Archaeological damage?
THE JERUSALEM POST 8/10/99: "The Moslem Wakf has punched out an opening through a
gate on the Temple Mount and archeologists are concerned it may have damaged ancient
sites. The "double gate" is one of two gates built during Herod's reign, said
former Jerusalem District archeologist Dan Bahat. He said the gate is really a tunnel
which ran from the wide steps along the southern flank of the Temple Mount.
"Inside there were capitals with decorations from the Second Temple; they are
actually the most serious remnants inside the holy mount from the Second Temple,"
Bahat told Israel Radio...According to Bahat, the tunnel had been left alone since the
destruction of the Temple in 70 CE and legend has it that Mohammed used the gate as an
entrance onto the mount. Bahat said the gate was eventually sealed in the 11th century.
He said that the Wakf had knocked out an opening the size of a door from one of the
windows overlooking the double gate. He said that no archeologist has been allowed to
visit the lower parts of the Aksa Mosque, and expressed concern that damage may be caused
by the renovations there..."
Hamas release
HA'ARETZ 8/10/99: "Ismail Abu Shanab, one of the three Hamas leaders who were
arrested by the Palestinian police on Friday, was released on Sunday. Abu Shanab told
Ha'aretz that his investigators claimed an interview he had given to the Arabic television
station MBC constituted incitement. He said he found this a puzzling explanation for his
arrest, however, "since we speak in the same language all the time.
Nothing has changed from our point of view. Perhaps the [Palestinian] Authority is
under pressure from [Prime Minister Ehud] Barak or someone else." Abu Shanab said he
was kept in solitary confinement throughout his two days in jail. An aide to Hamas leader
Sheikh Ahmed Yassin said the organization is making efforts to get the other two
detainees, Sheikh Ahmed Nimr and Dr. Abd al Aziz al Rantisi, released as well."
Hebron history
HA'ARETZ 8/10/99--Commentary by Nadav Sharagai: "There is something chilling about
the generosity being displayed by the Arabs of Hebron, at a time that marks 70 years since
the slaughter of that city's Jews. Now the city fathers are inviting the descendants of
those who were slaughtered, "the good Jews," to come back and live as their
neighbors, and Jibril Rajoub, the head of the Palestinian preventive security forces, is
begging them to return to live in their family homes - but only if the "bad Jewish
settlers" are expelled from Hebron.
Only one question is conspicuous by its absence in this fiasco: Why exactly were those
good Jews, and not the settlers of the time, the ones who were slaughtered?.
The Arabs of Hebron, apart from a few righteous gentiles who endangered their own lives
in order to save Jews, did not protect their neighbors, the Jews of Hebron, who were
familiar with the language of the Arabs and their customs and were no different from the
Arabs in the way they lived and dressed. The head of the Hebron community, Eliezer Dan
Slonim, was tied to many Arabs through commerce and friendship and even served as a member
of the Hebron city council.
A long-established Jewish community lived in Hebron, made up of members of the
"old Yishuv" (pre-Zionist Jewish community) who had lived alongside Arabs for
hundreds of years. The Jews of Hebron did not hold occupied territories, stole no one's
land and stubbornly refused the Haganah's offer on the eve of the riots to send a company
of defenders to Hebron, so as not, God forbid, to cause tumult among the Arabs.
But despite all this, it was in Hebron, as in Tzfat and old Jerusalem, where Jewish
communities of a similar character lived, that the mufti's religious incitement fell on
receptive ears. The lame pharmacist Ben Zion Gershon, who had worked in Hebron for 40
years and who had distributed free medicine to the city's Arabs, was killed by the
rioters, but not before they cut off his nose and his fingers.
The rioters roasted baker Noah Imermann alive over a kerosene burner and Rabbi Avraham
Yaakov Orlinsky Hacohen, the rabbi of Zichron Yaakov, was found dead with his brains
outside his skull. The slaughter was marked by terrible cruelty. A 2-year-old baby had his
head wrenched off. Others were strangled with ropes, and still others had their eyes poked
out by the rioters before they were murdered.
