Ariel Sharon, new housing minister, promises Israel will make no special effort to settle Soviet Jewish emigrants in O.T.: "We do not divert and we do not send any Russian immigrants or any Jew...
P.M. Shamir invites Syrian Pres. Asad "to come, to talk, to conduct negotiations and maybe to get to peace." Shamir also criticizes U.S. for delaying decision on whether to continue U.S.-PLO...
Likud and Labor accuse each other of trying to bribe rabbis from small religious parties who control deciding votes in attempts to form gov't. [WT 3/29].
Occupied Palestine/Israel: Israeli Air Force source tells the Jerusalem Post that U.S. intends to sell 24 Apache attack helicopters to Egypt and 19 to Israel [JP 2...
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Ariel Sharon, new housing minister, promises Israel will make no special effort to settle Soviet Jewish emigrants in O.T.: "We do not divert and we do not send any Russian immigrants or any Jew who comes from Russia" to O.T. (cf. 6/25) [IDF 6/24 in FBIS 6/25; WP, LAT, NYT 6/25; CSM 6/27].
Knesset announces plans to allow armed civilian units to patrol perimeters of O.T. settlements; creation of settlers' Civil Guard comes under fire [MEM 6/ 25].
East German president of parliament Sabine Bergmann-Pohl and her West German counterpart Rita Suessmuth visit Israel apparently to allay Israeli concerns about a unified Germany. Bergmann-Pohl says she hopes she "will be able to assist in speeding up the creation of diplomatic relations between the two countries" [WT 6/26].
Israeli transport minister Moshe Qatzav suspends inauguration of direct commercial flights between Tel Aviv and Prague because of dispute over security arrangements in Czech capital UPD 6/25 in FBIS 6/28].
Inspector general of Israeli police, Yaakov Turner, warns Palestinian residents of E. Jerusalem that more of them would be killed if they continue demonstrations that began on 6/20 [JDS 6/24 in FBIS 6/28; NYT 6/25].
Hanna Siniora, editor of Al-Fajr, says of U.S. decision to suspend dialogue with PLO that "the whole area is slipping toward a bottomless pit of hatred and suspicion." Editorials say suspension of dialogue has "put the whole region on a powder keg" and amount to reward for Shamir's intransigence [CSM 6/25].
King Hussein calls on U.S. to reassess its Middle East policy and open door for Soviet Jews who wish to settle in U.S. rather than Israel [WSJ 6/25]
Egyptian F.M. Esmat Abdel Meguid flies to Washington hoping to avert crisis in U.S.-Arab relations and reassert Egypt's role in peace process [LAT 6/25].
Hadashot reports since Arye Bibi, commander of Jerusalem district police, assumed his post, 5 Arabs have been killed by police or border guard fire in the district. Under Bibi's predecessor Yosef Yehuday, no one was killed by police gunfire; due to relative quiet in O.T., Jerusalem is becoming intifada's frontline [HAD 6/25 in FBIS 6/28].
P.M. Shamir invites Syrian Pres. Asad "to come, to talk, to conduct negotiations and maybe to get to peace." Shamir also criticizes U.S. for delaying decision on whether to continue U.S.-PLO dialogue [WP, NYT, LAT 6/19; JTS 6/18 in FBIS 6/19].
White House spokesperson Marlin Fitzwater says Pres. Bush has written "lengthy" letter sent to Shamir over past few days offering congratulations on new gov't. and discussing U.S.-Israeli relations [WP, WT 6/19; MEM 6/22 (details of letter in MEM 7/27)].
Tel Aviv court charges Israeli Ami Popper, 21, with the 5/20 murders of 7 Palestinians. Five-man psychiatric panel rejects notion that Popper is "derranged," as Israeli authorities had first claimed [IDF 6/18 in FBIS 6/18; LAT 6/ 19].
Cairo declines Shamir's 6/15 call for Israeli-Egyptian summit, saying Egypt expects "concrete actions towards peace and establishment of dialogue in Cairo with Palestinians and not mere messages conveying good intentions" [MAP 6/18 in FBIS 6/19].
In letter to Israeli Pres. Chaim Herzog released today, Theo Klein, former head (1983-89) of France's 700,000-strong Jewish community, says Israel should meet PLO [MEM 6/19].
Likud and Labor accuse each other of trying to bribe rabbis from small religious parties who control deciding votes in attempts to form gov't. [WT 3/29].
Customs officials in London discover 40 American-made trigger devices for nuclear weapons that were being smuggled into Iraq [NYT, WP, LAT, WT 3/29]; U.S. intelligence sources report Baghdad is installing Soviet-built medium-range ballistic missiles [WT 3/29].
Yasir Arafat meets with Nobel laureate Mother Teresa in Calcutta, India. Mother Teresa says she will try to visit Jerusalem and Bethlehem this year [LAT 3/29].
U.S. House Foreign Affairs Committee approves provision to Israel's request for $400 million loan for Soviet Jewish housing. Provision reduces loan origination fee from usual 1% of loan to .25% of loan, saving Israel $3 million. Other legislation reduces annual service charges [WT 3/30].
Hungarian official says the national airline, Malev, soon will resume flying Soviet Jews to Tel Aviv from Budapest on its regular flights. Hungary suspended direct and charter flights of emigrant Jews on 3/ 21; the official says the charter flights will not be resumed (cf. 4/1) [WT 3/29; NYT 3/30].
Social/Economic/Political
Occupied Palestine/Israel: Israeli Air Force source tells the Jerusalem Post that U.S. intends to sell 24 Apache attack helicopters to Egypt and 19 to Israel [JP 2/10].
Arab World: PLO sends to European Community amessage regarding Soviet Jewish emigration to Israel [FBIS 2/14].
Other Countries: New York Times reports on poll sponsored by Tel Aviv's Israel-Diaspora Institute of 1,310 U.S. Jewish leaders; 74 percent of respondents favor talks between Israeli officials and PLO "moderates" [NYT 2/10].
Military Action
Occupied Palestine/Israel: IDF troops shoot, wound at least 30 Rafah Palestinians in clash at funeral of Arab killed 2/7 [FBIS 2/12; MET 2/20].
IDF seals off Nablus, Tulkarm, Bethlehem, and parts of Gaza Strip as Palestinians celebrate the 8th anniversary of the outlawed Palestine Communist Party [MET 2/20].
Palestinian dies of wounds received 2/8 [FBIS 2/12].
