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June 7 - 11, 2004
- DIPLOMACY
- Sharon: Reagan Was a Friend to Israel
- Israel Calls on the International Community to Stop Lebanese and Syrian Terror
- G8 Backs Sharon's Disengagement Plan
- DISENGAGEMENT PLAN
- Disengagement Is On Its Way
- 130 Egyptian Guards to Be Deployed on Border
- Steering Committee on Disengagement Holds First Meeting
- Voluntary Settlement Evacuation to Begin in August
- Government Works on Compensations for Settlers' Relocation
- SECURITY
- Barghouti Sentenced to Five Consecutive Life Terms
- Mofaz: 18 Suicide Bombings Thwarted in May
- IDF Soldier Wounded in Hezbollah Attack near Border
- "Charity" Groups with Links to Terror Shut Down
- POLITICS
- NRP's Eitam, Levy Resign from Government
- ECONOMY & HIGH-TECH
- Desalination Plant Opens at Kibbutz Maagan Michael
- Israeli Company PowerDsine Debuts on Nasdaq
- Tourism to Israel on Steady Growth
- SOCIETY
- Yad Vashem Marks Fifty Years
- Israeli, Palestinian Media People Push 'Campaign for Peace'
DIPLOMACY Sharon: Reagan Was a Friend to Israel
Monday, June 7, 2004In learning of the passing of the 40th President of the United States, Ronal Reagan, Prime Minister Ariel Sharon said that, "Israel lost a friend," YEDIOT AHARONOT reported. Sharon added "the Government of Israel shares in the grief of the U.S. administration and expresses its condolences to the American people on the passing of U.S. President Ronald Reagan.
President Moshe Katsav sent a letter of condolences to U.S. President George W. Bush and to Nancy Reagan on the passing of the 40th President of the United States of America, Ronald Reagan. Katsav praised Reagan's efforts to both increase global stability and to preserve universal human values.
Israel Calls on the International Community to Stop Lebanese and Syrian Terror
Wednesday, June 9, 2004In light of Hezbollah's firing of six missiles into Israel on Monday, Deputy Ambassador to the United Nations Aryeh Mekel submitted a letter to U.N. Secretary-General Kofi Annan calling on the international community to ensure that Lebanon and Syria combat against terrorism, HA'ARETZ reported. Since Israel's complete withdrawal from Lebanon in May 2000, tens of Israelis have been killed or wounded in terrorist attacks emanating from Lebanese territory. During this time, terrorists operating in Lebanon have fired countless explosive devices across the Blue Line and on Tuesday an additional 20 rocket and mortar shells were fired by Hezbollah in Israel's Har Dov region. Additionally, Israeli security forces have succeeded in thwarting 14 attempted infiltrations into Israel from Lebanese territory.
G8 Backs Sharon's Disengagement Plan
Friday, June 11, 2004The Group of Eight industrial powers endorsed Prime Minister Ariel Sharon's planned withdrawal from the Gaza Strip and parts of the West Bank on Thursday, and called for all parties to "abide by their obligations" under the road map, THE JERUSALEM POST reported. "The G-8 hopes that the disengagement initiative will stimulate progress toward peace in the region, the realization of Palestinian national aspirations, and the achievement of our common objective of two states - Israel and a viable, democratic, sovereign, and contiguous Palestine - living side-by-side in peace and security," read a joint statement by the group.
According to MA'ARIV, leaders of the major industrialized nations decided to create a partnership between member states in order to advance the implementation of democratic, economic and social reforms in the Middle East. The participating countries also agreed on some operative steps regarding the offering of aid to countries in the region, including the Palestinian Authority. Assistance to the Palestinians will be provided in the areas of advancing democracy, establishing legal institutions, education, economic support, and the status of women.
DISENGAGEMENT PLAN Disengagement Is On Its Way
Monday, June 7, 2004In a cabinet meeting on Sunday, the government passed Prime Minister Ariel Sharon's revised Gaza disengagement plan, by a vote of 14-7, HA'ARETZ reported. "Disengagement is on its way," the Prime Minister said after the meeting. "The cabinet has decided that by the end of 2005 Israel intends to leave the Gaza Strip and four settlements in Samaria."
