News and Media - Israeli Consulate, SF - Week in Review - September 15

September 15 - 19, 2003

Monday, September 15

Commentary: Israel Should Never Again Negotiate Peace With Terrorists
By Yossi Klein Halevi
None of us who at first supported the White House handshake on Sept. 13, 1993, which initiated the Palestinian-Israeli Oslo process, would have imagined then that it would end in the worst wave of terrorism in Israel's history. Last week's terrorist attacks, grimly marking the 10th anniversary of the Oslo process, only reaffirm the bitter lesson Israelis have learned about the consequences of empowering terrorists as peace partners. The more territory Israel ceded, the more terrorism it received in return. We desperately wanted to believe that a "new" Middle East was prepared to accept a non-Arab state in its midst. But the Palestinian leadership convinced us that the Oslo process was never about land for peace but, at best, land for a tenuous cease-fire. The spread of pathological Jew-hatred in the Arab world, where Holocaust denial has become mainstream and where schoolchildren are taught that Jews are usurpers with no historical roots or rights in the Holy Land, only reinforces the unlikelihood of achieving peace anytime soon.
Oslo envisioned a Palestinian state emerging after a gradual process of reconciliation. Instead, the opposite has happened. The Palestinian leadership made a strategic decision to create a Palestinian state not through negotiations but blood. The Palestinian goal of the last three years has been to demoralize the Israeli people through terrorism and force a unilateral Israeli withdrawal from the territories. So far, the Palestinian strategy has failed dismally. The first Palestinian leader to acknowledge the failure of the terrorist strategy was the just-resigned Palestinian Authority prime minister, Mahmoud Abbas. Tragically, Abbas was unable to impose his authority and confront Hamas and other terrorist groups, largely because Yasser Arafat wouldn't let him.
Renewing the peace process requires a decision by the Palestinian Authority to dismantle the terrorist infrastructures that have thrived under its watch. But the likelihood of Abbas' successor, Ahmed Korei, an Arafat yes man, taking serious steps against terrorism is almost inconceivable. If Oslo has taught Israelis anything over the last 10 years, it is to be wary of false optimism and prepare for the worst. (From Los Angeles Times) more

Tuesday, September 16

US Vetoes UN Resolution to Protect Arafat
The United States vetoed an Arab-backed United Nations resolution Tuesday that demanded that Israel halt threats to expel Yasser Arafat from the West Bank because it did not contain a condemnation of terrorist groups such as Hamas. In advance of the meeting, Israeli Ambassador to the United Nations Dan Gillerman accused the Security Council of hypocrisy for considering the Palestinian resolution. Gillerman said the Security Council has met repeatedly to condemn Israeli actions, but ignores Palestinian suicide bombings and shooting attacks on Israelis. "High-minded rhetoric about the so-called legitimacy of Mr. Arafat's leadership and the illegitimacy of Israel's interference, are meaningless and hypocritical in the face of the hundreds of dead and injured innocent civilians killed with the direct approval or acquiescence of Mr. Arafat himself," Gillerman said. "For how long will there be states among us who are willing to continue the charade of touting Mr. Arafat as a legitimate leader committed to the welfare of his people and peaceful relations with his neighbors. The ruin that Mr. Arafat has left behind in Jordan, in Lebanon, and in the West Bank testify that he has brought nothing but despair and devastation to his own people and to other people in the region." (From Jerusalem Post) more

U.S. Federal Court Orders Iran to Compensate U.S. Victims of 1997 Jerusalem Bombing
A federal judge has ruled that the Iranian government must pay more than $400 million in damages to eight Americans injured in a 1997 suicide bombing in Jerusalem. U.S. District Judge Ricardo M. Urbina said the attack at a crowded pedestrian mall was carried out by members of the radical Islamic group Hamas, which the State Department says receives training, money and operational support from Iran. Powerful explosive devices loaded with nails, screws, pieces of glass and chemical poisons killed five people and wounded nearly 200 in the Sept. 4, 1997, attack. The lawsuit is among dozens filed against Iran under a 1996 U.S. law that allows Americans to sue nations listed by the United States as sponsoring terrorism for damages suffered in terrorist acts. The Iranian government has not responded formally to any of the lawsuits. (From Ha'aretz) more

