BPR Mailing List Digest: 05/15/00

Philologos
BPR Mailing List Digest
May 15, 2000

Digest Home | 2000 | May, 2000

To: bpr-list@philologos.org (BPR Mailing List)
Subject: [BPR] - (Fwd) Arutz-7 News: Sunday, May 14, 2000
From: bpr-list@philologos.org("Moza")
Date: Mon, 15 May 2000 08:39:01 -0400

------- Forwarded message follows -------
Date sent: Sun, 14 May 2000 18:34:34 +0300
To: arutz-7@ArutzSheva.org
From: Arutz-7 Editor <neteditor@ArutzSheva.org>
Subject: Arutz-7 News: Sunday, May 14, 2000
Send reply to: netnews@a7.org

Arutz Sheva News Service
<www.ArutzSheva.org>
Sunday, May 14, 2000 / Iyar 9, 5760 - 24th day of the Omer
------------------------------------------------
Delivered Daily via Email, Sunday thru Friday
--- See below for subscription instructions ---

*******************************************************
ICS Globe is the BEST and CHEAPEST Pre-paid long distance service!
USA-ISRAEL as low as 9.9 cents a minute. No hidden charges!
US Domestic as low as 5 cents a minute! AGENTS WANTED.
To find out more, go to:<a href="http://www.icsglobe.com">
http://www.icsglobe.com</a> or call us at: 1-888-850-4500 Ext. 125,
or e-mail: mailto:zvi@5netusa.com
*******************************************************
Law Offices in LA? <a href="http://www.zebberman.com">Zebberman</a>
*******************************************************

TODAY'S HEADLINES:
  1. GIANT RALLY TOMORROW NIGHT
  2. COALITION SHAKES AND QUAKES
  3. RABBIS MEET
  4. ARAB VIOLENCE INTENSIFIES IN YESHA
  5. SHECHEM, TOO
  6. LEBANON
  7. LEVY PROMOTION NOT WELCOMED BY ALL
  8. SARID MIFFS TURKEY
  9. ELON CALLS ON BEINISH TO RESIGN
  10. FRENCH LAWYERS TO AID JEWS IN IRAN
  11. IN SHORT

1. GIANT RALLY TOMORROW NIGHT
Housing Minister Rabbi Yitzchak Levy (NRP) reacted sharply today to verbal
attacks by government ministers Binyamin Ben-Eliezer and Dalia Itzik
against tomorrow night's scheduled pro-Yesha rally in Jerusalem. Tens of
thousands are expected to protest against "unrequited withdrawals, giving
away Jerusalem-area villages, and uprooting Yesha settlements." Itzik has
questioned the funding of the planned rally, as well as alleged
"incitement" against government figures, and Ben-Eliezer said, "I fear that
it will end bad... they must be crushed now." Rabbi Levy: "There is no
reason not to allow a pained sector of the public to express its hurt and
opinions... [The ministers are waging] a deliberate campaign to
de-legitimize a significant part of the nation."

The rally is being organized by the Yesha Council and several other
grass-roots nationalist bodies. The rally will begin at 7 PM at Zion
Square in downtown Jerusalem.

Golan Residents Committee chairman Eli Malka is one of the personalities
slated to speak at the demonstration. Noting the cooperation between Yesha
and Golan activists in the recent campaign to save the Golan, he said, "My
speech will stress our opposition to the uprooting of settlements, and our
support for their continued development throughout the Land of Israel. I
also plan to stress the historic allegiance shown to Jerusalem by the Jews
of Gamla [in the Golan] 1900 years ago." Speaking with Arutz-7 today,
Malka continued, "I have no doubt that demonstrations such as this have a
real impact. When pessimism reigned, and many thought that a Golan
giveaway was a 'done deal,' we simply intensified our activities - at
intersections, distributing stickers, hanging posters, and the like. After
our giant rally in Rabin Square [this past January], support for the Golan
has been ever increasing, thanks in great part to the Yesha activists. The
rally gave pause to both the Americans and Assad, who became skeptical of
Barak's ability to win a Golan referendum."

Asked about today's comments by Ministers Ben-Eliezer and Itzik, Malka
said: "They are not really worried about another political assassination.
They are concerned about another public wave [against their policies]. You
don't have to be a political scientist to realize that the government is
afraid of similar results as after the Golan rally. Add to this Barak's
problems in arriving at a deal with Arafat, the shaky state of the
coalition, the combined efforts of the rabbis in Agudat Yisrael towards
Shas - all this weighs upon them heavily. So, like most politicians, the
ministers are lashing out. It's a sign of weakness, not strength."

2. COALITION SHAKES AND QUAKES
Prime Minister Barak's coalition is on most shaky ground, and even Labor
party Secretary-General Ra'anan Cohen - admittedly not one of Barak's most
ardent supporters - has called for the establishment of a new coalition.
Barak has still not settled the Shas-Meretz tensions, and he continues to
delay bringing the Abu Dis issue up for a Cabinet vote, for fear that he
will not have the necessary support. The Prime Minister met with senior
party colleagues last night to discuss their fears that the government will
not be able to garner support for its various bills in the upcoming Knesset
session, which begins tomorrow.

Finance Minister Avraham Shochat admitted today, "We have a crisis. Anyone
who says that it's 'business as usual' here is just not telling the truth.
With such a serious crisis, nobody knows how far down it will deteriorate.
I was among those who told the Prime Minister last night that we have to
start taking action on this matter... You can't run a coalition when you
never know if you have a majority on a given issue or not..."

Coalition whip Ophir Pines-Paz today described the Shas-Meretz clash and
its ramifications on Barak's intention to give Abu Dis to the Palestinians
as "one huge nightmare" for the Barak government. Shas leader Labor and
Welfare Minister Eli Yeshai today issued Barak an ultimatum threatening
that Shas will vote with the opposition throughout the Knesset summer
session unless the financial troubles of the Shas school system are solved.
At the same time, Meretz insists that it will bolt the government if money
is allocated to Shas. Barak has also been unsuccessful at earning a
commitment from the opposition Shinui party that it would join the
government in the event that Meretz leaves.

3. RABBIS MEET
Shas spiritual leader Rabbi Ovadiah Yosef met on Friday in his home with
leading religious-Zionist and hareidi rabbis. Rabbi Yosef's guests - who
included former Chief Rabbis Avraham Shapira and Mordechai Eliyahu, Rehovot
Chief Rabbi Simcha Kook, and the Grand Rabbis of Sadigura and Boston -
attempted to convince him not to abstain on the question of transferring
Abu Dis to the Palestinian Authority, but to vote against. No announcement
was made at the conclusion of the meeting.

Agudat Yisrael leader Rabbi Menachem Porush, who coordinated and attended
the meeting, discussed it with Arutz-7 today. "I hope that 'words conveyed
from the heart will enter the heart,'" he said. "This
was an emotional meeting, and maybe even a historic one, considering the
participants: the former chief rabbis, seniors from the Council of Torah
Sages, Rabbi Kook, and myself. We offered our view of the issues. There
were moments of high emotion, and tears flowed from our eyes as we
discussed the security of Jerusalem... We see the transfer of Abu Dis and
other villages as a danger to the security of Jerusalem, and to the
hundreds of thousands of Jews who live in and around the city. We also see
it as the next step in the return to the 1967 lines."

News Editor Ariel Kahane noted press reports to the effect that Rabbi Yosef
was apparently not convinced by the discussion, or at least did not
publicly say so. "We didn't come to the rabbi to hear an answer," Rabbi
Porush responded, "but to let him know what's in our hearts. We are
confident that our heart-felt words will do their job." Kahane: "It seems
strange that United Torah Judaism's Council of Torah Sages hasn't even
decided its position yet, and you are pressuring Rabbi Yosef to take a
stand." Rabbi Porush: "We will of course do what the Council of Sages
determines, but it is important to note that senior rabbis in that Council
of Sages headed the delegation." Rabbi Porush authored a letter to Rabbi
Yosef on this issue two weeks ago; the full text is included at the end of
this report.

News Editor Kahane asked if Friday's encounter may represent the beginning
of efforts to unify the country's religious forces, perhaps in time for the
next national elections. "Such a proposal is being worked on," said Rabbi
Porush. "We hope that we are close to such an era."

4. ARAB VIOLENCE INTENSIFIES IN YESHA
Palestinian rioting has broken out, as expected, in Gush Katif, Shechem,
and other locations, and Israeli officials maintain that Arafat and the
Palestine Liberation Organization are behind the violence. Some 100
Palestinians who blocked the Netzarim junction in Katif and hurled rocks
and firebombs at the nearby IDF base were finally dispersed today by IDF
soldiers using rubber bullets and tear gas. Similarly, violent Arab riots
broke out this afternoon in Shechem - where Arabs fired live ammunition at
an effigy of Prime Minister Ehud Barak- as well as at Yosh Junction between
Ramallah and Beit El, where a Border Guard policeman was injured.

The Likud called on Prime Minister Barak to inform Arafat of the freezing
of all negotiations "until the intifada that he [Arafat] called is ended."
NRP Deputy Education Minister Sha'ul Yahalom said that the violent
Palestinian outbursts "must finally mark the end of Israeli surrender and
weakness in the face of Arafat's demands."

IDF forces were on alert all morning against the breakout of Palestinian
violence in Judea and Samaria. Yesterday, thousands of Arabs rioted at the
entrances to Tulkarm, Jenin, Ramallah, Bethlehem, and Hevron. The
Palestinian para-military forces did nothing to quell the rioting. Two IDF
soldiers were injured lightly when rocks and firebombs were hurled at them.
Efrat resident Prof. Yossi Katz was beaten with a metal bar by
Palestinians while he was walking with his wife outside Efrat. The IDF
Central Command is also on high alert against attempts to kidnap soldiers,
whom the terrorists may then hold hostage for the release of
Israeli-imprisoned Arab terrorist murderers.

Yediot Acharonot correspondent Roni Shaked, speaking with Arutz-7 today,
explained that the issue of imprisoned terrorists is the "trigger" by which
Yasser Arafat set off the violence: "This is a very convenient trigger for
Arafat, because the entire Palestinian public is united on this issue...
They in general are dissatisfied with the pace of the negotiations, and
Arafat can use this to his advantage..." Arutz-7's Haggai Huberman said
that although there seems to be no doubt that Arafat will declare a
Palestinian state in September, Israel is still unsure whether the
intention is to do so by agreement with Israel, or in conflict with it.
"Arafat is intrigued by the possibility of following in the footsteps of
Ben-Gurion, who founded a new state amidst the stormy outbreak of war..."

