To: arutz-7@israelnationalnews.com, arutz-7b@israelnationalnews.com
From: Arutz-7 Editor <neteditor@israelnationalnews.com>
Subject: Arutz-7 News: Sunday, March 4, 2001
Arutz Sheva News Service
<http://www.IsraelNationalNews.com>
Sunday, Mar. 4, 2001 / Adar 9, 5761
------------------------------------------------
TODAY'S HEADLINES:
1. LIVNAT TO PUBLIC SECURITY, SHETREET TO EDUCATION, ZE'EVI TO TOURISM
2. LIKUD TO PASS LABOR'S BUDGET
3. THREAT OF WAR
4. SECURITY COOPERATION TO BE RENEWED - FOR P.A. BENEFIT
1. LIVNAT TO PUBLIC SECURITY, SHETREET TO EDUCATION, ZE'EVI TO TOURISM
The new Sharon government continues to take shape, with the Likud
ministerial appointments becoming nearly final during the night. It now
appears that Limor Livnat will not be Education Minister, but rather
Minister of Public Security, while Meir Shetreet will take over the
Education Ministry. Ruby Rivlin is designated for Communications, Tzippy
Livni will be in Justice, and Silvan Shalom will be Finance
Minister. Danny Naveh will be the Liaison Minister between the government
and the Knesset, while Uzi Landau and Yehoshua Matza will be Ministers
without Portfolio.
National Union-Yisrael Beiteinu will receive two Ministers: Rehavam Ze'evi
will be Minister of Tourism, and Avigdor Lieberman will serve as Minister
of National Infrastructures - a post first created for Ariel Sharon in the
Netanyahu government. Ze'evi was not happy with his appointment, but
agreed to it after he was assured that he would also be a member of the
government's security cabinet.
The coalition talks between the Likud and Shas have all but ended, and most
of the issues in dispute have been resolved. Shas - with 17 MKs, the
3rd-largest Knesset party - will have 4-5 ministers and three deputy
ministers, and Shas leader Eli Yeshai will serve as Second Deputy Minister,
following Shimon Peres. Regarding the Shas radio stations, a special Radio
Council will be established in the Ministry of Religious Affairs - which
will be headed by a Shas government minister. Still to be decided is the
question of the timing of the cancellation of the direct election for Prime
Minister; Shas wants to continue the status quo at least during the next
Knesset election. Rabbi Ovadiah Yosef will announce today his choice of
Shas' ministers.
In the National Religious Party, Rabbi Yitzchak Levy will be appointed
Housing Minister, but the party is still seeking a post for Sha'ul
Yahalom. MK Zevulun Orlev told Arutz-7 today, "We recognize our national
and religious responsibility, and we will support this government no matter
what. But we may not join it. It should be clear that with all the
support that we gave Ariel Sharon in the previous election, we should be
treated not with extra-special consideration, but in a manner at least
commensurate with our size and contribution. If Labor-Meimad (23 Knesset
seats) receives eight ministers, and the NRP (5 seats) only one, then it is
clear that something is wrong. If Shas (19 MKs) receives five ministerial
positions, then how can we get only one?" It should be noted that the
portfolios are distributed according to a formula of one for each 3 MKs.
Yisrael B'Aliyah is still not totally satisfied with that which has been
offered it, but party leader Natan Sharansky said, "I will not be the cause
of even a one-day delay in the establishment of this government. If we
cannot reach agreement with the Likud, we will support it from the outside."
2. LIKUD TO PASS LABOR'S BUDGET
The new government will stand behind the national budget as prepared by the
outgoing Barak government and Labor party Finance Minister Avraham
Shochat. There is some concern in the Likud that the budget will not be
passed by the end of March; such an eventuality would force new Knesset
elections. Likud Knesset faction head MK Ruby Rivlin has begun
coordinating with Shochat how to bring the bill for a Knesset vote.