Sharon said this was a step of critical importance for the future of Israel, "that would contribute to its security, its political standing, its economy, and to the demographics of the Jewish people in the land of Israel."
The cabinet plans to complete evacuation of all settlements and military installations in the Gaza Strip by the end of 2005, plus four settlements and military installations in the northern West Bank. The 25 settlements to be evacuated will be divided into four groups, and their settlers will receive "fair and appropriate" compensation.
Israel will be transmitting an official version of the revised disengagement plan to the U.S. administration today. On Sunday, a short time before the vote, Israel's ambassador in Washington, Danny Ayalon, updated the deputy head of the National Security Council, Stephen Hadley, and the assistant secretary of state for Near Eastern affairs, William Burns, on the details of the plan, and both said they welcomed the government decision.
130 Egyptian Guards to Be Deployed on Border
Tuesday, June 8, 2004Minister of Foreign Affairs Silvan Shalom, who met with Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak on Monday, said that a strategic shift in Egypt's policies was occurring and that it signaled a positive interest in advancing relations with Israel, Israel Radio, KOL YISRAEL, reported. Shalom also met with the president's top adviser Osama el-Baz and intelligence chief Omar Sulleiman. Shalom said that Israel would agree to the deployment on the Gaza border of 130 Egyptian security personnel without amending the 1979 peace treaty which restricts the number of forces Egypt is allowed to deploy on the border. Amira Oron, the head of the Arabic Press Division at Israel's Foreign Ministry said that the two sides had agreed to bolster Egyptian security presence along the Gaza border in order to stop Palestinian arms smuggling. Shalom also told Mubarak in their meeting that Israel would fully implement the disengagement plan.
Steering Committee on Disengagement Holds First Meeting
Wednesday, June 9, 2004The Gaza Strip disengagement plan steering committee, headed by National Security Adviser Giora Eiland, held its first meeting today, THE JERUSALEM POST reported. The committee discussed the implementation of the program and the tasks designated to the respective ministries. The Ministry of Internal Affairs was instructed to provide the names of all settlers in areas to be evacuated while the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Labor was asked to prepare plans on relocating Israeli industries from the Gaza region to other southern locations. The Ministry of Foreign Affairs will interface with international organizations such as the UN and the International Monetary Fund, regarding their involvement in the disengagement process. The committee is slated to meet again at the end of June.
In related news, Minister of Industry, Trade and Labor Ehud Olmert announced on Tuesday that the Israeli factories of the Erez industrial zone, in the northern entrance of the Gaza Strip, will be relocated to other areas in the south of Israel.
Voluntary Settlement Evacuation to Begin in August
Thursday, June 10, 2004The relocation of settlers from the Gaza Strip and four northern West Bank settlements may begin by August this year, in accordance with the timetable put together by the National Security Council's steering committee for Gaza withdrawal, THE JERUSALEM POST reported. According to the timetable, settlers will be given three different "time windows" during which they can leave the Gaza Strip: If they do so within the next two months, they will receive a "bonus" compensation. Those leaving between November 2004 and July 2005 will get immediate and future compensation. August and September 2005 will be the last months during which settlers will be able to move out of Gaza before they may forcibly be removed, and possibly denied compensation.
Entry into the settlements will be banned after August 14, 2005, to stop thousands of people from going to protest or block the pullout.
The Gaza Strip will be declared a "closed military zone" two weeks before the last "time window" in order to make it easier for the army to remove any settlers still remaining. Army Radio reported that the IDF is expected to withdraw entirely from the Gaza Strip by September 30, 2005.
Government Works on Compensations for Settlers' Relocation
Friday, June 11, 2004Settlers who promise to leave Gaza voluntarily in the next few months may be able to obtain advances on their compensation as early as July, HA'ARETZ reported. The Government's Compensation, Evacuation and Dialogue Committee will draft a bill, to be brought to the Knesset before the house recesses in August, in order to enable the payment of compensation to evacuated settlers. According to government officials, the committee has already completed most of the necessary staff work on the bill. Officials in the Prime Minister's Office explained that while full compensation requires legislation, Sunday's cabinet decision approving the disengagement plan is sufficient for paying an advance, with the remainder to be paid after the Knesset approves the compensation law and the disengagement plan as a whole.
