BPR Mailing List Digest: 03/25/01

Philologos
BPR Mailing List Digest
March 25, 2001

Digest Home | 2001 | March, 2001

Date: Sun, 25 Mar 2001 10:45:36 +0100
Reply-To: bprlist@yahoogroups.com
Subject: [bprlist] The unseen face of war

Shalom dear friends

This presentation, lasting 13 mins, reminds us that behind the grim
face of war there are ordinary people, their lives uprooted and
irrevocably changed by the actions of those around them.
Do take a look.

:: FIVE MONTHS OF WAR IN HEBRON: The Jewish Community of Hebron
has put together an excellent multimedia presentation called "Five Months
of War in Hebron." It can be seen at:
<http://www.hebron.org.il/slideshows/war/hebronwar.htm>

><> ><> ><> ><> ><> ><> ><> ><> ><> ><> ><>
Stafford's Mail <staffordsimmonds@ntlworld.com>

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From bakerpj@earthlink.net Sun Mar 25 06:25:12 2001
Date: Sun, 25 Mar 2001 06:25:12 -0500
Reply-To: bprlist@yahoogroups.com
Subject: [bprlist] More On Allah

Please convey my thanks to whomever was kind enough to send the
information on the name 'Allah' and the significance of of the black
stone, from David Hunt's book. It was most enlightening and reveal
clearly, I think, that Muhammad was more influenced by the pagan
religions than by either Judaism or Christianity. The teachings of
Islam do not make that clear so this information is most helpful in
reaching an understanding of it. Praise the Lord!
God Bless you. Charlie Baker

[Charlie, I believe it was Moza that sent in the info.]

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From sgrbarmv@yahoo.com Sun Mar 25 15:44:25 2001
Date: Sun, 25 Mar 2001 20:44:25 -0000
Reply-To: bprlist@yahoogroups.com
Subject: [bprlist] e-mail address changed

Hi Everyone,

I had to unsubscribe the Vaughan275@msn.com address because I have
not been able to access that for a while. Problems with the server.
I now have subscribe under the sgrbarmv@yahoo.com to receive mail
from this list.

Just wanted to let everyone know that I was still a memeber of this
group.

Love in Christ,

Michelle

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From research-bpr@philologos.org Sun Mar 25 18:19:00 2001
Date: Sun, 25 Mar 2001 18:19:00 -0500
Reply-To: bprlist@yahoogroups.com
Subject: [bprlist] Weekend News Today items (3/25/01)

Arabs agree to back Iraq over aid to Palestinians

                         Weekend News Today
                         Lead: Kelly
                         Source: AFP

Sun Mar 25,2001 -- Arab leaders agreed Sunday to ask the UN Security
Council to let Baghdad take one billion euros (900 million dollars) from its
accounts in emergency humanitarian aid to the Palestinians, according to a
draft resolution to be submitted to the upcoming Arab summit.

UN nearing deadline for action on Mideast crisis

                         Weekend News Today
                         Lead: Kelly
                         Source: Reuters

Sun Mar 25,2001 -- The U.N. Security Council on Sunday neared its self-
imposed deadline to adopt a resolution on the Middle East crisis. But no
deal was in sight yet with the United States raising objections to the text.
Palestinians, sometimes against the wishes of their supporters, were
insisting that the 15-member body show willingness to consider an unarmed
U.N. military and police observer force they believe could help save lives in
the West Bank and Gaza. Israel rejects any international invention.

Most council members want to stake out a position before an Arab League
summit begins on Tuesday in Amman, Jordan, concerned that no resolution
or a U.S. veto would further escalate tensions in the Arab world. In an effort
to gain Washington's support and prevent a veto, four European council
members put forward an alternative resolution to a Palestinian-initiated draft.
The European text drops all mention of the observers. But diplomats said
Washington objected to several points in that draft also, including a reference
to the expansion of Israeli settlements on the West Bank.

Arab ministers fail to reach compromise on Iraq

                         Weekend News Today
                         Lead: Kelly
                         Source: Reuters

Sun Mar 25,2001 -- Arab foreign ministers failed to reach agreement over
Iraqi demands on Sunday and left it to their leaders to try to avert a split at
an Arab summit designed to bolster a Palestinian uprising against Israeli
occupation. "The meeting of the foreign ministers ended without agreement
on the Iraqi-Kuwaiti issue," a Moroccan diplomat told Reuters at the end of
two days of ministerial meetings.