3. THREAT OF WAR
Military historian Dr. Aryeh Yitzchaki was asked today how he reads the
reported Egyptian decision to call up its reserves for "exercises." His
response:
"All the classic warning signs are there, and it is clear that we are
poised for war, possibly within two months. I don't want to scare anyone,
but as opposed to IDF Military Intelligence, my opinion for the last two
years has been that war will erupt in the spring of 2001, and it will
involve not only the Palestinian Authority and Hizbullah, but also Egypt,
Syria, and Iraq. The Egyptian Army does not need reserves - it's an army
built on its standing force, and therefore Israel's denials of the Egyptian
call-up are not relevant. The Egyptian Army is poised for war; it has
created new regiments, has been training intensively, and has acquired the
most up-to-date American equipment... I am happy that despite the IDF's
denials of my prognosis, Intelligence Chief Head Maj.-Gen. Amos Malka is
beginning to agree with me." Yitzchaki said that despite reports that Iraq
and Iran will have nuclear weapons only three and five years from now,
respectively, "I have reliable information that Iraq already has one
nuclear bomb - and this explains his recent 'chutzpah' vis-a-vis the
Americans - and that Iran will have one ready by the end of this year."
PA Communications Chief Imad Falouji told a PLO rally in southern Lebanon
on Friday that the recent intifada had nothing to do with Ariel Sharon's
walk on the Temple Mount. The disturbances were planned after the peace
talks failed in July, according to Falouji. "It [the uprising] had been
planned since Arafat's return from Camp David, when he turned the tables on
the former US president and rejected the American conditions," Falouji
said. PA officials rejected Falouji's statement, reiterating that it was
Ariel Sharon's visit to the Temple Mount that had set off the violence. He
also told the roaring crowd of supporters that the PLO is now reorganizing
to escalate the violence against Israel: "We are going back to the '60s,
'70s, and '80s. The Fatah Hawks, the Kassam Brigades, the Red Eagle, and
all the military action groups are returning to work."
Shots were fired at an IDF jeep this afternoon near the town of Beit
Haggai, south of Hevron. No one was hurt, and IDF soldiers returned fire.
An Israeli citizen stabbed four Palestinian workers at the Agron St.
supermarket in Jerusalem today. They are all in light condition, and were
treated on the spot by Magen David Adom workers. The police reported that
the stabbings were not a reaction to today's Palestinian terrorist attack,
but were perpetrated by a man who had been caught stealing.
4. SECURITY COOPERATION TO BE RENEWED - FOR P.A. BENEFIT
The PA announced on Friday that it had agreed to an American request to
renew security cooperation with Israel. Amin al-Hindi, head of the PA's
intelligence service, said that Arafat would agree to hold meetings on this
topic in the presence of American representatives. Arutz-7's Haggai
Huberman notes that throughout the years of "security cooperation," the
only beneficiary was the Palestinian Authority. "Although the chief
purpose was the prevention of terrorist attacks," Huberman writes in
HaTzofeh, "Israel never received any advance information from the
Palestinians. The information always went from Israel to the PA - and then
sometimes the PA would take action to stop the attackers. Israel's
security levels noticed two years ago that when the PA received information
from Israel, the first thing the Palestinians would do was to try to figure
out how Israel got the information. Only afterwards, if at all, would they
take action."
Prime Minister-elect Ariel Sharon denied today a report in Ma'ariv that he
had sent Yossi Ginosar as an emissary to the PA. Ma'ariv reported that
Ginosar, who owns a share in the PA's casino in Jericho, was sent to
persuade the Palestinians to resume their security cooperation with
Israel. Sharon said that Ginosar does not and did not work on his behalf,
and that he will not send an emissary who has financial connections with
the Palestinian Authority.
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To: arutz-7@israelnationalnews.com,arutz-7b@israelnationalnews.com
From: Arutz-7 Editor<neteditor@israelnationalnews.com>
Subject: Arutz-7 News: Monday, March 5, 2001
Arutz Sheva News Service
<http://www.IsraelNationalNews.com>
Monday, Mar. 5, 2001 / Adar 10, 5761
------------------------------------------------
TODAY'S HEADLINES:
1. ARAFAT PROMISES "STRUGGLE TIL VICTORY"
2. GOVERNMENT ON THE WAY: NRP APPEARS TO BE OUT
3. HOW TO LEGALIZE RADIO STATIONS
4. STRINGENT WATER PROPOSALS
5. PURIM WEBSITES
1. ARAFAT PROMISES "STRUGGLE TIL VICTORY"
Yasser Arafat sent his blessings to the hundreds of thousands of
Moslems participating in the ritual pilgrimage (Hajj) to Mecca this
week - and did not neglect to take note of the recent terrorist
attacks against Israelis. "We will continue our struggle until
victory," he said, "and until we wave the Palestinian flag over the
walls of Jerusalem, over the mosques and churches of Jerusalem our
capital." The message was broadcast over the Palestinian media this
morning. Arafat also called upon the world community to "protect the
Palestinians who stand vulnerable to the Israeli aggression."
