[imra] Daily digest - Volume: 2 Issue: 1382 (11 messages)

imra Wed May 3 00:26:57 2006 Volume 2 : Issue 1382

In this issue of the imra daily Digest:

: Hamas Behind Recent Bombing Attempt at Karni Crossing
Pollard To Supreme Court: State Has No
Right to Forfeit My Life to Appoint Rafi Eitan
Prominent Leftists Journalist Eldar: No Gain
From Olmert's Withdrawal Plan - Except for Hamas
Information Released on Islamic Jihad Terrorist who
was Apprehended on Jerusalem-Tel Aviv Highway on 21.3.06
Excerpts: Saudi Arabia cuts domestic gasoline
to less than US$0.61/gallon.
Egypt's "Emergency Laws" extended.1 May 2006
U.S. ALLIES SUPPORT TERRORIST GROUPS
Senator John McCain wants to push Israel
to withdraw close to Green Line
Excerpts: Palestinian power struggle.
Morocco's Islamists 2 May 2006
The 10 Most Censored Countries:
North Korea tops CPJ's 'Most Censored' list
COS Halutz prepares for political future?
Supports retreat, adopts "snapshot" mindset
[J4JP Clarifies] HCJ temporarily
denies Pollard petition

----------------------------------------------------------------------

From: imra@netvision.net.il
To: imra@imra.org.il
Subject: : Hamas Behind Recent Bombing Attempt at Karni Crossing

Hamas Behind Recent Bombing Attempt at Karni Crossing

May 1st, 2006
BACKGROUND INFORMATION
Attributed to "security sources" [Distributed by the IDF SPOkesperson's
Offcie]

Hamas behind recent bombing attempt at Karni Crossing

An investigation into the attempted attack on April 26th 2006 reveals that
it was carried out by the PFLP in the Gaza Strip under the direction of
Hamas

On Wednesday April 26th 2006, a PFLP cell in the Gaza Strip under the
direction of Mamtaz Dougmoush was on its way to carry out a bombing attack
at the Karni goods crossing. In the early afternoon, 3 vehicles arrived at
the crossing: one of them was filled with a large amount of explosives,
while the other two carried armed gunmen. The plan was apparently to
infiltrate the crossing, detonate the explosives along the barrier
separating between the Israeli and Palestinian sides, creating an opening
for the gunmen to cross over to the Israeli side, where they were to open
fire at Israeli civilians and security personnel operating the crossing.
Indeed, such an attack had been carried out on January 13th 2005 at the
crossing, killing 6 Israeli civilians.

Mamtaz Dougmoush and his men have been operating since January 2005 (when
Hamas declared the beginning of the so-called "period of calm") with the
full authorization, funding and guidance of the senior Hamas leadership in
the Gaza Strip, thus allowing Hamas to continue to pursue terror activity
through them, while maintaining its desired image of non-violence.

Dougmoush routinely participated in meetings of senior Hamas leaders, in
which Hamas authorized Dougmoush's planned terror activities. Hamas also
supplies weaponry, professional guidance and assistance in terror training
for Dougmoush's cell.

In addition to its activities against Israel, Dougmoush's infrastructure
also assists Hamas in its internal affairs, mainly by attacking security and
political officials in the Palestinian Authority who present a threat to
Hamas. The assassination of Mousah Arafat on September 7th 2005 is an
example of one such incident: Arafat, who stood at the head of the
Palestinian National Security and the Palestinian Military Intelligence in
the Gaza Strip, and who, after retiring, served as a close advisor to
Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas, was executed by PFLP operatives. His
son, himself a Military Intelligence officer, was kidnapped in the same
incident. The operatives involved in the assassination received military
support from senior Hamas terrorists in the Gaza Strip and, apparently,
received from them the order for the assassination itself.

The attempted bombing at Karni on April 26th 2006 was the realization of a
long line of attempts to carry out an attack at the crossing over the course
of the past three months. During this time, Hamas showed consistent
involvement in the preparations, supply of weaponry, guidance and training
for Dougmoush's cell.

Hamas leaders involved with Dougmoush's infrastructure include:
� Ahmad A'ndour - head of Hamas in the northern Gaza Strip;
authorizes terror activity of the PFLP while coordinating PFLP activity in
general. A'ndour maintains constant contact with Dougmoush and his men.
� Ahmad Jabri - a senior Hamas leader in the Gaza Strip; meets on a
regular basis with Dougmoush and his collaborators, serves as both a source
of funding and as an authorizor of their terror activity.
� Abed Al Massi Abu Dif - A senior Hamas explosives instructor;
assisted in the preparing and training of Dougmoush's operatives. Abu Dif
was killed in February of this year when an explosive device detonated
accidentally during one of his training sessions.
� Imad Akkel - A senior Hamas explosives expert; assists in training
and weapons manufacturing for the PFLP.

Despite the fact that the Karni goods crossing serves as the main conduit of
commodities and consumer goods for the Palestinian population in the Gaza
Strip - and perhaps in light of this fact - the Karni crossing has been a
preferred target for attacks by terror organizations over the course of the
past several years.
Following intelligence information alerting of attacks such as the one we
witnessed last Wednesday, the Karni crossing has been intermittently closed
over the past few months. Hamas has repeatedly declared its commitment to
the wellbeing of the Palestinian people and as of January 2006 has become
officially responsible for the Palestinian population. It is in fact this
very organization which stands behind a longstanding plan to attack the
largest goods crossing in Gaza, and it is therefore directly and fully
responsible for the hardships stemming from the closing of the crossing.

------------------------------

From: imra@netvision.net.il
To: imra@imra.org.il
Subject: Pollard To Supreme Court: State Has No
Right to Forfeit My Life to Appoint Rafi Eitan

Pollard To Supreme Court: State Has No Right to Forfeit My Life to Appoint
Rafi Eitan

Justice4JP Release - May 1, 2006

Lawyers for Jonathan Pollard will file an appeal in Israel's Supreme Court
today to block the appointment of Rafi Eitan, Pollard's former handler and
control officer, as an Israeli Government Minister.

Inter alia, Pollard's petion to the High Court of Justice states:

Rafi Eitan is not suited to be a Minister because he corrupt both as an
official and as a commander. The facts are:

1) Rafi Eitan singlehandedly deflected all responsiibility for the Pollard
affair away from the Government of Israel and from the politcal and military
echelon by falsely claiming that he had acted alone without their knowledge
EVEN THOUGH this lie was untenable and the Americans knew it was a lie.

2) For 21 years Eitan has remained silent about official Israeli Government
involvement and allowed Pollard, an official Israeli agent , to rot in jail
in America.

3) Rafi Eitan not only deflected blame from the Govt of Israel, he gave
false testimony to the Americans blaming Pollard for the whole affair, as if
Pollard had acted on his own. For 21 years Eitan never corrected this false
version of events, even though he knew that it might cost an Israeli agent
his life.

4) For 21 years Eitan has withheld a critcial document and refused to
release it to the Americans - or to provide it to the appropriate
authorities in Israel so that they might use it in order to save the life of
an Israeli agent.