"The issue has now been referred to the leaders at the summit," another
delegate said. Baghdad is insisting that Arab states come out in defiance of
U.N. trade sanctions imposed on Iraq over its 1990 invasion of Kuwait and
also clearly condemn U.S.-British "no-fly zones."

Hizbullah: We have no long-range missiles from Iran

                         Weekend News Today
                         Lead: Kelly
                         Source: AP/Jerusalem Post

Sun Mar 25,2001 -- A senior Hizbullah political leader today denied Israeli
reports that his group has received rockets from Iran. "The claim by the
enemy Prime Minister [Ariel] Sharon is an attempt to attract international
sympathy and to beg for more military assistance for the Zionist entity,"
Mohammed Raad said. Sharon told the Israeli newspaper Ma'ariv in an
interview Friday that Iran has shipped rockets to Lebanon with a range long
enough to hit the center of Israel. Sharon also charged that Syria is helping
Iran in a massive airlift of rockets, arms and ammunition to militant groups in
Lebanon.

Asked to comment on Sharon's remarks, Lebanese Prime Minister Rafik
Hariri would only say in an interview with the Lebanese Broadcasting
Corporation International on Saturday, "This is military information." On
whether Sharon's statements were a prelude to an Israeli military action
against Lebanon, Hariri said, "I don't think there will be any wars in the region
because wars do not solve any problems."

Sharon's strategy: Get Arafat after Arab summit

                         Weekend News Today
                         Lead: Kelly
                         Source: Middle East Newsline

Sun Mar 25,2001 -- Prime Minister Ariel Sharon has formulated a plan that
aims to target key aides of Palestinian Authority Chairman Yasser Arafat
after this week's Arab League summit. The plan calls for Israeli restraint
against the Palestinian mini-war until the summit ends, probably after the
weekend. Then, Israel's military would begin a policy of targeting key aides
and commanders of Arafat believed behind the attacks against Israeli
soldiers and civilians.

Macedonian troops launch massive artillery offensive against rebels

                         Weekend News Today
                         Lead: Kelly
                         Source: AFP

Sun Mar 25,2001 -- Macedonian armoured infantry launched an assault on
rebel positions in the hills above Tesovo on Sunday at 8.45 am (0645 GMT),
an AFP photographer at the scene reported. A convoy of 15 armoured cars
accompanied by around 250 troops set off into the hills from the town, pulling
mortars behind them. Earlier, at least two Macedonian helicopters were also
seen overflying the mountain area.

Macedonian tanks also rolled into the town, indicating that the assault may
be the start of a long awaited government offensive against ethnic Albanian
guerrillas who have held the hills since March 13. The dawn assault came at
7:00 am (0500 GMT), the morning after helicopters were first used by
government forces, and is a clear sign that the government, which has
received the full support of the international community, is determined to act
tough.

Macedonia says all key Tetovo positions captured

                         Weekend News Today
                         Lead: Kelly
                         Source: Reuters

Sun Mar 25,2001 -- Macedonia's prime minister said Sunday the country's
forces had captured all key positions from ethnic Albanian guerrillas
operating in the hills above the town of Tetovo. He added: "The centers from
where they (the guerrillas) acted will be eliminated." Macedonian television
later said government forces had taken control of the main hill overlooking the
northwestern town of 70,000 people.

US supports Annan for second UN term

                         Weekend News Today
                         Lead: Leo
                         Source: IAfrica.com

Sun Mar 25,2001 -- US President George W. Bush has endorsed a second
term in office for UN Secretary-general Kofi Annan. Support from the United
States is key since any of the five Security Council members can veto a
candidate before sending nominations on to the General Assembly for a final
vote.

"My administration thinks he is doing an excellent job as secretary general
of the United Nations, and therefore, we heartily endorse his second term as
the secretary general," Bush said upon receiving Annan in the White House.
Bush said that the United States looks forward to working "not only to make
sure that you serve a second term but, once that's done, work closely with
you to keep the peace and make the world more prosperous."

