BPR Mailing List Digest: 10/17/00

Philologos
BPR Mailing List Digest
October 17, 2000

Digest Home | 2000 | October, 2000

To: bpr-list@philologos.org (BPR Mailing List)
Subject: [BPR] - FW: ARAB AND JEWISH CHRISTIANS IN ISRAEL PRAY TOGETHER --- AND GIDEON'S ARMY
From: bpr-list@philologos.org("David")
Date: Tue, 17 Oct 2000 11:30:53 +0930

This is a snip from Elijahlist's recent mailing

-----Original Message-----
From: ELIJAH LIST [mailto:elijahlist@mindspring.com]
Sent: Tuesday, 17 October 2000 5:50 am
To: elijahlist@egroups.com
Subject: ARAB AND JEWISH CHRISTIANS IN ISRAEL PRAY TOGETHER

ARAB AND JEWISH CHRISTIANS PRAY TOGETHER:
FROM THE KEYBOARD OF STEVE SHULTZ, THE ELIJAH LIST

With all the bad news in ISRAEL AND THE MIDDLE EAST, we simply
MUST look for What GOD IS DOING IN THE MIDST OF IT and WHAT He
is using and WHO He is using and HOW He is using them. Read
this report about Arab and Jewish Christians joining hands
and hearts to pray for peace in the HOLY LAND.

It's not ALL bad news!!

---Steve Shultz, Publisher, THE ELIJAH LIST

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

Forwarded by RIVERMAIL:
Email: sdayton@northwest.com

JOEL-NEWS-INTERNATIONAL-336 * 16 OCTOBER 2000

You can email JOELl-NEWS at: joel-news@xs4all.nl

IN THIS EDITION:

JN336-2. Arab and Jewish Christians in Israel pray together

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

JN336-2. Arab and Jewish Christians in Israel pray together

Date: Fri, 13 Oct 2000

Arab and Jewish Christians in Israel are praying together as violence in
the Holy Land threatens to destroy peace efforts. A Palestinian Christian
and an American-born Messianic Jew, both living in Jerusalem, spoke to
Religion Today about the situation.

Christians from Egypt, Iran, Iraq, Jordan, Lebanon, and Syria met with
Messianic Jews and other Christians from Israel and around the world in
Jerusalem Oct. 1-10. About 1,200 Christians from 150 nations came to pray
and tell what God is doing in their countries. Violence broke out three
days before the convocation began. "As fighting escalated, convocation
leaders set aside their prepared program to worship God and pray,"
messianic leader Barry Segal said. "Because of the heavy spiritual tension
and the violence, we took one night to just praise God and dispel the
darkness." Arab and Christian leaders discussed their differences. "There
was a time for Arabs to share and for Jews to share," Segal said. At the
end he and a Palestinian pastor read from Romans 8:35: "Who shall separate
us from the love of Christ? Shall trouble or hardship or persecution or
famine or nakedness or danger or sword?" The evening "was a tremendous move
forward in terms of reconciliation and prayer for each other - to see the
fulfillment of God's purposes for both communities," Segal said.

Meanwhile, in the Sinai desert, Palestinian, Jewish, and Western Christians
were praising God together at a celebration held by a Palestinian ministry.
Twenty-two supporters of Musalaha, a ministry of reconciliation between
Jewish and Arab Christians, spent three days at Mount Sinai "singing and
listening to God - asking Him what He is calling us to do," Salim Munayer,
a Palestinian Christian, said. "We prayed for hours in the desert, asking
God for mercy. We knew the situation was bad but we continued on to show
that there is another way to deal with this," Munayer said. Musalaha
fosters reconciliation by inviting Arab and Jewish Christians to live and
work together in the desert for three weeks. During that time, Munayer and
others preach about the need for Christians to be reconciled to each other.
Palestinian and Jewish Christians in Israel are separated by politics and
theological disagreements, but their common faith binds them together,
Segal and Munayer said in separate interviews. Jewish and Arab Christians
may not agree on all issues relating to the land of Israel and the
Palestinian people, but they refuse to be divided, Munayer said.

Palestinian and Messianic Jewish congregations formed a "ring of prayer"
around Jerusalem, Segal said. Twelve ministries pray daily and worship God
in two-hour shifts to keep a 24-hour "prayer watch" over the city, he said.
There are about 5,000 Messianic Jews in 70 congregations and 3,000
"born-again" Palestinians in 40 churches in Israel and the West Bank
territories, he said.

Christians outside Israel should pray for the peace of Jerusalem, Segal
said. "Not necessarily a political peace, but the peace that passes all
understanding. Pray for the Prince of Peace to return." Christians should
not place blame or use prophecy to justify the violence, but instead should
pray for the protection of all people in Israel, Munayer said.

Source: Religion Today

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To: bpr-list@philologos.org (BPR Mailing List)
Subject: [BPR] - Laos Seeks To Abolish Christianity
From: bpr-list@philologos.org("Moza")
Date: Tue, 17 Oct 2000 08:41:49 -0400

October 17, 2000 -- 8:40 am

Laos Seeks To Abolish Christianity

VIENTIANE, Laos (MCNS) -- The communist government in Laos has
launched a campaign to shut down countryside churches and eliminate
Christianity in the Southeast Asian nation. Called "The Program," Laos's
master plan to control religion labels Christianity a foreign religion
that enemy powers use to divide the nation, Baptist Press reports.

Laos's constitution technically guarantees religious freedom. But
evangelism, religious training and church-planting are illegal.
Government officials ask new believers to sign a statement renouncing
their conversion.

The prepared text expresses regret at considering a foreign religion and
a commitment to the party and government. Anyone who refuses to sign the
statement may incur harassment and possibly imprisonment.

Despite persecution, the Christian church in Laos has more than doubled
in size since 1997. More than 80,000 Laotians attend church, Baptist
Press estimates. Rather than vanquishing belief in Jesus, the
government's high- pressure tactics seem to arouse interest in the
church.

"The local people say, 'There must be something to this if the
government is taking such a strong stand against it. It must be right,'"
a source in Laos told Baptist Press.

In June, the government released some Christians who had been
imprisoned, but about 100 remain in confinement. There could be many
more uncounted Christians in Laos's prisons, the source said.

About five million people live in Laos. One of the poorest nations in
the world, its citizens earn an average $350 a year. More than 80
percent of the people survive as farmers. Most Laotians practice
Buddhism.

"We see this persecution as natural," the source inside Laos told
Baptist Press. "We're not praying that the government will change. We're
just praying that they (Christians) would have moments during this
persecution when they can have fellowship with other believers, maybe in
jail. Pray for God to give them an extra measure of His grace during
this time."

http://www.mcjonline.com/news/00b/20001016a.htm

From: moza@butterfly.mv.com

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

========
To: bpr-list@philologos.org (BPR Mailing List)
Subject: [BPR] - Ha'aretz: Farmers and contractors want more foreign workers
From: bpr-list@philologos.org("Moza")
Date: Tue, 17 Oct 2000 08:47:05 -0400

------- Forwarded message follows -------
From: imra@netvision.net.il
To: "IMRA Newsletter" <imra-l@lyris.vcix.com>
Subject: [imra-l] Ha'aretz: Farmers and contractors want more foreign workers - do not want to employ Palestinians involved in violence
Date sent: Tue, 17 Oct 2000 08:31:43 +0200
Send reply to: imra@netvision.net.il

Ha'aretz: Farmers and contractors want more foreign workers - do not want to
employ Palestinians involved in violence

Ha'aretz 17 October 2000

Farmers have joined building contractors in demanding that the government
allow another 5,000 foreign workers into Israel, in addition to the 18,000
already working in agriculture, to replace the Palestinian workers currently
barred from entry into Israel. MK Shalom Simhon (One Israel), chairman of
the Agricultural Center, threatened to petition the High Court of Justice to
force government to accede to the request. Last week the Contractors
Association asked to allow another 20,000 foreign workers int o Israel, in
addition to the 32,000 already working in the industry. Simhon added that

employers are unwilling to employ Palestinians involved in violence in the
past weeks.

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

From: moza@butterfly.mv.com

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

========
To: bpr-list@philologos.org (BPR Mailing List)
Subject: [BPR] - PM asks Clinton for pause in peace talks
From: bpr-list@philologos.org("Moza")
Date: Tue, 17 Oct 2000 08:50:00 -0400

October 17, 2000

PM asks Clinton for pause in peace talks

Summit tense and difficult, but to continue today

By Nitzan Horowitz, Aluf Benn and Zvi Bar'el
Ha'aretz Correspondents

Prime Minister Ehud Barak asked President Bill Clinton yesterday to
postpone the renewal of the diplomatic negotiations with the
Palestinians for a period of "weeks or months," according to a senior
member of the Israeli delegation at the Sharm al-Sheikh summit.

"The correct way to renew the negotiations, if at all, is to examine if
the situation on the ground is quiet, and to ascertain where we stand in
our relations with the Palestinians. That could take a long time," the
source added.

President Bill Clinton announced last night that he was extending his
stay at the Sharm al-Sheikh summit in an effort to reach some sort of
result on the road to restoring calm in the West Bank and Gaza.
Meanwhile, the talks are proving to be a forum in which acrimony and
tempers are more commonplace than diplomatic niceties. At this stage, it
seems that the original American aims for the summit are being limited
to a presidential statement to be made at the end of the talks.

From the outset, the participants at the Sharm al-Sheikh summit took
advantage of the forum to vent their anger and frustration resulting
from two- and-a-half weeks of violence in the West Bank and Gaza. During
a series of bilateral meetings between the leaders, the Palestinian and
Israeli sides presented their grievances against each other.

Prime Minister Ehud Barak's day began with a meeting with Egyptian
President Hosni Mubarak, in which, from the very first minute, the large
gap in the positions was clearly evident. The Egyptian leader demanded
that Israel agree to withdraw its forces from the territories to
positions held before the outbreak of the violent demonstrations on
September 29. Mubarak also said that Israel must list the closure
imposed on the territories. In response, Barak demanded that the
Palestinians cease the violence and agree to a series of measures, such
as an end to the incitement on official Palestinian mass media and the
arrest of radical Islamic activists recently released by the Palestinian
Authority.

The Egyptian president assigned responsibility for the bloody
confrontations between Palestinians and Israelis since late September on
Likud Chairman Ariel Sharon and his controversial visit to the Temple
Mount on September 28. Barak rejected this claim and said that there was
no reason for preventing Sharon - a much-hated figure in the Arab world
and readily linked with massacres against Palestinians - from visiting
the site.

"This was a visit by the head of the opposition in a democracy and there
was no way of stopping him," Barak told Mubarak.

"We do not forbid anyone from visiting the Temple Mount and we
coordinated [Sharon's] visit with Jibril Rajoub [head of the PA
preventive security apparatus], who promised that if Sharon did not
enter the mosques, everything would be fine," Barak added.

Sharon did not enter the Al Aqsa or Dome of the Rock mosques during his
visit.

The two parties also held a series of meetings with President Bill
Clinton, United Nations Secretary General Kofi Annan, King Abdallah of
Jordan and the representative of the European Union, Javier Solana.

Around midday, a general meeting was held in which President Hosni
Mubarak, addressing the gathered forum, set the tone by referring to
"aggression against the weak" and emphasizing that he agreed to host the
summit because he feared that the violence would spread to the rest of
the region and put an end to the peace process.

President Clinton presented the goals set by the United States for the
summit: a cease-fire and an end to the violence, the resumption of the
security cooperation between Israel and the Palestinians, the
establishment of a "fair and objective" mechanism to determine the facts
of the events that led to the violence, and the renewal of the
diplomatic negotiations.

During the lunch which followed, the organizers ensured that Barak and
Palestinian Chairman Yasser Arafat were seated far apart. While the
White House spokesman referred to "positive interaction" between those
present, there was no conversation between Arafat and Barak, three weeks
after the visit by the Palestinian leader to the home of the Israeli
prime minister at Kochav Yair.

The meetings were organized on three levels: Barak and Arafat met
separately with the Clinton; the foreign ministers met in a joint forum
to discuss the concluding announcement for the summit; and the Central
Intelligence Agency chief, George Tenet, met with the head of the Shin
Bet security service, Avraham Dichter, and his Palestinians
counterparts, Mohammed Dahlan and Rajoub.

The meeting of the foreign ministers quickly deteriorated into a
confrontation, with the Palestinian representative, chief negotiator
Saeb Erekat, and Israel's acting Foreign Minister Shlomo Ben-Ami locking
horns over Erekat's accusation that "Israel is starving three million
Palestinians under siege."

Ben-Ami said that Israel will remove its forces when the Palestinians
cease the violence and rejected the Palestinian demand for an
international investigation, calling it "an alibi in order to postpone
the [peace] process, and that is a disgrace."

The parties are still disputing Palestinian demands for Israel to take
action on the ground before the Palestinians cease violence and for the
establishment of an international commission of inquiry into the cause
of the unrest. The organizers of the summit decided to continue the
drafting of the statement at a lower diplomatic level today.

