worsen enflamed tensions between loyalists of Abbas's Fatah group and Hamas supporters. The Hamas-led government, formed after the Islamic militant group beat Fatah in a January parliamentary election and which is shunned by Washington and other world powers because of its vow to destroy Israel, said an investigation would be launched. Saturday's missile strike, which medics said also killed a boy and his mother and grandmother, was the latest such attack since April, when an Israeli air strike killed an Islamic Jihad militant after a deadly suicide bombing by the group in Israel. The militant, Mohammad al-Dahdouh, was a senior Islamic Jihad commander responsible for recent firings of advanced Russian-made rockets into Israel, a spokesman for the group and the Israeli army said. Islamic Jihad has masterminded dozens of anti-Israeli attacks since a Palestinian uprising began in 2000 and killed 11 people in the Jewish state last month in a suicide bombing. "The Zionist enemy should hurry to evacuate the settlers from (the Israeli city of) Ashkelon because our developed rockets ... will hunt them day and night," said Islamic Jihad spokesman Abu Ahmed.

GAZA INTERNAL VIOLENCE
Clashes erupted in Gaza earlier between Fatah and Hamas supporters after the blast at Abu Rajab's headquarters. He was taking an elevator surrounded by a phalanx of bodyguards and aides when it exploded, apparently when a bomb planted in the lift shaft was detonated, security sources said. He was taken at Abbas's request to an Israeli hospital, where a spokeswoman said he sustained many intense injuries and was on a respirator. Palestinians have often been brought to Israel for medical treatment due to better equipment. Tensions between Hamas and Fatah have mounted since the militant group, which is sworn to Israel's destruction, won the election and flared after Hamas formed a new 3,000-member security force last month to counter officers loyal to Abbas. "Incitement will lead to an explosion and to more serious incidents," Palestinian Deputy Intelligence Chief Tawfiq Tirawi said in the West Bank city of Ramallah. "What happens in Gaza may be transferred to the West Bank at any minute." After the blast, gunmen from the rival groups clashed in a gunfight, which wounded a boy. Dozens of members of the family of Rajab's aide and Fatah supporters protested against the new Hamas force, chanting, "Fatah, Fatah!" and burning tires. Tirawi told reporters that the Hamas forces may have caused the explosion. The Palestinian Interior Ministry said it would launch an investigation into the incident, which Hamas spokesman Sami Abu Zuhri called "unfortunate." Tirawi said the Hamas "militias" have recently been buying and collecting weapons and explosives. Several Palestinian officials said Hamas has been purchasing arms in the West Bank and Gaza since it won a parliamentary election in January. There was no immediate comment from Hamas. Palestinian security sources had said in recent days that they had suspected an assassination plot against Abu Rajab was in the works. Masked gunmen had shot and wounded one of the intelligence chief's bodyguards on Sunday. Hamas was accused of being behind a 2004 assassination attempt against Abu Rajab in which he was shot by unidentified gunmen. Hamas has denied responsibility.
By Nidal al-Mughrabi

Kuwaiti leader calls new election BBC News
The emir of Kuwait has dissolved parliament and set new elections amid a growing row over electoral law reforms. Sheikh Sabah al-Ahmed al-Sabah called for the poll - originally planned for 2007 - to be held on 29 June. Opposition lawmakers are demanding a sharp reduction in the number of voting districts, saying the move will reduce vote-buying and other irregularities. A proposed bill was last week referred to the constitutional court - a move the opposition says will delay reforms.Last week also saw an unprecedented request by opposition MPs to grill Prime Minister Sheikh Nasser Muhammad al-Ahmed over the disputed bill. Since its inception in 1962, the Kuwaiti parliament has questioned more than 30 ministers but has never done so with a premier.