Islamic hotline goes international

                         Weekend News Today
                         Lead: Leo
                         Source: BBC NEWS

Sun Mar 25,2001 -- An Egyptian telephone hotline offering round-the clock
advice on Islam has expanded into Jordan in the first step of an ambitious
plan to go global. The founders of the service, which was set up last August,
say that over the next few months they hope to be available in several other
Arab countries, as well as parts of Europe, Asia and the United States. The
Islamic hotline, dubbed Dial-a-Fatwa, has been doing a brisk trade. Callers
ring in with their requests for advice from a team of religious scholars who
leave a recorded reply the following day.

If all goes according to plan, Muslims around the world will soon be able to
use the service too. They would make a local call and have their question
and answer transmitted via the internet. The entrepreneur behind the hotline
describes it as Islam on a platter, delivering religious advice to suit the third
millennium.

U.N. working group seeks common ground on security

                         Weekend News Today
                         Lead: Leo
                         Source: InfoWorld.com

Sun Mar 25,2001 -- Delegates from the 189 member countries of the United
Nations will meet next week with representatives from the U.S. technology
industry to devise new strategies for dealing with Internet crime and global e-
commerce security requirements. However, to ensure a coherent global
strategy, world leaders must be better educated about the need for global
security standards and the threat that cybercrime poses to the worldwide
economy, said Percy Mangoaela, the U.N. ambassador from Lesotho.

"We want to sensitize diplomats to the importance of the implications of IT
so that they are equipped to deal with the issues," said Mangoaela, who is
chairman of the U.N. Working Group on Informatics and one of hundreds of
officials scheduled to attend next Thursday's Global InfoSec 2001 conference
at U.N. headquarters in New York.

One of the most pressing global issues is finding common ground on an
international legal framework for dealing with cybercrime, according to
Mangoaela. That would give authorities a common way to deal with Internet
crimes perpetrated in one country against systems in another. "It is
something that has not yet been attempted, so many people don't feel
confident in their expertise," he said. "Sooner or later, it will have to be dealt
with."

EU seeks to fill U.S. role in Koreas

                         Weekend News Today
                         Lead: Leo
                         Source: MSNBC.com

Sun Mar 25,2001 -- Sweden's PM Goran Persson said he will soon travel to
the region in the company of two other European envoys to hold discussions
with the leaders of both Koreas about how to expedite reconciliation between
their countries and to defuse the nuclear missile threat posed by the North.
"The aim is to express support for the process started by [South Korean
President] Kim Dae Jung, a process aimed at bringing to an end one of the
last conflicts with origins in the Second World War," said Persson, whose
country holds the rotating presidency of the European Union.

The decision by the 15 EU leaders, who concluded a two-day summit here,
breaks from their past deference to U.S. leadership when dealing with the
Korean peninsula and other Asian trouble spots. European officials said
there was unanimity that a bold new initiative was required to compensate for
any delay caused by a policy review in Washington.

"It's becoming clear that the new U.S. administration wants to take a more
hard-line approach toward North Korea," said Sweden's Foreign Minister
Anna Lindh. "That means that Europe must step in to help reduce tension
between the two Koreas, not least because the outside world is so worried
about North Korean missiles."

http://216.219.160.226/cgi-
bin/readnews.cgi?day=01_03_25&item=#985561446

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From research-bpr@philologos.org Sun Mar 25 18:22:06 2001
Date: Sun, 25 Mar 2001 18:22:06 -0500
Reply-To: bprlist@yahoogroups.com
Subject: [bprlist] (Fwd) IDF Spokesperson: Summary of the Weekend's Events

------- Forwarded message follows -------
Date sent: Sun, 25 Mar 2001 03:18:40 -0500
From: imra@netvision.net.il
To: imra@imra.org.il
Subject: IDF Spokesperson: Summary of the
Weekend's Events in the West Bank and
the Gaza Strip (19:30 Fricay 23 March 2001 )

IDF Spokesperson: Summary of the Weekend's Events in the West Bank and the
Gaza Strip (19:30 Friday 23 March 2001 )

23 March 2001

The Gaza Strip:
As of Friday evening there has been continuous fire towards IDF positions
near the settlements of Neve Dkalim and Gadid in Gush Katif and shots were
fired towards an IDF force near the settlement of Morag.
There were no casualties. IDF soldiers returned fire towards the sources of
the shooting.
Several demonstrations took place on Saturday on the Karni Netzaim road and
the Netzarim junction. During these demonstrations stones and firecrackers
were thrown towards IDF soldiers.
IDF soldiers responded with crowd dispersal means.