Shaked said that in the end, "there is no doubt that Abu Dis will be given
over - people don't understand that this is a very petty issue. It's an
Arab village for all intents and purposes..." Haggai Huberman, however,
disagreed: "First of all, I believe that the chances of Barak obtaining
political support for the transfer of Abu Dis before a final-status
agreement are getting smaller and smaller... The claim of the Yesha
Council that there is no logic to implementing unrequited withdrawals has
seeped into the public awareness... Secondly, we should not underestimate
the advantages that Israel still retains in Abu Dis in its present status
as Area B. This means that when necessary, Israeli forces can go in and
apprehend terrorist cells, just as it did in Tzurif and other places..."
Huberman predicts that based on the current pace of negotiations and the
lack of agreement on the main issues, "even Ehud Barak realizes that the
chances of reaching an agreement in the next few months are very small."

5. SHECHEM, TOO
In Shechem, the Palestinian para-military police have forbidden the entry
of Israelis into the Od Yosef Chai yeshiva since last Thursday. The Arabs
demand access to lands in the vicinity of Elon Moreh, overlooking Shechem.
The yeshiva students have relocated their studies to the Tomb of Elazar,
south-east of Shechem. Though they have turned to the army for
explanations, they have been told only that the situation is a result of
"security considerations."

6. LEBANON
Hizbullah has announced that it will grant amnesty to any SLA soldier who
kills either an Israeli soldier or an SLA officer. Hizbullah
deputy-secretary Sheikh Kassem said that such an action would be considered
an "atonement" for the fighter's previous actions.

Israel Air Force jets pounded terrorist targets in the Zalya region of
southern Lebanon this morning. All planes returned safely to base.

7. LEVY PROMOTION NOT WELCOMED BY ALL
The promotion of Jerusalem Deputy Police Commander Mickey Levy last week to
the position of Commander of the Shai (Judea and Samaria) Police District
has not been enthusiastically received by Yesha residents. Many of them
recall Levy's aggressiveness and seeming antagonism towards them in the
past. Women in Green Chairperson Nadia Matar told Arutz-7 today that Levy,
who replaces Police Commander Yitzchak Aharonovitch, "is not good news for
Yesha." Matar recalled a 1994 demonstration of 33 Women in Green members
that quickly caught the attention of both the media and police, who "were
determined to disperse the rally even though a license is only required for
a protest of 49 people or more... Soon, a police van pulled up, and out
jumped Mickey Levy. He attacked me, and violently dragged me to the van.
My mother-in-law, too, was stricken, and fainted from the attack... I was
later charged with physically assaulting a police officer, with Levy lying
and claiming in court that I had hit him. Fortunately, a Channel Two news
crew was on hand at the demonstration and we were able to get the video
that clearly showed Levy's violent treatment of me."

The case against her was subsequently dropped, Matar said, and she then
launched a counter-suit against Deputy-Commander Levy. "Only after a year
did the court bother to respond to my inquiry about my case... Eventually,
the criminal case against Levy was closed for some vague reasons of 'not
relevant' or something like that, and in the police Disciplinary Court,
too, where he was charged not with attacking me and lying, but with
'behavior unbecoming a police officer,' he was exonerated... "

8. SARID MIFFS TURKEY
A diplomatic crisis seems to have erupted between Turkey and Israel as a
result of an announcement by Education Minister Yossi Sarid. Sarid has
decided that Israel will henceforth include the Armenian genocide as a
subject of study in the Israeli public school curriculum. The friction
between the two allies was evident when Turkish diplomats decided not to
participate in Independence Day celebrations last week in Israel, and
Tourism Minister Amnon-Lipkin Shachak has been asked to reconsider his
scheduled visit to Istanbul. Turkish authorities have sent messages to the
Prime Minister's Office over the past few days suggesting that Turkey would
re-evaluate its diplomatic relationship with Israel in response to the
Sarid announcement.

9. ELON CALLS ON BEINISH TO RESIGN
MK Benny Elon (National Union-Yisrael Beiteinu) has again called upon
Supreme Court Justice Dorit Beinish to suspend herself. The new
revelations that prompted Elon's call are contained in a document produced
by two GSS agents who were convicted of killing an Arab prisoner while
interrogating him. The document - signed by Beinish - states that three
other GSS agents were responsible for the killing. Despite her signature,
Beinish, serving at the time as State Prosecutor, made the two agents stand
trial for a crime that she knew they did not commit. The incident took
place in 1989.

In November 1999, the then-secret document known as the Raviv-Beinish
document revealed that the legal counsel of the GSS informed a meeting of
State Prosecution members and GSS officials that Beinish had given approval
for Avishai Raviv to carry out actions near Bar Ilan University, and
incriminate someone else in order that he get caught. That revelation, as
well, led to calls for Beinish's resignation. Beinish is considered to be
next in line for the position of Chief Justice of the Supreme Court.

10. FRENCH LAWYERS TO AID JEWS IN IRAN
Two French lawyers have arrived in Shiraz, Iran, to follow the proceedings
against the 13 Jews currently being tried there. At least six of the
defendants have signed "confessions" that they spied on behalf of Israel,
while one of the defendants, Jewish studies teacher Farzad Kashi, has
denied all the charges. Kashi and his lawyer demand his release; his
brother, another defendant, "confessed" to spying for Israel shortly
afterwards. Attorneys Pierre Dunaque and Stephen Zarbiv are the only
foreign legal experts who have been granted entry visas to Iran. The two
say that they intend to serve in a consulting capacity to the Jews' legal
counsel.

11. IN SHORT
        Israel's doctors are striking day- and out-patient clinics today. Some
12,000 operations have been cancelled or postponed since the doctors began
their sanctions ten weeks ago...
        Two senior Palestinian figures have departed for secret talks with Public
Security Minister Shlomo Ben-Ami in Sweden. A representative of the Prime
Minister's Office will also take part in the talks. So reports the French
news agency AFP...
        The Histadrut Labor Union is expected to announce a general strike in the
wake of the Ben-Bassat tax reforms. Union Chief MK Amir Peretz apologized
today for comments he made over the weekend, in which he said that Israel's
affluent citizens "should not be surprised if poorer citizens break into
their homes or if their daughters are no longer able to stroll securely on
the country's streets..."

SPECIAL INSERT:
- - - A letter written two weeks ago by Rabbi Menachem Porush, head of the
World Agudat Yisrael movement, to Rabbi Ovadiah Yosef - - -

Honorable Gaon of Israel
The Great Rishon LeTzion Rabbi Ovadiah Yosef, Shlita [may he live a long
and good life]
HaKablan St. 45, Jerusalem

Shalom and Blessings,

"I was a young man and I have now grown old." I was born at a time when
the Turks controlled this country. I lived through the period of the
British Mandate, and followed the events since the establishment of the
State of Israel. The difficulties we endured are engraved in my memory, as
I was personally involved in the developments.

I am writing this letter with a feeling that I don't recall ever
experiencing before -- a feeling of fear and great worry resulting from the
persistent and firm rumors that the government is planning to change the
status of the neighborhoods on the outskirts of Jerusalem, Abu Dis and
Azariya, by handing them over to complete Palestinian civil and military
control.

"That which we feared has come." Beyond doubt, the consequences of
transferring Abu Dis and Azariya to Palestinian military control are a
security danger to Jerusalem.

Intense and thorough analysis has led to the conclusion that the
consequences will be the suffocation of Jerusalem with a Palestinian chain.
Surely what we are dealing with is "pikuach nefesh" on a massive scale,
and even when one person's life may be in danger we are required to take
extraordinary measures.

Military personnel who are familiar with the situation view this decision
very gravely. It may result in endangering the borders of Jerusalem.
Shivers shoot up my spine when I realize that the situation may deteriorate
and become similar to that of 1929 and 1936-38, periods when the Arabs were
not controlled by a governing force. They rioted and endangered lives.

There is no doubt that Shas can prevent this by objecting clearly and loudly.

During the last few days, my phone has not stopped ringing. I have
received numerous phone calls from people representing all circles of the
population, expressing their apprehension and worry. Aware of my
acquaintance with and admiration for your Honor, they encouraged me to
write this letter.

I repeatedly ask myself the inevitable question: How can we imagine Shas
sitting tranquilly as the government, with the aid of Shas, will Heaven
forbid return the neighborhoods surrounding Jerusalem?

Since the government will be discussing this issue this coming Sunday, it
is imperative that the Shas ministers state their position clearly, that
they object to any changes in the status of Jerusalem at this stage.

Please, please, we request from his Honor shlita, please do not let anyone
endanger Jerusalem. Do not let anyone endanger the hundreds of thousands
of residents of Jerusalem.

Sincerely yours,
Menachem Porush

Hebrew News Editor: Ariel Kahane and Haggai Seri
English News Editor: Hillel Fendel and Ron Meir

***************************************
Torah Sensory Sensations: Visit: <a href="http://moshiach.com/studio/">
http://moshiach.com/studio/ </a>

For the finest in youth travel programs (USA & Israel) - GO ACHVA, 2000!
<a href="http://www.yiyouth.org">http://www.yiyouth.org </a>

The Top Jewish Websites out in Cyberspace! 5 new sites every week!
<a href="http://www.jewishuniverse.net"> www.jewishuniverse.net</a>
***************************************

  ((((ARUTZ-7 ENGLISH RADIO BROADCASTS))))
                98.7 FM / 711 AM
                 or Live on the Net
For weekly programming schedule, see
http://www.ArutzSheva.org/English/radio/Fradio.htm
        Monday Night:
9:00 PM - (2:00 PM EST) - News in English + In Focus with Ron Meir
9:15 PM - "Deprogram Program" with Shai Ben Tekoa
10:00 PM - JewRock & Alternative Music with Yitzhak Hutner
11:00 PM - Rockin' the Boat, Solid Rock until Midnight

___________________________________________________________
Arutz-7 Educational Radio: a project of Beit El Yeshiva Center Institutions.
Individual news items may be reproduced in any form, provided Arutz-7
is credited and its e-mail address and URL is listed alongside the quote.

Subscribe (free): <a href="http://subscribe.a7.org/subscribe.asp">Arutz-7</a>
For other subscription-related matters: mailto:listmanager@ArutzSheva.org
For automated response about Arutz-7: mailto:info@ArutzSheva.org

------- End of forwarded message -------

_________________________
To subscribe to BPR send a message to bpr-list@philologos.org
with the word "subscribe" in the subject. To unsubscribe send a
message to the same address with the word "unsubscribe" in the
subject.

See http://philologos.org/bpr for additional info.

========
To: bpr-list@philologos.org (BPR Mailing List)
Subject: [BPR] - Rich Nations to Work Together Against Cyber Crime
From: bpr-list@philologos.org("Moza")
Date: Mon, 15 May 2000 08:41:21 -0400

Rich Nations to Work Together Against Cyber Crime

Sunday, May 14, 2000

By Joelle Diderich

PARIS (Reuters) - Leading industrialized nations, faced with a growing
threat from global computer viruses like the devastating "Love Bug," were
set to meet Monday to discuss ways to coordinate their fight against
cyber crime.