The shock was enormous. The riots instantly shattered two illusions that were common
here at the time. The slaughter did not conform to the pioneering generation's assumption
that the realization of Zionism would put an end to anti-Semitism, allowing us to live
here like a normal nation, without the threats and hatred that were directed at Jews in
the lands of the Diaspora. And in Hebron, there was an end to the idyll of the protected
Jews, who had enjoyed security and prosperity.
The examination of events that happened 70 years ago is relevant today precisely
because in leftist circles, such a glance backward looks like a naive and fanatic
persecution complex, but such a denial boomerangs right back at them. It is precisely
those circles who have reservations about the "exaggerated" look backward and
who are begging us to integrate into the region and look forward to the horizons of the
new Middle East who suffer from myopia.
The spirit of the 1929 rioters lives and breathes, only a few kilometers away from our
homes, in the territories of the Palestinian Authority, in its textbooks, in the summer
camps it organizes, in the speeches by its leaders that are full of incitement, hatred and
blood libels in the time-honored tradition of anti-Semitism.The Palestinian terminology
depicts the entire State of Israel as occupied territory. The PA universities have
recently called for "writing the history of Palestine" so as "not to allow
the unclean and the enemies to pervert it" and "not to permit the legitimization
of the presence of the Jews on this land."
The PA press publishes false articles that aim to present the Jews and the Israelis as
the embodiment of evil in the world and as elements attempting to hurt Palestinians by
disseminating diseases, including cancer, and distributing unsafe medicines and spoiled
foodstuffs. "Corruption," writes Al Hayat al Jedida, a publication identified as
a PA organ, "is in the nature of the Jews." "Slaughter is the basis of the
State of Israel." "The Jews' love for money and accumulating it is
well-known." "The Jews release darkness and the hatred of gangs with long beards
into the earth."
Many of the shapers of public opinion in the PA deny the Holocaust. Here is one example
from Al Hayat al Jedida: "The play began and they, the Jews, began to distribute in a
threatening way pictures of collective shootings carried out against them and [they
proceeded] to invent the shocking story of the gas chambers."
Dr. Assam Sabsalem, a lecturer in history at the Islamic University in Gaza, has said
on PA television, "The history of the Jews is in the Arabian peninsula - they have
torn up our land and sown the cancer that will be expelled one way or another," and
the announcer hastened to put a seal on the statement by saying "Inshallah" -
God willing.Examples of this sort and many times worse are endless. Not only does the
spirit of the 1929 rioters live, but it is also winning legitimization and encouragement
from the Palestinian establishment. These evil spirits, just as in 1929, cannot go
hand-in-hand with the peace process"
Levy to Jordan
THE JERUSALEM POST 8/10/99: "Foreign Minister David Levy yesterday called on
Syrian President Hafez Assad to engage in direct peace negotiations. At a meeting with
visiting US Senator Daniel Inouye, a Democrat from Hawaii, Levy said the signals which
Assad has been sending have been positive, but "we expect Syria to understand that
peace is achieved by direct dialogue, and that there is no peace by signals, and that
peace is not achieved by telepathy."
During his planned visit to Amman today Levy intends to brief the Jordanian leadership
on recent developments in talks with the Palestinians and hopes to hear from them in turn,
some news from the Syrian direction. Jordanian royal court chief Abdul-Karim Kabariti, who
last month visited Damascus, will join King Abdullah II - who also visited Syria last
month - in the meeting with Levy.
The foreign minister, who will be accompanied by his deputy, Nawaf Masalha, is also
scheduled to hold talks with Prime Minister Abdurra'uf Rawabdeh and Foreign Minister
Abdullah Khatib. It is unclear if the Jordanians will have any message to pass along from
Assad...