The West Bank:
Two Border Guard policemen were lightly wounded by stones thrown towards
them on Friday afternoon during a demonstration at the Ayosh junction, at
the northern entrance to Ramalla.

An IDF soldier was very lightly wounded this morning by a stone thrown
towards him during a demonstration at the A-Ram junction south of Ramalla.
IDF soldiers responded with crowd dispersal means.

Additional large demonstrations took place today at Salem, near Jenin, and
the Halhul junction near Hebron.

Shots were fired towards the Bazak base on Friday and towards the settlement
of Psagot on Saturday. There were no casualties and no damage was caused.
IDF soldiers returned fire towards the sources of the shooting.

Several petrol bombs were thrown towards an IDF force near the settlement of
Neve Daniel, west of Bethlehem. There were no casualties, IDF soldiers
responded with fire.

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From research-bpr@philologos.org Sun Mar 25 18:22:42 2001
Date: Sun, 25 Mar 2001 18:22:42 -0500
Reply-To: bprlist@yahoogroups.com
Subject: [bprlist] (Fwd) IDF Spokesperson: Three Mortar Bombs Fired Yesterday

------- Forwarded message follows -------
Date sent: Sun, 25 Mar 2001 03:31:24 -0500
From: imra@netvision.net.il
To: imra@imra.org.il
Subject: IDF Spokesperson: Three Mortar Bombs
Fired Yesterday Night Toward the Gaza
Division Headquarters

IDF Spokesperson: Three Mortar Bombs Fired Yesterday Night Toward the Gaza
Division Headquarters

25 March 2001

Palestinians fired three Mortar Bombs yesterday night toward the Gaza
division headquarters in Gush Katif.
There were no casualties and no damage dealt.
Searches held on the scene revealed a crater and within it, the tail of a
mortar bomb.
IDF Spokesperson emphasizes that the IDF sees the multitude of violent
incidents lately in the Gaza strip, and their severity and escalation on
behalf of the Palestinian Authority, who encourage and create terror outside
their sector.
The IDF will use all measures to thwart the escalation and to guard the
safety of Israeli citizens and IDF soldiers.

--------------------------------------------
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From research-bpr@philologos.org Sun Mar 25 18:25:51 2001
Date: Sun, 25 Mar 2001 18:25:51 -0500
Reply-To: bprlist@yahoogroups.com
Subject: [bprlist] Sharon to tell Mitchell panel: 'We won't be put on trial'

Sunday, March 25 2001 20:29 2 Nisan 5761

               Sharon to tell Mitchell
               panel: 'We won't be put
               on trial'
               By Herb Keinon

               JERUSALEM (March 25) -
               Prime Minister Ariel Sharon, who
               has minced no words in voicing
               opposition to the Mitchell
               fact-finding committee, will tell the
               committee members he is to meet
               today that Israel will not agree to be put on trial before
               an international tribunal.

               "Sharon will cooperate with them, but in no way will he
               allow Israel to be put on trial before a tribunal of
               nations," Sharon aide Ra'anan Gissin said.

               Sharon is to meet committee head George Mitchell,
               former Turkish President Suleyman Demirel, and
               Norwegian Foreign Minister Thorbjoern Jagland in his
               office this afternoon. Committee members Warren
               Rudman, like Mitchell a former US senator, and
               European Union foreign policy and security chief Javier
               Solana are not on the trip.

               According to Gissin, Sharon, who has met Mitchell, will
               stress that Israel finds it odd that of all the things agreed
               upon at Sharm e-Sheikh in October, the only
               "understanding" being implemented is the Mitchell
               Committee.

               Among the other understandings reached at Sharm, but
               not implemented, were for both sides to issue public
               statements calling for an end of violence, both sides to
               act immediately to return the situation to that which
               existed prior to the crisis, and the reestablishment of joint
               security mechanisms between the two sides.