Israel also rejected a proposed statement formulated by the UN Middle
East envoy, Terje Larsen. The document used terms such as "siege" and
"withdrawal.

http://www3.haaretz.co.il/eng/scripts/article.asp?mador=14&datee=10/17/0
0& id=96854

From: moza@butterfly.mv.com

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

========
To: bpr-list@philologos.org (BPR Mailing List)
Subject: [BPR] - Sharm el-Sheik cease-fire agreement signed
From: bpr-list@philologos.org("Moza")
Date: Tue, 17 Oct 2000 08:55:50 -0400

October 17, 2000

Sharm el-Sheik cease-fire agreement signed

     (IsraelWire-10/17-12:49-IST) Speaking at a live press conference
     from Sharm el-Sheik, US President Bill Clinton announced that a
     cease-fire agreement between Israel and the PLO Authority (PA) has
     been reached. Following are the main points of the agreement as
     explained by Mr. Clinton. The primary objective of both sides is to
     end current violence to resume peace efforts. The basic objectives
     are to end the violence and restore the area to it former status as
     it was prior to the violence which has
     been ongoing for twenty days. 1) Both sides agree to immediately
     issue public statements unequivocally calling for end of violence.
     2) Both sides agree to take immediate action to end violence and
     incitement, maintain calm and repeat of recent events. 3) Both
     sides agree to act immediately to restore area as it was prior to
     recent warfare. According to the president, steps to be taken
     include a) Ending the IDF-imposed closure on Yesha, b) Opening the
     PA´s international airport in Gaza, c) Ending aggression d) The
     United States, together with Israel, the PA and the United Nations,
     will establish a fact-finding committee to dissect the events of
     the past 20 days. The final report will be submitted to White House
     for publication. Both sides agree there must be a pathway to
     negotiations with the objective of reaching a final status
     agreement based on United Nations resolutions 338 and 242. As such,
     contact will be made by the sides within two weeks. Mr. Clinton
     announced the parties agreed the statements made would stand on
     their own and as such, the media was not permitted to ask
     questions. Following Mr. Clinton´s remarks, the summit was
     adjourned.

http://www.virtualjerusalem.com/articles/839001.htm

From: moza@butterfly.mv.com

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

========
To: bpr-list@philologos.org (BPR Mailing List)
Subject: [BPR] - IsraelWire: Tuesday News Brief
From: bpr-list@philologos.org("Moza")
Date: Tue, 17 Oct 2000 09:00:40 -0400

Tuesday News Brief – 14:00-IST

(IsraelWire-10/17) RACHEL´S TOMB – The violence continues at Rachel´s
Tomb Tuesday following the funeral of a young attacker who was shot and
killed by Israeli forces on Monday while he was throwing a firebomb.
Soldiers are using rubber bullets and teargas to restore order.

2) HEBRON – Soldiers are firing rubber bullets in an attempt to restore
order as Arabs continue to attack security forces and Jewish residents.

3) MINHAROT ROAD – The Minharot road from Jerusalem to Gush Etzion is
closed due to reports of shooting.

4) ITAMAR – According to Yesha Council spokesman Yehoshua Mor-Yosef,
there is no doubt that the Jewish farmer who discharged his weapon
earlier today at the Gidonim Farm, between Itamar and Bet Fouriq, fired
in self- defense. One Arab man was killed and five injured. All the
injured were transported to a Nablus hospital. Police Commander David
Sultan, deputy commander of the Shai District, stated an investigation
is underway. He stated that the PA has informed the police of one
fatality and the five wounded. Two residents of Itamar have been taken
to the police station in Ariel and are being questioned regarding the
events that took place. Sultan stated at this early stage of the
investigation, it appears they felt their lives were in danger and
opened fire. The victim, a 28-year-old resident of the Arab village of
Bet Fouriq, is being buried at this time.

5) SHARM CEASE-FIRE AGREEMENT – Prime Minister Ehud Barak told
CNN that the agreement signed does not require Yassir Arafat to disarm
Tanzim forces.

6) MAOZ TZUR – At 5:00pm, former Chief Rabbi Mordehai Eliyahu will affix
a mezuzah to doorpost in new neighborhood of Bet El, “Maoz Tzur”. The
rabbi will affix the mezuzah to home of Menahem Tzur whose mother Ita
was killed in Islamic terrorist attack along with her son (Menahem´s
brother) Ephraim. The neighborhood was established in their name, the
Tzur family. Maoz Tzur opens with has 49 housing units. (Located in the
Benjamin Regional Council of Samaria).

7) KARNEI DOLEV – Marking 17 years since the establishment of Dolev, at
5:00pm, the newest neighborhood, “Karnei Dolev” is being dedicated.
(Located in the Benjamin Regional Council of Samaria).

8) BRITAIN – David Meyers, the Orthodox Jew who was stabbed by an
attacked on a London bus over twenty times is reported in serious but
stable condition. The attacker, an Algerian man, was apprehended.

http://www.virtualjerusalem.com/articles/843001.htm

From: moza@butterfly.mv.com

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

========
To: bpr-list@philologos.org (BPR Mailing List)
Subject: [BPR] - Jerusalem under fire
From: bpr-list@philologos.org("Moza")
Date: Tue, 17 Oct 2000 09:01:36 -0400

Jerusalem under fire

     (IsraelWire-10/17-14:06-IST) A short time after 2:00pm, shortly
     following the signing of the Sharm el-Sheik cease-fire agreement,
     two bursts of automatic gunfire hit the southern Jerusalem
     neighborhood of Gilo. The shots struck buildings on Anafa and Almog
     Streets. The last shooting attacks into Gilo were about two weeks
     ago. At that time, Jerusalem Mayor Ehud Olmert stated with
     certainty that police and security forces know the exact origin of
     the gunfire inside the PLO Authority autonomous municipality of Bet
     Jala. There were no reports of injuries in today´s attack. There
     were damages to at least two buildings. IDF forces responded to the
     attacks by firing machineguns mounted atop two tanks that remain
     stationed in the area. IsraelWire will provide additional details
     as they are made available.

http://www.virtualjerusalem.com/articles/844001.htm

From: moza@butterfly.mv.com

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

========
To: bpr-list@philologos.org (BPR Mailing List)
Subject: [BPR] - ENS items (10/17/00)
From: bpr-list@philologos.org("Moza")
Date: Tue, 17 Oct 2000 09:04:43 -0400

OVERFISHING ALONG INDIA'S WEST COAST THREATENS TO WIPE
OUT FISH

GOA, India, October 16, 2000 (ENS) - In the western Indian state of Goa,
the delicious dietary staple, fish curry and rice, is losing its primary
ingredient - fish. Governor Mohammad Fazal has voiced concern that a
possible fish famine may be threatening the region due to overharvesting by
mechanized fishing trawlers.

For full text and graphics visit:
http://ens-news.com/ens/oct2000/2000L-10-16-03.html

EUROPEAN UNION URGED TO DEAL WITH UNSUSTAINABLE TOURISM

BRUSSELS, Belgium, October 16, 2000 (ENS) - Tourism is harming the
environment across Europe according to a coalition of citizens' groups who
want the European Union to form a sustainable tourism strategy.

For full text and graphics visit:
http://ens-news.com/ens/oct2000/2000L-10-16-10.html

From: moza@butterfly.mv.com

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

========
To: bpr-list@philologos.org (BPR Mailing List)
Subject: [BPR] - Israel Closes Egypt-Gaza Border
From: bpr-list@philologos.org("Moza")
Date: Tue, 17 Oct 2000 09:11:18 -0400

Israel Closes Egypt-Gaza Border
Tuesday October 17, 2000 1:50 am

RAMALLAH, West Bank (AP) - Two Palestinians, including a 15-year-old
boy, were killed by Israeli gunfire Monday in the deadliest violence in four
days. In several areas, troops responded to fire from Palestinian gunmen
leading large protest marches against a renewal of contacts with Israel.

The boy, Muayed Darwish, was shot in the head during a firefight near an
Israeli enclave in the West Bank town of Bethlehem. Darwish was in a coma
for several hours, hooked up to a respirator, before being declared dead.

In the Gaza Strip, a Palestinian policeman was killed after Israelis opened
fire on Palestinians trying to cut holes in the border fence with Egypt. Thirty-
eight demonstrators were injured in the clashes there, and Israel closed the
border crossing.

In the West Bank town of Nablus, 19 Palestinians were wounded, including
two who were in serious condition.

Monday's deaths brought to 99 the number of people killed in 19 days of
fighting, most of them Palestinians. More than 1,000 Palestinians have been
injured.

The violence cast a pall over U.S. efforts to broker a truce between Israel and
the Palestinians at an emergency Mideast summit in Sharm el-Sheik, Egypt.
The summit had not yielded a cease-fire agreement by early Tuesday, but
meetings were continuing.

In marches in the West Bank and Gaza Strip, thousands of Palestinians
expressed their opposition to a cease-fire with Israel. ``Yes to the intefadeh
(uprising), no to the summit,'' proclaimed a banner signed by Palestinian
leader Yasser Arafat's Fatah faction and raised in the West Bank town of
Ramallah.

In Ramallah, a group of masked militiamen joined a funeral procession for a
Palestinian who died from injuries sustained last week.

The group marched in the front line with assault rifles. One youth even
hoisted a rocket-propelled grenade launcher. As the funeral ended, the men
headed toward an Israeli checkpoint and opened fire on Israeli troops.

In Nablus, more than 3,000 protesters marched through the main streets of
the city. ``We support (Yasser) Arafat because he withstood the pressure at
Camp David and he will withstand the pressure now,'' said Assam El Dibri, a
Fatah leader in Nablus, referring to the failed Mideast summit in Maryland in
July.

Sheik Ahmed Yassin, the leader of the Islamic militant group Hamas, said
the purpose of the summit ``is to liquidate the Palestinian intefadeh and to
force the Palestinians to surrender to Israeli and American demands.''

Skepticism was also widespread in Israel, with many lamenting what they
said was growing incitement by the Palestinian Authority against Israel.

``Another 1,000 guns in the hands of this or that Palestinian group, even
though they violate the spirit of the Israeli-Palestinian interim agreement, will
not kill it. Another inflammatory broadcast dripping with anti-Semitism on
Palestinian radio will kill the peace, at least in our eyes,'' said the newspaper
Yediot Ahronot.

Meanwhile, the closure of the Palestinian territories' borders and the
presence of Israeli military checkpoints fanned Palestinian resentment. Israel
sealed the West Bank and Gaza on Sept. 29, keeping 120,000 Palestinians
from jobs in Israel.

Last Thursday, Israel also laid siege to Palestinian towns in the West Bank.
In Hebron, some 30,000 Palestinian have been under an around-the-clock
curfew for the past two weeks. The restrictions have disrupted life, barring
Palestinians from jobs and schools and freezing trade.

The lifting of the closure was a key Palestinian demand at the summit.

Some food shortages have been reported in Gaza, though no one was going
hungry. World Bank officials said the closure will damage tourism and
jeopardize the income of 700,000 people, who depend on wage-earners paid
by Israel.

``It's too soon to tell what the impact will be. If it would end quickly the
impact would be minimal,'' said Joseph Saba, the top World Bank official in
the region.

Israeli army spokesman Brig. Gen. Ron Kitrey said the closure was
necessary to guard against terror attacks by Islamic militants.

``We don't need 1,000 people coming to (the Israeli town of) Netanya to work
and two people coming in with a bomb,'' he said.

Israel has demanded that the Palestinian Authority re-arrest scores of
Hamas and Islamic Jihad activists released last Thursday, when Israel
rocketed Palestinian command centers.

In the West Bank, 14 of 35 Islamic militants have been taken back to jail. In
Gaza, the Palestinian Authority re-arrested a Hamas leader, Abdel Aziz
Rantisi.

Rantisi's family said he initially went into hiding, but was forced to surrender
after police seized his 16-year-old son in his stead.

http://www.guardian.co.uk/breakingnews/International/0,3561,487253,00.html

via: Third_Watch@egroups.com

From: moza@butterfly.mv.com

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

========
To: bpr-list@philologos.org (BPR Mailing List)
Subject: [BPR] - China Rattles Saber
From: bpr-list@philologos.org("Moza")
Date: Tue, 17 Oct 2000 09:12:34 -0400

China Rattles Saber

a.. Modernizing, Expanding Military For 'Self Defense'
a.. Beijing Reiterates 'Grim' Relations With Taiwan
a.. World's Largest Army Boosting High-Tech Weapons

BEIJING, Oct. 16, 2000

AP For 4 days in October, China staged its largest military training show
since 1964.

(AP) China has said that tensions with Taiwan and bullying by major powers -
an apparent reference to the United States - are forcing it to beef up its
armed forces.

In a lengthy policy paper Monday, China responded to foreign concerns
about its growing military might and reiterated its threat to use force against
Taiwan if it seeks independence.