The Group of Eight (G8) meeting in Paris will exchange tips on how to
combat increasingly sophisticated computer crimes which are capable of
shutting down computers across the planet, threatening security and
causing billions of dollars of damage.

That danger was highlighted this month when millions of computers
worldwide were hit by the "Love Bug" virus, including some in the U.S.
Pentagon and the British Parliament.

The virus, which appeared in e-mail messages seductively entitled
"ILOVEYOU," has caused losses of $7 billion so far.

It was eventually traced to a trio of Filipino computer students in their
20s, pointing to the need for international cooperation to tackle a crime
wave which defies national boundaries.

Western governments admit their laws have not kept pace with
fast-changing technology. The French Foreign Ministry said cyber crime --
which includes offences ranging from credit card fraud to spreading child
pornography -- was growing exponentially as more households hooked up to
the Internet.

"Network intrusions and the spreading of malicious programs, which were
previously perpetrated by students or computer experts, are now within
the reach of the majority of Internet users," it said in a briefing
document.

But the ministry said computer crimes still lacked visibility, partially
because many individuals were unaware they were being attacked and
companies were reluctant to report security breaches for fear of harming
their share price. Experts say high-profile attacks like the ones that
paralyzed major commercial sites like Yahoo! and Amazon.com in February
are likely to multiply as online services migrate to new platforms such
as mobile phones.

EUROPE WARY OF "BIG BROTHER" APPROACH

The three-day meeting in Paris will bring together judges, police,
diplomats, business leaders and civil liberties groups.

Differences have already appeared in the U.S. and European approaches to
tackling the problem.

The United States favors a rapid and flexible solution such as the
creation of an international cyber police.

But Europe, worried that stricter policing of the Internet could
encourage "Big Brother"-style state prying into personal affairs, prefers
judicial cooperation along traditional lines.

Recommendations from the meeting, which will be jointly chaired by France
and Japan, will be taken up by G8 leaders when they hold their next
summit in Okinawa in July.

via: cyberwar@onelist.com

See http://philologos.org/bpr for additional info.

========
To: bpr-list@philologos.org (BPR Mailing List)
Subject: [BPR] - Next viruses will be silent killers
From: bpr-list@philologos.org("Moza")
Date: Mon, 15 May 2000 08:44:22 -0400

Next viruses will be silent killers

‘Love� bug is child�s play — developers demonstrate a cross-platform virus
that disappears before it can be stopped

By Eamonn Sullivan, IT Week
ZDNET

LONDON, May 11 — Mere child�s play. That�s the hacker verdict on the Love
Letter worm — and the more than 20 new permutations of it — that are
continuing to strike computers around the world. A report this week from a
group of developers dismissed the Love virus attack as crude and
demonstrated — with code examples and a working model — how it is possible
to create a far more sophisticated virus that would work across platforms,
do its work with stealth and disappear before it could be stopped.

“The next thing will be hackers using e-mail to hack into your database
without you knowing, to get important pieces of information.” — NICK GALEA
GFI

-- more --

http://www.msnbc.com/news/406448.asp?cp1=1

See http://philologos.org/bpr for additional info.

========
To: bpr-list@philologos.org (BPR Mailing List)
Subject: [BPR] - The Humming Black Hole
From: bpr-list@philologos.org("Moza")
Date: Mon, 15 May 2000 08:53:34 -0400

NASA Science News for May 15, 2000

A black hole binary star system called XTE J1550-564 has
recently become one of the brightest sources in the x-ray
sky. Astronomers are fascinated by fluctuations in the x-ray
emission from this source, which if converted to sound
waves would feel like the deep rumbling vibrations from a
bass speaker at a rock 'n roll concert. FULL STORY at

http://spacescience.com/headlines/y2000/ast15may_1m.htm

See http://philologos.org/bpr for additional info.

========
To: bpr-list@philologos.org (BPR Mailing List)
Subject: [BPR] - Stratfor: Cyberwarfare
From: bpr-list@philologos.org("Shophar_Sho_Good")
Date: Mon, 15 May 2000 09:08:07 -0500

------- Forwarded message follows -------
Date sent: Sun, 14 May 2000 23:04:58 -0500 (CDT)
From: <alert@stratfor.com>
To: redalert@stratfor.com
Subject: Cyberwarfare

Stratfor.com's Global Intelligence Update - 15 May 2000
__________________________________________

"I Love You" and the Problem of Cyberwarfare

Summary

Last week, officials from the government and the computer industry
gathered in the wake of the massive denial of service attacks against
commercial web sites and the outbreak of the "I Love You" virus. The
real problem the United States and much of the world faces is that
people are overwhelmingly dependent upon a single computer operating
system that is exceedingly vulnerable to even simple attacks. The PC
and the Internet have become indispensable - while remaining
indefensible.

Analysis

Last week, U.S. government and computer industry officials gathered in
California for a summit on computer security. The meeting took place
in the wake of a recent spate of computer viruses and attacks,
including the massive denial of a service attack, apparently launched
by a Canadian teenager, and the "I Love You" virus, seemingly launched
by someone in the Philippines.

It is important to realize that neither of these attacks were
developed by computer geniuses. The Canadian teenager's ability to
shut down Amazon.com was perhaps one notch more sophisticated than
setting an autodialier on a telephone to repeatedly call someone's
phone, making it impossible for real callers to get through. The "I
Love You" virus was a simple macro written in a fairly simple
language, Visual Basic, that took advantage of the lack of security on
Microsoft's e-mail package. No one is going to be offering either of
these software creators jobs at the National Security Agency.

Some people are taking comfort in this. John Dvorak, a usually
astute observer of the computing world, wrote in PC Week, "The Love
Bug Virus is the type of thing that's great for keeping journalists
busy on a slow news day. I've never seen anything get so much ink. The
question of the day: Will writing two-bit destructive viruses become
the way that loners and goofballs get their 15 minutes of fame? I
suspect this is the case. It certainly beats setting oneself up on the
school clock tower and picking off fellow classmates with a rifle."
___________________________________________________________________
Would you like to see full text and accompanying articles?
http://www.stratfor.com/SERVICES/GIU/daily.asp
___________________________________________________________________

Dvorak is of course right - but he's missing his own point. Vitally
important news is being made. The news is this: It is now possible for
a comparatively unsophisticated computer programmer to create absolute
havoc. It is not the hacker's psychological profile that is
interesting; it is the intellectual profile that is stunning. It used
to be possible for a brilliant but unstable person to wreak havoc.
Today, a not particularly bright crackpot can achieve the same
outcome. And that is the point. There are few brilliant people in the
world. There are lots of dullards. Based on the ratio of fools to
geniuses, the likelihood of future attacks increases.

The problem is this: the personal computer and the Internet are
both revolutionary - and yet, terrifically vulnerable. Both are
less than a generation old and comparatively primitive, like the
telephone or automobile early on in their evolution. Yet the
revolutionary nature of computing today allows all kinds of people to
do important things in ways once impossible. Everyday people in all
walks of life and work have become dependent on these systems.

The vulnerability of these systems stems from the simple fact that
they were never intended to be the center of such dependency. The
personal computer was developed as a stand-alone system. Unlike
mainframes with multiple users using multiple accounts, the PC was
deliberately designed to serve the needs of an individual. The entire
purpose of the PC was to be a functioning system that provided the
user unfettered access to his data, programs and even operating
system. Hence its name. It followed from this that the individual was
unlikely to seek to harm his own computer or the data on it. Security
was hardly a priority.

Connectivity between PCs has crept in slowly. Not so long ago,
people couldn't conceive of a mass market for PCs. As word
processors and spreadsheets emerged, the usefulness of the PC
became more apparent. Still, few people in the 1980s imagined that one
of the PC's primary roles would be that of a communications device. At
first limited to a handful of military and academic users, e-mail
usage began to explode in the late 1980s.

Early e-mail had been built around a few academic mainframes. A PC
user would get a campus account - either on a mainframe or
minicomputer - in terminal mode, not as a true computer. He would dial
up to that account via a modem, at 300 or 1200 baud. That computer
would link to other computers in a crazy quilt pattern called Bitnet,
which had spun off from ARPAnet (a Defense Department initiative).
Over time, data files were stored on various university mainframes.
One of the biggest was at the University of Minnesota, with tons of
non-graphical information. Using this network of computers, the user
could hop around the world. Out of this primitive connectivity, came
the explosion of the World Wide Web.

But the PC was never intended for this purpose - it was created for a
single user. Efficient usage meant that much of the function of the
operating system was hidden from the user, who really didn't need to
know what was going on within the system. Also, in the interest of
ease of use, the different applications became more tightly integrated
with each other and within the file system. The outcome, of course,
was the Microsoft-driven computer of today where the word processor,
spread sheet, e-mail package, web browser and file system are
intimately connected.

As a result, it is difficult today to figure out exactly what is
going on inside your own computer. The integration of processes
obfuscates the operating system. A good example can be found in the
famous "blue screen of death" that functions like a "service engine"
light. It tells you that you are in trouble, but doesn't tell you why.
The inability of the Microsoft Operating System (OS) to tell the user
what is wrong is a feature, not a bug, as they say. The OS frequently
doesn't have any idea what has failed. The complexity of the system
itself makes transparency impossible.

Microsoft triumphed because it provided for the easy exchange of
files within the PC and between PCs. But that very ease of exchange
created the current potential crisis. The Microsoft operating system
took advantage of connectivity opportunities. Once the computer became
connected, it was no longer under the sole control of the owner, whose
interest was in protecting his computer and his data; instead the
owner is now exchanging information with others who might have more
malicious interests. The structure of the Microsoft OS made it
extremely difficult to deal with maliciousness for two reasons:

1. The increasingly tight integration of the OS with applications and
links between applications means that malicious imported code can
migrate rapidly from one part of the system to another. The "I Love
You" virus, for example, attacked the address book of the email
system, as well as attacking music and graphics files.

2. The lack of transparency of the operating system makes it
extremely difficult to create programs that can see what is
happening inside of the computer in real time, creating shut-offs or
fail-safes. Current anti-virus software is forced to identify known
viruses by scanning incoming files. This means that new, unknown
viruses can't be stopped.

During the denial of service attacks on web sites, no one could
figure out where attacks came from because a single attacker can
route attacks through thousands of computers. It is possible to
plant malicious code on a computer whose mission is not to attack the
host computer - but to propagate itself to other computers and then to
begin simply linking to Internet sites, shutting them down by sheer
overload. Finding these tiny bits of malicious code on a server is
mind-numbingly difficult. It can be anywhere in the file system and
called virtually anything. There is some software designed to detect
this code. But it needs to be installed by people who are concerned
with damage to other servers - altruism that is fairly rare.