Meanwhile, there is still no date set for a meeting between Prime Minister Ehud Barak
and Palestinian Authority Chairman Yasser Arafat - despite the fact that the two-week
period in which Arafat was meant to think over Barak's suggestions about the Wye accords
ends today. Barak's office yesterday played down the notion that there was a crisis
between the sides, saying "there is ongoing contact," both official and
non-official, between Israeli and Palestinian envoys.
The prime minister, in turn, said that the official peace process negotiating teams
would be appointed next week. Both Albright and Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak have
welcomed Arafat's acceptance Sunday of Barak's offer to begin the implementation of Wye in
September."
Syrian missiles
HA'ARETZ 8/10/99: "Syria is developing new surface-to-surface missiles, with a
longer range and greater warhead delivery capacity than its current missiles, Israeli
sources said yesterday. Damascus has put the new missiles at the top of its national
priority list, and is receiving massive developmental aid from Iran, the sources said.
The most advanced missile currently in Syria's arsenal is the Scud C, which is
manufactured in Syria with the aid of know-how purchased from North Korea. The Scud C has
a range of 500 kilometers (300 miles), and is capable of hitting any target in Israel. It
can be armed with either conventional or chemical warheads. The new missiles will enable
Damascus to strike anywhere in Israel even from deep within Syrian territory.
According to both Israeli and American sources, the Syrians are also trying to build
underground silos for missile launchers, in order to protect the launchers from attack. By
concealing the missiles in bunkers, Syria increases the nation's military strength and its
ability to survive a war. Israel's assessment is that Syrian President Hafez Assad wants
to achieve "a capability that will deter Israel from any military initiative,
including entanglements arising from an escalation in Lebanon."
The Israeli sources noted that Syria's ground force is a "serious force," and
the only army in the region that teaches its soldiers how to mount a deliberate surprise
attack. Syria actually devotes a significant amount of its training program to carrying
out such an attack. Israel's intelligence assessment is that Syria has no plans to attack
Israel at the moment, but wants to develop a military capability that would be ready for
any eventuality. Despite Syria's economic difficulties, it has managed to increase the
size of its regular army by three corps and carry out all its planned training exercises,
the sources said..."
Hamas' jihad
HA'ARETZ 8/10/99: "At a meeting yesterday with Syrian officials, Hamas political
bureau chair Khaled Meshal said that Hamas would continue its "jihad, struggle and
uprising against the occupation." Meshal spoke at a meeting with Syrian Vice
President Abed al Halim and Foreign Minister Farouk a-Shara to discuss developments in the
peace process and the positions of Israel and the Palestinian Authority.
Meshal's predecessor, Moussa Abu Marzouk, was present at the meeting, also attended by
nine of the 10 members of the Rejectionist Front. They discussed the meetings held last
week in Cairo between PA Chairman Yasser Arafat and senior members of the Popular Front
for the Liberation of Palestine. PFLP leader George Habash's deputy, Abu Ali Mustafa,
brought his colleagues up to date concerning his meeting with Arafat.
Absent from the meeting was Democratic Front leader Naif Huwatme, who has been banned
by the other organizations since he shook hands with President Ezer Weizman at King
Hussein's funeral. Also discussed at the meeting was a telephone conversation between
Haled al Fahoum, chair of the Palestinian National Salvation Front - the umbrella
organization uniting all the rejectionist organizations - and Arafat.
The rejectionist leaders who oppose the Oslo agreements want to remove Fahoum from his
position because of his recent conversation with Arafat. The Hamas leadership and
representatives of the PFLP met Saturday to discuss relations with the PA.
Dr. Basher Assad, son of the Syrian President Hafez Assad and in charge of coordinating
Syria's activities in Lebanon, visited Beirut on Sunday to meet with Lebanese President
Emil Lahoud. Basher was accompanied by Syrian intelligence chief Razi Kena'en. Basher and
Lahoud discussed the peace process and agreed on "continued cooperation and
coordination between Syria and Lebanon in all areas." According to one source, Basher
discussed restraining and even halting the activities of Hezbollah. Basher is expected to
make his first official visit to Tehran soon."