It also insisted that its defense expenditure remained low compared to other
countries and said its military modernization is "purely for self-defense."

But the paper, issued by the information office of the State Council, China's
Cabinet, also said the situation with Taiwan - which Beijing regards as a
renegade province - "is complicated and grim."

China will "adopt all drastic measures possible, including the use of force," if
Taiwan splits from China in any form, if foreign forces invade the island, or if
Taiwan's government refuses indefinitely to discuss reunification with Beijing,
the paper said.

Taiwan's Defense Ministry responded by saying that the Taiwanese military
has "an effective system of deterrence" against Chinese threats and was
capable of defending the island from "whatever mainland Chinese military
invasion."

Although Taiwan has ruled itself separately since the two sides split amid a
civil war that ended 51 years ago, Beijing still wants the island to accept it is
part of China - a demand the rival government in Taipei has rebuffed.

The policy paper said that because the foundation for a peaceful reunification
of China and Taiwan "is seriously imperiled" and because of "hegemonism
and power politics" - Beijing's code words for U.S. domination - China was
being forced to arm.

"China will have to enhance its capability to defend its sovereignty and
security by military means," it said.

China is shaping its military into a leaner, more technologically advanced
force, in part by purchasing sophisticated, Russian-made weapons. During a
military demonstration last week by 10,000 soldiers - the biggest display of
Chinese weapons and military skills since 1964 - President Jiang Zemin
called for higher-tech and more realistic training.

The policy paper confirmed that the People's Liberation Army - still the
world's largest force - has been trimmed to under 2.5 million troops, following
a reduction of 500,000 soldiers over the past three years.

It also claimed that defense spending this year amounted to $14.6 billion,
which it said was 5 percent of Washington's spending, and 30 percent of
Japan's.

Western analysts believe China's actual defense spending is possibly three
times higher than the official figures.

http://cbsnews.cbs.com/now/story/0,1597,241614-412,00.shtml

via: Third_Watch@egroups.com

From: moza@butterfly.mv.com

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

========
To: bpr-list@philologos.org (BPR Mailing List)
Subject: [BPR] - Jerusalem Post Radio
From: bpr-list@philologos.org("Moza")
Date: Tue, 17 Oct 2000 09:43:10 -0400

Keep up-to-date
www.jpostradio.com

From: moza@butterfly.mv.com

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

========
To: bpr-list@philologos.org (BPR Mailing List)
Subject: [BPR] - Transcript of ABC News Interview with Barak
From: bpr-list@philologos.org
Date: Tue, 17 Oct 2000 08:47:28 -0500

============================================
    Information Division, Israel Foreign Ministry - Jerusalem
          Mail all Queries to feedback@mfa.gov.il
                 URL: http://www.mfa.gov.il
============================================

INTERVIEW WITH PRIME MINISTER EHUD BARAK ON ABC NEWS: THIS WEEK
Sunday, October 15, 2000

SAM DONALDSON: Seventeen months ago, Ehud Barak became prime
minister of Israel, and some would say it's been downhill for him
ever since. His coalition is shattered, his forward looking
proposals at Camp David went nowhere, and now he must deal with
resumed violence. We sat down with him to talk about all this
earlier today. Prime Minister, thanks very much for sitting down
with us. Well, what do you expect to come out of this summit
tomorrow?

PM BARAK: I hope it will end up with end of violence, certain
mechanism -- maybe American, Israeli, Palestinians -- is to make
sure that it will not repeat itself. And we as Israelis expect
that the terrorists of Hamas and Islamic Jihad that have just
been released by Arafat be put back behind bars, to put an end to
the shooting of policemen and Tanzim -- the street organization
people -- not shooting at Israelis or Israeli soldiers, and put
an end to incitement and proper dealing or treating of holy cites
like the Joseph's Tomb or the Shalom Israel synagogue [in
Jericho].

DONALDSON: Well, in recent days you've said Arafat has caused
this, Arafat perpetuates the violence, Arafat is no longer a
possible partner for peace. How can you sit down with him?

PM BARAK: We are sitting down first of all to put an end to the
violence. This is a proper objective, and I repeat it also today.
Arafat deliberately launched it in order to attract the attention
of the world by paying with the blood of his own people. He's
mourning them as a human being, but he believes that it serves
his cause. We are defending ourselves. And the real risk is that
by launching this kind of attack, he sends a wave of
destabilization all around the region with the unpredictable
consequences, and we think that it's about time to put an end to
it.

DONALDSON: Prime Minister, many people were shocked by the brutal
murders of Israeli soldiers in Ramallah and elsewhere. But
disproportionately about a hundred Palestinians have been killed,
and I think the world is shocked by that also. How do you think
this is playing in world opinion, a hundred vs. just a few?

PM BARAK: He launched it. He initiated it. All these positions,
Israeli positions, are isolated position outside of the city. We
are not in Gaza anymore, we are not in Jericho anymore, we are
not in Ramallah, and we are not in Nablus. So they -- Arafat --
are deliberately sending demonstration with a policeman and
Tanzim people with rifles on one hand, and they are shooting, as
well as 10-years-old kids. This is a crime.

DONALDSON: Prime Minister, of course they say you started it.
Saeb Erekat says he and Arafat were in your home two nights
before Ariel Sharon visited the Temple Mount and that they
pleaded with you not to allow that visit. You went ahead. Why did
you go ahead and allow Sharon to go?

PM BARAK: They were at my private residence, we hosted them. The
rest of it is not true. They didn't mention it, and they didn't
ask for anything.

DONALDSON: They didn't ask you not to let General Sharon go?

PM BARAK: No, they didn't. And beyond that, our Minister of
Public Security, who is also the Minister of Foreign affairs,
Professor Shlomo Ben-Ami, he talked with the high ranking
Palestinian official dealing with security in Jerusalem, the
Palestinian aspect of security. He told him Sharon is going to
visit. It's part of the legal right. It's part of freedom of
access to holy cites by everyone. But he asked him, 'What are
your needs?' And the Palestinians told him, 'We have only one
demand, that he will not enter the mosques.' Sharon accepted it
under protest, but once he accepted it, there is no way, we are
open society, it is in the middle of our capital, and we cannot
forbid it.

DONALDSON: Saeb Erekat told us that if General Sharon becomes
part of your government, it will be the kiss of death for the
peace process.

PM BARAK: They have a kind of tendency to turn everything on its
head. When the Palestinian invited the leadership of Hamas 10
days ago to a cabinet meeting of Arafat in Gaza, it was a
blessing for the peace process. When they release the terrorists
who are responsible directly for the murders attacks against
civilians, innocent civilians, it's a blessing. It's kind of a
new momentum to the peace process. And when an Israeli politician
that had been elected, like some of your politicians, by about
one third of the people of Israel, is visiting a place after all
arrangements had been made with Palestinian security, this is a
kiss of death? It's ridiculous.

We are a democracy. Maybe unlike some of our neighbors, we are
democracy. There is a will of the people. They elect our
parliament and out of the parliament by very simple arithmetics
we establish governments. We cannot hang in the air with our
government waiting for a change of mindset in Arafat's head.

DONALDSON: But isn't it clear, Prime Minister, you're bringing in
General Sharon because you have too, not because you want to?
Your government would fall if you didn't bring him in.

PM BARAK: I'm not sure whether it will fall if I won't bring him
in, but it's clear that the emergency that Chairman Arafat
created, the relationship between us and the Palestinians with
certain implications for the stability of this whole region calls
for an emergency government in Israel. I'm not sure whether it
will be established but I will do my best to establish in Israel
the best government to deal with the challenges created by Mr.
Arafat. And I am not ready to apologize for applying the rules of
democracy in this country.

DONALDSON: General Sharon and the Likud say that the Camp David
proposal that you presented, must be cancelled, not just off the
table temporarily, but cancelled, period. Do you agree?

PM BARAK: What happened in Camp David was that we were ready to
contemplate far-reaching ideas that were raised by President
Clinton in an attempt to put end to this conflict, to make peace,
and at the same time to prove whether we have a partner. I did it
without making any extra concessions. By doing this, I made it
possible, if don't have a peace agreement, for our people at
least to be united by the sense of no choice.

We will never lose hope of making peace with our Palestinian
neighbors. They are here forever, and we have to make peace with
the same people who are demonstrating right now against us. But
if the leadership is not right now, leadership can change,
leadership can change its mind, open its eyes, or being replaced.
We will make peace with the Palestinian people, but until then
we'll stand firm on our right to live here as a free sovereign
open democratic society and we will not yield to violence. And we
expect the rest of the world to stand by us in this kind of
endeavor.

DONALDSON: But, sir, it sounds to me like you're saying your
proposals are shelved in your mind until the time is right. I'm
asking you whether they're going to be cancelled. General Sharon
insists they be cancelled. He thinks you were making concessions.

PM BARAK: General Sharon insists somehow on taking the blame upon
us for closing the opening for peace, and for obvious reasons, I
am not ready to do it. Technically, there are no such
commitments. We didn't put them on paper. We agreed in advance
that nothing is agreed until everything is agreed, and President
Clinton as well as myself have said at the end of Camp David that
all the ideas -- they are not even concessions or commitments --
all the ideas that were arrived at are null and void. So formally
they are null and void. Practically, no one forgets them, but
they are not on the table since Arafat refused to take them as
basis for negotiations. So the responsibility is now with Arafat,
and I do not accept the suggestion of General Sharon that we will
take the responsibility.

DONALDSON: But you may raise those proposals again?

PM BARAK: I cannot predict what shape the peace process will take
in the future. It is no secret that the imprint of the last few
weeks will leave some scars on the collective psyche of Israelis,
as well as Palestinians. It won't be easy to resume it, but I'm
confident that somehow, ultimately, it will be resumed. But we
will never yield to violence, and we will stand firm and united
to the extent possible defending the essence of our rights.

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

========
To: bpr-list@philologos.org (BPR Mailing List)
Subject: [BPR] - Cardinal evaluates John Paul II's 22-year pontificate
From: bpr-list@philologos.org("Moza")
Date: Tue, 17 Oct 2000 12:27:50 -0400

CARDINAL POUPARD EVALUATES JOHN PAUL'S 22-YEAR PONTIFICATE
"Firstborn Son" of Vatican II, Frenchman Says

VATICAN CITY, OCT. 16, 2000 (ZENIT.org).- What kind of pontificate has
John Paul II had?

Today the Church celebrates the 22nd anniversary of John Paul II's
pontificate.

His election came Oct. 16, 1978, when people gathered in St. Peter's
Square to hear the famous phrase "habemus Papam" and then a little-known
name in Latin, Carolum Wojtyla.

As John Paul II, he has an impressive number of records.

He has made 92 international trips, to 123 countries. He has undertaken 138
pastoral visits in Italy, and visited 291 parishes in Rome, his diocese.

He has written 13 encyclicals and a dozen apostolic exhortations. His
speeches and addresses fill shelves.

He has presided over 123 beatification ceremonies and 41 canonization
ceremonies, creating 994 new blesseds and 447 new saints. And he has
given 996 general audiences, attended by 15 million people.

However, the most important moment of this pontificate is the Jubilee,
prepared by Pope Wojtyla with his very first encyclical. French Cardinal
Paul Poupard, president of the Pontifical Council for Culture, evaluated
this unique year over Vatican Radio.

--Q: Which do you consider the most important Jubilee events?

--Cardinal Poupard: Among many others, I will mention three particularly
significant events. Undoubtedly, the first is the pilgrimage to the Holy Land.

The second, World Youth Day, not only because of the numbers, but also
because of the atmosphere and witness of youth, the confessions in the
Circus Maximus, were a real moment of grace -- 2 million radiant faces that
allow one to perceive the reality of the Good News of the love of Christ.

In the third place, among the many Jubilees by category, such as that of
bishops or families, I would like to highlight one, which was modest in
terms of number of participants, but which is especially relevant because
of its historical importance: the Jubilee of Scientists. I think it was the
conclusion of a difficult process of clarification within the Church on the
fruitful relation between reason, science, and faith, which began with Vatican
Council I.

--Q: All pontificates make history. For what will John Paul II's
pontificate be remembered?

--Cardinal Poupard: This pontificate has a truly exceptional force. With
words, actions and trips, I think he has literally altered the geography of the
world, the image of the Church, relations among nations and religions,
integrating the Church with the dynamism of modernity, and coming across at
times as the only courageous voice in defense of humanity and its most
profound values.

In making the legacy of Vatican Council II its own, this pontificate, the
longest of the century, has introduced the Church in the third Christian
millennium, inaugurated with the Great Jubilee of the Year 2000. Finally, I
would say that if John XXIII is the father of the council, and Paul VI its
architect, John Paul II is its firstborn son. In this way, he began a new way of
being Pope, a papacy characterized by its pastoral meaning.

--Q: Lately, John Paul II has been criticized for the beatification of Pius IX,
and the publication of the "Dominus Iesus" declaration on the unique and
universal salvation brought by Christ. What is your opinion?