A teenage kid can knock out hundreds of corporate systems because the
foundation of modern computing, the operating system, has been in
rapid, forced development since the success of MS-DOS. It was designed
for one user who would treat it right. The hyper- connectivity of the
Internet exposes it to code delivered by others. The Windows operating
system was simply not built with this in mind. It has served
brilliantly as a tool for exchanging information.

But its very success has created the menace. The neat macros
created in a spreadsheet can be made malicious by a teenage kid.
Interoperability and interconnectivity were created without regard to
security. And there can be none without transparency. You can't be
secure if there is no method for knowing what is happening in your
operating system. It is the perfect environment in which viruses can
flourish. That is true on the client and the server.

The problem is that we are dependent on these systems for our daily
work and our daily work can be used to spread harmful programs. If a
teenager can wreak this havoc, imagine what a concerted effort by a
well-funded government intelligence agency can do. That, of course, is
the point. Dependency on the computer and the Internet at this
primitive stage of development opens us to attack, particularly from
societies that are not dependent on PCs and the internet, but that do
possess the intellectual skills needed to mount the attack.

One executive of an anti-virus company has suggested that you
should never open a file from someone you don't know. That is a
measure of how shallow our defenses are. How can you be sure that the
person you know hasn't become infected? In fact, how can you be sure
that the person you know doesn't want to zap you? Some companies have
solved the problem by prohibiting attachments and removing floppy
drives. In other words, they have solved the problem by losing the
capability. The solution is not in policies, but in technology. The
problem's center of gravity is the operating system.

Security requires a complete re-engineering of the operating system to
permit rapid diagnosis through complete transparency. It will not be
easy to evolve Windows or NT in this direction. It seems that
officials may want to deal with this problem. After all, the real
threat from rogue states won't be nuclear attack, but cyber attack.
Rogue states won't launch nuclear attack for fear of the
counterattack. But how do we retaliate against a virus attack? We
depend on computers. They don't.

_______________________________________________
For more Weekly Analyses:
http://www.stratfor.com/SERVICES/GIU/archives.ASP

_____________________________________
(c) 2000 WNI, Inc.
__________________________________________________
SUBSCRIBE to the free, daily Global Intelligence Update. Click on
http://www.stratfor.com/services/giu/subscribe.asp UNSUBSCRIBE by
clicking on http://www.stratfor.com/services/giu/subscribe.asp

------- End of forwarded message -------

See http://philologos.org/bpr for additional info.

========
To: bpr-list@philologos.org (BPR Mailing List)
Subject: [BPR] - Religion Today News Item
From: bpr-list@philologos.org
Date: Mon, 15 May 2000 11:26:28 -0500

------- Forwarded message follows -------

The new "Christian Wrestling Federation" features the slapping,
snarling, and bone-rattling body slams without the vulgar
language and sex. "We do all the kind of wrestling you see on TV, but
leave out the parading women and all the negative stuff," Rob Vaughn,
CWF founder, told The Dallas Morning News. Vaughn, who wrestles as
"Jesus Freak," is a former college football player and a Sunday school
teacher. ...The CWF, a North Texas group of about a dozen wrestlers,
made its debut May 10 before a screaming crowd of 400 teen-agers and
their parents at the Family Cathedral of Praise in Mesquite, Texas.
One match was an "anything goes" battle between Vaughn and
"Apocalypse" that featured a garbage can, a table, and a baking pan as
weapons, the newspaper said. Other wrestlers go by names such as "The
Beast" and "Angel." ...Fans at the church seemed to love the show.
"It'll get people to come to church more often," said Stephen Cade,
16. "It's fun to watch, and it's for Jesus Christ." About 30 young
people went up to dedicate their lives to Christ or receive prayer
after the show. ...The Christian Wrestling Federation (see link #4
below) plans to hold matches throughout Texas this summer and is open
to invitations, it says.

-----------
RELATED LINKS:
4: http://www.christianwrestling.com

-----------
News from ReligionToday is Copyrighted by Crosswalk.com.
Content may be reproduced provided proper credit is
given to religiontoday.crosswalk.com. Please go to
http://www.GOSHEN.net/Copyright.html to be sure you
meet all legal requirements.

See http://philologos.org/bpr for additional info.

========
To: bpr-list@philologos.org (BPR Mailing List)
Subject: [BPR] - High-tech guru offers a chip for your thoughts
From: bpr-list@philologos.org("Moza")
Date: Mon, 15 May 2000 13:19:02 -0400

May 15, 2000

High-tech guru offers a chip for your thoughts

Published in the Asbury Park Press 5/15/00
Second of three parts
By JOHN HANCHETTE
GANNETT NEWS SERVICE

Privacy advocates fear that as rapid advances are made in technology, the
personal lives of Americans may be shadowed by a cloud no bigger than a
computer chip.

Gannett Photo Network

MicroStrategy founder Michael Saylor proposes uploading information direct
to people's brains via computer chip. One proposal, drawn from a recent
science fiction film, is close to reality.

Michael Saylor the 35-year-old founder of MicroStrategy, who perhaps is
most famous for watching his personal net stock worth drop $6 billion in a
single morning without whimpering is involved with the concept.

Saylor wants to beam information directly into your mind; he calls it
"telepathic intelligence."

Saylor would do it by having a tiny transmitter surgically implanted in
your skull or by sewing a computer chip into your wrist and having it
transmit to an embedded radiolike device near your ear bones.

His computers already process a mammoth amount of data; pertinent
portions would be tailored to your life and interests, then transmitted to
brain or ear instantaneously 24 hours a day, seven days a week.

Your stock is tanking sell. You're on the wrong street turn here. Your
spouse wrecked the other car call the insurance company. Your house is
being burglarized call the cops. The doctor called in your prescription
visit the pharmacy.

"I don't know who in their right mind would let somebody implant this in
their head," says Fordham University Law School professor Joel Reidenberg,
an expert on information privacy. "To the extent that we begin to create a
system of automatons responding to chip implants in people's brains, we
will be destroying the foundations of a democratic society.

"Without question, there would be a great opportunity for mischief here."

MicroStrategy spokesmen confirm that Saylor "sees potential in the future
of such a chip" and that the firm's Strategy.com subsidiary a network of
"customer intelligence channels" that sends 300,000 people some 2 million
personalized messages a week is working long term on the idea.

But MicroStrategy spokesman Michael Quint said this would be what
computer business calls "opt-in": ""It's all permission marketing. If
you're talking about the privacy thing, we'd need to get the permission of
the customer or the consumer."

Reidenberg is not impressed: "The notion that it's "permission marketing
only' is a hoax. There's no way a citizen in our society can make an
intelligent, informed decision about the risks of these implants, which
would be sold through very sophisticated marketing by organizations with
large economic interests whose goals are not to promote the public
interest. That's a very scary vision for a democratic society.

"Forget the health and safety issues. Assume they figure out how not to
kill people when they put it in. The information-control aspects are
beyond what George Orwell could have dreamed about."

Not everyone is upset by this techno-vision.

When online prankster Bill Cross a few months ago put up a hoax Web site
that offered $250 for letting surgeons insert an electronic chip under the
right palm for cashless purchases, he was stunned at the response. People
signed up for the nonexistent implant "in droves," he says.

And the techno-vision is reality.

Three months ago Applied Digital Solutions a publicly traded firm based in
Palm Beach announced it had developed a high-tech transceiver chip,
thinner than a dime, that could be implanted in flesh and used as a
tracking device by transmitting the person's whereabouts to a global
positioning satellite.

Trademarked as the "Digital Angel," the chip could be inserted in children
at the behest of parents who fear kidnappers or in elderly parents at the
behest of children who fear those afflicted with Alzheimer's will wander
off. The chip can hold medical and financial information.

Applied Digital says the implant would be voluntary, making the privacy
issue moot.

But David Sobel, general counsel for the Electronic Privacy Information
Center in Washington, D.C., worries the device could evolve into a
workplace requirement one that "would dwarf polygraphs and drug testing."

And more than 500,000 pets now carry between their shoulder blades an
implanted, scannable computer chip carrying owner and vaccination data.

"The technology is there to implant chips allowing programming of devices,
like in your pacemaker," says Washington privacy consultant Robert
Gellman, who calls Saylor's idea "Big Brother on steroids."

Says Gellman: "I keep thinking one day soon they'll be able to beam
commercials into your pacemaker that warn, "Buy our product, or we're
going to skip a couple of heartbeats.' Think of all the people who believe
the CIA is beaming rays into their heads already."

Saylor bothers privacy advocates in another way.

He wants the government to make the huge Medicare database available
online so it easily could be compiled and searched by his firm to discover
dangerous medications and unsafe physicians, about whom you would be
warned.

"Give me your medical records, and I will give you more life," Saylor
says.

"Privacy advocates should take him seriously," said Evan Hendricks,
publisher of the watchdog Privacy Times. "He's putting out his own version
of "Mein Kampf.' Saylor is very genuine, I think. The more data they have,
the more strategic decisions they can make."

Published on May 15, 2000

The Asbury Park Press,
http://www.app.com/news/app/story/0,2110,273813,00.html

via: isml@onelist.com

See http://philologos.org/bpr for additional info.

========
To: bpr-list@philologos.org (BPR Mailing List)
Subject: [BPR] - (Fwd) Arutz-7 News: Monday, May 15, 2000
From: bpr-list@philologos.org("Moza")
Date: Mon, 15 May 2000 13:26:29 -0400

------- Forwarded message follows -------
Date sent: Mon, 15 May 2000 19:07:31 +0300
To: arutz-7@ArutzSheva.org
From: Arutz-7 Editor <neteditor@ArutzSheva.org>
Subject: Arutz-7 News: Monday, May 15, 2000
Send reply to: netnews@a7.org

Arutz Sheva News Service
<http://www.ArutzSheva.org>
Monday, May 15, 2000 / Iyar 10, 5760 - 25th day of the Omer
------------------------------------------------
Delivered Daily via Email, Sunday thru Friday
--- See below for subscription instructions ---

*******************************************************
Win a Car, Piano, Vacation... at JudaicaBay.com!
Join the Charity Auction for Shearis Israel.
Tickets are $20, $10, $5.
<a href="http://www.JudaicaBay.com"> http://www.JudaicaBay.com </a>
*******************************************************
Arutz-7's JEWISH UNIVERSE: "http://www.jewishuniverse.net"
*******************************************************

TODAY'S HEADLINES:
  1. ARABS LAUNCH WAR IN RAMALLAH, JENIN
  2. CABINET APPROVES IDF PULLOUT FROM ABU DIS
  3. KNESSET DEBATE
  4. GIANT RALLY TONIGHT
  5. PA ARRESTS DEF
  6. OUTPOST TRANSFERRED TO SLA

1. ARABS LAUNCH WAR IN RAMALLAH, JENIN
The day began with Prime Minister Barak's surprise announcement of his
intention to actualize his "gesture" of transferring Abu Dis and other
Jerusalem-area villages to the Palestinian Authority, and ended with a
full-scale battle started by the Palestinians on the outskirts of Ramallah
and other places in Judea and Samaria.