Two victims of yesterday's terrorist bombing in Netanya were buried
today: Shlomit Ziv was buried in Netanya, and her uncle Naftali Din
was interred afterwards in Tel Mond. The third victim, Evgenia
Malkin, will be laid to rest tomorrow.
Seventeen of the wounded were still hospitalized this morning. Dr.
Avinoam Skolnick, Medical Director of Laniado Hospital, told Arutz-7
today,
"One thing we noticed this time is that there appear to be great fears
among the patients. We noticed that the wounded are anxious to remain
in the hospital, where they feel safe. When we told some of them that
they could go home, they asked if it was possible to remain another
day. This is a phenomenon that I do not remember from previous
incidents, and the fact that people do not feel safe in their own city
raises some question marks."
He said that psychological treatment of terrorist-attack victims is an
important facet of the medical treatment provided the attack victims:
"Usually in an attack of this type, the physically wounded arrive in
the hospital immediately, and then a couple of hours later we begin to
see a second wave, of those who have been affected in other ways by
the blast - torn ear drums, etc. Then, even up to 48 hours later, we
begin to see patients coming in with fears, trepidation, and the
like."
2. GOVERNMENT ON THE WAY: NRP APPEARS TO BE OUT
Prime Minister-elect Ariel Sharon is racing against the clock, but it
appears that he will present his government two days from now, as he
announced at the end of last week. However, his most likely partner,
the National Religious Party, is likely to be left out. Shas and the
Likud initialed an agreement last night, and the National Union and
Yisrael B'Aliyah are likely to follow tonight. Following the NRP's
refusal to agree to the terms offered it by the Likud, Yisrael
B'Aliyah head Natan Sharansky will apparently benefit and will assume
the post originally offered to the NRP representative - that of
Housing Minister.
The NRP, which had earlier agreed to waive its demand for two
government ministers, is not willing to compromise on the powers its
Deputy Minister of Religious Affairs was to be offered. Party leader
Rabbi Yitzchak Levy and MK Rabbi Chaim Druckman said that the terms
offered the NRP by the Likud are less than that proposed by Ehud Barak
two years ago. "We are practically the only party that worked
outright for Sharon's election, and this is how we are treated," they
said. Barring last-minute changes, the NRP will not join the
government, but will support it from the outside.
David Levy of the Gesher party will not serve as a Minister in the new
government. After a congenial meeting with his friend Ariel Sharon
today, he said that to serve as a minister without a portfolio in such
a large government would be akin merely to "warming the seat."
Negotiations with the National Union continue. Party leader Rehavam
Ze'evi has agreed to accept the Tourism Ministry, but asks that his
authorities also include the National Parks and Nature Reserves, the
Antiquities Authority, and the Green Patrol (responsible for enforcing
environmental regulations).
Labor MK Ophir Pines was chosen by his party today to head the Knesset
Law Committee. According to the coalition agreement, he will be
replaced at the end of 15 months - if the government is still in
existence - by MK Benny Elon of the National Union party. Pines
expressed his vociferous objections to Elon's appointment, and said
that his successor was supposed to have been from the Likud.
Tourism Minister Amnon Lipkin-Shachak and MK Uri Savir, both of the
rapidly-collapsing Center Party, will resign from the Knesset this
week. They will be replaced by the next two members on the party's
Knesset list: Nechama Ronen, formerly of the right-wing Tzomet party,
and David Magen, formerly of the Likud.