--Cardinal Poupard: Just as Paul VI was praised for "Populorum Progressio"
and reviled for "Humanae Vitae," so this Pontiff is praised for petitions for
forgiveness, trips and so many other actions, and criticized for the revelation
of the third secret of Fatima, for this beatification, and for "Dominus Iesus." I
would say that the fact of being a sign of contradiction characterizes
impassioned service to truth.

As regards the case of Pius IX, it must be said that a beatification does not
canonize acts of government, but, rather, lived Christian virtues. Moreover, let
us not commit historical errors. Finally, some realms do not accept this
beatification because of Pius IX's rejection of modernism. However, everyone
knows that modernism is not the same as modernity, as pneumonia is not
the same as the lung, but rather an inflammation of the lung.

As regards the "Dominus Iesus" declaration, I have just returned from Paris
where I participated in a congress on theologian Henri de Lubac and the
dialogue with Buddhists. I have quoted his thought.

Father de Lubac said: "Religions are not like so many other paths that arise
on the mountain's sides. Rather, they should be compared to different
summits, separated by abysses, and the pilgrim who has moved away from
the correct direction runs the risk of remaining at the most distant point of
the goal. In eliciting contrasts, the method of opposition gives the believer a
clearer understanding of his faith, beyond mediocre interpretations."
ZE00101608

http://www.zenit.org/

From: moza@butterfly.mv.com

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

========
To: bpr-list@philologos.org (BPR Mailing List)
Subject: [BPR] - An ageing warrior declares now is the time to fight, not talk
From: bpr-list@philologos.org("Shophar_Sho_Good")
Date: Tue, 17 Oct 2000 11:45:20 -0500

An ageing warrior declares now is the time to fight, not talk
http://theage.com.au/news/20001018/A57405-2000Oct17.html
By MARK RILEY
GAZA
Wednesday 18 October 2000

Maintain the rage: Palestinians burn Israeli and US flags at a refugee camp
in southern Lebanon. Hamas founder and spiritual leader Sheik Ahmed Yassin
says the rising body count is regrettable, but intimates that for each
casualty on the streets there are several more young men prepared to becomes
martyrs for the Palestinian cause.

A group of young children runs squealing along the corridors of the Gaza
Strip's newest and brightest school as one of the Islamic world's most
feared militant leaders is wheeled into an empty classroom.

"Come in here and sit down," says a Hamas lieutenant, motioning to a chair
alongside a flimsy veneer table. "Our leader will speak with you now."

Sheik Ahmed Yassin seems less than an imposing figure these days, slumping
forward in his wheelchair as he is led into the room. The 65-year-old
religious leader's hands lie limply before him, his head resting heavily on
his chest, his gaze down and empty.

It is clear the long years of confinement in Israeli prisons have broken the
Hamas founder's ageing body. Yet his determination to maintain this fight to
the end remains unshaken.

Sheik Yassin has agreed to meet The Age to put his views on the violence
that has derailed the Middle East peace process.

"The answer to ending the killing is easy," he says. "Israel must give back
the Palestinians' homes, their dignity, their lives and end the Israeli
occupation of Palestinian land."

The Palestinians view Sheik Yassin as a spiritual leader. The US sees him
simply as a terrorist. No one disputes that he continues to play a leading
role in directing the Palestinian uprising on the bloodstained streets of
the Gaza Strip and West Bank.

He appears eager to stress that he advised Palestinian chairman Yasser
Arafat not to go to the Sharm el-Sheik summit. It was just another
diplomatic charade, Sheik Yassin warned his comrade. No more words were
needed. Just deeds.

If that meant more violence, then so be it.

"The Palestinian has the right to use all methods to protect himself and to
get his rights back," Sheik Yassin says."If he does not fight back to defend
himself, then he is just accepting the Israeli occupation and giving up his
home, his land."

Violence has already erupted as Sheik Yassin speaks. About 10 kilometres
away, a Palestinian policeman lies dead in the dustbowl of Raffa refugee
camp, yet another victim in yet another day of clashes between Palestinians
and Israeli soldiers.

Much of the violence is being inflamed by roving bands of Hamas operatives,
most masked, many firing automatic weapons.

Sheik Yassin says the rising body count is regrettable, but intimates that
for each casualty on the streets there are several more young men prepared
to becomes martyrs for the Palestinian cause.

Things have changed markedly since Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Barak ordered
attacks on strategic targets in Gaza and the West Bank on Thursday after the
murders of two army reservists at the hands of a mob in Ramallah.

One of the missiles fired from the Israeli helicopters slammed into a
building between Sheik Yassin's office and Mr Arafat's private compound. But
instead of dividing the historically fractious Palestinian groups, the
Israeli counter-offensive has brought them closer together, Sheik Yassin
said.

More dangerously, it has provoked rare signs of mass support from Arab and
Muslim states, making Israel and the US the common enemies of the combined
Islamic world, he said.

Sheik Yassin said he did not know who was responsible for the attack last
week on the USS Cole in the Yemen port of Aden, but refused to condemn the
assault as an act of terrorism.

"When America launched its air strikes on Iraq, this is being civilised?
This is progress?" he says. "Why, then, when somebody attacks America, this
is terrorism?"

The Hamas leader did add one conciliatory note, saying groups of Hamas
guerrillas freed from Palestinian jails in recent days were being rounded up
and returned to prison.

Even then, these dangerous operators would not have been on the street if it
were not for the provocative decision by Mr Arafat and Sheik Yassin to
release them in the first place.

It is all a dangerous game of give and take. The ageing sheik leaves no
doubt that, from the Palestinian's point of view, the giving is over.

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

========
To: bpr-list@philologos.org (BPR Mailing List)
Subject: [BPR] - Re: "Mary, I am totally yours."
From: bpr-list@philologos.org("Neil ")
Date: Tue, 17 Oct 2000 11:53:59 -0500

Hi Kurt

I should have elaborated that the woman who rides the beast is not
Mary when sending a reply to Tracy. If you read what I wrote, I never
said the woman who rides the beast is Mary. It does not mean to say
that the Roman Catholic church, as well as all the other false
religions
following in her wake who worship the woman is Mary. Anyway, I should
have given a
clearer explanation and not have assumed that Tracy knew what I was
saying
Sorry for not being specific, and thanks for pointing this out Kurt.

Neil

----- Original Message -----
From: "Kurt" <bpr-list@philologos.org>
To: BPR Mailing List <bpr-list@philologos.org>
Sent: Saturday, October 14, 2000 8:08 AM
Subject: [BPR] - Re: "Mary, I am totally yours."

>
> To Neil, my dear brother, the woman from the chapter 17 Rev. isn´t
Mary but
> the fallen church. In the Bible the symbolic women are always
understand as
> the church. See, daughter of Sion (Jes). The worship of Mary is
> antichristlike because it is against the Bible - It is no other
name given
> the men in which they would be redeemd - that is Jesus Christ. The
great
> wonders which are evident matter of fact by the revelation of Mary
are all
> devil wonders which would tempt the whole world.
> Wish much blessing by Biblestudies. Kurt Müller,

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

========
To: bpr-list@philologos.org (BPR Mailing List)
Subject: [BPR] - Full Text of Sharm El-Sheikh Accord's Three Main Points
From: bpr-list@philologos.org("Moza")
Date: Tue, 17 Oct 2000 14:27:39 -0400

------- Forwarded message follows -------
From: imra@netvision.net.il
To: "IMRA Newsletter" <imra-l@lyris.vcix.com>
Subject: [imra-l] Full Text of Sharm El-Sheikh Accord's Three Main Points
Date sent: Tue, 17 Oct 2000 18:08:20 +0200
Send reply to: imra@netvision.net.il

Full Text of Sharm El-Sheikh Accord's Three Main Points

October 17, 2000

Here is the full text of the three main points the parties at the Middle
East summit in Sharm El-Sheikh agreed to, as read out Tuesday by US
President Bill Clinton:

"Let me summarize what has been agreed, so there will be no
misunderstanding: Our primary objective has been to end the current
violence, so we can begin again to resume our efforts toward peace. The
leaders have agreed on three basic objectives and steps to realize them.

"First: Both sides have agreed to issue public statements unequivocally
calling for an end of violence. They also agreed to take immediate concrete
measures to end the current confrontation, eliminate points of friction,
ensure an end to violence and incitement, maintain calm and prevent
recurrence of recent events. To accomplish this, both sides will act
immediately to return the situation to that which existed prior to the
current crisis in areas such as restoring law and order, redeploying forces,
eliminating points of friction, enhancing security cooperation, and ending
the closure, and opening the Gaza Airport. The United States will facilitate
security cooperation between the parties as needed.

"Second: The United States will develop with Israelis and Palestinians, as
well as in consultation with the United Nations Secretary General, a
committee of fact-finding on the events of the past several weeks and how to
prevent their recurrence. The committee's report will be shared by the US
President with the UN Secretary General and the parties prior to
publication. The final report shall be submitted under the auspices of the
US President for publication.

"Third: If we are to address the underlying roots of the Israeli-Palestinian
conflict, there must be a pathway back to negotiations and the resumption of
efforts to reach a permanent status agreement based on the UN Security
Council resolutions 242 and 338 and subsequent understandings. Toward this
end, the leaders have agreed that the United States would consult with the
parties within the next two weeks about how to move forward." -- SHARM
EL-SHEIKH, Egypt (AFP)

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

From: moza@butterfly.mv.com

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

========
To: bpr-list@philologos.org (BPR Mailing List)
Subject: [BPR] - NewsScan items (10/17/00)
From: bpr-list@philologos.org("Moza")
Date: Tue, 17 Oct 2000 14:32:53 -0400

FCC CHIEF CHARGES BROADCASTERS WITH IRRESPONSIBILITY
Weeks after criticizing two broadcasters (NBC and Fox) for failing to carry
full TV coverage of the U.S. presidential debates, FCC chairman William E.
Kennard told a hearing in Washington yesterday: "I don't think we can rely
on the corporate responsibility of broadcasters... Broadcast standards have
coarsened. There is indisputably more inappropriate content -- more
questionable language, sex and violence - in today's prime time."
(Washington Post 17 Oct 2000) http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-
dyn/articles/A18492-2000Oct16.html

MADONNA DEFEATS WEB PORN SITE OPERATOR IN COURT Madonna
has joined such celebrities as Julia Roberts and Isabelle Adjani in
successfully suing a Web entrepreneur who created a site called
madonna.com. The World Intellectual Property Organization found that the
businessman, who used the site for sexually explicit material, "lacks rights
or legitimate interests in the domain name" and that the name "had been
registered and used in bad
faith." (AP/MSNBC 16 Oct 2000) http://www.msnbc.com/news/477382.asp

From: moza@butterfly.mv.com

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

========
To: bpr-list@philologos.org (BPR Mailing List)
Subject: [BPR] - AFP: Senior Israeli Official says Israelis, Palestinians Agreed
From: bpr-list@philologos.org("Moza")
Date: Tue, 17 Oct 2000 14:33:26 -0400

------- Forwarded message follows -------
From: imra@netvision.net.il
To: "IMRA Newsletter" <imra-l@lyris.vcix.com>
Subject: [imra-l] AFP: Senior Israeli Official says Israelis, Palestinians
Agreed 'Secret' Security Deal
Date sent: Tue, 17 Oct 2000 18:36:47 +0200
Send reply to: imra@netvision.net.il

AFP: Senior Israeli Official says Israelis, Palestinians Agreed 'Secret'
Security Deal

October 17, 2000

[IMRA note: The advantage of secret deals is that they are not subject to
public scrutiny - either to be criticized for the failure of the deal to
cover security issues or for the failure of the Palestinians to honor the
deal.]

Israel and the Palestinians reached agreement on security issues at the
Sharm el-Sheikh summit, which will be kept secret, a senior Israeli official
said on Tuesday.

"In addition to the written declaration read by President Clinton, the two
sides reached a mutual understanding on security issues that will be kept
secret," said the official, speaking on Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Barak's
plane on the way back from the Egyptian summit venue - TEL AVIV (AFP)

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

From: moza@butterfly.mv.com

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

========
To: bpr-list@philologos.org (BPR Mailing List)
Subject: [BPR] - IMRA Analysis: Clinton Grandfathered Illegal Palestinian Forces
From: bpr-list@philologos.org("Moza")
Date: Tue, 17 Oct 2000 14:35:04 -0400

------- Forwarded message follows -------
From: imra@netvision.net.il
To: "IMRA Newsletter" <imra-l@lyris.vcix.com>
Subject: [imra-l] IMRA Analysis: Clinton Grandfathered Illegal Palestinian Forces
Date sent: Tue, 17 Oct 2000 19:01:32 +0200
Send reply to: imra@netvision.net.il

IMRA Analysis: Clinton Grandfathered Illegal Palestinian Forces

Aaron Lerner Date: 17 October, 2000

A review of the full text of the Sharm El-Sheikh Accord's Three Main
Points read out by reveals that President Clinton effectively
grandfathered the tens of thousands of illegal Fatah militia (Tanizm)
forces, illegal weapons and any and all other illegal Palestinian
activities as long as they existed BEFORE the outbreak of the recent
violence.