The state of the hostilities at present:
Yosh Junction, between Ramallah and Beit El: The Palestinians opened fire
at IDF forces shortly after noon today, following two hours of
rock-throwing by Palestinian youths. The Palestinian-initiated armed
violence began in earnest around 2 PM. The commander of the Border Guard
police in the Ramallah region was wounded from a bullet shot by uniformed
Palestinians; he is in moderate-to-serious condition. Two other soldiers
were lightly injured. Two Palestinian para-military policemen are reported
dead, and one Palestinian journalist was shot in the chest by Palestinian
fire. A cease-fire was achieved at around 4 PM, but was quickly broken
when Palestinians resumed their gunfire. An alternate road had been opened
for Israeli drivers traveling to and from Beit El, but was closed after a
while - leaving Beit El residents confined to their community. The
hostilities began to abate towards late afternoon, but intermittent firing
continued to be heard. The alternate road in and out of Beit El was opened
on and off for convoys of cars. Arutz-7's Kobi Sela reported from the site
that security forces there "feel and are acting as if this is a war." Late
this afternoon, the IDF dispatched Cobra helicopters to the scene in an
attempt to put a cap on the Arab gunfire.

Jenin, in northern Samaria: The Israeli Deputy Commander of the Liaison
Unit with the Palestinians was wounded. The soldier, an Israeli Druze from
Usafiyah, is listed in moderate condition in Haifa's Maimonides Hospital.
His father, speaking from his son's bedside, told reporters that Israel is
to blame for today's hostilities. Residents of the Shomron Jewish towns of
Ganim and Kadim were prevented from entering and leaving their towns.

Netzarim, in Gush Katif: The junction was closed off for several hours
after hundreds of Palestinian rioters threw rocks and Molotov cocktails at
Israeli soldiers. Three Border Guard soldiers were lightly wounded in the
attacks. Hundreds of Palestinians tried to reach the fences of Netzarim,
but soldiers were successful in stopping them. The junction was opened at
around 4 PM, following an agreement reached between the Israeli and
Palestinian forces.

Negohot, south of Hevron: Israeli cars were stoned by Arabs on the only
access road to Negohot. Half the length of the road is under full
Palestinian control, but the para-military police did nothing to stop the
stonings.

In Hevron, dozens of Arabs attacked Israeli security forces with rocks and
firebombs, and rolled four burning tires towards the soldiers. Hundreds of
rocks cover the road. A spokesman for the Hevron Jewish Community issued
the following statement: "The Israeli response to the Arab declaration of
war can only be described as humiliating cowardice... The current
administration, with Ehud Barak at the helm, will undoubtedly be remembered
in history as the most cowardly leadership in the annals of the Jewish
people. The abandonment and division of Jerusalem on the very day that
Israeli forces are being shot at by enemy forces is pathetic, inexcusable,
and unforgivable."

The number of Palestinian dead has been variously reported at between two
and fifteen, and over 300 Palestinians have been injured. The Palestinians
are commemorating the Gregorian date of Israel's Independence Day - May 15
- as their National Catastrophe Day.

2. CABINET APPROVES IDF PULLOUT FROM ABU DIS
The Cabinet voted this morning to approve the transfer of Abu Dis and other
Jerusalem-area villages to the full control of the Palestinian Authority.
Prime Minister Barak surprised the nation late last night with a sudden
announcement that he would place the issue before the Cabinet this morning.
Only the four Shas Ministers, as well as NRP Minister Levy and Yisrael
B'Aliyah Minister Sharansky, voted against. The other 15 ministers - from
One Israel/Meimad/Gesher, Meretz, and the Centrist party - voted in favor
of the abandonment of Abu Dis.

Barak told the Cabinet today that the retreat from Abu Dis strengthens both
the diplomatic process and Jerusalem, and that it is also correct from
Israel's security perspective. Excerpts from Barak's remarks:
"We are in the midst of a diplomatic process whose goal is to strengthen
Israel and its security. In any future settlement, Jerusalem will remain
united as Israel's eternal capital. They [the Palestinians] will be in
Abu-Dis and we will be in united Jerusalem... We are charged with a
historic and national responsibility to effect a separation in the Land of
Israel, they will be there and we will be here.
"What we are submitting today is not the transfer of additional territory
to the Palestinian Authority but merely a change in the status of 0.25% of
Area B, which is under Palestinian civil control, to Area A... We have
no interest in annexing 30,000 Palestinians to Jerusalem or Israeli
sovereignty... The entire move strengthens the diplomatic process,
strengthens our position in Jerusalem, and strengthens our security."

Housing Minister Rabbi Yitzchak Levy (National Religious Party) informed
the Cabinet that his party is quitting the government, in protest of the
transfer of Abu Dis. Barak and government ministers of Meretz attempted to
convince him not to quit. Levy, who is not a Knesset Member, said that he
is suspending himself from all governmental activity as of today, but that
the official party decision to quit the government will be made by the
party's central committee next week. The NRP's Deputy Education Minister
Sha'ul Yahalom said that the transfer of Abu Dis, "without receiving
anything in return, signifies the end of the Barak government. The Prime
Minister has made surrender to Palestinian terrorism a tenet of his
government that will lead to the crushing of his coalition into little
pieces." Levy gave his parting speech to the coalition, and his words were
praised even by left-wing ministers.

Barak attacked the NRP decision to resign from the government, saying,
"Division among ourselves is a greater danger to the people of Israel than
a withdrawal from Abu Dis." Yesha Council leaders, who refused an offer
from the Prime Minister's Office to see maps of the withdrawal from Abu
Dis, said that Barak "shows great determination at the wrong time and the
wrong place. Instead of crushing the Palestinian violence, he encourages
it with prizes in the form of additional withdrawals."

Interior Minister Natan Sharansky, who voted against the Abu Dis
abandonment, said that today's vote is just the tip of the iceberg of
Barak's plans for Israel's capital city. "This is one small step on the map,
but one large step towards concessions in Jerusalem," Sharansky said. His
party, Yisrael B'Aliyah, convened a special meeting today to decide whether
to leave the coalition. MK Yuli Edelstein told Arutz-7 today, "Our first
issue today will be to decide how to vote in the Knesset. I'm fairly sure
that we will all vote against the transfer, because when Barak says that
this is an 'advance,' it tells us that the main payment will be at least
half of Jerusalem. Secondly, we see that we told Barak in advance that we
are very against a particular proposal - such as the transfer of Abu Dis -
and yet he still carries it out. This shows that his approach to us is
very denigrating. I think that this type of dynamic will lead to the
dismantling of the coalition, no matter what political tricks he may try."
In the end, the Yisrael B'Aliyah party decided that its MKs - except for
Minister Sharansky, who will apparently absent himself from the plenum -
will vote against the transfer in the Knesset, but will not quit the
coalition over the issue.

The Shas party, which was particularly taken by surprise by Barak's
late-night decision to bring the Abu Dis proposal to the Cabinet today,
decided how to vote on the matter in an early-morning consultation at the
home of spiritual leader Rabbi Ovadiah Yosef. The party's four ministers
voted against the move in the Cabinet, and plan to abstain - together with
the three deputy-ministers - in the Knesset vote. The other ten MKs will
vote against.

3. KNESSET DEBATE
The Knesset began its deliberations on the withdrawal from Abu Dis late
this afternoon, and Prime Minister Barak's speech was continuously
interrupted by opposition heckling. Some coalition members expect that the
withdrawal vote will pass by a margin of some four MKs - giving the
expected abstention of the seven Shas ministers and deputy-ministers extra
significance, while others talk of a larger margin. Nationalist-camp MKs
appealed to Prime Minister Barak to postpone the vote, given the military
clashes in Yesha. Their request was turned down.

Barak said, "Jerusalem was destroyed not because of Abu Dis, but because of
Kamtza and Bar Kamtza, and because of causeless hatred... We will bring a
separation of peoples, security, and peace to Israel, and we will carry out
the agreement, and we will pray for the 'peace of Jerusalem.'"

Likud leader Ariel Sharon told the Knesset: "Whoever supports the
government today, or whoever abstains - which in this case is the same
thing - takes upon himself the responsibility for bringing the scenes that
we saw today in Ramallah and Jenin to Jerusalem, the capital of Israel."

A final vote is expected at around 7:30 PM.

4. GIANT RALLY TONIGHT
Amidst the political and military developments, the preparations for the
giant rally against the uprooting of settlements, the transfer of Abu Dis,
and unrequited withdrawals continue. The rally will be held in Zion Square
in central Jerusalem tonight, and tens of thousands of people are expected.
Two downtown streets will be set aside for the hareidi public: one for
men, and one for women.

Yesha Council spokesman Yehoshua Mor-Yosef told Arutz-7 this afternoon, "I
was just at Zion Square in Jerusalem, and have just arrived at the Knesset
- showing that we're working hard on both fronts: the rally, and to garner
Knesset votes against the transfer of Abu Dis... People are beginning to
wake up and realize what's going on - they will show Barak that he's on his
way to leading to a split in the nation. In addition, he will soon have a
coalition like that of Rabin-Peres, which did not last out its term."

In New York tonight, a sister rally will be held against the government's
policies in its negotiations with the Palestinians. Thousands are expected
there, as well. It will take place in Brooklyn, at 13th Ave. and 46th
Street, at 6 PM.

5. PA ARRESTS DEF
American sources reported last night that the Palestinian Authority had
finally arrested Hamas arch-terrorist Muhammad Def. The Prime Minister's
Office told Arutz-7 correspondent Haggai Huberman today that it had proof
that Def was in fact arrested. Israel had been demanding his arrest for
years, and the PA knew his whereabouts all that time.

6. OUTPOST TRANSFERRED TO SLA
The IDF evacuated its Taibe outpost in southern Lebanon last night, and
transferred control to the Southern Lebanese Army. Israel Air Force planes
bombed terrorist targets in the eastern sector of the security zone in
southern Lebanon this morning.