Atty. Sinai Gilboa, a negotiator for the 17-seat Shas party, told
Arutz-7 today that Shas had not received everything it wanted:
"Compared to what other parties received, our demands were definitely
modest - but we showed flexibility because of the importance of
forming the government. Shas will receive five ministers: Eli Yesha
as Interior Minister and Deputy Prime Minister, and also Ministers of
Labor, Religious Affairs, Health, and Jerusalem Affairs. In addition,
we will have three deputy ministers: Education, and two others that
are yet to be determined. The Tal Committee Law [regulating military
exemptions for yeshiva students] will be passed, but the question of
the Direct Election [of the Prime Minister] law has not yet been
finalized [Shas wishes to postpone its cancellation until after the
next Knesset elections]. No, we did not receive a representative on
the Committee for the Appointment of Judges; this was one of the
concessions we made in order to reach an agreement for a
national-unity government which is so important to the country at this
time."
3. HOW TO LEGALIZE RADIO STATIONS
An important feature of the coalition agreement between the Likud and
Shas involves the legalization of the Shas radio stations. The
agreement calls for the formation of a separate broadcast authority
for religious broadcasts, which will be established for this purpose
in the Ministry of Religious Affairs. Arutz-7's Media Correspondent
Kobi Sela explained:
"The idea is that the Likud feared that a special religious station
would not stand the test of an appeal to the Supreme Court - but an
authority that is subordinate to a sectorial ministry such as the
Ministry of Religious Affairs will be immune to that form of attack.
The new authority will be like the Cable Stations Council, where the
council sets guidelines for the type of stations it will authorize;
different bodies will submit bids and proposals, and the council will
select the winners and will supervise them."
4. STRINGENT WATER PROPOSALS
The Water Commissionership will recommend that the new government
enact the following water restrictions: No watering of public or
private gardens for the next three years; the raising of
home-consumption water prices; and further cutbacks in agricultural
and industrial water quotas. The stringent proposals are a result of
the drought of the past three years and the worsening water crisis.
The lowering of the government-mandated "red line" - the level of the
Sea of Galilee (Kinneret) below which it is not permissible to draw
water - will also be considered. The "red line" currently stands at
213 meters below sea level; the current level of the Kinneret is 18
centimeters below that. The Kinneret has risen only some 55
centimeters since the end of last summer.
5. PURIM WEBSITES
Purim will be celebrated this year from Thursday night until Friday
night; in Jerusalem, it will be spread out over the three days from
Friday to Sunday. The joyous holiday commemorates the salvation of
the Jews from Haman's decree of destruction some 2,350 years ago. A
list of websites related to Purim can be accessed at
http://www.jr.co.il/hotsites/j-hdaypu.htm. Sample Purim sites:
Two great articles on Purim: http://yeshiva.org.il/English/Eindex.htm
Aish HaTorah Purim Pages - http://aish.com/holidays/Purim/default.asp
Nurit's Purim Spiel -
http://www.bus.ualberta.ca/yreshef/purim/purimindex.html Purim
Lectures - http://www.613.org:80/purim.html Chabad -
http://www.virtualpurim.org/default.asp Ohr Somayach -
http://www.ohr.org.il/special/purim/index.htm OU -
http://www.ou.org/chagim/purim/default.htm Purim Humor -
http://www.jr.co.il/humor/purim.htm Hebrew -
http://galim.org.il/purim/ Project Genesis: Purim -
http://www.torah.org/learning/yomtov/purim/
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To: arutz-7@israelnationalnews.com,arutz-7b@israelnationalnews.com
From: Arutz-7 Editor<neteditor@israelnationalnews.com>
Subject: Arutz-7 News: Tuesday, March 6, 2001
Arutz Sheva News Service
<http://www.IsraelNationalNews.com>
Tuesday, Mar. 6, 2001 / Adar 11, 5761
------------------------------------------------
TODAY'S HEADLINES:
1. NRP AWAITING LAST-MINUTE OFFER
2. IDF GENERAL: "NOT ONE CENTIMETER"
3. BEILIN ANNOUNCES CANDIDACY TO LEAD LABOR
1. NRP AWAITING LAST-MINUTE OFFER
One of two things will apparently happen with the National Religious
Party in the next few hours before tomorrow: Either it will receive a
generous offer from Ariel Sharon to join his government, or else Rabbi
Yitzchak Levy will announce his resignation as head of the party. As
of now, the coalition negotiations between the Likud and the NRP have
ended abruptly without agreement, leaving the NRP - one of the
earliest and strongest supporters of the unity government - outside
it.