The document shows clearly exactly what information Pollard DID supply to
Israel, and by contrast, what information Pollard DID NOT supply. This
document would have allowed the Americans to close the case years ago. It
would also have PREVENTED all the false accusations against Pollard, from
which he has suffered for 21 years. For 21 years Eitan has hidden this
document and withheld it from the Americans, knowing full well that he was
sacrificing the life of Pollard, an Israeli agent by doing so.

5) In oder to cover up and hide Israeli Government and Military involvement
in the Pollard affair for the last 2 decades, Rafi Eitan made a clear and
calculated choice to protect the political careers of his friends by
sacrificing a soldier in the field.

6) For 21 years, Eitan refused numerous appeals from Pollard and from his
wife, Esther, to come to the aid of his agent quitely behind the scenes.
Eitan claimed that the Americans are angered when they hear his name and
that the less that they hear the name "Eitan", the better it is for Pollard,
thus he refused to help at all. He told Esther Pollard, in the presence of
witnesses, that his only regret in the Pollard affair was that he did not
succeed in killing Pollard before he sought refuge at the Embassy so that
there would be no Pollard affair.

7) By running publicly for Knesset, in the face of the Americans, Eitan
showed callous disregard for the fate of his agent, Pollard, even after 21
years. Eitan's public campaign and his high profile as both an MK and
possibly as a minister, just hammers another nail in the coffin, angering
the Americans all over again, and leaving Pollard to take the blame again.

8) Eitan ran for public office using Pollard's name as a way to promote
himself. A Commander who callously abandons his agent in the field for 21
years, without conscience, and then steps on him all over again after 21
years further his own career should not be entrusted with public office and
the responsibility that governs the lives of our citizens.

9) Eitan - to this day - continues to lie to protect the political careers
of his buddies, and to prevent their involvement in the Pollard affair from
being known. He maintains the lies even though he knows that doing so is
tantamount to a death decree for his agent, Jonathan Pollard.

10) How can the Government of Israel entrust this man with responsiblity for
many citizens, when he has shown that he is incapable of behaving with honor
and deceny towards even one agent -- Pollard -- who continues to rot in
prison for 21 years because of this man.

Pollard's petition to Supreme Court concludes:

The State of Israel has no right to forfeit Pollard's life and cause it to
end behind bars. The appointment of Rafi Eitan as a Government Minister will
obviate attempts to bring about Pollard's release and will thus be
tantamount to imposing a death sentence on Pollard. The State of Israel has
no right to do this. -30-

For more information contact: Attorney Nitsana Darshan-Leitner
052-383-7020

------------------------------

From: imra@netvision.net.il
To: imra@imra.org.il
Subject: Prominent Leftists Journalist Eldar: No Gain
From Olmert's Withdrawal Plan - Except for Hamas

Lieberman is right

By Akiva Eldar Haaretz 1 May 2006
www.haaretz.com/hasen/spages/711312.html

It is a pity that the only politician who dares to shout in public that the
king is naked is a racist bully. It is a pity that MK Avigdor Lieberman
(Yisrael Beiteinu) is the one who has pointed out the contradiction between
the coalition guidelines, which promise to "shape the permanent borders of
the state of Israel," and the unilateral "convergence plan." Even before the
government has been sworn in, it turns out that even the great American
friend does not intend to recognize a border that Israel decides without
negotiations and without the agreement of the Palestinian side. Lieberman
also knows that there is not a Palestinian on the planet who would agree to
the border that Israel is prepared to suggest.

What legal value is there to a fence that is going up without a permit, in a
place that is not registered to the criminal and that does not stand a
chance of being recognized as his property? How many embassies have
relocated to Jerusalem since the unilateral annexation of the eastern part
of the city? How many of them have left it since the passage of the
Jerusalem Law? How many countries have changed their attitude toward the
Syrian Golan Heights in the wake of the application of Israeli law? In the
absence of a diplomatic agreement, which of them will contribute to the
operation of handing Jewish settlements in the West Bank over to Hamas and
returning the settlers to Israel - the cost of which is estimated at NIS 100
billion?

Not only does "shaping the permanent borders" without international
legitimization not contribute a thing to Israel's interests, but the new
border is liable to knock the ground out from under international
recognition of the borders of June 4, 1967, which are anchored in United
Nations Security Council Resolution 242. That resolution, of November 22,
1967, talks, inter alia, of the right of all of the countries involved in
the conflict to live in peace "within secure and recognized boundaries."
Moreover, the absence of UN recognition of the annexation to Israel of
thousands of dunams in the West Bank and of walls that perpetuate the
annexation of East Jerusalem, including sites that are holy to Islam and
Christianity, will depict Israel as the violent side. Violence, as everyone
knows, leads to violence, and thus the new borders will be less recognized
than the Green Line, and also less secure.

A unilateral exit from 90 percent of the West Bank, or even 99 percent, will
not save Israel from legal responsibility toward the area's Palestinian
inhabitants. According to legal opinions, including one from an expert at
the Justice Ministry, even the complete removal of any Israeli military and
civilian presence from the Gaza Strip has not totally released Israel from
its formal obligations toward Gaza's inhabitants. This would be all the more
true if the case involved only a partial evacuation of settlements and a
continued military presence on the ground. The international community does
not intend to take over Israel's responsibility for the places it evacuates,
and after the disengagement, even the United States stopped giving the
Palestinians the aid that was intended to advance the peace process, may it
rest in peace.

There is only one element that will welcome a unilateral withdrawal in the
West Bank and will make political capital of it - the Hamas government. All
of the secular, pragmatic Arab regimes are following in horror the
establishment of the first Muslim Brotherhood state in the Middle East. And
only in Israel are they glad that the non-partner has gone and the extra
large non-partner has come. At long last, there is no one to give
territories in return for peace, so it is possible to leave them without a
peace agreement. However, the huge number of warnings about planned terror
attacks testifies that the withdrawal from Gaza without an agreement has not
contributed to security. The security establishment is even preparing for a
renewed invasion of areas of the Gaza Strip.

What leads anyone to assume that a withdrawal from the West Bank without an
agreement will in fact lead to a lowering of the flames and will not
culminate in the return of Israeli forces to the casbah in Nablus? Even
someone who assumes that there is no chance of a permanent status agreement
must aspire to a phased withdrawal that would be coordinated with
Palestinian elements that support a two-state solution on the basis of the
1967 lines, with agreed-upon modifications. Only a withdrawal in a format of
this sort will be acceptable to the international community and will be able
to win economic aid and security backing from it. The permanent borders must
wait for better days, when every child will understand that recognized
borders are not something one determines alone. And neither are secure
borders.