PA uncontrol and Arafat's
"children of the stones"
ISRAEL RESOURCE NEWS AGENCY 8/5/99: "On August 5th, 1999, the IDF dispatched a
senior official to provide an off-the-record briefing for the foreign media. The subject:
official Palestinian National Authority infringements of the letter and law of the accords
signed with Israel. The official accused the Palestinian Authority of transforming the
areas under its control into safe sanctuaries for killers, while doing little or nothing
to ward off terror attacks or confiscate illegal weapons.
The official went on the say that while the PA officials were condemning terror attacks
in their communications with the foreign media, they were praising those same attacks in
the official Palestinian Authority radio, TV and newspapers.
This off-the-record IDF briefing occurred one day after Yassir Arafat celebrated his
birthday with a speech in which he called for "jihad"(holy war) against the
state and people of Israel, while praising the "children of the stones" who
fought the Israeli army. The senior offical questioned whether Arafat's tone and policy
was one of peace. Barak, elected by the peace camp in Israel, seems to be tough as nails
when it comes to matters of security."
A new jihad take
ICEJ NEWS SERVICE FROM JERUSALEM 8/6/99: "The Israeli government has slammed
Palestinian Authority Chairman Yasser Arafat for calling for continuing jihad (Islamic
holy war) for Jerusalem, in remarks one Israeli specialist said Thursday were more
symbolic than generally understood, and did not bode well for peace.
Marking his 70th birthday in Ram'Allah Wednesday, Arafat told well-wishers that
"some day soon, our children will be able to fly the Palestinian flag from the
mosques and churches of Jerusalem. Allah willing, we will continue with our struggle, our
jihad ... and once again enter the city of Jerusalem as the Muslims did for the first
time."
Israeli Foreign Minister David Levy reacted strongly, telling Israel Television that
what he called threats would "undoubtedly raise within every Israeli question marks
about the future. This is not peace."
While Levy and others focused on the use of the provocative word jihad, Rafael Israeli,
professor of Middle Eastern studies at Jerusalem's Hebrew University, said that Arafat's
comments, taken in their entirety, were carefully chosen and highly symbolic. In
particular, Israeli noted the reference to "mosques and churches," and to the
Palestinians entering Jerusalem "as the Muslims did for the first time."
Arafat was, he said, making a play for Christian support for his claim to Jerusalem.
When the invading Muslim Arabs in the 7th century reached Jerusalem, the city's
Byzantine Christian ruler, Patriarch Sophronius, surrendered without a struggle to the
Muslim Calif Omar al-Khattab. According to Arab sources, the treaty between Sophronius and
Omar contained the condition that Jews not be allowed to settle in the city. In recent
years, Arafat has on several occasions referred to himself as Omar's spiritual heir,
Israeli said.
At Christmas 1995, when the PA gained control over Bethlehem under the Oslo Accords,
Arafat arranged an event in which the Greek Orthodox Patriarch Deodoris declared himself
heir to Sophronius, and welcomed Arafat as Omar's heir. So important was it to Arafat that
Palestinians understood the importance of this occasion, he insisted that all Palestinian
newspapers carry the story and picture on their front pages. One hapless AL QUDS night
editor declined, and was jailed in Jericho for a week.
Israeli said Arafat had made the symbolic parallel once again in Bethlehem last
December, during President Clinton's visit to the PA areas. Standing alongside Clinton,
Arafat spoke of his duty as Palestinian leader to oversee Christian and Muslim holy sites
in Jerusalem, while making no mention of synagogues.