Addressing the NRP Central Committee this afternoon, Rabbi Levy had
strong words against the Likud for not including the party of
Religious Zionism in its unity government: "There is no doubt that if
the Likud wanted us in, it would have closed a deal with us." He
implied that he is waiting a few more hours to see if the Likud will
offer the party "something substantial" - such as the Ministry of
Justice or Education - for its consent to join the government. Rabbi
Levy is currently not a Knesset Member, and he had resigned his
Housing Minister position when the NRP left the Barak government last
year. He lost his daughter in a terrorist car-bombing in Jerusalem
four months ago. Rabbi Levy took over as NRP chairman following the
death of Zevulun Hammer four years ago.
National Union MK Tzvi Hendel, formerly of the NRP, made a last-ditch
effort to negotiate a deal between the Likud and the NRP today. The
NRP had originally been offered the Housing Ministry and a
deputy-ministry, but demanded also the position of Director-General of
the Ministry of Religious Affairs. The Likud did not agree to this,
and granted the position of Housing Minister to Natan Sharansky of
Yisrael B'Aliyah. This afternoon, the NRP said it would accept the
Justice Ministry and two deputy ministers, but the Likud again
refused. As things currently stand, therefore, the Likud-headed
national unity government to be presented and voted on tomorrow will
not include the NRP.
Prime Minister-elect Ariel Sharon submitted the signed coalition
agreements to the Knesset at 4:45 PM today - a bit later than he had
planned - and will, in accordance with the law, present his government
to the Knesset 24 hours afterwards. Sharon will make final decisions
today as to which Likud MKs will serve as government ministers. At
this stage, it appears that the government will include the following
parties: Likud, One Israel (Labor-Meimad), Shas, National
Union-Yisrael Beiteinu, Yisrael B'Aliyah, Am Echad, and splinters of
the Center Party, representing 78 Knesset Members. United Torah
Judaism will join the coalition only after the Tal Committee law -
governing yeshiva students' deferment of army service - is passed.
2. IDF GENERAL: "NOT ONE CENTIMETER"
O.C. Southern Command Maj.-Gen. Doron Almog says that the IDF is
against giving even one centimeter of land to the PLO, as long as no
agreement is reached with the Palestinians and their violence against
Israelis continues. Gen. Almog said yesterday that evacuating any
Jewish community from anywhere in Gaza would be interpreted as a sign
of weakness, and would invite further aggressions from the Palestinian
Authority. "It is sufficient to see how the Arabs viewed our pull-out
from Lebanon," he said, and added, "there is no difference between
[the isolated community] Netzarim and any other town in Israel. The
IDF is obligated to protect and defend all of them."
3. BEILIN ANNOUNCES CANDIDACY TO LEAD LABOR
Outgoing Justice Minister Yossi Beilin this morning announced his
candidacy for temporary Labor Party chairman. He will not run against
Shimon Peres, however, in the event that Peres decides to run for the
post. Beilin's staffers say that many party leaders have agreed to
support him, including Chaim Ramon and Avraham Burg.
Deputy Defense Minister Ephraim Sneh parted from his office staff
today in Tel Aviv. He had hoped to graduate to Defense Minister, but
will suffice with Transportation Minister instead. In his parting
speech to his workers, Sneh said, "The Defense Ministry and incoming
Minister Ben-Eliezer can expect a difficult period ahead." He listed
the difficult events of his 20 months in office, among them the new
intifada, the end of the Israeli war in Lebanon, and the establishment
of a new northern border. One of his office's accomplishments, Sneh
said, was the 10% increase in exports of military equipment: "Without
a thriving defense industry, we will not be able to win in war, if it
occurs."
Minister Ben-Ami also parted from his Foreign Ministry staff today,
saying that Prime Minister-elect Ariel Sharon should be given a
chance. Ben-Ami, a staunch opponent of the national-unity government,
said, "We must hope that it succeeds in giving the People of Israel
what it needs - security and stability. At the end of the road, there
will have to be a diplomatic breakthrough, and I believe that it will
be along the lines that we [the Barak-government's negotiators] spoke
about." Ben-Ami said that the Palestinians must stop thinking that
they will reach an agreement that will "leave the last of the refugees
in Lebanon jumping for joy."
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