------------------------------

From: imra@netvision.net.il
To: imra@imra.org.il
Subject: Information Released on Islamic Jihad Terrorist who
was Apprehended on Jerusalem-Tel Aviv Highway on 21.3.06

Information Released on Islamic Jihad Terrorist who was Apprehended on
Jerusalem-Tel Aviv Highway on 21.3.06

(Communicated by the Prime Minister's Office)

1 May 2006

On 21.3.06, the ISA and the Israel Police arrested, near Sha'alivim, on the
Jerusalem-Tel Aviv highway, Kafah Nouada, born in 1982, from Yamun, who was
in possession of a bomb with which he intended to perpetrate a
suicide-bombing at Haifa Bay Central Bus Station, with which he was familiar
from having worked illegally in the area. He admitted that he had been
dispatched by the Islamic Jihad from the Jenin area, that he had entered
Israel in a vehicle that was transporting persons without entry permits to
work in Israel. Other suspects were arrested along with him.

Nouhada said that he had been dispatched to perpetrate a suicide bombing by
several men, including Atzam Ziad, an Islamic Jihad terrorist from Silat
al-Khartiya, who was arrested on 8.4.06 and admitted his involvement.

Armed with an AK-47, Nouhada was filmed by fellow terrorists as he read his
will. He received the bomb, hidden in a bag, the evening before he was
apprehended. He contacted a Palestinian from Silat al-Khartiya, who worked
in transporting workers into Israel, and agreed with him regarding a trip
into Israel the next day.

Nouada left Yamun in a taxi at 06:00 on 21.3.06. Upon reaching the Nablus
area, with the bomb in his possession, he changed to a GMC van, with Israeli
license plates, driven by Yasser Taleb Hashem Masri, a resident of the Old
City of Jerusalem.

Masri admitted to transporting 11 Palestinians, none of whom had permits,
into Israel along a route that bypassed the security fence. From the Nablus
region, he passed through the Hawara checkpoint without being checked, drove
along the Ramallah bypass road, passed through the A-Zaim checkpoint without
being checked, and turned onto the Jerusalem-Tel Aviv highway, heading west.

The vehicle was stopped near Sha'alavim by the ISA and Israel Police in the
wake of a pinpoint warning regarding the intention to perpetrate a terrorist
attack.

Masri further admitted that he customarily drove illegal workers from
Samaria into Israel approximately three times a week, in return for
approximately NIS 200 per worker. He also admitted to working with the
aforesaid Palestinian from Silat al-Khartiya on many occasions. Masri
claimed that he was unaware that he was transporting a suicide terrorist on
the day in question.

Nouada admitted to having previously worked illegally in recent years in
Israel, in Usfiya and Daliat el-Carmel, for several employers, whom, he
claimed, were fully aware of his illegal status. He said that his brother
was working for his employer from Usfiya.

The employer was arrested on 21.3.06. He told the ISA and Israel Police
that he had been involved in employing and transporting illegal workers for
some time, including two of Nouada's brothers. At the time of his arrest,
the employer was on probation for previous similar offenses. He has been
indicted for employing, harboring and transporting Palestinians who lacked
permits to be and/or work in Israel.

In recent years, since the completion of various parts of the security fence
( http://tinyurl.com/czaco ), terrorist organizations have made increasing
use of Palestinians without such permits in order to perpetrate terrorist
attacks inside Israel especially in light of their familiarity in both
bypassing the security fence and with Israel in general. Those who
transport such illegal Palestinians have played a significant part in the
perpetration of very many terrorist attacks inside Israel; they exploit
their Israeli citizenship in order to infiltrate Palestinians into Israel,
through IDF checkpoints, in exchange for payment, while ignoring the high
security risks involved. The courts have imposed severe sentences on those
who transport suicide terrorists.

------------------------------

From: imra@netvision.net.il
To: imra@imra.org.il
Subject: Excerpts: Saudi Arabia cuts domestic gasoline
to less than US$0.61/gallon.
Egypt's "Emergency Laws" extended.1 May 2006

Excerpts: Saudi Arabia cuts many oil fuel prices at home.Egypt's "Emergency
Laws" extended.1 May 2006

+++ARAB NEWS (Saudi)1 May '06:"Petrol Price Reduced by Over 30%" P.K. Abdul
Ghafour, Arab News -
QUOTES FROM TEXT:
"King Abdullah ... ordered petrol price in Kingdom slashed by more than
30 percent ... 'in order to improve the living standard of citizens and for
the public good'"

JEDDAH, 1 May 2006 - Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Abdullah
yesterday ordered petrol price in the Kingdom slashed by more than 30
percent ...,.
"In order to improve the living standard of citizens and for the public
good, we have ordered that the price of one liter of petrol for the consumer
be changed ...Dec. 31, 2006," a Royal Decree issued by the king said.

The decree said price of 91-octane petrol for consumers would be brought
down to 60 halalas (IMRA: US$0.16) from 82 halalas per liter while price of
95-octane petrol will be slashed from SR1.02 to 75 halalas, effective from
Jan. 1, 2007.
King Abdullah also cut diesel prices from 37 to 25 halalas per liter, the
agency said. "The decree will come into effect the next day morning after
its announcement," the king said.
The new decree comes three weeks after the Council of Ministers reduced
bench prices for heavy crude and other crude oils at between 4.90 and 6.30
halalas per liter for all consumers at all distribution centers. The Cabinet
meeting also decided that the crude oil prices would be revised every five
years in the light of international energy prices. "The prices will remain
the same for 10 years for clients who sign long-term purchasing contracts
with Saudi Aramco," the Cabinet said, adding that the period would be
calculated from the date on which the contract was signed. . . .

+++JORDAN TIMES 1 May '06:"(Egypt's)MPs extend emergency laws"
QUOTES FROM TEXT:
"Mubarak regime ... lashing out in all directions"
"a citizenry angry over the worsening economy, the government's harsh
treatment of opponents and broken promises of political reform"

"Mubarak said 'he is very comfortable' about how things are going in Egypt
and
the Egyptian street"
----------------------------------------------------------------------------
----------
EXCERPTS:
CAIRO (AP) - The Mubarak regime ...appears to be lashing out in all
directions in an attempt to put a lid on the brewing chaos.
.... a citizenry angry over the worsening economy, the government's harsh
treatment of opponents and broken promises of political reform. . . .
Parliament 30 April ignored a growing chorus of opposition to approve a
two-year extension of the emergency law.
The law gives authorities broad powers of arrest and detention, that human
rights groups have criticised and said is widely abused. ... since March,
jailing 90 members of the banned Muslim Brotherhood, the fundamentalist
Islamic organisation that poses the greatest challenge to Mubarak's
continued rule.
At least 35 arrests were made in recent days, mainly of Brotherhood members
who were hanging posters against renewal of the emergency law. . . .
. . .Last week... the regime fielded thousands of security agents to crush
the pro-judge demonstration in Cairo, more than it did at the scene of the
triple bombing in Dahab, ... . . .The government has said the attacks
were the work of local bedouin tribesmen, but terrorism experts say that is
unlikely.
The Mubarak government is at pains to blame local extremists in an attempt
to deflect concerns about Al Qaeda, which could seriously damage the vital
tourist industry. It brought in $6.4 billion last year and is the country's
foremost foreign exchange source.
Earlier this month... relations between Muslims and Coptic Christians, burst
into flame in ...Alexandria. ... .
"We are waiting for a big surprise ...'Suleiman Gouda wrote in the
independent daily Masry Youm (The Egyptian Today).
"You feel that Egypt is pregnant with something, it's up to you to imagine
the looks of the baby that will be born after 25 years (of Mubarak's rule),"
he wrote.
Some insiders are making comparisons to the final days of Sadat's rule, now
known as "black September" because the former president had swept 1,500
opposition figures into custody. . . .
. . ... the disciplinary proceedings, ... were ordered by the justice
minister because of their loud protests against what they saw as deeply
flawed and dishonest voting procedures.
. . . Mubarak said "he is very comfortable" about how things are going
in Egypt and in the Egyptian street. ... ..
...events ...suggest the Egyptian leader... may have been whistling past
the graveyard.
... the government arrested Jazeera television's Cairo bureau chief in
Dahab. ...held for 29 hours, accused of false reporting and released on
bail. Jazeera broadcasts in Arabic and is widely viewed in Egypt. . . .
..., the election...held in September ... Mubarak outdistanced 10
competitors. Ayman Nour, who finished a distant second to Mubarak , has
subsequently been sentenced to five years in prison on forgery charges that
he says were trumped up to eliminate him from politics.
In February, Mubarak postponed elections for local councils for two years,
apparently to block another strong showing by the Brotherhood. ...
. . .Of late, on virtually every issue of importance to the United
States - with the one exception of Israel - Mubarak has taken positions that
have riled the Americans. . . .