This declaration represents a major success for Yasser Arafat.

The operative statement is in the first main point "both sides will
act immediately to return the situation to that which existed prior
to the current crisis in areas such as restoring law and order,
redeploying forces, eliminating points of friction, enhancing
security cooperation, and ending the closure, and opening the Gaza
Airport."

Those forces redeployed and NOT disarmed include the illegal
Palestinian forces.

The "law and order" that existed before the current crisis was a "law
and order" that included the arming and operation of such illegal
Palestinian force.

Given the above, it should come as no surprise that an Israeli
official explained that the two sides reached a mutual understanding
on security issues that will be kept secret than revealed to the
public.

Dr. Aaron Lerner, Director
IMRA (Independent Media Review & Analysis)
(mail POB 982 Kfar Sava)
Tel 972-9-7604719/Fax 972-3-548-0092
INTERNET ADDRESS: imra@netvision.net.il
pager 03-6750750 subscriber 4811
Website: http://www.imra.org.il

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

From: moza@butterfly.mv.com

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

========
To: bpr-list@philologos.org (BPR Mailing List)
Subject: [BPR] - Excerpts from Remarks by Prime Minister Barak
From: bpr-list@philologos.org("Moza")
Date: Tue, 17 Oct 2000 14:36:03 -0400

------- Forwarded message follows -------
From: imra@netvision.net.il
To: "IMRA Newsletter" <imra-l@lyris.vcix.com>
Subject: [imra-l] Excerpts from Remarks by Prime Minister Barak after the Conclusion of the Sharm el-Sheikh Summit Sharm el-Sheikh Airport, October 17, 2000
Date sent: Tue, 17 Oct 2000 19:12:52 +0200
Send reply to: imra@netvision.net.il

Excerpts from Remarks by Prime Minister Barak after the Conclusion of the
Sharm el-Sheikh Summit Sharm el-Sheikh Airport, October 17, 2000

Information Division, Israel Foreign Ministry - Jerusalem

[IMRA note: While PM Barak notes that the Palestinians are obligated to
collect illegal weapons and close down militias such as Arafat's own Fatah
Tanzim under existing agreements he is careful NOT to say that there is any
understanding that they WILL do this or that their failure to do this would
have ANY impact on Israel's decision to continue with talks or withdrawals.

Plainly put, it appears that PM Barak has taken the position that Arafat can
keep all the weapons and illegal forces he wants (and of course keep the
"liberated" Joseph's Tomb) as long as he does not use them for the time
being. In return for not using this equipment and forces Barak will renew
the negotiations based on the massive concessions he entertained at Camp
David.]

We have achieved our goals at this summit, and we thank the
President of the United States for his efforts to convene the
summit at Sharm el-Sheikh. The goals are: first, a concerted
effort to end the violence of recent days. Second, the prevention
of the establishment of an international commission of inquiry,
focusing rather on an examination of the facts using the formula
that we agreed upon in Paris. Of course, these two matters will
be put to the test, in their implementation on the ground, and we
will judge the entire situation on the basis of this
implementation.

The test will be in the implementation, and not in gestures. I
advise all of us to pay less attention to gestures, and to focus
on the reality. There is a whole list of detailed understandings
regarding actions to be taken on the path to the calming of the
situation. If the Palestinian side will comply with the
understandings, we will do our share, and calm is indeed
restored, this will be a very important change. The test, once
again, is in the implementation of these understandings...

We are talking about a major change in reality that has to come
about. We are concerned for the State of Israel. If the situation
continues, and we see that we have no partner, then we will know
what action to take, as in any other situation. The events which
we have experienced in the last two weeks have left an imprint on
our memories, and we will proceed cautiously. I believe that the
Americans have also made their position clear. In the next two
weeks, they intend to examine whether and upon what basis it will
be possible to resume the contacts...

We have a test before us. The outcome will be influenced by every
comment and guess that we make, and not necessarily for the
better. There are understandings, the President made a
declaration, there is American involvement in the monitoring of
these matters. It is crucial for the State of Israel and its
citizens that the violence come to an end, if this is possible...

The issues of the collection of illegal weapons and the rearrest
and imprisonment of Palestinian terrorists are part of existing
agreements, which we expect to see implemented. I do not want to
list every detail of the trilateral Israeli-Palestinian-American
security understandings. We will all wait and see. If this leads
to a reduction in the violence, then we have a great achievement.
If the reduction in violence does not come about, then Israel
will have made a ncessary effort to find a way to reduce the
violence - and I say this in sorrow. We will know what action to
take in any situation.

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

From: moza@butterfly.mv.com

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

========
To: bpr-list@philologos.org (BPR Mailing List)
Subject: [BPR] - Palestinian Culture and Information Minister Ya
From: bpr-list@philologos.org("Moza")
Date: Tue, 17 Oct 2000 18:07:16 -0400

------- Forwarded message follows -------
From: imra@netvision.net.il
To: "IMRA Newsletter" <imra-l@lyris.vcix.com>
Subject: [imra-l] Palestinian Culture and Information Minister Yasser Abed R
abbo Denies 'Secret' Security Deal at Sharm el-Sheikh Summ
it
Date sent: Tue, 17 Oct 2000 21:04:51 +0200
Send reply to: imra@netvision.net.il

Palestinian Culture and Information Minister Yasser Abed Rabbo Denies
'Secret' Security Deal at Sharm el-Sheikh Summit

October 17, 2000

Palestinian Culture and Information Minister Yasser Abed Rabbo denied
Tuesday reports saying that Israelis and Palestinians reached a "secret"
agreement on security issues at the Sharm el-Sheikh summit, reported
Al-Jazira satellite channel.

http://www.albawaba.com/headlines/TheNews.php3?action=story&sid=121472&lang=
e&dir=news

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

From: moza@butterfly.mv.com

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

========
To: bpr-list@philologos.org (BPR Mailing List)
Subject: [BPR] - Arutz-7 News: Tuesday, October 17, 2000
From: bpr-list@philologos.org("Moza")
Date: Tue, 17 Oct 2000 18:12:45 -0400

------- Forwarded message follows -------
Date sent: Tue, 17 Oct 2000 19:08:13 +0200
To: arutz-7@IsraelNationalNews.com
From: Arutz-7 Editor <neteditor@IsraelNationalNews.com>
Subject: Arutz-7 News: Tuesday, October 17, 2000
Send reply to: netnews@a7.org

Arutz Sheva News Service
<http://www.IsraelNationalNews.com>
Tuesday, Oct. 17, 2000 / Tishrei 18, 5761 - 4th Day of Sukkot
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TODAY'S HEADLINES:
   1. NO SIGNING CEREMONY AT SHARM; LEADERS "DON'T OPPOSE" ORAL CEASE
   FIRE 2. ARAFAT'S TANZIM SNIPERS VETO SHARM DEAL 3. POLITICAL FALL-OUT
   UNCERTAIN 4. OTHER REACTIONS TO SHARM SUMMIT 5. EGYPTIAN HOSTILITY
   TOWARDS ISRAELIS 6. CHOL HAMOED IN HEVRON, JERUSALEM, AND CHAFETZ
   CHAIM 7. TORAH SCROLL RETURNED 8. REFORM SUPPORTS US HOUSE BILL
   CONDEMNING PA

1. NO SIGNING CEREMONY AT SHARM; LEADERS "DON'T OPPOSE" ORAL CEASE FIRE
The day-long Sharm a-Sheikh summit ended this afternoon without the
actual signing of a cease fire agreement between PLO leader Arafat and
Prime Minister Ehud Barak. The gathering of regional leaders was
convened in the wake of the nearly three-week old Rosh Hashanah Arab
Assault. After intense meetings often accompanied by heavy verbal
sparring between summit delegates, US President Bill Clinton was able to
extract an oral cease fire agreement between Barak and Arafat. At a
short press conference called at the end of the summit, Clinton declared
that the two sides had agreed to immediately end the violence of the
past several weeks, and that they would cooperate with a body that would
supervise the cease fire arrangements. Clinton also said that the sides
had given him the green light to set up a committee to investigate the
source of the mini-war; the committee will present its conclusions to
both Clinton and to UN Secretary-General Kofi Anan. Reporters who
attended the press conference were not given an opportunity to ask
questions.

Barak summit spokesman and Haifa Mayor Amram Mitzna pointed out that the
Clinton declaration was the most the American President could get the
sides to agree upon. "By their silence, they agreed with, or, I should
say, did not disagree, with the pronouncement," he told Arutz-7 today.
He further noted, "the talks were characterized by a lack of trust and
suspicion between the sides... We cannot rely on their promise [of a
ceasefire]. What happens in the field will be the litmus test. As we
speak now, at the summit's conclusion, Palestinian forces are firing on
our soldiers."

Soon after the Clinton declaration, Barak's spokesman Nachman Shai
published a press release proudly announcing: "The goals of the Sharm
a-Sheikh conference have been achieved, including, the establishment of
concrete obligations to put an end to the current crisis including
detailed security understandings on all relevant issues." The statement
also noted that "an international commission of inquiry has not been
established. [Instead] US President Bill Clinton will appoint a
fact-finding committee and publish its report." The release also noted
that Arafat had taken upon himself "concrete obligations to halt the
incitement."

What the statement failed to mention was that Yasser Arafat had not
agreed to disarm his Tanzim terrorist force. The communique also chose
not to stress that, as President Clinton told reporters, Israel has
committed itself to re-open the PLO's Dahaniya airport and to end the
IDF's closure on Palestinian towns throughout Yesha.

2. ARAFAT'S TANZIM SNIPERS VETO SHARM DEAL
After today's press conference, Prime Minister Barak told reporters that
the "true test of the agreement will be in its implementation." US
Secretary of State Madeleine Albright said that the cease fire agreement
would take effect immediately. If the events of this afternoon are any
indication, though, the modest Clinton diplomatic victory lasted less
than five minutes: Tanzim commander Marwan Bargouti called the oral
agreement "a scandal," and declared that the Palestinian "intifada"
would continue. Moments later, Arab snipers fired on the southern
Jerusalem neighborhood of Gilo from a PA paramilitary base in the
village of Beit Jalla, critically injuring a 19-year-old IDF Border
Guard Policeman and lightly injuring a civilian. The policeman
underwent surgery in Jerusalem's Hadassah-Ein Kerem hospital and is now
in the intensive care respiratory unit.

As a result of the PLO gunfire, police evacuated residents of Gilo's
Ha'anafa Street, which faces Beit Jalla, from their homes. By
mid-afternoon, police snipers were perched atop the neighborhood's
apartment blocks. IDF officials issued a warning to residents of Beit
Jalla to leave their houses, or risk being injured by possible IDF
retaliation. The tunnels highway linking Jerusalem with Gush Etzion was
also targeted by PLO gunmen. IDF forces fired back at the terrorists
with tank-mounted machine guns.

Palestinian violence continued apace before and during the Sharm
a-Sheikh summit, as well. Near the township of Itamar just south of
Shechem, Arabs armed with hatchets and knives began closing in on a
Jewish farmer who was working in his field. When the Israeli farmer
noticed the approaching Arabs, he fired warning shots in the air to no
avail. He then opened fire on the assailants killing one and -
according to Arab sources - injuring five. The incident occurred just
before noon today while the cease fire talks were coming to a close.
The injured Arabs were evacuated to a hospital in Shechem, and the
Israel Police questioned the Israeli farmer and one of his workers at
the Ariel police station.

The funeral of a 13-year old Palestinian boy who attempted yesterday to
hurl a firebomb at IDF troops, was held today in Bethlehem... A
Palestinian paramilitary police officer was killed when he, with some of
his colleagues, ambushed an IDF patrol... Another Palestinian police
officer shot at a convoy of Israeli cars in Gush Katif yesterday; an
eyewitness said he saw an Arab taxi waiting alongside the policeman to
take him away after the attack... Arabs shot at an IDF base near Rafiach
in Gaza and at the Binyamin community of Psagot; no one was hurt, and
soldiers did not fire back ... Two Israeli ambulances on their way to
evacuating Israeli patients were damaged by Palestinian rock-throwers
today. No one was hurt in the incidents, which took place near Karmei
Tzur and further north in Gush Etzion... Violent Palestinian riots
continued to target Rachel's Tomb in Bethlehem, and Palestinian mobs
continued to hurl rocks at IDF forces stationed in the Jewish community
of Hevron; the army is responding with rubber bullets.