QUOTE OF THE DAY:
"We have strayed to the left, and may Your right hand bring us close."
- from today's special "B'Hab" penitential prayers

Hebrew News Editor: Haggai Segal
English News Editor: Hillel Fendel

***************************************
Davka - First in Judaic Software - Everything Jewish on your PC!
<a href="http://www.davka.com"> http://www.davka.com </a>

Shlichut Toranit - Rashei Kollel, Avreichim and Bachurim - Join a Kollel
Tzioni! <a href="http://www.torahmitzion.org"> http://www.torahmitzion.org
</a>

See the Golan and YESHA as you've never seen them before
Join One Israel Fund Mission; (212) 679-0202, YESHA12345@aol.com
***************************************

  ((((ARUTZ-7 ENGLISH RADIO BROADCASTS))))
                98.7 FM / 711 AM
                 or Live on the Net
For weekly programming schedule, see
http://www.ArutzSheva.org/English/radio/Fradio.htm
        Tuesday Night:
9:00 PM -(2:00 PM EST) - News in English + In Focus with Ron Meir
9:15 PM - "What's Going On" with Yedidya Atlas
10:00 PM - Weekly Haftara Commentary by Kalman Feder
10:05 PM - Carlebach Music Hour - The Old Stuff with host Rabbi Yosef Jackson
11:00 PM - Rockin' the Boat - Rock & Roll with Mordechai Shenker
___________________________________________________________
Arutz-7 Educational Radio: a project of Beit El Yeshiva Center Institutions.
Individual news items may be reproduced in any form, provided Arutz-7
is credited and its e-mail address and URL is listed alongside the quote.

------- End of forwarded message -------

See http://philologos.org/bpr for additional info.

========
To: bpr-list@philologos.org (BPR Mailing List)
Subject: [BPR] - Monks on Greek island have bad habits
From: bpr-list@philologos.org("Shophar_Sho_Good")
Date: Mon, 15 May 2000 13:32:21 -0500

Monks on Greek island have bad habits

By HELENA SMITH
PATMOS, GREECE
Tuesday 16 May 2000

http://www.theage.com.au/news/20000516/A63021-2000May15.html

The high life is nothing new to Patmos, the Aegean island where
royalty mixes with artists, David Bowie goes on walkabouts and the
Aga Khan throws parties for the likes of Richard Gere.

Indeed, the holy isle - where St John reputedly wrote the Book of
Revelation - has become an unlikely venue for glitz and glamor. Here,
pilgrims rub shoulders with celebrities and think nothing of it.

The problem is that the taste for the good life has rubbed off on the
monks of Patmos. Revelations concerning sex and money at the
monastery commemorating the apostle have sent a whiff of scandal
through the Orthodox church.

Prosecutors have learnt that the guardians of one of Greece's most
sacred sites preferred to live it up in villas built on filched
church land. Allegations of sexual misconduct are rife, and there is
the matter of missing treasures and money.

"We are all to blame," says Mayor Matheios Melianos. "We all knew it
was going on, but we didn't dare speak. You could see the monks in
the bars late at night, you could see them abandoning their duties."

Four clerics - including the monastery's former abbot, Bishop
Isodoros, whose indulgences include a liking for luxury cars - now
face criminal charges of embezzling $A1.4billion of church property.

One has been defrocked and the others face indefinite suspension.
Already there are fears that the dark goings-on could spark the
vision St John had of the world's cataclysmic end.

Even in the cavern of the apocalypse, where the apostle heard the
voice of God "as of a trumpet", the monks were reportedly on the make
- hiding donations under their cassocks.

"If the clerics of Patmos can't keep their vows", quipped one local,
making the sign of the cross, "then, really, who can?"

Patmians are now waiting with bated breath to see what new
revelations will come out of the criminal investigations.

See http://philologos.org/bpr for additional info.

========
To: bpr-list@philologos.org (BPR Mailing List)
Subject: [BPR] - Is that it? Relief and disbelief at third secret of Fatima
From: bpr-list@philologos.org("Shophar_Sho_Good")
Date: Mon, 15 May 2000 13:34:27 -0500

Is that it? Relief and disbelief at third secret of Fatima

By RICHARD BORDREAUX
Tuesday 16 May 2000

http://www.theage.com.au/news/20000516/A62798-2000May15.html

A "bishop clothed in white": Was the Pope's shooting forseen?

Since 1917, Roman Catholics have been so fascinated by the tale of
three Portuguese shepherd children that they have flocked to Fatima
by the millions each year to the spot where the Virgin Mary
reportedly appeared "dressed as the sun" and startled the youngsters
with three prophecies.

And since 1941, when the lone surviving shepherd revealed two of
those predictions in her memoirs, the "third secret of Fatima" has
become one of the most intriguing mysteries of modern times. It has
inspired hundreds of speculative books and websites and even a
skyjacking, in 1981, by a man who demanded that the Vatican reveal
all.

On Saturday, as Pope John PaulII visited the Fatima shrine, the
Vatican announced that the remaining secret was a "prophetic vision"
of Christian suffering and martyrdom that foresaw, among other
events, the 1981 assassination attempt on John Paul.

The secret - written down by the surviving shepherd, sealed in a
letter to the Vatican in 1957 and kept under lock by five successive
popes - will soon be published on John Paul's orders, Vatican
Secretary of State Angelo Sodano told 600,000 worshippers after a
papal Mass in Fatima. Many in the crowd voiced relief that the
surprise announcement appeared to rule out an imminent end of the
world, but others challenged the "prediction" because it was revealed
only after coming true.

Saturday's Mass was held to beatify the two other shepherds, who died
of influenza in 1919 and 1920, and the crowd packed the shrine's
square on a hot, bright day to welcome the Pope on his third visit to
Fatima's Chapel of Apparitions. The beatified siblings, Francisco and
Jacinta Marto, became the first pre-adolescent candidates for
sainthood who did not die as martyrs.

The ceremony was a coincidence of two anniversaries - the one of
Mary's first reported sighting here and the other of the shooting of
the Pope exactly 64 years later. John Paul has said that the mother
of Jesus, acting as Our Lady of Fatima, "deflected the bullets" that
hit him from point-blank range.

He has also thanked her for aiding in the collapse of Soviet
communism - a result, he said, of her reported 1917 prophecy to the
shepherds that Russia would be "reconverted" after spreading "errors"
in the world.

The other reported prophecy made that year and revealed in 1941 was
that World WarI would end, only to be followed by a new, more
terrible conflict if humankind did not stop offending God.

Vatican officials did not explain why the Pope decided to reveal the
third prophecy, but it seems to fit his vision for Holy Year 2000 as
a time for clarifying the church's past and purifying its mission.
Unveiling the secret enables John Paul, who turns 80 on Thursday, to
enhance his mystique among Catholics as an ailing leader who has
endured with divine protection to lead an often persecuted flock into
Christendom's third millennium.

The Vatican's revelation also is certain to revive conspiracy
theories that Soviet and Bulgarian security services backed the 1981
assassination attempt by Turkish gunman Mehmet Ali Agca, who
confessed to the crime and is serving a life sentence but insists he
did not act alone. For proponents of such theories, Fatima offers a
neat link between the church's struggle against atheism and a Soviet
plot to strike back at its Polish-born leader.

Cardinal Sodano said the young shepherds were told in 1917 of a
"bishop clothed in white" who "makes his way with great effort toward
the Cross amid the corpses of those who were martyred". The account
continues: "He too falls to the ground, apparently dead, under a
burst of gunfire." Papal spokesman Joaquin Navarro-Valls later told
reporters the bishop in white was "a clear reference" to John Paul.

Vatican officials said they had cleared their announcement with Lucia
de Jesus dos Santos, who reported the Fatima prophecies and is now a
92-year-old cloistered Carmelite nun. Lucia was 10 years old when she
and her cousins, Francisco, 8, and Jacinta, 7, said Jesus' mother
made the first of six monthly apparitions near a grotto, causing the
sun to dance in the sky.

Crowds reportedly witnessed the last apparition, in October 1917, and
returned to make Fatima one of Catholicism's most revered shrines.
The Vatican declared in 1930 that the visions were worthy of belief
and later embraced the first two prophecies. Many Catholics had
believed the third prophecy was kept secret so long because it was
deemed too frightening. Three popes have read it since 1960, the year
that Lucia said the prophecy could be revealed. John Paul read it
within days of becoming pope, Navarro-Valls said.

The Vatican's long silence be-came unbearable for many, fuelling
doomsday scenarios. In 1981, a former Catholic monk, Laurence J.
Downey, hijacked an airliner during a Dublin-to-London flight and
threatened to blow it up unless the secret was told.

Lucia Dias, a 31-year-old Portuguese lawyer, said she had long
assumed the secret presaged a third world war. After hearing
Saturday's announcement, she said she was relieved and happy for the
Pope. "It's wonderful," she said. "He knew the prophecy, and he
survived it."

More sceptical pilgrims noted that the 1917 prophecies about Russia's
"errors" and a new war had been revealed only after Russia fell under
Soviet rule and World War II was under way. Sodano's announcement
disappointed them.

"What he said happened in the past," said Julio Estela, 33, a
Portuguese car salesman. "This isn't a prediction. There must be
more."

Sodano said the Vatican would issue Sister Lucia's written account
with "an appropriate commentary". He said a Vatican interpretation
was needed because her text does not clearly predict events but
rather describes "events spread out over time in a succession and a
duration that are not specified". Her account, he said, "describes
the immense suffering endured by the witnesses to the faith in the
last century".

LOS ANGELES TIMES

See http://philologos.org/bpr for additional info.

========
To: bpr-list@philologos.org (BPR Mailing List)
Subject: [BPR] - Schools Offer Religious Study
From: bpr-list@philologos.org("Shophar_Sho_Good")
Date: Mon, 15 May 2000 13:39:49 -0500

SCHOOLS OFFER RELIGIOUS STUDY

http://www.chicagotribune.com/news/nationworld/article/0,2669,SAV-0005
150026,FF.html

From Tribune News Services
May 15, 2000

AUGUSTA, WISCONSIN -- The district school board has invited students
to spend an hour a week at churches learning about religion, a plan
that is prompting questions from parents.

If enough students are interested, the "Religious Release Program"
would go into effect in September, said board Vice President Jody
Hahn.

"With everything that's happening in schools, we see this as a chance
to do something for the students besides metal detectors and drug
dogs," Hahn said.

In a May 5 letter to parents, the Augusta School District told
parents students would be bused each Friday to churches for 50
minutes of religious instruction, then bused back to school.

Students who do not participate would be in study hall.

The letter was sent by Supt. Fred Brown and said, "the religious
instruction program will enrich the lives of our children."

Some parents object to the program, saying it would leave some
students out, force others to attend different parishes than their
families, or usurp parents' responsibilities.

State law allows public schools to excuse individual students from
class for religious purposes. However, federal school funds cannot be
used for bus transportation, said Greg Doyle of the state Department
of Public Instruction.

See http://philologos.org/bpr for additional info.