Sue Lerner - Associate - IMRA

------------------------------

From: imra@netvision.net.il
To: imra@imra.org.il
Subject: U.S. ALLIES SUPPORT TERRORIST GROUPS

U.S. ALLIES SUPPORT TERRORIST GROUPS

WASHINGTON [MENL] -- U.S. allies in the Middle East have been cited for
supporting groups deemed terrorists by the State Department.

A State Department report, based on data from the National Counterterrorism
Center, said the United States has provided military and security support to
Middle East countries that either finance or harbor terrorist groups. These
countries have not been placed on the department's list of terrorist
sponsors.
Entitled "Country Reports on Terrorism 2005," the report cited aid by Saudi
Arabia to Hamas in the West Bank and Gaza Strip. The department said Hamas
has also been raising funds in other Arab as well as Western states.

"[Hamas] receives some funding from Iran but primarily relies on donations
from Palestinian expatriates around the world and private benefactors in
Saudi Arabia and other Arab states," the report said. "Some fundraising and
propaganda activity takes place in Western Europe and North America."
=====
NOTE: The above is not the full item.
This service contains only a small portion of the information produced daily
by Middle East Newsline. For a subscription to the full service, please
contact Middle East Newsline at:
editor@menewsline.com for further details.

------------------------------

From: imra@netvision.net.il
To: imra@imra.org.il
Subject: Senator John McCain wants to push Israel
to withdraw close to Green Line

After Bush, the Green Line
By Amir Oren Haaretz 1 May 2006
www.haaretz.com/hasen/spages/711310.html

BRUSSELS - Even if it is too soon to anoint him as U.S. President George
Bush's successor, Senator John McCain marks a swing in policy from the
Republican right to the middle of the map, close to the leading candidates
in the Democratic Party. McCain is nearly ready to decide whether to run
again in 2008 for the Republican nomination, which he lost in 2000 to George
W. Bush. However, as long as he is not a declared candidate, his comments to
Haaretz on Saturday, during a weekend break from American politics here in
Brussels, reflect the personal opinion of a senior and influential figure in
the area of defense policy in the United States Senate, rather than an
attempt to formulate policy guidelines for his administration.

The marks of having been wounded and held captivity as a naval combat
aviator in Vietnam are clearly evident in his face and his bearing. His
military background prepared him for his current profession less than did
other experiences, and of his various military duties, he cherishes most of
all his year at the National War College, after his release from captivity
and prior to his retirement from the military with the rank of navy captain.
Yes, captivity also taught him a lot, but then it was clear what his
capabilities were and who the enemy was, which is not the case in politics.

McCain does not volunteer his opinions regarding Israel and the Arabs. In a
speech of about 3,500 words that he delivered at the Brussels Forum for
American-European Relations, Israel was mentioned only as being threatened
by Iran. Although he mentioned that the range of Iran's missiles also
extends to European capitals, the main and deciding argument for thwarting
the Iranian nuclear program - via a military operation, if softer means
prove to no avail - is Iran's explicit threat to annihilate Israel. The
Pentagon does have plans in its drawer "for every place on the globe," and
in the Iranian context, he believes that these plans can be implemented -
but only after an assessment is made regarding the second phase of the
operation, the counterattack that the Iranians are no doubt planning.

He is as hostile toward the Hamas government as he is toward its patrons in
Iran. Financial aid must be kept from Hamas, he says, and action must be
taken to isolate it in the international arena. Hamas aspires to topple the
government of Jordan by calling for free elections there and to help
Hezbollah gain control of Lebanon. What should be done? Moderate Palestinian
elements should be encouraged - Palestinian Authority Chairman Mahmoud Abbas
is "a good man, but not the strongest" - but there is no point in an effort
to topple the Hamas government, because the organization would likely win
again in new elections, for the second time in a row, and this would
strengthen it. He expects Israel to do, more or less, what it is doing:
"Defend itself and keep evacuating."

As president, McCain would "micromanage" U.S. policy toward the
Israeli-Palestinian conflict, because in his opinion, this is still the
source of the ferment in the region: Every time an Arab leader wants to
provide a distraction, he argues that the problem is due to Israel, and also
in the matter of Iran, "we would not have been so concerned" over its
nuclear program had it not threatened Israel with extinction. He is fed up
with the evasiveness of the Arab states - and most of all with Egypt, which
has not given adequate return for the extensive American aid it has
received - with regard to helping to achieve peace between Israel and
Palestine.

A McCain administration, alongside his close supervision from the White
House, would send "the smartest guy I know" to the Middle East. And who is
that? "Brent Scowcroft, or Jim Baker, though I know that you in Israel don't
like Baker." This is a longing for the administration of the first president
Bush, or even for the administration of president Gerald Ford in the
mid-1970s. In both of them, general Scowcroft was the national security
adviser. McCain will act to bring peace, "but having studied what Clinton
did at Camp David, perhaps not in one try, but rather step by step, and I
would expect concessions and sacrifices by both sides." In general, a
movement toward the June 4, 1967 armistice lines, with minor modifications?
McCain nods in the affirmative.

Whoever the next American president is, the overall impression from a
conversation with a leading candidate like McCain is that the government of
Israel is deluding itself if it believes that "convergence" into "settlement
blocs," as opposed to a nearly total withdrawal from the Green Line, will
satisfy the next administration. In 2009, it will be a different show:
Neither Bush nor settlement blocs.