3. POLITICAL FALL-OUT UNCERTAIN
The domestic political ramifications of the Clinton Declaration are
still unclear. Although US President Bill Clinton announced that the
parties had agreed to consult with the US in two weeks' time to discuss
how the sides planned to restart the Oslo process, Ehud Barak said today
that he still sees a need for a national emergency government; he noted
that he had updated Likud leader Ariel Sharon several times throughout
the summit. Barak sounded skeptical that negotiations with the PLO would
continue in the near future: "The events we have lived through over the
past several weeks have left an imprint on our consciousness," he said.
"I told all summit delegates that the Likud is a legitimate and very
important party in the State of Israel. The Americans said that they
would examine the possibility of restarting the diplomatic negotiations,
but I don't know what the results of that will be..."

Communications Minister Binyamin Ben-Eliezer (Labor), speaking last
night on Israel television, reiterated his view that the Oslo process
has died, and that Barak "decided some time ago to form a national unity
government. It's just that when Israel's pretty much only friend, Bill
Clinton, and Kofi Anan - who has put great efforts in to the region over
the past two weeks - ask you to attend a summit, you just can't tell
them 'no!'"

4. OTHER REACTIONS TO SHARM SUMMIT
         *Regional Cooperation Minister and Oslo-architect Shimon Peres,

speaking from Prague today: "This is the best deal that could have been
reached in the present situation."
         *Hamas leader Sheikh Ahmed Yassin: "The understandings at Sharm

are null and void. The Intifada shall continue."
         *The Council of Jewish Communities in Judea, Samaria and Gaza
(Yesha) sharply condemned the deal. A Council spokesman said that "Ehud
Barak has quickly forgotten who lynched soldiers by day and burned
synagogues by night…Israeli citizens will no longer buy into this
imaginary peace with Arafat, who has already signed, and has failed to
honor, four agreements obligating him to cease violence."
         *National Religious Party leader Rabbi Yitzchak Levy: "It is
         still
too early to determine what really happened at Sharm-a-Sheikh; I call
upon the Prime Minister to brief the Knesset faction leaders on the
results of the summit."

5. EGYPTIAN HOSTILITY TOWARDS ISRAELIS
Israeli delegation members at Sharm reported overt Egyptian hostility
towards them, including careful searches in their luggage, the
confiscation of cellular phones, problems in food supplies to them, and
the lack of an Israeli flag amongst those of the other participating
countries. Prime Minister Barak's personal secretary was even locked
into a room by an Egyptian security agent.

6. SUKKOT IN HEVRON, JERUSALEM, AND CHAFETZ CHAIM
Although the traditional Sukkot concert did not take place yesterday in
Hevron because of the security situation, the featured performer refused
to be discouraged. Hassidic music star Mordechai Ben-David put on a
private concert for Hevron residents last night in the Jewish
neighborhood there. Jerusalem was on its feet today, as the Jerusalem
Parade marched from one end of the city to the other. Kibbutz Chafetz
Chaim's water park hosted - free of charge - the residents of the
Shomron communities of Yitzhar, Brachah, Elon Moreh, and Itamar. For
many of the children, it was the first time they left their homes since
the Rosh Hashanah Arab Assault began.

7. TORAH SCROLL RETURNED
The Torah scroll that had been in the holy ark at Jericho's historic
Shalom Al Yisrael Synagogue - torched last Thursday night by an Arab mob
- was handed over today, reportedly undamaged, to IDF officials at the
DCO liaison office near Jericho. Arutz-7's Haggai Huberman reports that
the students of the Shalom Al Yisrael yeshiva are establishing a
temporary yeshiva at the Elisha outpost adjacent to the town.

8. REFORM SUPPORTS US HOUSE BILL CONDEMNING PA
The American Reform movement is presently urging Members of Congress to
support a resolution introduced by House Majority Leader Dick Armey
(R-TX) and House Minority Leader Dick Gephardt (D- MO) - calling on the
United States to condemn the Palestinian violence in Israel "and to
stand by Israel during this time of crisis." Specifically, the
resolution expresses solidarity with the state and people of Israel and
condemns the Palestinian leadership for encouraging the violence and
doing little to stop it. It further urges the administration to use its
veto power at the U.N. Security Council to prevent the passage of
unbalanced resolutions. In addition, a letter - introduced by Senators
Lott (R-MS) and Daschle (D-SD) - is being circulated in the Senate and
will be sent to President Clinton.

In Canada, the national B'nai Brith movement reports on successful
solidarity rallies in conjunction with the Canada Israel Committee,
local Jewish Federations, and the Canadian Jewish Congress last week.
Close to 5,000 people attended the Toronto rally, while over 3, 000
participated in a Montreal rally. The rallies were addressed by
religious and community leaders, as well as representatives of the
Israeli Government. "We call on the Government of Canada to reaffirm
its special relationship with Israel, its only partner in democracy in
the Middle East, and to support Israel in its quest for a secure and
lasting peace in the region," said Frank Dimant, Executive
Vice-President of B'nai Brith Canada.

Hebrew News Editor: Haggai Segal
English News Editor: Ron Meir and Hillel Fendel

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

From: moza@butterfly.mv.com

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

========
To: bpr-list@philologos.org (BPR Mailing List)
Subject: [BPR] - Scientists Learn to Program Human Dreams
From: bpr-list@philologos.org("Moza")
Date: Tue, 17 Oct 2000 18:14:45 -0400

Scientists Learn to Program Human Dreams

October 16, 2000 08:03 CDT

Research Adds to Links Between Dreams and Learning, Creativity

A team of Harvard Medical School scientists has achieved what
researchers have sought since Freud's day: a way to control - at
least in part - the content of a person's dreams.

They are using their dream-provoking method to explore age-old
questions, such as: Where do dreams come from? What do they mean?
What is their role in memory, learning, and creativity? What is
their link to the unconscious?

http://www.cosmiverse.com/science101604.html

via: transhumantech@egroups.com

From: moza@butterfly.mv.com

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

========
To: bpr-list@philologos.org (BPR Mailing List)
Subject: [BPR] - Weekend News Today items (10/17/00)
From: bpr-list@philologos.org("Moza")
Date: Tue, 17 Oct 2000 18:21:16 -0400

Coal sludge spill causes state of emergency in Kentucky!

                         Weekend News Today
                         Lead: faith
                         Source: CNN/AP

Tue Oct 17,2000 -- A huge spill of coal sludge seeped into eastern Kentucky
streams, forcing officials to declare a state of emergency Monday, since it
caused a severe water crisis! Car washes and schools were closed in an
attempt to save whatever clean water remained as the black water also
reached the Ohio River. About 200 million gallons of coal waste, with the
consistency of wet cement flowed into streams last Wednesday after a
retention pond gave way at a coal-preparation plant on a mountaintop near
Inez. Gov. Paul Patton declared a state of emergency Monday in a large
portion of northeastern Kentucky, saying water shortages were affecting
drinking water supplies, basic sanitation and fire protection.

The front edge of the spill entered the Big Sandy River, and its black water
reached the Ohio River, forcing the cities of Inez, Louisa and Kermit, W.Va.,
to close their water intakes and rely on existing supplies. "We're going to
have to find an alternative water source," said Martin County Deputy Judge-
Executive Gary Lafferty. "That's our big concern right now. We're not going to
allow our people to be without water." Classes in Martin County's schools
were canceled until another source of water could be found. School
superintendent Bill Slone said regulators had been unable to estimate how
long the water crisis might last. "We need help, or we could be looking at
four to five weeks without classes," he said.

The leak occurred at a plant owned by the Martin County Coal Corp., which
had crews working around the clock dredging the ooze from streams. The
state has ordered the company, a subsidiary of A.T. Massey Coal Inc., to
replace fish and other aquatic life killed and to rebuild roads and bridges the
spill ripped away. Fred Stroud, a member of an emergency response team
from the EPA said it could take at least five to six months to clean up the
spill, a project expected to cost millions.

Tokyo & eastern Japanese cities rattled by quake

                         Weekend News Today
                         Lead: faith
                         Source: Discovery

Tue Oct 17,2000 -- A magnitude 5.2 earthquake shook Tokyo and
surrounding eastern cities in Japan on Saturday at 8:19 p.m. local time, but
there were no reports of injuries or damage. The offshore quake was centered
near the city of Tateyama on the Boso Peninsula, south of Tokyo, and
occurred about 50 miles beneath the seabed of the Pacific Ocean. Shaking
was felt in Chiba Prefecture and Yokohama as well as Tokyo.

Uganda closes schools & bans funerals as EBOLA increases!

                         Weekend News Today
                         Lead: faith
                         Source: CNN

Tue Oct 17,2000 -- Officials closed schools and banned funerals as another
10 Ebola cases were diagnosed Tuesday. On Monday, the World Health
Organization said provisional figures showed 43 people had died of the virus
since its outbreak just two weeks ago. EBOLA VIRUS victims are made as
comfortable as possible, while the disease takes its course. There is no cure
for this type of hemorrhagic fever, which kills up to 90 percent of its victims. It
is transmitted through bodily contact, just like the common cold. The total
number of cases has risen to 81, with 35 people confirmed dead from the
disease in Gulu district. 2 ambulances were bringing more suspected cases
to two hospitals. Lt. Col. Walter Ochola of the Gulu district ordered all
schools closed Tuesday, and a list of students from the three most infected
areas was being compiled. Ochola said funerals had been banned because
the ritual cleansing of the dead had contributed to the spread of the disease.
The outbreak has been traced to a funeral, where an entire family had died.
Those who took part later went back to their neighborhoods, where the
outbreak spread like wildfire. Reports say two people have also died of the
disease in neighboring Kitgum district, but have not yet been confirmed.
While HIV kills all of its victims eventually, EBOLA virus is feared for its
devastating speed and painful death. Four days after exposure, flu-like
symptoms set in, followed by bloody diarrhea and vomiting. Between 10-15
days later, the victims "bleed out" through the nose, mouth and other bodily
openings. Blood and other bodily fluids also begin seeping through the skin,
producing painful blisters. Gulu town is home to about 150,000 people but is
surrounded by small villages.

Ebola has never been detected in Uganda before, so few people recognize
the disease or know how to treat it without getting infected. No one knows
where the virus resides between outbreaks or how the first person in an
outbreak contracts it. Ebola gained worldwide attention in Richard Preston's
1994 best seller "The Hot Zone," which recounted how the virus turned up in
research monkeys in the U.S. in Reston, Virginia. It was also the subject of
the 1995 fictional film "Outbreak," starring Dustin Hoffman. Ebola was named
after a river in Congo, where it was first detected in 1976. The last major
Ebola outbreak struck Kikwit, Congo, in 1995, and killed 245 people. The
last recorded outbreak was in Gabon in February 1997, when 10 people died.

Mexico's Popo Volcano spews flaming rocks

                         Weekend News Today
                         Lead: faith
                         Source: Discovery

Tue Oct 17,2000 -- Mexico's Popocatepetl Volcano exploded on Monday,
spewing a shower of flaming rock and columns of smoke and ash 1 mile into
the sky. The 17,887-foot-high volcano, located about 40 miles east of Mexico
City, was dormant from 1927 to 1994, but has started exploding frequently in
recent years. The Mexican Disaster Prevention Center reported that
Monday's eruption did not pose a threat to residents of nearby communities.
The name Popocatepetl means "smoking mountain" in the indigenous
Nahuatl language.

Hippos Rampage Through African Rice Fields

                         Weekend News Today
                         Lead: faith
                         Source: Discovery

Tue Oct 17,2000 -- Large numbers of hippopotami have been terrorizing
farmers and boatmen in Niger, destroying fishing boats and devastating rice
fields. At least two fishermen have been injured by the charging beasts. The
giant mammals have recently appeared along the Niger River in groups of
unprecedented numbers.

Cyclone 01B threatens Indian Coast

                         Weekend News Today
                         Lead: faith
                         Source: Discovery Earth Alert

Tue Oct 17,2000 -- Cyclone 01B formed over the Bay of Bengal on Monday,
packing winds of 40 mph, which were predicted to intensify steadily during
the next several days. Cyclone warnings were issued for India's coastal
states of Andhra Pradesh and Orissa, as the slow-moving storm neared the
country's east coast. The alert came almost one year after a devastating
super-cyclone hit the state of Orissa, killing nearly 10,000 people. Disaster
officials in Orissa reported that precautionary measures were being taken in
case 01B changed course and hit the state. Many panicked residents have
already begun to move to higher ground. By early Tuesday, the storm was
located about 320 miles SE of Vijayawada, India, moving NW. Its predicted
to make landfall north of Madras by Thursday. The very broad bands of 01B
have already begun to dump heavy rain along the coast, and fishermen at the
ports of Paradip and Gopalpur have been warned not to set out to sea.