"This was very symbolic: Clinton is the Christian president of the most important
country on earth, and Clinton played the game along with him." Israeli noted that,
when the PA chairman makes remarks such as those of yesterday, the response from
Palestinians is usually "delirious" because, he said, "they understand
exactly the symbol" Arafat is invoking. Israeli concluded that Arafat's statement was
"not encouraging for hopes for accelerating the peace process. "He says [the
negotiating process] doesn't matter. He will get it [Jerusalem] by hook or by crook, and I
guess he means by crook if necessary."
Responding to the row over Arafat's remark, one Palestinian lawmaker, Salah Tamari,
commented that "if [Prime Minister Ehud] Barak and every other Israeli leader has the
right to say Jerusalem is the capital of Israel forever, while they know that it is an
issue in the final-status talks, then Arafat has the right to say that Jerusalem - which
is our capital - is our capital."
In 1892, Baron Edmond de Rothschild - also known as the "Famous
Benefactor" bought 80,000 dunams of the Golan Heights from Arabs for the purpose of
settling them with Jews. Here are the facts:
The Golan Heights, called "Bashan" in the Bible, was awarded by Moses to the
tribe of Menasheh (Deuteronomy 3:13) as part of biblical Eretz Israel. During the last
century it was a totally barren area, populated only by small pockets of Arab tribes who
moved in and out from various countries.
In 1892, Baron Edmond de Rothschild bought the area between Damascus, Mt. Hermon and
the Golan Heights, with the central town being Daraah. The Arab seller was Ahmed Shasha
Pasha. This purchase was confirmed many, times, including by the Turkish authorities that
controlled the country in 1892, It was also confirmed by the French High Commissioner
under whose sovereignty, the land fell after World War 1.
[Editor: The Golan Heights were in the original Mandate for Palestine, which was
drafted in 1920 and confirmed by the Council of the League of Nations in July. 1922. In
1923, Britain ceded the Golan to the French Mandate of Syria-Lebanon.]
In 1929, the Rothschild family registered the land in the name of their private
business company PICA. In 1942, some faint attempts by Arabs to claim the land failed
totally,. In 1957, Baron James de Rothschild transferred the deeds to the land to the
Jewish National Fund (Keren Kayemet) and from there to the Land Office of Israel and to
the Government of Israel.
All deeds and other documents were transferred to Israel's Ministry of Foreign Affairs
through an irrevocable power of attorney The Rothschilds made the transfer to the State of
Israel with the explicit proviso that the land should be used for Jewish settlers. Baron
de Rothschild, in his lifetime, tried to encourage colonization of the Golan Heights by
Jews but failed at that time.
When negotiations with Syria commenced some years ago, members of the Labor Party
approached the late Prime Minister Yitzchak Rabin with the demand that the recognition of
the Golan Heights as Jewish territory should be raised with the Syrians. However, Rabin
shrank from pressing the claim. He missed an outstanding opportunity, to press this claim
on perfectly legal, contractual grounds.
That was a terrible mistake, because by reminding the world that the Golan Heights have
been Jewish land for over 100 years, there would be no point in negotiating "the
return" of the Golan to Syria, since it is not Syrian anyway. This discovery would
place the status of the Golan Heights in an entirely new light.
The staunchly nationalistic Netanyahu government should not have shrunk from asserting
Jewish fights over the land, based on perfectly legal, internationally reorganized
contracts and documents. For the land was acquired by Jewish money for the benefit of the
Jewish people in addition to the fact that it was part and parcel of the Mandate for
Palestine."
Qatar & Israel
ISRAEL LINE 8/9/99: "Qatar welcomes the Israeli handball team to the World Youth
Handball Competition slated for the end of August, Israel Radio, KOL YISRAEL, reported. In
spite of diplomatic pressure from Saudia Arabia and Bahrain who boycotted the games, one
member of the Royal family said, "The Israeli team is no different than any other
team. Sports and politics should be differentiated." Several editorials were
published in Qataran newspapers during the past two months criticizing Israel's
participation."
Disclaimer: The views expressed in the content and articles of this
website, do not necessarily express the opinions of the Zionist Organization of America,
nor the editor and creator of this website.