------------------------------

From: imra@netvision.net.il
To: imra@imra.org.il
Subject: Excerpts: Palestinian power struggle.
Morocco's Islamists 2 May 2006

Excerpts: Palestinian power struggle.Morocco's Islamists 2 May 2006

+++ARAB NEWS (Saudi) 2 May '06:"Palestinian Talks Shelved Amid Power
Struggle" Hisham Abu Taha, Arab News, input from Agencies
QUOTES FROM TEXT:
"conference ... shelved given the power struggle between .. Hamas
government and Palestinian President ...Abbas"
" 'Hamas Prime Minister ... and his Cabinet want to be in charge of the
dialogue themselves' "
----------------------------------------------------------------------------
----------------------------------------------------------------------------
------------------
EXCERPTS:

GAZA CITY, 2 May 2006 - A cross-party conference seeking to tackle mounting
political and fiscal crises among Palestinians was shelved yesterday amid a
power struggle between the Hamas government and Palestinian President
Mahmoud Abbas.
Abbas' office had sent invitations to various armed factions and the
Palestine Liberation Organization on Saturday for a May 2-4 forum to discuss
the situation, reinforce unity and confront the financial crisis.
But on the eve of the three-day meeting, Abdullah Abdullah, chairman of the
political committee of Palestinian Parliament, said the conference had been
shelved given the power struggle between Abbas and the governing Hamas.
"There is a problem about the dialogue with all the parties which must take
place at another time," Abdullah, an MP for Abbas' Fatah faction, told AFP.
"Abu Mazen (Abbas) sent out the invitations for the conference which he
would have chaired but yesterday we found out that (Hamas Prime Minister)
Ismail Haniyeh and his Cabinet want to be in charge of the dialogue
themselves." Visiting Amman after a European tour, Abbas expressed hope that
the talks not be put off indefinitely.
"The inter-Palestinian dialogue is important and vital during this time when
we are facing dangerous and even catastrophic situations," he said.. . .
""We need more preparation between Fatah and Hamas because if we can reach
agreement between us, then the greater the dialogue's chances of success.
. . .Meanwhile, bolstered by support from Jordan and Egypt, Abbas said
yesterday he is "ready" to negotiate with Israel and vowed to "prod" the
so-called Quartet of Mideast peacemakers to jumpstart talks. . . .

+++THE DAILY STAR (Lebanon) 1 May '06"Moroccan Islamists concentrate on
competence, not Zionism" by Eva Wegner, Arab Reform Bulletin, April '06
QUOTES FROM TEXT:
"Morocco's Party of Justice and Development (PJD) ... an amalgam of
several Islamist organizations"

"The PJD has succeeded ... by establishing and maintaining a reputation
that defends the interests of the populace ... issues that appeal to Islamis
and non-Islamist voters alike"

"PJD 'Forum du Developement' tasks are to develop party policy...
questions, ammendments, draft bills of a more technical nature- for
instance- relating to the budget law rather than denouncing collaboration by
the leftist parties with the ' Zionist entity' "
----------------------------------------------------------------------------
--------------------------------------------------------------------
EXCERPTS:
Morocco's Party of Justice and Development (PJD) is the offspring of the
Movement for Unity and Reform, itself an amalgam of several Islamist
organizations. It has held seats in Parliament since 1997 and increased its
share from 14 to 42 seats in the 2002 elections, even though the party only
ran in half of the electoral districts. With the exception of the 1998-2000
period, ...it has remained in opposition throughout the whole period. ...
displays docility toward the palace. ... .
The PJD has succeeded in differentiating itself from other political parties
not so much by pushing for distinctively Islamist policies, but by
establishing and maintaining a reputation as a party that defends the
interests of the populace rather than those of a self-interested political
elite. ...increasingly attracts voters, members, and candidates from
segments of Moroccan society without backgrounds of Islamist activism.
...increasing transparency and fighting corruption, issues that appeal to
Islamist and non-Islamist voters alike.
From the beginning, PJD interventions in Parliament have focused on improved
ethics in and empowerment of Moroccan political institutions. ... .
Differentiating itself from other Moroccan parties is at the core of the
PJD's political capital. ...Fearing that PJD deputies would fall into bad
habits as they became part of the Parliament's culture, the party leadership
set up an internal code requiring deputies to attend all parliamentary
sessions and to be productive. Each deputy is required to draft at least one
oral question per week, one written question per month, and to propose one
bill per legislative year. The PJD also requires deputies to remit at least
22 percent of their remuneration to the party in order to strengthen both
party finances and the reputation of PJD deputies as not working for profit.
Beyond the issue of ethics, the PJD has also worked on strengthening its
ability to develop legislation, founding the "Forum du Developement" in
2000. Its tasks are to develop party policies and to support and train
deputies. Most questions, amendments, and draft bills of a more technical
nature - for instance, relating to the budget law rather than denouncing
collaboration by leftist parties with the "Zionist entity" - have been
produced by the forum's members.
These highly pragmatic technocrats are now increasingly coming to the
forefront in the party. ...By setting up projects centered on improving
public services, such as low-income housing or waste management, the
technocrats must now show that the party can indeed make a difference. Their
experience may indicate the extent to which the PJD - or perhaps any party
with an ethical message - can survive the hazards of governance in the
Middle East and North Africa.
Eva Wegner is a researcher at the European University Institute in Florence.
This commentary is reprinted with permission from the Arab Reform Bulletin,
Vol. 4, issue 3 (April 2006) www.CarnegieEndowment.org/ArabReform

Sue Lerner - Associate - IMRA

------------------------------

From: imra@netvision.net.il
To: imra@imra.org.il
Subject: The 10 Most Censored Countries:
North Korea tops CPJ's 'Most Censored' list

Committee to Protect Journalists
330 Seventh Avenue, New York, NY 10001 USA Phone: (212) 465�1004
Fax: (212) 465�9568 Web: www.cpj.org E-Mail: media@cpj.org
www.cpj.org Contact: Abi Wright
e-mail: info@cpj.org Telephone: 212-465-1004 ext. 105

The 10 Most Censored Countries

North Korea tops CPJ's 'Most Censored' list

New York, May 2, 2006-North Koreans live in the most censored country in the
world, a new analysis by the Committee to Protect Journalists has found. The
world's deepest information void, communist North Korea has no independent
journalists, and all radio and television receivers sold in the country are
locked to government-specified frequencies. Burma, Turkmenistan, Equatorial
Guinea, and Libya round out the top five nations on CPJ's list of the "10
Most Censored Countries."

In issuing its report to mark World Press Freedom Day on May 3, CPJ called
state-sponsored censorship one of the most urgent threats facing journalists
worldwide. CPJ studied press freedom conditions in dozens of countries
around the world to assess the access people have to independent information
and the methods leaders use to stifle the news.

CPJ regional staff used their extensive knowledge of local press conditions
and applied a rigorous set of criteria to determine the rankings of the most
censored list. The criteria included state control of all media, the
existence of formal censorship regulations, the use by the state of
violence, imprisonment and harassment against journalists, jamming of
foreign news broadcasts, and restrictions on private Internet access.

The other countries on the list are Eritrea, Cuba, Uzbekistan, Syria, and
Belarus.

"People in these countries are virtually isolated from the rest of the world
by authoritarian rulers who muzzle the media and keep a chokehold on
information through restrictive laws, fear, and intimidation," CPJ Executive
Director Ann Cooper said.