Tropical Storm Michael strengthens in Atlantic

                         Weekend News Today
                         Lead: faith
                         Source: Weather.com/AP

Tue Oct 17,2000 -- Tropical Storm Michael is churning off the Atlantic coast
of the United States and getting stronger. At 11 a.m. (EDT), forecasters at
the National Hurricane Center (NHC) said Michael's top sustained winds
were near 50 mph. They said further strengthening is likely. The storm's
sustained winds could eventually exceed 74 mph, making it a Category 1
hurricane, Stewart told The Associated Press. Michael was centered 405
miles WSW of Bermuda. It is nearly stationary, but is expected to move
slowly to the east or NE later today. NHC forecasters were urging people in
Bermuda to monitor the storm's progress. Michael is not expected to move
toward the U.S. coast. A Hurricane Hunter plane is scheduled to fly into the
area later today for further investigation. Michael was declared a tropical
storm early Tuesday morning. It is the 13th tropical storm
of the Atlantic hurricane season.

Egyptian military response is not discounted

                         Weekend News Today
                         Lead: Kelly
                         Source: Middle East Newsline

Tue Oct 17,2000 -- Egypt could shatter its peace treaty with Israel and move
troops into the demilitarized Sinai if the mini-war with the Palestinians widen,
U.S. experts say. The scenario is one of several that envision a widening of
the Israeli-Palestinian conflict into that sweeping Arab neighbors of the
Jewish state. Robert Satloff, director of the Washington Institute for Near
East Policy, told a forum that a failure of the current summit at Sharm e-
Sheik could lead to a suspension or severing of Arab diplomatic and
commercial relations with Israel. This could be followed by an Arab League
summit that rejects peace negotiations with Israel.

Satloff envisions the prospect of "heightened tension with Egypt, in which the
Egyptians react to an Israeli strike inside Zone A [Palestinian-controlled
territory] by sending troops to Sinai, perhaps even to a point that would
exceed Camp David limits." Last week, Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak
dismissed threats of war issued by such Arab leaders as Iraqi President
Saddam Hussein. But Mubarak aides have raised such a prospect in case of
an Israeli military offensive against the Palestinians.

EU urges speedy implementation of Mideast deal

                         Weekend News Today
                         Lead: Kelly
                         Source: Reuters

Tue Oct 17,2000 -- The European Union on Tuesday urged Israelis and
Palestinians to rapidly carry out steps agreed at a crisis summit in Egypt to
halt the current wave of violence. "The EU will keep its commitment in the
service of peace," the group added in a statement issued in Paris by its
French presidency. Diplomatic sources said United Nations chief Kofi Annan
and EU foreign policy and security chief Javier Solana would stop over in
Paris on Tuesday night on their way back from the Sharm el-Sheikh summit
for talks with French Foreign Minister Hubert Vedrine.

In Brussels, the president of the EU's executive Commission Romano Prodi
welcomed the deal, noting the Commission was ready to help where it could
and the peace process could regain momentum if both sides implemented
the agreement. French President Jacques Chirac said the agreement opened
up positive prospects of calming down the tension. His spokeswoman
Catherine Colonna said he encouraged Barak and Arafat to "pursue with
courage and determination the path that has just been opened towards a
return to dialogue and peace." But official French sources said Chirac
remained cautious as there had been no written agreement and Barak and
Arafat had not met face to face.

Doubts remain over Middle East deal despite major powers' backing

                         Weekend News Today
                         Lead: Kelly
                         Source: AFP

Tue Oct 17,2000 -- World leaders reacted with relief rather than delight
Tuesday to a deal patched together at an acrimonious Middle East summit
in Egypt, but militant leaders in the Palestinian territories vowed the violence
would continue. Marwan Barghouthi, Fatah's West Bank leader, said the
Palestinian uprising would go on, after what he described as the summit's
failure. "The summit was destined to fail even before it started and it has
failed to remedy the causes of the uprising," he added. Russian Foreign
Minister Igor Ivanov was quick to lend his support to the deal. "It is important
that both parties carry out in full the agreements reached at Sharm el-
Sheikh, and most importantly, do everything to bring the violence to a halt,"
he said.

France also welcomed the deal. "If it is a result that allows a return to calm,
then obviously it is good news," said foreign ministry spokesman Francois
Rivasseau. British Foreign Secretary Robin Cook said, "We should have no
illusions about the difficulties of turning the agreement into a reality on the
ground. "Only a just and lasting settlement can avoid a recurrence of the
violence we have seen in recent weeks," he said. Italian Foreign Minister
Lamberto Dini welcomed the deal as "encouraging." German Chancellor
Gerhard Schroeder said in a statement: "A decisive factor now is the
complete and immediate implementation of the agreement. "With it, an
important condition will be created to quickly resume talks on the peace
process," he added. Japan pledged to do all it could to help get the main
Middle East peace talks back on track.

But Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak, who hosted the two-day summit,
struck a cautious note. "The results of this meeting may not have met the
high expectations of our people, but at the same time they are a base on
which to build," he said at the closing ceremony. The agreed ceasefire was
bound to be fragile he added. Predominantly Muslim Turkey called the
summit "a right step," but called for rapid action. "We believe that the
immediate implementation of the accord is of vital importance," a foreign
ministry statement said. Jordanian Foreign Minister Abdel Ilah al-Khatib said
the real test would be the Israeli response. Speaking from Sharm el-Sheikh
by telephone, Khatib said: "The important thing will be the measures which
Israel will take on the ground to put an end to the violence."

IDF announces Arrow anti-missile shield is operational

                         Weekend News Today
                         Lead: Kelly
                         Source: Jerusalem Post

Tue Oct 17,2000 -- The IDF late last night declared the country's anti-missile
shield based on the Arrow-2 rocket finally operational. It marks the first time
any country in the world has a functioning defense against surface-to-surface
missiles.

US, European involvement to intensify

                         Weekend News Today
                         Lead: Kelly
                         Source: Jerusalem Post

Tue Oct 17,2000 -- The history of the Middle East has repeatedly
demonstrated that grand summit meetings are more conducive to sharpening
the conflict than to constructive and realistic planning. The question is
whether carefully planned and less visible American and European
involvement can reduce the level of violence and create some stability in the
region. World leaders attending the Sharm e-Sheikh summit were far too
slow in recognizing the need for substantive and coordinated action.

If the violence continues in Israel, this cycle will create instability in Egypt
and Jordan, and create conditions similar to those that led Egyptian
President Gamal Abdel Nasser and Jordanian King Hussein blindly into the
war with Israel in 1967. For Israel, extended conflict and renewed regional
isolation is far from a desirable scenario. However, given the importance of
the issues, whatever the outcome of this summit, the efforts to reverse the
spiral of violence and manage this conflict will continue and intensify. In the
next few days, the Americans and Europeans (they cannot afford to continue
to work at cross-purposes) may consider using their resources to impose a
cease-fire and gradual separation of forces over a period of weeks.

At the same time, they will also need to assess whether Arafat can control
the Palestinians forces whose cooperation is needed. If not, external
intervention may be considered. This is a necessary, but far from sufficient
move back from the brink. The collapse of the Oslo Accords has left an
untenable situation on the ground, consisting of numerous points of friction
between Palestinians and Israelis, and an interim arrangement allowing for
maximum separation is indispensable.

Barak will re-deploy heavy armor if tensions reduced in 48 hours; new peace
talks expected in Washington

                         Weekend News Today
                         Lead: Kelly
                         Source: Jerusalem Post

Tue Oct 17,2000 -- In the wake of today's Israeli-Palestinian cease-fire
agreement United States President Bill Clinton has invited Israeli and
Palestinian negotiators to Washington in a bid to renew peace talks.
American Secretary of State Madeleine Albright said that both Israel and the
Palestinian Authority agree to send delegations to the meetings. Before
boarding an Israel Air Force jet for the trip back to Jerusalem, Prime Minister
Barak said that Israeli and Palestinian security officials would meet before
the day was out. Barak added that if tensions are successfully reduced
within the next 48 hours, Israel would re-deploy the heavy armor presently
besieging Palestinian cities in the West Bank.

Israel: PA has till tonight to stop violence

                         Weekend News Today
                         Lead: Kelly
                         Source: Jerusalem Post

Tue Oct 17,2000 -- Israel says the Palestinian Authority has until tonight to
stop the violence. Speaking exclusively to Jerusalem Post Radio, Cabinet
Secretary Isaac Herzog said PA Chairman Yasser Arafat must stop all
attacks on Israeli citizens.

British Queen in first Vatican visit in 20 years

                         Weekend News Today
                         Lead: Leo
                         Source: Yahoo/Reuters

Tue Oct 17,2000 -- Pope John Paul and Britain's Queen Elizabeth spoke of
their hopes for unity between the Roman Catholic and Anglican Churches
Tuesday during the queen's first visit to the Vatican in 20 years.

The talks between the two, each of whom are heads of state and also heads
of church, followed recent strains in relations between the Vatican and other
religions because of a September document which held up Roman
Catholicism as the best religion. But the queen, who wore a protocol black
wool and lace two piece outfit and was in good spirits, and the Pope, who
showed signs of fatigue and walked with a cane, stressed what both
churches have in common rather than what divides them.

The Pope said that despite difficulties ``there can be no turning back'' from
the goal of unity. He added that the past and the future ``prompt us to pursue
the path of ever greater understanding and, from the religious perspective, of
ever more perfect communion.''

The queen, visiting the Vatican for the second time, told the Pope in her
declaration: ``I trust that we shall continue to advance along the path which
leads to Christian unity.

March honors families, religious faith

                         Weekend News Today
                         Lead: Leo
                         Source: The Washington Times

Tue Oct 17,2000 -- Thousands of American families gathered on the Mall
yesterday in an outpouring of dedication to the values of faith and family.

The crowd, which looked somewhat smaller than the 300,000 who gathered
for the Million Man March five years ago, included families of all races and
religious faiths but was overwhelmingly black and included many Muslims.

"The family is the basic unit of civilization," Louis Farrakhan, minister of the
Nation of Islam who called the Million Family March, told them in a speech
that stretched across two hours at the U.S. Capitol. "God created us into
tribes and families so that we may know one another. [But] what do we know
except the worst of each other?" Mr. Farrakhan, who had built a reputation
for fiery denunciation of Jews and other whites, tempered his rhetoric
yesterday, calling for people of all religions and races to share in the same
humanity.

http://216.219.160.226/cgi-
bin/readnews.cgi?day=00_10_17&item=#971816189

From: moza@butterfly.mv.com

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

========
To: bpr-list@philologos.org (BPR Mailing List)
Subject: [BPR] - 3-D image that floats on air
From: bpr-list@philologos.org("Moza")
Date: Tue, 17 Oct 2000 18:23:29 -0400

Optical technology, computer graphics meet to produce 3-D image that
floats on air

Looking like an ordinary TV, a display screen shows a recent news clip in
which a North Korean military leader shakes hands with U.S. officials. With a
simple push of a button, the characters suddenly leap out, forming a three-
dimensional image 50 cm from the screen. Unless you touch it, it's hard to
tell it is just an image, it almost looks like the real thing.

A hybrid of computer graphics and optical image processing, the new
technology has brought to reality what has only been seen so far in futuristic
sci-fi flicks.

"Everything on the screen from beverage cans to new cars, from geology
guides to animated characters can be converted to 3-D images," said Kim
Yong-min, 29, chief executive of XOrbis Co. Ltd. at a demonstration for the
press yesterday.

To see it, viewers need not use the headsets or special glasses that often
make people nauseous and disoriented. Neither do they have to be
connected to the computer with wires that make virtual reality an awkward
experience.

"Virtual images come more natural with this, a thing you can experience with
unaided eyes," he added.

At the heart of the gimmick lies technology called "volumatrix," which,
simply put, makes the image projector recognize a point somewhere outside
the screen as a monitor, he said.

A high-precision optical technology was harnessed to modify the focus of the
image to make it come out of the frame. The whole picture is divided into
foreground and background images, which are then synchronized as a
coherent 3-D image floating on the air.

The core technology has been provided by Optical Products Development
(OPD), a Silicon-based optical display manufacturer.

Kim and his colleagues have combined their computer graphics technology
with the optical solution in a two-year joint project, and the efforts resulted in
the world's first 3-D image projector that doesn't require any viewing aids.

3-D visualization solution has been around for years. Holography forms
image with electron beams and is currently limited to representing simple
movements. Stereoscopic systems need additional devices like a head-
mounted viewer, and can be used by only one person and have a limited
viewing angle.

Laser display systems, the most advanced 3-D technology, needs a catalyst
to form an image in the air and is too expensive to have commercial
applications. 3-D computer graphics are just 2-D images that give a 3-D feel.

"The device gets around such problems to good measure," he said.

The device, named O-Cubic, comes in three models with different image
sizes and viewing angles. The lowest-end model offers an image of 10 cm in
diameter, a projection distance of 35 cm, and viewing angle of 29 degrees in
horizon. The figures for a premium model are 40x30 cm, 46 cm and 55
degree.

The system can accommodate a wide variety of input sources, including
illuminated solid objects, a CRT displaying real-time computer generated
imagery or output from CD, DVD (digital versatile disk) or conventional video
tape.