Government officials estimate that the total cost of evacuating Gaza will be some NIS 6.5 billion ($1.4 billion) - 70 percent of which in compensation to the settlers and the rest in security outlays. It will cost an additional NIS 500 million ($110 million) to evacuate the four West Bank settlements covered by the disengagement plan. Experts believe the average family will receive some $300,000 in compensation. The treasury is hoping the United States will agree to help fund the evacuation, as it did when the Sinai settlement of Yamit was dismantled pursuant to the peace treaty with Egypt.
SECURITY Barghouti Sentenced to Five Consecutive Life Terms
Monday, June 7, 2004The Tel Aviv District Court sentenced Palestinian Fatah leader Marwan Barghouti to five consecutive life sentences and 40 additional years in prison, HA'ARETZ reported. A panel of three judges convicted Barghouti on May 20 of involvement in the murder of Yula Hen, shot dead at a Givat Ze'ev gas station in January 2002, and in the murder of a Greek Orthodox priest near Ma'aleh Adumim in June 2002. Barghouti was also convicted of direct responsibility for the murders of Yosef Havi, Eliyahu Dahan and police officer Selim Barichat, in the shooting attack at the Sea Food Market restaurant in Tel Aviv in March 2002. Additionally, Barghouti was also held responsible for the attempt by suicide bombers to detonate an explosives-laden vehicle at Jerusalem's Malcha Mall. The attempt failed and the two would-be suicide bombers died when their vehicle exploded prematurely.
Mofaz: 18 Suicide Bombings Thwarted in May
Monday, June 7, 2004Minister of Defense Shaul Mofaz said today that Israel thwarted the operations of 18 suicide bombers in the month of May, MA'ARIV reported. All were arrested on their way to perpetrating attacks in Israel.
In other news, rockets were fired today from Lebanon at an Israeli Navy boat patrolling in Israel's territorial waters near Rosh Hanikra. No injuries were reported.
IDF Soldier Wounded in Hezbollah Attack near Border
Tuesday, June 8, 2004An Israel Defense Forces soldier was lightly wounded in a Hezbollah attack on IDF positions near the Israel-Lebanon border this afternoon, HA'ARETZ reported. IDF troops returned fire after Hezbollah terrorists fired some 20 rockets and mortar shells at Har Dov.
Responding to rocket fire into Israeli territorial waters on Monday, Israel Air Force warplanes had struck targets near the Lebanese capital at around 10 P.M. that night. The planes fired two missiles at abandoned positions of the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine-General Command (PFLP-GC) led by Ahmed Jibril, on the Mediterranean coast at Naameh, 20 kilometers south of Beirut. There were no reports of casualties or damage. "This is a signal to the Lebanese government," Minister of Defense Shaul Mofaz said in response to the strike. "There is a government in Lebanon and it is responsible for what goes on in its territory," he added.
"Charity" Groups with Links to Terror Shut Down
Tuesday, June 8, 2004Israel Defense Forces sealed late Monday night the offices of "charity" organizations affiliated with Hamas, Islamic Jihad and the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine located in the West Bank cities of Ramallah, Tulkarm and Nablus, THE JERUSALEM POST reported. Officials said that the "charity" organizations channeled funds on behalf of the terror organization to the families of suicide bombers and terrorists killed by IDF forces.
In other events, IDF forces arrested two fugitives, one of them a senior Tanzim fugitive this morning in the Deheisha refugee camp, south of Bethlehem. During the operation, troops spotted a PFLP fugitive, who attempted to flee. Security forces opened fire hitting him in the leg. He was taken to a hospital in Israel for treatment, and will be handed over to the Israel Security Agency for questioning.
POLITICS NRP's Eitam, Levy Resign from Government
Tuesday, June 8, 2004In the wake of Sunday's Cabinet approval of the disengagement plan, National Religious Party's Minister of Housing Effi Eitam, and Deputy Minister Yitzhak Levy handed in their resignation letters to Prime Minister Ariel Sharon today, THE JERUSALEM POST reported. Their departure leaves the NRP with only one minister - Ze'vulun Orlev - in the Cabinet and three MKs. The resignations threaten to split the NRP and weaken Prime Minister Ariel Sharon's coalition whose base of support in the Knesset was brought down from 61 to 59 seats.