Patterns that emerge from CPJ's analysis include:

� Total control. Print and electronic media in all 10 countries are
under heavy state control or influence. Some countries allow a few privately
owned outlets to operate but most of these are in the hands of regime
loyalists. In Libya, there are no independent broadcast or print media, an
anachronism even by Middle East standards. Equatorial Guinea has one private
broadcaster; its owner is the president's son. In Burma, citizens risk
arrest for listening to the BBC in public.

� One-man-shows. Most of the countries on CPJ's list are ruled by one
man who has remained in power by manipulating the media and rigging any
elections that are held. The media foster a cult of personality. On state
television in Turkmenistan, "President for Life" Saparmurat Atayevich
Niyazov's golden image is constantly displayed in profile at the bottom of
the screen. State-run radio in Equatorial Guinea has described President
Teodoro Obiang Nguema Mbasogo as "the country's God."

� Use of the "Big Lie:" In North Korea, all "news" is positive.
According to the country's rigidly controlled media, North Korea has never
suffered famine or poverty, and citizens would willingly sacrifice
themselves for their leader. The official Korean Central News Agency said
that leader Kim Jong Il is so beloved that after a deadly munitions train
explosion in a populated area, people ran into buildings to save the
ubiquitous portraits of the "Dear Leader" before they rescued their own
family members.

� Zero tolerance for negative coverage. In Uzbekistan, a government
crackdown forced more than a dozen foreign correspondents to flee abroad
after they covered a massacre of antigovernment protesters in Andijan in May
2005. Reporters covering opposition to Belarus' President Aleksandr
Lukashenko's recent re-election were jailed and charged with crimes such as
"hooliganism." In Cuba, the government organizes "repudiation acts" for
recalcitrant journalists; demonstrators surround the journalist's home and
prevent people from coming or going.

� Cynical disregard for people's welfare. Governments suppress news of
the dangers and hardships faced by their citizens. North Korea covered up a
famine that affected millions. Burma stifled coverage of the effects of the
tsunami that hit the country in December 2004.

"By any international standard, the practices of these governments are
unacceptable," Cooper said. "We call on the leaders of these most censored
countries to join the free world by abandoning these restrictive actions and
allowing journalists to independently report the news and inform their
citizens."

Here are summaries of the Most Censored Countries:

1. NORTH KOREA

Leader: Kim Jong Il, chairman, National Defense Commission, in power since
his father Kim Il Song's death in 1994

How censorship works: North Korea has wedded the traditional Confucian ideal
of social order to the Stalinist model of an authoritarian communist state
to create the world's deepest information void. All domestic radio,
television, and newspapers are controlled by the government. Radio and
television receivers are locked to government-specified frequencies. Content
is supplied almost entirely by the official Korean Central News Agency
(KCNA). It serves up a daily diet of fawning coverage of "Dear Leader" Kim
Jong Il and his official engagements. The country's grinding poverty or
famines are never mentioned. Only small numbers of foreign journalists are
allowed limited access each year, and they must be accompanied by "minders"
wherever they go.

Lowlight: After a deadly munitions train explosion in April 2004 in
Ryongchon near the Chinese border, KCNA reported that citizens displayed the
"spirit of guarding the leader with their very lives" by rushing into
burning buildings to save portraits of Kim "before searching for their
family members or saving their household goods." The international press,
meanwhile, was barred from the scene, where more than 150 died and thousands
were injured.

2. BURMA

Leader: Than Shwe, who took over as chairman of the military junta known as
the State Peace and Development Council in 1992 after the resignation of
1988 coup leader General Saw Maung

How censorship works: The junta owns all daily newspapers and radio, along
with the country's three television channels. Media dare not hint at, let
alone report on, antigovernment sentiments. Burma's few privately owned
publications must submit content to the Press Scrutiny Board for approval
before publishing; censorship delays mean that none publishes on a daily
basis. In 2005, the junta took control of Bagan Cybertech, Burma's main
Internet service and satellite-feed provider. Citizens have been arrested
for listening to the BBC or Radio Free Asia in public. Entry visa requests
by foreign journalists are usually turned down except when the government
wants to showcase a political event.

Lowlights: An article in the June 4, 2005, edition of New Light of Myanmar
(Burma) titled "Have positive attitude in broadcasting news" explains the
government's approach to media: "The Myanmar people do not wish to watch,
read, or listen to corrupt and lopsided news reports and lies. The Myanmar
people even feel loathsome to some local media that are imitating the
practice of featuring corrupt and lopsided news and lies." The Voice, a
Rangoon-based weekly, was suspended in May 2005 as punishment for an
innocuous front-page story about Vietnam's withdrawal from Burma's New Year
water festival, which the junta found embarrassing.

3. TURKMENISTAN

Leader: Saparmurat Atayevich Niyazov, elected 1991 and declared President
for Life in 1999

How censorship works: Niyazov has isolated the country from the rest of the
world and created a cult of personality declaring himself "Turkmenbashi,"
father of the Turkmen. The state owns all domestic media and Niyazov's
administration controls them by appointing editors and censoring content.
Niyazov personally approves the front-page content of the major dailies,
which always include a prominent picture of him. In 2005, the state closed
all libraries except for one that houses the president's books, and banned
the importation of foreign publications. The state media heap fulsome praise
on Niyazov as they ignore important stories on AIDS, prostitution,
unemployment, poverty, crime, and drugs. A handful of local and foreign
correspondents work for foreign-primarily Russian-news agencies, but their
freedom to report is minimal.

Lowlight: State television displays a constant, golden profile of Niyazov at
the bottom of the screen. Newscasters begin each broadcast with a pledge
that their tongues will shrivel if their reports ever slander the country,
the flag, or the president.

4. EQUATORIAL GUINEA

Leader: President Teodoro Obiang Nguema Mbasogo, in power since a coup in
1979

How censorship works: Criticism of Obiang's brutal regime is not tolerated
in the only Spanish-speaking country in Africa. All broadcast media are
state-owned, except for RTV-Asonga, the private radio and television network
owned by the president's son, Teodorino Obiang Nguema. A handful of private
newspapers officially exist but rarely publish due to financial and
political pressure. An exiled press freedom group ASOLPEGE-Libre says the
only publication that appears regularly is a pro-government magazine
published in Spain and financed by advertising revenue from companies
operating in Equatorial Guinea, "mainly North American oil companies." The
group says the government has forced all private companies to pay for
advertising spots on state broadcast media. It describes state broadcasters
as "pure governmental instruments in the service of the dictatorship,
dedicated uniquely and exclusively to political narcissism and the
ideological propaganda of the regime in place." The U.S. State Department
reported in 2005 that foreign celebrity and sports publications were
available for sale but no newspapers, and that there were no bookstores or
newsstands. Foreign correspondents have been denied visas or expelled
without official explanation.

Lowlights: State-run Radio Malabo broadcasts songs warning citizens that
they will be crushed if they speak against the regime. During parliamentary
elections in 2004, state media called opposition activists "enemies" of the
state. State radio has described Obiang as "the country's God" who has all
power over men and things.