Cabinet Okays 2004 Budget
The government approved the 2004 budget - which at about 360 billion is NIS 10 billion less than this year's budget - by a 14-9 majority at 3 A.M. yesterday. All five Shinui ministers and four Likud ministers voted against the budget. (From Ha'aretz) more

Wednesday, September 17

Half of Hamas' Budget Funded by Saudi Donations
As relations between the Israelis and Palestinians continue to deteriorate, in no small part because of recent Hamas-sponsored suicide bombings, Saudis have come under fresh scrutiny by American and European investigators in the US and in Israel for their political and financial support of the group. At least 50 percent of Hamas's current operating budget of about $10 million a year comes from people in Saudi Arabia, according to estimates by American law enforcement officials, American diplomats in the Middle East and Israeli officials. Nearly all the donations are given in cash, making it extremely difficult for Saudi and American authorities to track the money. Saudi officials say their government's support for Palestinian causes goes solely to the Palestinian Authority, about $80 million to $100 million a year. (From New York Times) more

Commentary: Demystify It: How to Defeat Suicide Terrorism
By Adam Wolfson
Robert Pape has examined every suicide-terrorist attack in the world from 1980 to 2001. His study should help dispel the widespread notion that suicide terrorism is somehow beyond comprehension, and beyond remedy. One of Pape's most important findings is that suicide terrorism is guided by clearly identifiable strategic goals. It is not a mere act of wanton cruelty, though it is certainly that. Nor is it an act of desperation by the dispossessed. Rather, suicide -attacks are nearly always carefully calibrated to accomplish the political goals of nationalists groups. Of the 188 suicide-terrorist strikes from 1980 to 2001, a whopping 95 percent were undertaken as part of an organized political campaign.
Suicide terrorism is nearly always deployed as part of a larger political-military campaign. The psychology of an individual suicide terrorist might indeed be incomprehensible, but this is not the case of those who recruit, train, and outfit him. A suicide terrorist's handlers are not so eager to die, and there is little reason to believe that deterrence — if forcefully and consistently applied — will not prove effective against them.
Every suicide attack in the period under study was launched against a democracy. Pape unearths is that suicide terrorism against democracies is effective. It is more destructive than regular terrorism — from 1980 to 2001 suicide attacks made up 3 percent of total terrorist attacks but produced 45 percent of all casualties — and that's not even counting the immense carnage of September 11. Moreover, suicide terrorism more often than not achieves its strategic goals. By Pape's accounting, of the eleven separate suicide campaigns from 1980 to 2001, six produced "significant policy changes by the target state toward the terrorists' major political goals." This bodes ill for the future, as Pape indicates: The main reason suicide terrorism is growing is that terrorists have learned that it works. The terrorists have their ends. Deny these — make sure that suicide terrorism does not pay — and it will surely lose much of its luster.(From National Review) more

IDF Training Software to Go to US Forces in Iraq
The US military has asked the Israeli army to translate its special educational software program that teaches soldiers how to behave in occupied territories, so US forces can apply it in Iraq. The newly completed completed software teaches the IDF's code of conduct, which is based on 11 principles. These deal with such issues as how to behave at roadblocks, during arrests and searches and with rioters. All are common events soldiers face in the West Bank and Gaza Strip. The software uses movie clips, animation and scenarios to show soldiers what is the right and wrong way to behave in this sensitive area of limited combat. Animation is used to drive home difficult situations, such as how to treat ambulances, which have sometimes been used to transport gunmen and suicide bombers. (From Jerusalem Post) more

Transmissions Indicate Israeli Hostages in Colombia `In Good Condition'
Intercepted radio transmissions indicate that eight hostages, including four Israelis, being held by a Colombian guerrilla group are "in good condition." The transmissions from FARC (the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia) were intercepted by intelligence officers in Colombia's army. Six Israelis were kidnapped last weekend while on a six-day hike to the "Lost City," an ancient ruin in the Sierra Nevada mountain range. Two members of this group, Ron Atzmon and Dana Kidon, managed to escape. The four missing Israelis have been named as Benny Daniel, 26, and Orpaz Ohayon, 22, both from Ma'aleh Adumim; Ido Yosef Guy, 26, from Haifa; and Erez Altawil, 24, from Herzliya. The FARC rebels have yet to release demands. Colombia leads the world in kidnappings - some 3,000 people are abducted in the country each year. (From Ha'aretz) more