"This is a personal decision that does not obligate the rest of the faction," Levy said.
Ze'vulun Orlev, the last remaining minister in Sharon's cabinet said that he still hoped Eitam and Levi would change their minds and that the party would remain unified. Orlev believes the party should remain in the government for another three months in order to work against the disengagement plan.
ECONOMY & HIGH-TECH Desalination Plant Opens at Kibbutz Maagan Michael
Wednesday, June 9, 2004At Kibbutz Maagan Michael, a new desalination plant was inaugurated today promising to desalinate 8.5 million cubic meters of brackish water annually, GLOBES reported. The desalinated water will be pumped from the aquifer, desalinated, and added to the National Water Carrier of Mekorot National Water Company.
This was the first desalination project in which private investors are selling desalinated water to the National Water Carrier. Minister of National Infrastructure Joseph Paritzky said that the plant was part of a policy to encourage competition in water production, while strengthening Mekorot as a provider of water transportation and reservoir services.
Israeli Company PowerDsine Debuts on Nasdaq
Thursday, June 10, 2004Hod Hasharon-based PowerDsine has become the first Israeli technology company to float on Nasdaq in 2004, THEMARKER.COM reported. The company announced Wednesday night the initial public offering of 6 million ordinary shares at $11.50 each.
PowerDsine sold 5,100,000 ordinary shares, while its shareholders sold another 900,000. The shares are listed on the Nasdaq National Market under the symbol PDSN and began trading today. Altogether the company raised $58.65 million.
PowerDsine designs, develops and supplies integrated circuits, modules and systems that enable the implementation of Power over Ethernet in local area networks, providing the capability to transmit and manage electrical power over data network cables. It offers integrated products and system solutions to communications equipment manufacturers in the telecom and datacom industries which incorporate them into, or bundle them with, their products.
Tourism to Israel on Steady Growth
Friday, June 11, 2004Dan & Bradstreet data reveals that the Israeli tourism and hospitality industry has entered the path to recovery, MA'ARIV reported. In 2003, over one million tourists visited Israel, 23 percent more than in 2002. Still, these figures are 11 percent lower than those of 2001 and only half of 2000, which was the record year for the industry. One quarter of foreign visitors arrived from the United States, 16 percent from France, 10 percent from England, 5 percent from Germany, and 4 percent from Russia. Hotel occupancies rose by 3 percent compared to 2002, reaching 15 million. Foreign tourists accounted for 20 percent or 3.3 million of hotel occupancies, a rise of 25 percent compared to the previous year. In 2000, Israeli hotels enjoyed some 10 million occupancies by foreigners alone.
SOCIETY Yad Vashem Marks Fifty Years
Wednesday, June 9, 2004Marking fifty years since its founding, Yad Vashem will hold an international cantorial concert tonight under the rubric of 'Remembering the Past, Guaranteeing the Future', HA'ARETZ reported. In addition to favorite cantorial pieces such as Mamaleh, Oseh Shalom and Pithu Li, the concert will also feature the restored works of pieces that were sung by famous cantors, including some who were murdered in the Holocaust.
Israeli, Palestinian Media People Push 'Campaign for Peace'
Thursday, June 10, 2004Some 40 Israeli and Palestinian members of the media will meet in Jordan this week to promote the image of peace, HA'ARETZ reported. In a second meeting of this kind, Israeli and Palestinian journalists and publicists will combine efforts to create a "local and international campaign to promote the image of peace," said Ron Pundak, a former Oslo negotiator who initiated the peace project.
"We aim to produce a widespread campaign that will improve the image of the peace brand, which has been worn down over the past few years. Professionals in the media and advertising will attempt to define certain concepts, such as coexistence, in a way that will be acceptable to both sides," Pundak said.
Some of Israel's top advertising agents, producers, publicists, and journalists are said to attend this week's conference.