'Charged situation'
"I had to take a difficult decision that I had wanted to avoid, but I concluded that it was my duty to dissolve parliament to safeguard the security of our nation," the emir said in a televised address to the nation. "We all witnessed the charged and tension-fuelled situation that has distracted us from the rest of our priorities and practices... This was starting to threaten the security and stability of our nation," he said. The dispute centres on the number of electoral constituencies and alleged electoral malpractice. A government-appointed committee recently recommended that the current number of 25 constituencies be cut to 10. But opposition MPs say the reform needs to go further, demanding the reduction to just five constituencies.

Succession crisis
MPs have no powers to vote the entire cabinet or the prime minister out of office but can declare that they are unable to co-operate with the government. In this situation, the emir can either dismiss the premier and appoint a new cabinet, or dissolve parliament and call for fresh elections. Kuwait's parliamentary elections will be the first national poll in which women in the Gulf state are allowed to vote. The elections are expected to be held under the current electorate system of 25 constituencies. Former Prime Minister Sheikh Sabah was named the new emir of oil-rich Kuwait in January after parliament had voted to oust his cousin, at the climax of a nine-day succession crisis. Kuwait has developed into a key western ally in the Gulf, allowing US troops to launch the invasion of Iraq in 2003 from its territory. The emirate controls about 10% of the world's proven oil reserves and Sheikh Sabah has played a vital role as chairman of Kuwait's Higher Petroleum Council.

Israel captures Hamas commander BBC News
Israeli forces have captured the leader of Islamic group Hamas' military wing in the West Bank in a raid in Ramallah. Israel accuses Ibrahim Hamad, 41, of masterminding a string of suicide bombings, including attacks on cafes and the Hebrew University in Jerusalem. Hamas took over Palestinian government in March after winning parliamentary elections in January. It launched some of the biggest attacks against Israel, but it has been holding an informal truce for 15 months. Mr Hamad has led the Izzedine al-Qassam brigades in the West Bank since 2003.

Rammed
Israeli troops moved into Ramallah with several jeeps and a bulldozer in the early hours of Tuesday. They surrounded a row of shops where Mr Hamad was hiding - some 200m from the residence of Palestinian leader Mahmoud Abbas, who is away. Eyewitnesses quoted by Associated Press say an army bulldozer rammed the iron doors of the shops and troops called over loudspeakers in Arabic for Mr Hamad to come out or they would demolish the building. When he emerged the troops ordered him to take off his shirt and trousers to make sure he was unarmed, then he walked toward the soldiers in his underwear. A family member quoted by AP said Mr Hamad has been wanted by Israel since 1998, and has been imprisoned by the Palestinian Authority for his anti-Israeli activities. He was released by the PA in 2002, during a major Israeli military offensive in the West Bank. The Israeli army officer who led the capture is quoted by Israeli army radio saying that Hamas would have trouble replacing Mr Hamad. "What made him special was his creativity in finding very complex ways to attack Israelis," the colonel, who was only identified by his first name, Amir, said. BBC correspondent Caroline Hawley in Jerusalem says it is not clear why the army moved against Hamad. Hamas has not carried out any suicide attacks for 15 months and Israeli military operations in the past few months have focused instead on the militant Islamic Jihad group, which has been responsible for most of the recent bombs. The arrest comes on the day that Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert is holding talks with US President George W Bush in Washington.

Israel's PM set for key US talks BBC News
Israeli PM Ehud Olmert is set to hold talks with US leaders in the Pentagon and the White House, in his first visit to Washington since taking office. Mr Olmert is expected to discuss Iran's uranium enrichment programme in a breakfast meeting with US Defence Secretary Donald Rumsfeld. In talks with President George W Bush he will outline his plan for a further Israeli withdrawal from the West Bank. The White House is not expected to give formal support for the plan. Senior White House officials say it is highly unlikely the US will endorse any plans that do not involve negotiations with the Palestinians. The meeting with Mr Bush will be the first real opportunity for the two leaders to get acquainted, says the BBC's Jonathan Beale in Washington. Mr Olmert has already stressed the importance of his country's strategic relationship with the US and wants to show that Israel is in step on a range of issues. He will also be anxious to find out how the US will use its influence to help ease tension in Palestinian territories, where the violence has flared up between rival security forces, our correspondent says. Both the US and Israel are seeking a strategy to deal with the new Hamas-led Palestinian government, which has refused to renounce violence or recognise Israel.