Thursday, September 18

Three Soldiers Wounded, Hamas Terrorist Killed in Counter-Terror Raid
Givati infantry troops raiding a Gaza Strip refugee camp on Thursday, killed a key Hamas terrorist in a major gun battle that wounded three soldiers, one seriously. Israel was trying to arrest Abu Swerah, said an army commander identified only as Lt. Col. Ofer. When soldiers surrounded the house, Swerah let off eight bursts of automatic gunfire, seriously wounding one of the soldiers, Ofer said. Two other soldiers were moderately wounded in the operation, the army said. IDF sources said that Swerah, 34, was killed by gunfire.
Also Thursday, IDF troops operating in the northern Jordan Valley village of Tubas arrested two Palestinian "ticking bombs," a man and a woman both preparing themselves for suicide attacks in Israel in the near future. (From Jerusalem Post) more

Bush: Arafat Failed; Shalom: World Naive to Think PA Leader Will Stop Terror
US President George W. Bush told Palestinians on Thursday that if they want peace, they must have a leader that fights terror. He said Palestinian Chairman Yasser Arafat "has failed as a leader" and accused him of forcing the resignation of Prime Minister Mahmoud Abbas who had worked for peace.
Earlier Thursday Foreign Minister Silvan Shalom said that the international community is naive to believe that Arafat will independently relinquish control over the terror groups and the Palestinian security forces. Israel and the United State have called for the unification of the Palestinian security forces and it is one of the Palestinian's obligations under the US-backed road map peace plan. "The international community does not understand Arafat's mentality or that of the Middle East," Shalom said. "To ask him to relinquish control over the [PA] finances, security forces and the terror organizations is like asking him to jump from the thirtieth floor." (From Jerusalem Post) more

Sharansky: Israel Champion of Human Rights
Israel does not deserve its reputation on some college campuses as a human rights violator but should instead be lauded as the Middle East's lone bastion of democracy, Knesset Minister and former Soviet dissident Natan Sharansky said yesterday at the University of Maryland. "Israel demonstrates more sensitivity to human rights than any other democracy in the world." His years in Soviet prisons from 1977 to 1986 as a "refusenik" taught him the right to speak one's mind, follow one's faith and try to convince others of one's position are the basics of human rights. "I am representing the country that is the real champion of human rights," he said. "In the Middle East," he said, "there is only one country in that part of the world which allows human rights. You can be very right wing or left wing, for private economy or socialist economy. ... Individuals there are protected by an independent court, by opposition newspapers. "Only in Israel, women have full rights; in the other countries of the region, women cannot travel without the permission of their husbands. People of different sexual orientations [are protected]. Only in Israel, Arab members of Parliament can freely criticize their country." (From Washington Times) more

Israel, India to Cooperate on Space Telescope
Israel plans to send a telescope into space on an Indian rocket in 2005 as part of growing cooperation between the two countries, a report said Thursday. The Israel Space Agency has already spent US$15 million on the telescope, which is to be used to map new galaxies. The data from the telescope will be purely scientific and will be shared by the two countries, it said. Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon said during a visit to India earlier this month that Israel had decided to send a telescope into space on an Indian rocket. During Sharon's visit, India and Israel signed six agreements on broadening educational, medical, cultural and technology ties, as well as an environmental protection pact. They also agreed to strengthen joint efforts in fighting drug traffickers and terrorists. (From Ha'aretz) more