========
To: bpr-list@philologos.org (BPR Mailing List)
Subject: [BPR] - ICEJ NEWS MAY 15...Palestina today...
From: bpr-list@philologos.org("Haiot")
Date: Mon, 15 May 2000 17:54:54 EDT

ICEJ NEWS SERVICE FROM JERUSALEM

News and comment on Middle East affairs, compiled by journalists at the
International Christian Embassy Jerusalem, publishers of the monthly Middle
East Digest.

PLEASE VISIT OUR SITE: <http://www.icej.org.il>

See below for subscription and other details.

PLEASE FORWARD TO FRIENDS AND ENCOURAGE THEM TO SUBSCRIBE
====================================================
MONDAY, 15 MAY 2000

"Those who trust in the LORD are like Mount Zion, which cannot be moved,
but abides forever. As the mountains surround Jerusalem, so the LORD
surrounds His people from this time forth and forever." Psalm 125:1-2

FEATURE STORIES
1. IDF, PALESTINIANS IN FIERCE CLASHES
(AP) In the worst violence in four years, Israeli troops and Palestinian
police fought fierce gun battles on Monday, and three Palestinians were
killed as protests swept across YESHA. At least 350 Palestinians were
injured, most of them by rubber-coated steel pellets. Nine Israeli troops
were also hurt, including one by live rounds. The violence came despite a
decision today by the Israeli Cabinet to transfer three villages near
Jerusalem to Palestinian control in a good-will gesture.

2. UN, US MULLING OVER IDF WITHDRAWAL
UN Secretary-General Kofi Annan and senior UNIFIL officials will meet on
Monday to discuss its plans for sending international forces into south
Lebanon after Israeli Defense Forces (IDF) leave their positions in July in
order to comply with UN Security Council Resolutions 425 and 426. On
Saturday, the US said it was considering providing $50 million to help
cover costs associated with the IDF withdrawal.

NEWS BRIEFS
3. MASS DEMONSTRATION FOR JERUSALEM AND YESHA
4. PA CAPTURES TOP HAMAS BOMBER
5. US CAUTIONS CITIZENS VISITING ISRAEL
6. HAMAS-LINKED GROUP SUED BY TEEN RELATIVES
7. IRANIAN JEW'S LAWYERS THREATEN SUIT

NOTE: We apologize for the tardiness of Thursday's edition of the ICEJ News
Service. We had some computer problems. Therefore, we were also not able to
send out Friday's Edition.

NOTE: The ICEJ News Service's Editor, David Parsons, is currently on
vacation for the next few weeks.

*****

IDF, PALESTINIANS IN FIERCE CLASHES

(AP) In the worst violence in four years, Israeli troops and Palestinian
police fought fierce gun battles on Monday, and three Palestinians were
killed as protests swept across YESHA. At least 350 Palestinians were
injured, most of them by rubber-coated steel pellets. Nine Israeli troops
were also hurt, including one by live rounds. The violence came despite a
decision today by the Israeli Cabinet to transfer three villages near
Jerusalem to Palestinian control in a good-will gesture.

The confrontations began when thousands of Palestinians across the
Judea/Samaria and Gaza staged marches to mark "Al Naqba," the Arabic word
for catastrophe they use to describe Israel's founding in 1948. Protesters
also demanded the release of hundreds of Palestinian prisoners in Israeli
jails. (Note: many of the prisoners have murdered Jews and/or Israeli
collaborators.)

The expectation had been that Palestinian leader Yasser Arafat would not
allow the demonstrators to go beyond stone-throwing, so as not to harm
unannounced peace talks being held in the Swedish capital of Stockholm.

In a related development, the chief Palestinian peace negotiator, Yasser
Abed Rabbo, who did not join the Stockholm talks, resigned today and
accused Israel of trying to divide the Palestinians by setting up rival
negotiating channels.

The atmosphere has been tense in the Palestinian territories in recent
days, with Palestinians increasingly frustrated over lack of progress in
the peace talks and Israel's refusal to release more prisoners.

The worst violence erupted today on the outskirts of the Judea/Samaria town
of Ramallah, where Palestinian policemen shooting from rooftops exchanged
fire with Israeli soldiers in the streets below.

Two Palestinian policemen were killed, according to Israeli and Palestinian
security officials. Three civilians were wounded, including Palestinian
journalist Maher Abu Khater, who works for a German news agency.

An AP reporter saw Abu Khater get shot in the neck. He fell to the ground,
bleeding profusely. Israel radio said three Israeli troops were injured.

The confrontation began when about 400 Palestinian protesters threw stones
at Israeli troops who responded with rubber-coated steel pellets and tear
gas. After several hours, Israeli troops and Palestinian police mingling
with the protesters began using live rounds, but it was not clear was
prompted the escalation.

In the town of Nablus, an 18-year-old demonstrator was shot and killed
after being shot in the neck, said doctors at the city's Rafidieh hospital.

Near the Judea/Samaria town of Jenin, about 3,000 Palestinians marched
toward the Jewish settlement of Ganim, where they were stopped by Israeli
troops. Witnesses said several Israeli soldiers crouched on the ground and
fired live rounds into the crowd, injuring four Palestinian policemen and
six demonstrators.

Palestinians police returned fire. Israeli military sources said the deputy
commander of the regional Israeli-Palestinian liaison committee was injured.

The violence was the worst since September 1996, when eighty Palestinians
and Israelis were killed in three days of firefights between Israeli
soldiers and Palestinian troops. The riots at the time were triggered by
Israel's decision to open a new entrance to an archaeological tunnel
alongside a Muslim shrine in Jerusalem.

According to Palestinian hospital officials and ambulance drivers, at least
350 Palestinians were injured, most of them by rubber bullets, in clashes
throughout the Palestinian areas.

Today's Cabinet meeting was convened hastily, after weeks of hesitation by
Prime Minister Ehud Barak over whether to transfer the Jerusalem suburbs in
light of strong opposition of several coalition members. In the session,
fifteen ministers supported Barak and six - from the NRP, the
ultra-Orthodox Shas party, and Israel B'Aliya, a party representing
immigrants - voted against the plan.

It was not immediately clear why Barak decided to push the transfer idea
through the Cabinet now. There was speculation his move was linked to
developments in the Stockholm peace talks.

In the past, Barak has said that in exchange for handing the villages of
Abu Dis, Izzarieh and Sawahrah a-Sharkieh to the Palestinians, he would
want their agreement to delay talks on another partial Judea/Samaria troop
pullback until negotiators have worked out a blueprint for a peace treaty.

Barak told his Cabinet ministers today that the land transfer would cement
Israel's hold over Jerusalem, not weaken it, as hard-liners claim.

"This move strengthens the peace process, strengthens our hold over
Jerusalem and strengthens our security," Barak told the ministers,
according to a statement issued by the Cabinet.

Today's Cabinet vote raised questions about the survival of Barak's
coalition, which had controlled 69 seats in the 120-member parliament. The
NRP, which has five seats, announced it was leaving the coalition over the
land transfer, and two other factions - Shas and Israel B'Aliya - said they
were staunchly opposed to the move, but had not decided yet whether to bolt
the government.

Barak has focused his efforts on Shas, which has 17 seats. Shas has
demanded more government funds for its financially strapped school system,
and Shas ministers have suggested they would only back Barak's peace moves
if the money was forthcoming.

But Barak has also made contacts with parties outside the coalition in
recent days to ask for their support.

Barak has agreed to pay millions of dollars to Shas, but has been unable to
win a clear commitment from the party's spiritual leader, Rabbi Ovadia
Yosef, that the party will vote with the government on peace issues.

Shas Cabinet minister Eli Suissa said he voted against the transfer of the
villages because he felt it would endanger Israel's hold over Jerusalem.

The Palestinians hope to establish their future capital in east Jerusalem,
a demand Barak has rejected.

However, in informal talks, a proposal to turn Abu Dis into a future
Palestinian capital has been raised, and a Palestinian parliament building
is under construction in the village of 13,000 Palestinians.

*****

UN, US MULLING OVER IDF WITHDRAWAL

UN Secretary-General Kofi Annan and senior UNIFIL officials will meet on
Monday to discuss its plans for sending international forces into south
Lebanon after Israeli Defense Forces (IDF) leave their positions in July in
order to comply with UN Security Council Resolutions 425 and 426. On
Saturday, the US said it was considering providing $50 million to help
cover costs associated with the IDF withdrawal.

UNIFIL commander Major-General Seth Kofi Obeng is expected to reveal their
force's potential objectives and how to implement them in light of Israel's
determination to withdraw from the Security Zone without a unilateral peace
agreement with Lebanon's puppet master - Syria.

Diplomatic sources report the Security Council will hear the options given
by UN Middle East envoy Terje Larsen and UNIFIL's top officials next week
to determine Annan's recommendation concerning the future role of UN forces
in south Lebanon.

It appears that the UN officials have accepted the definition of the
international boundary created by the British-French in 1923 over Lebanon's
objective claiming a small portion of land near the village of Sheba at the
foothills of Mount Hermon.

US officials said on Saturday it might provide Israel with $50 million for
the withdrawal of IDF troops from the Security Zone which is due to occur
by July 7. The only catch is the funding will only come from the US's
annual military aid of $1.8 billion to the Jewish state and not as part of
a new budget request.

Meanwhile, Israel is pressing the UN to takeover IDF outposts and protect
the South Lebanese Army (SLA) and their families from sharp retaliation
from the terrorist faction - Hizb'Allah.

Hizb'Allah revealed their mafia-like mentality Sunday when they offered
amnesty to any soldier within the 2,500-man SLA ranks who commit mutiny by
killing any Israeli soldier or an SLA officer and proceeds to quits his unit.

The Hizb'Allah statement comes after Friday's killing of an SLA soldier by
Hizb'Allah gunfire and appears to be attempt to further demoralize the SLA
forces, which has suffered five combat fatalities in the past two weeks.

Hizb'Allah has made it clear that it will continue to fight against SLA
troops until they are destroyed and Israel until "Palestine" is freed from
Jewish presence. The Lebanese government considers SLA soldiers as traitors
and will be subject to trial by a military court.

Over the weekend, additional IDF troops abandoned key enclaves to SLA
forces under the cover of darkness.

*****

MASS DEMONSTRATION FOR JERUSALEM AND YESHA

(ARUTZ-7) Preparations are underway for a mass demonstration for Monday
night in Jerusalem and New York City at 1800 hours, respectively, on behalf
of Judea/Samaria and Jerusalem. In Jerusalem, Interior Minister Natan
Sharansky, Jerusalem Mayor Ehud Olmert, and other public figures will
address the demonstrators on the issues of the integrity of Jerusalem, the
danger to the nation's unity caused by the uprooting of settlements, and
the futility of unrequited withdrawals from Judea and Samaria.