5. LIBYA

Leader: Colonel Muammar Qaddafi, unchallenged in power since a bloodless
1969 coup.

How censorship works: Libya's media are the most tightly controlled in the
Arab world. The government owns and controls all print and broadcast media,
an anachronism even by regional standards. The media dutifully reflect state
policies and do not allow news or views critical of Qaddafi or the
government.

Satellite television and the Internet are available, but the government
blocks undesirable political Web sites. The Internet is one of the few
avenues for independent writers and journalists, but the risks are
exceedingly high. Dayf al-Ghazal al-Shuhaibi, who wrote for London-based
opposition Web sites, was found shot in the head in Benghazi last year. No
one has been charged with the murder, which has sent an unmistakable message
to would-be critics. In addition, Internet writer Abdel Razek al-Mansouri
was jailed in reprisal for online writings critical of the government.

Lowlight: In 1977, Qaddafi laid out his ideas for Libya's cultural
revolution in The Green Book. On the press he wrote: "The press is a means
of expression for society: it is not a means of expression for private
individuals or corporate bodies. Therefore, logically and democratically, it
should not belong to either one of them."

6. ERITREA

Leader: President: Isaias Afewerki, elected by the National Assembly in 1993

How censorship works: Eritrea is the only country in sub-Saharan Africa
without a single private media outlet. More than four years after a vicious
crackdown shuttered a fledgling independent press, the government's
repressive policies have left the tiny Horn of Africa nation largely hidden
from international scrutiny and with almost no local access to independent
information. A privileged few have access to the Internet. The handful of
foreign correspondents in the capital, Asmara, are subject to intensive
monitoring by authorities.

Lowlight: At least 15 journalists have been jailed or otherwise deprived of
their liberty. Most are held incommunicado in secret detention centers. When
CPJ sought information about the imprisoned journalists in 2005, Information
Minister Ali Abdou told Agence France-Presse, "It's up to us what, why,
when, and where we do things."

7. CUBA

Leader: President Fidel Castro, who has run a one-party state since seizing
power in a 1959 revolution

How censorship works: The Cuban constitution grants the Communist Party the
right to control the press; it recognizes "freedom of speech and the press
in accordance with the goals of the socialist society." The government owns
and controls all media outlets and restricts Internet access. News is
carried on four television channels, two news agencies, dozens of radio
stations, at least four news Web sites, and three main newspapers
representing the views of the Communist Party and other mass organizations
controlled by the government. The media operate under the supervision of the
Communist Party's Department of Revolutionary Orientation, which develops
and coordinates propaganda strategies. Cuba remains one of the world's
leading jailers of journalists, second only to China, with 24 independent
reporters behind bars. Those who try to work as independent reporters are
harassed, detained, threatened with prosecution or jail, or barred from
traveling. A small number of foreign correspondents report from Havana but
Cubans do not see their reports. Officials grant visas to foreign
journalists selectively, often excluding those from outlets deemed
unfriendly.

Lowlight: The government organizes demonstrations known as "repudiation
acts" outside the homes of independent journalists. Government supporters
congregate around the homes, intimidate those inside, and prevent them from
leaving or receiving visitors.

8. UZBEKISTAN

Leader: President Islam Karimov, elected 1991; presidential term extended by
referendums in 1995 and again in 2002.

How censorship works: Karimov has re-established a Soviet-style dictatorship
that relies on brutal political intimidation to silence journalists, human
rights activists, and the political opposition. Karimov's regime uses an
informal system of state censorship to prevent the domestic media from
reporting on widespread police torture, poverty and an Islamic opposition
movement. Uzbekistan has also distinguished itself among the former Soviet
republics as the leading jailer of journalists, with six behind bars at the
end of 2005.

Lowlight: After troops killed hundreds of antigovernment protesters in the
city of Andijan in May 2005, Karimov's regime cracked down on foreign media.
The BBC, Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty, and the Institute for War & Peace
Reporting were forced to close their Tashkent bureaus. A dozen foreign
correspondents and local reporters working for foreign media had to flee the
country.

9. SYRIA

Leader: President Bashar al-Assad, who took over upon his father's death in
2000.

How censorship works: The media are under heavy state control and influence.
Some newspapers and broadcast outlets are in private hands but are owned by
regime loyalists, or are barred from disseminating political content. Some
private and party newspapers offer mild criticism of some government
policies or the Baath party, but they are largely toothless. State papers
and broadcasters remain unflinchingly supportive of the regime. The press
law maps out an array of restrictions against the media, including a
requirement that periodicals obtain licenses from the prime minister, who
can deny any application not in the "public interest." The regime has
harassed critics through arrests or warnings.

Lowlights: State repression has spawned newspapers so bland that even a top
government official, the late Interior Minister Ghazi Kenaan, once called
Syria's news coverage "unreadable." Despite efforts to privatize the press,
newspapers that overstep the mark in their criticism are shut down or their
editions confiscated.

10. BELARUS

Leader: President Aleksandr Lukashenko, elected 1994; last re-elected in
March 2006 in polls the European Union called "deeply flawed."

How censorship works: Most broadcast and print outlets are owned by the
government, and they are effusive in their praise of Lukashenko. Nominally
independent radio and television stations avoid politically sensitive
subjects. The state has shuttered dozens of independent newspapers in recent
years, and the few that remain have been subjected to a government
onslaught: Lukashenko's administration has pressured state printing houses
not to print critical newspapers, barred the post office and state newspaper
distributor from distributing independent publications, seized entire press
runs of independent newspapers, and set prison penalties of up to five years
for criticizing the president.

Lowlight: More than two dozen domestic and foreign journalists were jailed
during the tumultuous presidential campaign, most while covering
antigovernment rallies staged after the vote. Reporters were often charged
with "hooliganism" for being at the rallies.

CPJ staff judged countries according to 17 benchmarks. CPJ established the
criteria after consultation with experts in the fields of press freedom,
human rights, and media law. In order to appear on this list, countries had
to meet at least nine of the 17 criteria. The benchmarks included: absence
of independent media; existence of formal censorship regulations; state
control of all media; state-sponsored violence against journalists; jamming
of foreign news broadcasts; restrictions on Internet access; limits on
journalists' mobility; interference in the production and distribution of
publications; and existence of laws forbidding criticism.

This report is also available at www.cpj.org.

------------------------------

From: imra@netvision.net.il
To: imra@imra.org.il
Subject: COS Halutz prepares for political future?
Supports retreat, adopts "snapshot" mindset

[IMRA: After exploiting Holocaust Memorial Day to attack the national camp
(charging that their use of the slogan "we won't forget, we won't forgive"
in reference to the destruction of Gush Katif was an unacceptable abuse of
the Holocaust when virtually the same slogan was used by the Left in a
massive bumper sticker campaign after the Rabin assassination) COS Halutz
appears to take yet another step in preparation for a political career by
embracing the traditional "snapshot" mindset of Israeli politicians: The
retreat from Gaza was OK he argues, because, as of the moment he was
interviewed, the many rockets that have landed in strategic targets since
the retreats haven't yet - as of the moment he was interviewed - hit a
poison gas storage tank releasing a cloud that killed hundreds of people or
a yard of children, etc.. COS Halutz isn't going to claim that the rockets
aren't being launched. He isn't going to deny that - in large part thanks
to the retreat - there are now Katyusha rockets also in Gaza and that they
could do considerable damage.