Friday, September 19

Major Attack Averted in Jenin as IDF Continues Counter-Terror Operations
A major terror attack was thwarted today when Israel Defense Forces troops operating in Jenin discovered a jeep filled with explosives and ready to be used for a bombing attack. Since Thursday, the IDF has carried out a counter-terror operation in Jenin and its adjacent refugee camp and imposed a curfew on the West Bank town. Three Islamic Jihad terrorists have so far been arrested during the course of the operation.
Early Friday, soldiers in the village of Burkin near Nablus demolished the house of Shadi al-Tubasi, who blew himself up at Matza restaurant in Haifa in March 2002, killing 15 Israelis. Also Friday, IDF soldiers in the village of Rantis north of Ramallah demolished the house of Iyhad Abed al-Kader abu-Salim, the Hamas suicide bomber responsible for the attack in Tzrifin last week, in which eight soldiers were killed.
In other news, an Israeli car was fired at today south of the Alon highway junction near Kochav Hashahar. No casualties were reported, but the vehicle was damaged. Three weeks ago precisely, Fatah al-Aksa Martyrs Brigades terrorists shot dead Shalom Har-Melech, 25, and seriously wounded his seven months' pregnant wife at that exact same location. (From Jerusalem Post) more

US Says It Won't Deal With 'Arafat Cabinet'
The US has warned the Palestinian Authority that it will not deal with a new cabinet controlled by Chairman Yasser Arafat and that is not committed to the implementation of the road map. The warning was delivered by US special envoy John Wolf to PA Prime Minister-designate Ahmed Qurei (Abu Ala), who is expected to announce his cabinet sometime next week. Hatem Abdel Kader, a senior Fatah official, said the new cabinet is being chosen in full coordination with Arafat. "We don't want a cabinet that would engage in a power struggle with President Arafat," he said. "It's not the job of the cabinet to undercut Arafat's authority." Fatah scored a major victory on Thursday when Arafat and Qurei agreed to the appointment of 16 of its members as ministers in the 24-member cabinet. The two had given the Fatah central committee a free hand in selecting its own nominees for the posts. One Fatah official boasted that this is the "first Fatah government." He noted, however, that the new cabinet would be "under Arafat's full control... and this should be clear to all." (From Jerusalem Post) more

FM Shalom: Israel is Ready to Negotiate with Syria If Damascus Closes Offices of Terror Groups
Foreign Minister Silvan Shalom said his government was prepared to resume peace negotiations with Syria on the condition that Damascus closes down the offices of radical Palestinian movements. Israel is prepared to start “immediately” discussions with Syria on the condition that its authorities “close the offices of Palestinian extremist groups, like Hamas and (Islamic) Jihad,” Shalom told Kuwait’s Al-Rai Al-Aam newspaper in an interview published Thursday. But he said Damascus "continues to shelter these movements and I don’t know how it can engage in serious negotiations with us as long as it continues to shelter them."
Concerning Lebanon, the minister questioned "why Hezbollah has increased the number of rockets in its possession after the withdrawal" by Israel from southern Lebanon in 2000. (From Ha'aretz) more

Commentary: The Great Refugee Scam
By Shmuel Katz
The story of the Arabs who left the coastal areas of Palestine in the spring of 1948 encapsulates one of the great international frauds of the 20th century. The Arabs are the only declared "refugees" who became refugees by the initiative of their own leaders. The concoction of the monstrous charge that it was the Jews who had driven out the Arabs of Palestine was a strategic decision made by the leaders of the Arab League months after the Arabs' flight. The Arab "refugees" were not driven out by anyone. WHY DID they leave? Monsignor George Hakim, then Greek Catholic bishop of Galilee, the leading Christian personality in Palestine for many years, told a Beirut newspaper, Sada al-Janub, in the summer of 1948: "The refugees were confident that their absence would not last long, and that they would return within a week or two. Their leaders had promised them that the Arab armies would crush the 'Zionist gangs' very quickly, and that there was no need for panic or fear of a long exile." Once and for all Israel must remind whoever has to be reminded that the responsibility for the displaced Arabs lies wholly and absolutely on the shoulders of the Arab states. Their utterly unprovoked invasion of the territory of Israel in May 1948 was a crime. (From Jerusalem Post) more

Shimon Peres Celebrates His 80th Birthday
On September 21-22, 2003, Shimon Peres, Israel's 8th Prime Minister, will celebrate his 80th birthday. The Labor Party Chairman has roughly 400 public figures scheduled to arrive in Israel for the celebration. Former US President Bill Clinton and Mikhail Gorbachev, former President of the former Soviet Union, are expected to attend. Click here to learn more about the achievements of a figure whose story has become synonymous with that of the country he has devoted his life to serving.

This Week in Review was prepared by Joy Powers at The Consulate General of Israel in San Francisco.

news archives