The police-authorized rally, which is being sponsored and organized by the
YESHA Council and other groups, is being billed as "the first demonstration
of YESHA residents since the election of Ehud Barak as Prime Minister."
Beit El Mayor and YESHA Council member Uri Ariel, exhorting his
constituents to attend, wrote today, "Demonstrations and rallies are an
important contribution in the campaign to win over public opinion in our
country. We recall how the massive pro-Golan demonstration four months ago
(in Tel Aviv) represented a turning-point [in the negotiations over the
Golan giveaway]... Everyone is asked to do his utmost to attend..."

*****

PA CAPTURES TOP HAMAS BOMBER

(JERUSALEM POST) - Fugitive bomber Mohammed Deif, head of Hamas' armed wing
Izzadin Kassam, was recently arrested by Palestinian security officers in
Gaza, Israel Television reported last night. Deif, the former assistant of
Hamas bombing mastermind Yehiya ("The Engineer") Ayyash, is believed
responsible for the deaths of forty-seven people and the wounding of
ninety-six.

The television report stated that a US security official recently informed
Israel that Deif was arrested ten days ago. The US State Department
recently issued terror warnings to US citizens in Israel and the
territories. Palestinian sources had said the warnings were based on
information, but did not elaborate.

The IDF Spokesman declined to comment on the report. Palestinian security
sources would not confirm the arrest.

Deif, who has been in hiding for years, was placed under what the
Palestinian Authority called "protective detention," CHANNEL 1 said. The
implication was that he was being arrested for his own safety, to protect
him from the General Security Service.

Meanwhile, the Prisons Service Sunday released Hamas leader Sheikh Ahmed
Yassin's right-hand man, Sheikh Salah Bin-Mustafa Shkadeh from Hasharon
Prison to his home in Gaza. Shkadeh, sentenced to eight years in 1988 for
membership in an enemy organization and conspiracy, was also suspected at
the time of ordering the abduction and murder of IDF soldier Ilan Sa'adon
in 1988. He may also have been connected to the abduction and murder of IDF
soldier Sharon Edry in September 1996.

Three years ago the IDF placed Shkadeh under administrative detention, but
refrained from extending the term and his release was ordered Sunday.

The last-known attack attributed to Deif occurred on October 30, 1998, when
a terrorist driving a car packed with explosives tried to ram a school bus
carrying thirty-four children in Gush Katif. The attack was thwarted by
soldiers in an IDF jeep who rammed the suicide car, which exploded killing
reserve Sgt. Alexei Nikov.

Other attacks involving Deif include: a suicide bombing near a bus full of
soldiers in Jerusalem on December 25, 1994, wounding twelve; a suicide
bombing on bus No. 18 in Jerusalem, killing twenty-five and wounding
forty-six, on February 26, 1996; a suicide bombing on another No. 18 bus in
Jerusalem, killing 19 and wounding six, on March 3, 1996.

He is also wanted for the murder of IDF soldier Sharon Edry, abducted and
killed by terrorists in September 1996, and was involved in the abduction
and killing of soldier Nachshon Wachsman in October 1994. Deif is also
believed to have organized the terror cell liquidated in Taiba on March 2.

Israel has sought his extradition since signing the Oslo accords, but the
PA has refrained from handing over fugitives.

*****

US CAUTIONS CITIZENS VISITING ISRAEL

<CNSNews.com> - The State Department Friday warned American citizens that
there was an increased possibility of terrorism in Israel and the
Palestinian Authority-ruled areas.

"While there is no reason to believe there is a specific threat against
Americans, the US Embassy in Tel Aviv and the US Consulate in Jerusalem
urged all American citizens to be vigilant," the department said in a
statement.

"American citizens in Israel should be alert to their surroundings, and
report suspicious packages or any unusual activities to the police," the
department said, stressing caution when using public transport or in
crowded areas.

The incidence of terrorism - and especially suicide bombings of public
buses and in Israeli city streets - has traditionally increased when
progress has been made in Arab-Israeli peace talks.

At least 314 people - mostly Israelis - have been killed in terrorist
attacks since the Oslo Accords were reached between Israel and the PA in
September 1993.

Of those, at least 160 died in 19 suicide bombings, mostly attributed to
Hamas. A smaller group, Islamic Jihad, claimed responsibility for three
bombings, which cost 29 lives.

American victims of Arab terrorism during that time included Isaac
Weinstock, 19, killed in a 1993 drive-by shooting, 19-year-old Nachson
Wachsman, an Israeli-American soldier kidnapped and murdered by Hamas in
1994, David Boim, a 16-year-old American pupil shot dead in 1996, Ira
Weinstein and New York seminary students Matthew Eisenfeld and Sara Duker,
killed in a 1996 suicide bombing, Leah Stern, a victim of a July 1997
Jerusalem bombing and 14-year-old Yael Botwin, killed in another bombing in
the capital, one month later.

Israel last year accused the PA of allowing the Palestinians, suspected of
carrying out most of those attacks, to walk free in areas under its control.

*****

HAMAS-LINKED GROUP SUED BY TEEN RELATIVES

(AP) The parents of an American teen-ager slain in the YESHA have filed
suit in a federal court in Chicago against Islamic groups and charities,
claiming they raised money in the United States for Hamas, a radical
Islamic group that has carried out dozens of suicide bombings against
Israelis.

In an apparently unprecedented move, Stanley and Joyce Boim, former New
Yorkers who now live in Jerusalem, invoked the federal anti-terrorism law
of 1990 against what their suit described as Hamas-front organizations and
individuals who collected funds in the United States for relief and
development of the YESHA.

The Boims asked for $600 million in damages in what could be the first
effort by individuals to use federal terrorism laws against what the suit
called "a network of front organizations" in the United States that raise
money for Islamic causes.

Actually, the suit contended, the money was channeled to terrorists and
some of it was used to pay for the vehicle, machine guns and ammunition
used to kill the Boims' son David, a 17-year-old yeshiva student who was
gunned down in 1996 waiting with other students at a bus stop in Beit El,
in Judea/Samaria. Earlier, the two attackers had opened fire on a civilian
bus and injured two passengers.

The Palestinian Authority apprehended Amjad Hinawi and Khalif Tawfiq
Al-Sharif, described in the court papers as known members of Hamas'
military wing, in 1997. Hinawi confessed and was tried and convicted by a
Palestinian court in 1997 and sentenced in 1998 to ten years in prison.

According to the suit, Al-Sharif was released by Palestinian authorities
and participated in a suicide bombing in Jerusalem in 1997 in which five
civilians were killed and 192 injured.

Among the groups named as defendants were Quranic Literacy Institute, with
offices in Oak Lawn, Ill.; Holy Land Foundation for Relief and Development,
a California corporation with a branch office in Illinois; and Islamic
Association for Palestine. Also among the defendants is Mousa Mohammed Abu
Marzook, a native of Gaza. (Attempts were made to contact each defendant,
but they unsuccessful.)

*****

IRANIAN JEW'S LAWYERS THREATEN SUIT

(AP) Lawyers for the thirteen Iranian Jews accused of spying for Israel
threatened to file lawsuits today if any more confessions of their clients
were shown on television without permission. The warning came shortly
before two new confessions were made in court Monday in Shiraz, said Esmail
Naseri, a spokesman for the defense team. Their confessions raised to eight
the number of defendants who have pleaded guilty. So far only one
defendant, Farzad Kashi, has denied the charges.

Javid Bent-Yacoub, 42, a shopkeeper, will be the last of the ten main
defendants to get a hearing. Three other defendants have been out on bail
since February, and lawyers said their charges were likely to be a lot less
serious.

Today, relatives of the defendants stood outside the courthouse, some
looking very distraught. They refused to talk to the press.

Before the trial resumed today, Naseri told AP that if the court allows
more confessions to be broadcast without authorization, "we will file a
lawsuit against all those involved."

Iranian state television has broadcast the confessions of two defendants.
"The interviews have been shown without our permission and without our
clients consulting us about giving them," Naseri said.

Naseri said lawyers would seek permission to interrogate any witnesses who
might have accused their clients of espionage, and called on the court to
produce more evidence. The lawyers maintain that confessions alone are not
enough and that the court must show that secret information was handed to
Israel, which Iran considers its enemy. Israel has denied that any of the
defendants were its spies.

The trial has generated concern in the West, where Secretary of State
Madeleine Albright has warned the outcome could have international
repercussions. Defense lawyers question the fairness of the revolutionary
court, where the judge is also the prosecutor and there is no jury.

Two lawyers from the French-based organization Lawyers Without Borders came
to the courthouse today and offered assistance to the defense team.
Judiciary officials allowed the foreign lawyers to see the empty courtroom,
but said they could not attend the hearings.

The trial has had a negative impact on the 25,000 Jews in Iran - the
largest Jewish community in the Middle East outside Israel. Several Jews
have told reporters that the case has isolated them from their Iranian
compatriots. Iranian Jews have faced some government restrictions since the
1979 Islamic revolution, but they have been free to practice their religion
and they face little overt discrimination.

*****

SOURCES: THE JERUSALEM POST, ISRAEL LINE, HA'ARETZ, REUTERS, CNN,
ASSOCIATED PRESS, ARUTZ 7, IBA NEWS, CNSNEWS.COM

This bulletin was compiled and written by Raymond McNemar.

*****

ICEJ NEWS SERVICE
Editor: David Parsons

Please feel free to publish/broadcast, with attribution.

To subscribe (free), please email a blank message to:
icej-news-service-subscribe@icej.org.il

To unsubscribe, send a blank message to:
icej-news-service-unsubscribe@icej.org.il

Also, check out the monthly Middle East Digest, which is now available free
on the Internet via our website <http://www.icej.org.il>

MIDDLE EAST DIGEST, PO BOX 1192, JERUSALEM, 91010, ISRAEL.
tel: +972-2-5631418
fax: +972-2-5669970
ICEJ website: http://www.icej.org.il

=================================================

========
To: bpr-list@philologos.org (BPR Mailing List)
Subject: [BPR] - A Christmas Star for Soho--a close encounter between Jupiter and Venus
From: bpr-list@philologos.org("Moza")
Date: Mon, 15 May 2000 19:09:26 -0400

NASA Science News for May 16, 2000

The planets Venus and Jupiter will pass less than 42 arcseconds
apart on May 17. Because the pair is so close to the Sun, only
the Solar and Heliospheric Observatory will have a good view of
the close encounter, which is similar to the "Christmas Star"
conjunction of 2 BC. FULL STORY at

http://science.nasa.gov/headlines/y2000/ast16may_1.htm?list

See http://philologos.org/bpr for additional info.

Philologos | Bible Prophecy Research | Online Books | Reference Guide

Please be advised that this domain (Philologos.org) does not endorse 100 per cent any link contained herein. This forum is for the dissemination of pertinent information on an end-times biblical theme which includes many disturbing, unethical, immoral, etc. topics and should be viewed with a mature, discerning eye.