A number of commercial applications are immediately available, from product
presentation, virtual catalogs, storefront kiosks and outdoor sign boards for
advertising, allowing vendors to visualize features of their products more
effectively.

"Almost any communication or media delivery application can be greatly
enhanced with the 3D visualization technology," he said.

"Imagine that that the image of objects float in space at your store, offering
clients a closer look of it in every color and pattern and rotate the object to
see it from various angles.

He is highly optimistic about the commercial prospects of the products as
"the advantages will be simply irresistible."

The merits have succeeded in persuading some domestic corporations.

The company has signed with SK Telecom to install the device in mobile
phone stores. It will also be deployed at an exhibition hall in COEX, southern
Seoul, and used by an online advertising agency DKims Communications.
Its U.S. partner has won orders from the U.S. chains Hyatt Hotel and
McDonald.

Further development will find other applications like computer games,
encyclopedia and class rooms, he said.

The two companies share patents for the technology currently pending.
Under an agreement, XOrbis holds rights to sell them in Asia, and OPD will
be in charge of marketing in the rest of the world.

The device is expected to sell for 30 million won, a price far lower than other
3-D visualization equipment currently available. (HJJ)

Updated: 10/18/2000

http://koreaherald.co.kr/news/2000/10/__10/20001018_1051.htm

via: isml@egroups.com

From: moza@butterfly.mv.com

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

========
To: bpr-list@philologos.org (BPR Mailing List)
Subject: [BPR] - Prosthetic Limb To Be Controlled By Microchip
From: bpr-list@philologos.org("Moza")
Date: Tue, 17 Oct 2000 18:25:02 -0400

Source: Sandia National Laboratories (http://www.sandia.gov)

Date: Posted 10/17/2000

Prosthetic Limb To Be Controlled By Microchip

Albuquerque, N.M. -- "Smart" legs -- entire smart lower limbs -- to replace
those amputated from tens of thousands of Americans yearly as a result of
auto accidents, diabetes, or other causes are expected to be on the market in two
years. Sensors and chips will be developed by the Department of Energy's Sandia
National Laboratories. Materials work and testing will be performed by,
strangely, the Russian nuclear weapons laboratory Chelyabinsk 70. Technical
requirements for the limb will be set by the Seattle Orthopedic Group (SOGI).

"This is about making a leg that is more like a missing limb than a
collection of components ever can be," says Diane Hurtado of the Smart
Integrated Lower Limb (SILL) project team. "This limb will have a digital
control system to make it smart."

Says Ivan Sabel, president of Hangar, of which SOGI is a division, "This is
taking us -- an industry that has gone in 30 years from plastic to carbon fibers
-- to the next generation."

The advance should enable otherwise competent amputees to maintain active
lives rather than be confined to wheelchairs or rest homes.

The leg is intended to simulate a human gait whether on uphill, downhill, or
even irregular terrain. To do so, a microprocessor-controlled module implanted
in the leg will respond to sensor input from multiple sources. The
microprocessor will control hydraulic joints and piezoelectric motors that power
the ankle, knee and socket.

The leg socket will also adjust to the changing diameter of an amputated
stump over the course of a day, thus reducing sores, improving comfort, and
increasing time of use.

Clamoring to walk without falling down

"What amputees are clamoring for is a way to walk without falling down,
independent of terrain," says Sandia researcher Dave Kozlowski, who has
designed robotic architectures for surgical operating rooms. "The majority
of lower-limb prosthetic devices are based upon passive technologies that
require far more energy for amputees to cover the same distance as
non-amputees."

In passive technologies, as the thigh moves forward, inertia opens the knee
joint, the artificial shin swings forward, and, when the entire structure locks,
the wearer can pass his or her weight over it. The feet are usually not "smart"
in adjusting to terrain.

"We intend to develop a much more efficient device, with sensors placed at
strategic points along foot and leg, that will enable a more normal and
efficient walking gait," says Kozlowski. A proper limb motion will return
energy to the wearer instead of draining it, he says.

One challenge to be addressed is developing a power source light enough for an
amputee to feel comfortable carrying it, he says.

Reducing pressure sores

Sandia researcher Mark Vaughn, who also will participate in the project,
says another goal is to make a self-adjusting prosthetic socket that will
prevent pressure sores caused by the device rubbing against the residual
limb. The device will change shape to match the residual limb's swelling
over the course of a day.

"The funding gives us a couple of man-centuries of Russian experimenters to
throw at the problem, and it's right down their alley," says Vaughn. "They're
mechanical guys. We should get quite a bit of accommodation."

Approximately 120 Russian scientists formerly employed designing nuclear
weapons are expected to participate in the project, funded by DOE's
Initiatives for Proliferation Prevention.

Says Sandia manager for international initiatives Bob Huelskamp, "Sandia
generally thinks it's impressive if, say, five of its scientists leave to
start an entrepreneurial enterprise. This prosthetics project means that, at a
minimum, dozens, and if the project takes off, triple figures of Russians
formerly in the weapons-of-mass-destruction business are moving out of that into
a humanitarianly useful, and hopefully commercially successful, business
venture."

The Russians bring impressive skills and equipment to the research effort,
he says.

Says Olen Thompson, "SILL got its start through the integrated efforts of
the principal investigators, CRADA specialists, licensing specialists,
patent attorneys and the DOE's Technology Partnership Office in Albuquerque.
They had many barriers to overcome but they stayed with it because they believed
in the project's importance."

DOE is funding the current effort with $1.5 million over two years. SOGI is
expected to put up a matching amount in money, goods, and services.

Changing the world

Hurtado takes over project management of Sandia's prosthetics program from
recently retired Sandian Mort Lieberman, who originated it. Two years ago,
an agreement he helped create between Sandia, Chelyabinsk 70, a Boston
University professor and an Ohio prosthetics company produced an artificial foot
that has received impressive reviews. Last year, work was started on an
artificial knee.

Lieberman, who spoke at the Sept. 26, 2000, cooperative research and
development (CRADA) signing, discussed the change in direction at the
Russian nuclear lab and, to some extent, at Sandia (a national security
laboratory) initiated by his work. Quoting anthropologist Margaret Mead, he
said, "Never doubt that a small group of concerned citizens can change the
world."

Sandia is a multiprogram DOE laboratory, operated by a subsidiary of
Lockheed Martin Corp. With main facilities in Albuquerque, N.M., and
Livermore, Calif., Sandia has major research and development
responsibilities in national security, energy, and environmental
technologies.

Editor's Note: The original news release can be found at
http://www.sandia.gov/media/NewsRel/NR2000/smartleg.htm

http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2000/10/001017073008.htm

via: isml@egroups.com

From: moza@butterfly.mv.com

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

========
To: bpr-list@philologos.org (BPR Mailing List)
Subject: [BPR] - Harpazo News items (10/17/00)
From: bpr-list@philologos.org("Moza")
Date: Tue, 17 Oct 2000 18:34:03 -0400

U.S. Warns Saddam Hussein Following Iraqi Troop Movement

Top American defense personnel, led by Defense Secretary William Cohen,
warned Saddam Hussein of a possible American attack. The warning was
sent in response to movement of the Special Republican Guard troops within
Iraq. The Americans fear that Hussein will try to take advantage of the tense
situation in the Middle East to invade his neighbors.

The United States announced that it is closely watching the occurrences in
Iraq, and is willing to respond to every attack that Iraq makes. "We can never
disregard Saddam Hussein and underestimate his ability to take advantage
of any situation," said Cohen. He went on to say that, "In the past he always
managed to miscalculate the outcome of his actions, but we are closely
watching him and we must warn him that any attack on his neighbors will be
met by the actions of the United States."

The American government stressed that there are currently no signs of threat
against Iraq's neighbors or the Kurds in the North. The Pentagon has said
that the movement of the Special Republican Guard troops could be a part of
a military training exercise or could be Hussein flexing his military
muscle. Ha'aretz

No More Invitations For Russia To Mideast Table

Russian President Vladimir Putin put a brave face on Moscow's humiliating
failure to win an invitation to the U.S.-sponsored Middle East summit on
Monday.

But some Russian experts said the presence at Sharm el-Sheikh of
European Union envoy Javier Solana was even worse news for Moscow - a
signal that its Cold War-era role as counterbalance to U.S. influence in the
Middle East had been superseded.

Foreign Minister Igor Ivanov, who spent most of last week shuttling between
Syria, Lebanon, Israel and the Palestinian territories, acknowledged that
Moscow's services had gone unsolicited. Russia Today

Syria's Tlass Comments On Chances Of War With Israel

Syrian deputy premier and defense minister Lt. Gen. Mustafa Tlass has
stressed that Syria will not give Israel the chance to impose a war on it.

In a statement to the United Arab Emirates daily al-Khaleej issued in Abu
Dhabi on Sunday, Tlass added that "Syria wants peace as a strategic
option, but if war is imposed on it through launching an aggression, and
direct threat to use weapons, the Syrian leadership under President Bashar
al-Assad will not keep silent, adding that the Syrian people thanks to their
unity, and leadership is able to confront any aggression and foil all pressures
directed against it."

The Syrian defense minister ruled the eruption of a comprehensive war in the
Middle East, noting that this conception is based on the international stand
which opposes this inclination but seeks strongly to achieve peace in the
region.

On the other hand, Syrian political sources told the paper that there is an
urgent need to revive the " Syrian, Lebanese and Palestinian triangle of
steadfastness " according to a new national perspective as the Syrian-
Lebanese coordination has proved effectiveness and ability to complete
victory in the previous stage (a reference to the Israeli withdrawal from South
Lebanon ).

Al-Khaleej also indicated the possibility of establishing a Syrian, Iraqi and
Iranian front as one of the proposed realistic options before Damascus,
noting the great improvement in Iran's relations with the Arab states and vast
openness of the Syrian leadership toward Iraq.

Meanwhile, well-informed source told the paper that Israel has prepared three
special commandos forces to carry out a secret military operation aiming at
releasing the three Israeli soldiers held by the Hizbullah.

The same source quoted the leadership of the Hizbullah party as saying that
to avoid such an Israeli attempt, taking place, the three Israeli soldiers were
taken to unreachable areas. Arabic News

There Is No Cure For Ebola... It Kills Everyone In It's Path...
And It Is Back With A Vengeance!

In surreal scenes worthy of science fiction coming to the Third World,
masked men and women dressed in sterile overalls will today start
quarantining the crowded Gulu district of northern Uganda where 63 cases of
the highly contagious and deadly Ebola virus have been confirmed. The
World Health Organisation (WHO) said only 20 of the victims had survived so
far, but all figures were provisional. Specialists from the region, helped by
others from Switzerland, the United States and South Africa, will try to
isolate the sick and prevent the huge refugee population of Gulu from fleeing
the area. Kenya has sent health officials to try to stem any influx of people
from north-east Uganda. Unchecked Ebola, identified in 1976, can cut
through a population like a scythe, killing everyone in contact with it. There is
no vaccination, no known cure, and it can kill in 48 hours, although
incubation can take 14 days. The only effective action is to isolate the
infected area and allow those with the disease to die. Only three out of
every 10 will survive. independent uk

Letter Shows Gore Made Russian Deal

Vice President Al Gore, at the urging of Russian Prime Minister Viktor
Chernomyrdin, agreed to keep secret from Congress details of Russia's
nuclear cooperation with Iran beginning in late 1995.

In a classified "Dear Al" letter obtained by The Washington Times, Mr.
Chernomyrdin told Mr. Gore about Moscow's confidential nuclear deal with
Iran and stated that it was "not to be conveyed to third parties, including the
U.S. Congress."But sources on Capitol Hill said Mr. Gore withheld the
information from key senators who normally would be told of such high-level
security matters.

The Gore-Chernomyrdin deal, disclosed in a letter labeled "secret," appears
to violate a provision of the Nuclear Non-proliferation Act, which requires the
Clinton administration to keep congressional oversight committees fully
informed of all issues related to nuclear weapons proliferation.

The Chernomyrdin letter on nuclear cooperation with Iran follows a report in
the New York Times last week showing that Mr. Gore reached a secret deal
with Russia several months earlier that appears to circumvent U.S. laws
requiring the imposition of sanctions on Russia for its conventional arms
sales to Iran. That arrangement also was kept secret from Congress, raising
concerns among some lawmakers that the administration may be hiding
other secret deals. Washington Times

Analysis: Instability Benefits Saddam Hussein

According to the West's post-Gulf War scenario, President Saddam Hussein
should have disappeared off the Iraqi stage long ago. Under no stretch of the
imagination could western leaders have conceived that, a decade after the
Gulf War, the Iraqi president would be taking credit for the safe release of
Western hostages from a hijacked Saudi airliner. Nor would it have seemed a
possibility that Saddam Hussein would have the satisfaction of welcoming a
stream of passenger planes arriving at Baghdad airport in defiance of UN
sanctions. To say he has defied the odds is an understatement. BBC

http://www.harpazo.net/news.html

From: moza@butterfly.mv.com

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