West Bank plans
Mr Olmert, under former prime minister Ariel Sharon, played a key role in last year's withdrawal of Israeli setters and soldiers from the Gaza Strip and parts of the West Bank. Now he is proposing a second withdrawal from the West Bank, involving tens of thousands of settlers, as part of a plan to unilaterally redraw the borders of the Palestinian territories. Israel and the US agree that there can be no negotiations with Hamas, but Washington is hoping to break the stalemate by urging more talks with Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas. On Sunday, however, Mr Olmert told CNN that Mr Abbas did not "have even the power to take care of his own government". US officials have suggested they are not expecting major decisions to come out of the Bush-Olmert talks. "At this point this is as much a getting-to-know-you meeting," White House spokesman Tony Snow said. "I don't expect anything formal, but the two of them obviously are going to be talking about ways to keep moving forward," he said. Mr Olmert will also meet Vice-President Dick Cheney and House of Representatives Speaker Dennis Hastert, and address a joint session of Congress. He met US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice on Monday evening.

West Bank and Iran top Olmert's US agenda Yahoo! News
Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert holds talks at the Pentagon and White House on Tuesday, seeking during his first visit to Washington to coordinate policy on the Palestinians and the Iranian nuclear crisis. Olmert's meeting with Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld will provide an opportunity to exchange assessments about Tehran's uranium enrichment program, which both the United States and Israel fear could lead to a nuclear-armed Iran. "I don't want to go into details," a senior Israeli official said about planned discussions on Iran. "I can tell you that the coordination we had in the past is going to continue and probably improve." Israel, the only nuclear power in the Middle East, has said it wants to take a back seat in international diplomatic efforts to resolve the Iranian crisis but views seriously Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad's calls for its destruction. Olmert, who took over from Ariel Sharon after the Israeli leader suffered an incapacitating stroke in January, had dinner on Monday with U.S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice to prepare for his meeting with President George W. Bush. No major decisions are expected: Olmert's "convergence" proposal to reshape the Jewish settlement map in the occupied West Bank is still largely on the drawing board. Senior U.S. officials said Bush will be hesitant to embrace Olmert's ideas until he is convinced that what he proposes will not prejudice the outcome of eventual final-status talks between Israel and the Palestinians. Under his West Bank plan, Olmert intends in the absence of a Palestinian peace partner to remove isolated Israeli settlements in the territory, bolster major enclaves Israel says it intends to keep forever and set a border by 2010. Olmert has said he prefers a negotiated agreement with the Palestinians but peace hopes have dimmed since the Islamic militant group Hamas took power in March after crushing moderate Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas' Fatah faction in a January election. Gun battles between rival Palestinian groups in Gaza have also clouded prospects for resuming peacemaking.

ABBAS
Washington wants Olmert to try to negotiate first with Abbas. Olmert, elected prime minister in March, has agreed to talk with him but says the Palestinian leader is powerless while Hamas is in charge. Abbas "said after the (Palestinian) election he would dismantle the terrorist organizations -- there would be one gun, one government, one rule," the senior Israeli official said. "Fine -- start." Israel's ambassador to Washington, Danny Ayalon said an Olmert-Abbas peace summit was not on the agenda for Tuesday's talks in Washington. "What is being discussed is the internal Palestinian situation, how it affects the chances of advancing toward a peace settlement," Ayalon told Israel Radio by telephone. Palestinians have condemned the proposed Israeli go-it-alone steps as an attempt to annex land and deny them a viable state. The plan could also spell the end of a peace "road map" Bush and the European Union have championed as a blueprint for negotiations and establishment of a Palestinian state alongside a secure Israel. Israeli officials say that putting Olmert's plan into motion will be a gradual process. Weakened politically by an unpopular war in Iraq, Bush also seems unlikely to embark on a new Middle East diplomatic venture any time soon. Olmert "needs to convince the United States ... that we exhausted all opportunities and that there's nothing else, and we have to go for this unilateral disengagement," one Israeli official said.
By Jeffrey Heller