When COS Halutz was back in the Air Force a near miss was treated with the
same respect as a hit.

But COS Halutz is no longer in the Air Force. He is now Chief of
Staff/politician in waiting.

So now when he is interviewed he doesn't have to worry about the near
misses.

If the moment he is talking to a reporter the shower of rockets hasn't yet
succeeded then they are more or less irrelevant.

As for going back into Gaza? Well, since the attacks from Gaza really don't
matter until they actually succeed, COS Halutz would rather engage in what
Israeli politicians are so good at: speaking loudly - with threats of
remote attacks. This after he is already on record as being resigned to the
need to respect human shields.

The message to Hamas: launch your rockets from school yards. Better yet:
have the kids watch the launch.]

Halutz: IDF reoccupation of Gaza won't end Qassam rocket fire

By Amos Harel, Haaretz Correspondent 2 May 2006
www.haaretz.com/hasen/spages/711768.html

Israel Defense Forces Chief of Staff Dan Halutz is currently opposed to a
ground force operation in the Gaza Strip, as it would not necessarily end
the firing of Qassam rockets at targets within Israel.

"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," said Halutz in an
Independence Day interview to Haaretz.

"There is one school of thought in the defense establishment that argues
that we need to reenter Gaza to curtail the Qassams. I oppose this. The army
is not the main advocate of this approach. Others within the defense
establishment are touting it. They believe that this is the only solution to
the Qassams, and they fail to understand the price that this would entail."

Halutz refused, however, to specify who in the defense establishment was
advocating the reoccupation of Gaza.

"I think it would be futile to reenter Gaza at this point if we don't want
to find ourselves back in the quagmire," he added.

That said, Halutz is in favor of declaring the Palestinian Authority an
enemy and attacking from a distance targets identified as belonging to
Hamas.

Halutz also rejects claims that the disengagement from Gaza harmed Israeli
security and lead to Hamas' rise to power.

"The question is what you count. In terms of the dry statistics of
casualties, it can be said that our security situation in Gaza has been
changed entirely for the better. Since the withdrawal there has been no one
killed on the Israeli side as a result of terror from the Gaza Strip. This
is no small matter compared to dozens of people killed every a year in past.
People are counting rockets, but before the disengagement thousands of
mortars were fired, which hit Gush Katif."

"I don't think that Hamas came into power because of the disengagement," he
added. "The elections, after all, were supposed to have been held in July
2005. Hamas would have received the same result then, perhaps a bit less."

------------------------------

From: imra@netvision.net.il
To: imra@imra.org.il
Subject: [J4JP Clarifies] HCJ temporarily
denies Pollard petition

HCJ temporarily denies Pollard petition

JPost Staff - THE JERUSALEM POST - May 2, 2006
www.jpost.com/servlet/Satellite?c=JPArticle&cid=1145961261979&pagename=JPost%2FJPArticle%2FShowFull

J4JP Clarifies: The High Court of Justice did not deny the Pollards'
petition. The court's initial decision issued 2 May 2006 states that it
declines to order a temporary injunction preventing the appointment of Rafi
Eitan to a ministerial position pending the Prime Minister's response to the
Pollard petition. In fact, the Pollards' petition did not request that a
temporary injunction be issued! The court decision further orders the Prime
Minister to respond to the petition within 21 days. The decision [in Hebrew]
can be viewed at
http://elyon1.court.gov.il/Files/06/480/036/h01/06036480.h01.HTM

The High Court of Justice on Tuesday temporarily denied a petition filed by
Jonathan and Esther Pollard charging that the appointment of Gil Pensioners
Party Chairman Rafi Eitan to the cabinet was "unreasonable to an extreme
degree," and that the court had the right to intervene in a political
agreement between two parties.

The High Court of Justice, however, did order Interim Prime Minster Ehud
Olmert to take three weeks in order to present an explanation as to why he
deemed Eitan fit for a ministerial post.

The judge, Salim Jubran, refused to release an order preventing Eitan from
being appointed by Olmert.

The Pollards have also charged that Eitan is in possession of a secret
document which could gain Pollard's release from prison were he to hand it
over to the Americans.

According to the petition, filed by attorneys Nitzana Darshan-Leitner and
Larry Dub, the document includes a list of all the classified documents that
Pollard handed over to Israel in 1984 and 1985. Darshan-Leitner and Dub
called on the High Court of Justice to nullify the provision in the
coalition agreement between Kadima and Gil according to which Eitan will
serve as a cabinet minister.

Eitan was in charge of a spy operation called Lekem, which enlisted Pollard,
then working for the US Navy. Pollard provided information on the deployment
of Arab military forces and many other classified information taken from US
military intelligence. He was arrested by the FBI on November 21, 1985 and
sentenced to life imprisonment.

"Even today, Eitan refuses to help Pollard," the lawyers wrote. "For 21
years he has refused to hand over to the Americans or the proper authorities
in the Israeli government a document that is in his sole possession and
regarding which he holds the only copy, and which the prime minister could
use to save Pollard."

"The Americans have never been certain that they received from Israel all
the documents the Pollard provided during his service to Israel," they
continued. "Had Eitan handed over this document to the Americans at any time
during these past 21 years, the Americans would have closed the affair,
knowing Israel had returned all the material. This document would have
lifted all the accusations that were fabricated against Pollard."

The lawyers also charged that Eitan refused to help Pollard escape from the
US after the FBI began investigating him. Instead, he lied to Pollard,
telling him to stall for time so that the Israelis involved in the affair
could return to Israel and avoid arrest. Eitan deliberately used Pollard as
a scapegoat and left him behind to take the rap, they charged. -30-

SEE ALSO (www.jonathanpollard.org):
Pollard to Supreme Court: State Has No Right to Forfeit My Life to Appoint
Eitan - J4JP Media Release
Legal Doc.[Hebrew]: Pollard Petition to Supreme Court to Prevent Appointment
of Eitan
Israeli Spy Challenges Cabinet Appointment - Associated Press

------------------------------

From: imra-owner@imra.org.il
Subject: IMRA Subscription Info

--------------------------------------------
IMRA - Independent Media Review and Analysis
Website: www.imra.org.il

For free regular subscription:
Subscribe at no charge: imra-subscribe@imra.org.il
Unsubscribe: imra-unsubscribe@imra.org.il

For free daily digest subscription:
Subscribe at no charge: imra-subscribe-digest@imra.org.il
Unsubscribe: imra-unsubscribe@imra.org.il

For a copy of all reports distributed for a given day please send a
message to:

monday@imra.org.il tuesday@imra.org.il wednesday@imra.org.il
thursday@imra.org.il friday@imra.org.il
saturday@imra.org.il sunday@imra.org.il
--------------------------------------------

------------------------------

End of [imra] Daily digest - Volume: 2 Issue: 1382 (11 messages)
**********