Bush endorses 'bold' Israeli plan BBC News
US President George W Bush has given qualified backing to Israeli proposals to unilaterally redraw Israel's boundaries in the occupied West Bank. Speaking after talks in Washington with Prime Minister Ehud Olmert, he described the Israeli plan as "bold". But he urged Israel to resume direct talks with the Palestinians and said a unilateral solution was a last resort. Palestinians see Mr Olmert's plan as a land grab of territory captured by Israel in 1967 and have condemned it. Mr Olmert said he would exhaust all bilateral options before going it alone to set Israel's final borders. But he said he would not negotiate with a government led by the Islamic militant movement Hamas, which Israel, the US and the EU brand a terror group. Mr Olmert is proposing a withdrawal of tens of thousands of Israelis from isolated settlements in the West Bank, but the consolidation of other settlements housing hundreds of thousands of others. The Palestinians say such a solution would leave them unable to establish a viable state and accuse Mr Olmert of not being serious about negotiations.

Roadmap revival
Speaking after the two men met at the White House, Mr Bush said he believed a negotiated settlement could still be reached between Israel and Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas. "I believe, and Prime Minister Olmert agrees, that a negotiated final status agreement best serves both the Israelis and the Palestinians and the cause of peace," he said.


The US president made a distinction between Mr Abbas, who he said "speaks out for peace", and the militant group Hamas "who does not". Hamas, which won parliamentary elections in January, does not recognise Israel and has rejected calls for a permanent end to violence. Mr Bush said a settlement should be based on the establishment of two states living side-by-side, as envisioned in the 2002 roadmap peace plan. But he added: "Today, Prime Minister Olmert shared with me some of his ideas. I would call them bold ideas... (which) could be an important step toward the peace we both support."

'Concession'
The Israeli prime minister reiterated that he would not negotiate with Hamas until it "renounced terrorism" and recognised Israel's right to exist. "Despite our sincere desire for negotiations, we cannot wait indefinitely for the Palestinians to change," he said.However, Mr Olmert made what appeared to be a significant concession by saying he would try to pursue talks with Mr Abbas, the BBC's Justin Webb reports. Hours after the White House meeting, Israeli cabinet minister Haim Ramon said if Hamas does not recognise Israel and renounce violence before the end of 2006 Israel should push ahead unilaterally with its border plan. "This will be a year of diplomacy," Mr Ramon told Israel Radio. On Tuesday, Palestinian Prime Minister Ismail Haniya, said peace would prevail only if Israel withdrew from all the land it captured in 1967, that is the West Bank, including East Jerusalem, and the Gaza Strip.

'Facts on the ground'
The meeting in Washington was the first between the two leaders since Mr Olmert won the election in March. In 2004, Mr Bush appeared ready to allow Israel to retain large settlement blocs within the West Bank, calling some major settlements "facts on the ground". All Israeli settlements within land occupied during the 1967 Arab-Israeli war are judged illegal under international law, although Israel disputes this. Mr Olmert, under former Prime Minister Ariel Sharon, played a key role in last year's withdrawal of Israeli settlers and soldiers from the Gaza Strip and part of the West Bank.

Hamas denounces Bush over borders BBC News
Palestinian militant group Hamas has denounced the US president's support for Israeli plans to unilaterally redraw its borders if peace talks fail. A Hamas spokesman said it would spell the end for the Palestinian cause. George W Bush described Israel's plan as "bold" after talks with Israeli PM Ehud Olmert, but urged him to pursue direct talks with the Palestinians. Hamas, branded a terror group by the US, Israel, and the EU, won elections in January and formed a government.

'Statehood unviable'
Mr Olmert is proposing the withdrawal of tens of thousands of Israelis from isolated settlements in the West Bank while, at the same time, consolidating other settlements housing hundreds of thousands of others. Palestinians see the Israeli plan as a land grab of t