               Gissin said that Sharon will stress to the committee that it
               was the Palestinians "who started this war," and that this
               will be backed by Israeli and CIA evidence, as well as
               by statements made by Palestinian leaders themselves,
               saying that the decision to start the violence was a
               strategic decision taken after Camp David.

               "Arafat took the decision to murder the peace process,"
               Gissin said. "There was another way [accepting what
               was offered at Camp David], but he turned it down. He
               needs to be held responsible."

               Sharon told reporters in New York last week that he
               phoned former prime minister Ehud Barak a number of
               times to dissuade him before Barak agreed to the
               Mitchell Committee late last year, saying that this would
               be a "historic mistake." But since the former government
               agreed to the committee, Sharon will cooperate, Gissin
               said.

               Barak met with committee members at the end of the
               week, and called on them to blame Arafat for the
               outbreak of violence. He reportedly said that if it doesn't
               do so, there is no reason for the committee to issue its
               report on the violence that is expected to be published
               by June.

               Yesterday the committee visited the Bethlehem area and
               spoke with Palestinian and intifada leaders. According to
               Itim, the committee toured the Dehaishe refugee camp,
               as well as Beit Jala, where they were shown damage to
               homes that came under Israeli tank fire. The IDF
               returned fire on Beit Jala during the early weeks of the
               intifada after Palestinians fired on Gilo.

http://www.jpost.com/Editions/2001/03/25/News/News.23462.html

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From research-bpr@philologos.org Sun Mar 25 18:28:57 2001
Date: Sun, 25 Mar 2001 18:28:57 -0500
Reply-To: bprlist@yahoogroups.com
Subject: [bprlist] TV: March 26, 2001

SERIES: MSNBC Investigates (Documentary)
Tattooed Women
Mon March 26 08:00 PM Eastern Time (60 min) MSNBC

SPECIAL: Trade Secrets: A Moyers Report
Mon March 26 09:00 PM Eastern Time (120 min) PBS
An investigation addresses whether industries are being straightforward
about the safety of the chemicals they release. (CC) (Stereo) (TVG)

SPECIAL: Building the Impossible: Seven Wonders of the Ancient World
(Documentary)
Mon March 26 09:00 PM Eastern Time (120 min) DISC
Ancient sources and computer animation reveal the historical significance of
the mysterious objects. (TVG)

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From research-bpr@philologos.org Sun Mar 25 18:31:50 2001
Date: Sun, 25 Mar 2001 18:31:50 -0500
Reply-To: bprlist@yahoogroups.com
Subject: [bprlist] (Fwd) CABINET COMMUNIQUE 25 March 2001

------- Forwarded message follows -------
Date sent: Sun, 25 Mar 2001 11:50:40 -0500
From: imra@netvision.net.il
To: imra@imra.org.il
Subject: CABINET COMMUNIQUE
25 March 2001

CABINET COMMUNIQUE 25 March 2001

(Communicated by the Cabinet Secretariat)
Jerusalem Sunday, March 25, 2001

At its weekly meeting today (Sunday), 25.3.2001:

1. Prime Minister Ariel Sharon briefed the Cabinet on his trip to the
US. He made it clear that the objectives of his visit were achieved and
that, in his meetings with US President George W. Bush, senior
administration officials and members of Congress, he had clarified
Israel's positions on the main issues - issues on which there was a
large degree of understanding and agreement in the US: the importance of
regional stability, and terrorism and the danger it poses to regional
stability.

During his US meetings, Prime Minister Sharon emphasized the dangers
posed by the striving of radical elements in the region - mainly Iraq
and Iran - to arm themselves with non-conventional weapons and ballistic
missiles.

Regarding the negotiations between Israel and the Palestinians, Prime
Minister Sharon stressed the principle that disputes be settled by
peaceful means and that violence and terrorism be abandoned. In this
context, the Prime Minister referred to Palestinian Authority Chairman
Yasser Arafat's letter to the late Prime Minister Yitzhak Rabin of
9.9.93 (see below) which he
points out that the PLO rejects the use of terrorism and other forms of
violence, and accepts upon himself the responsibility for the actions of
his people in order to uphold this obligation and punish those who break
the law.

Prime Minister Sharon made it clear that while Israel is committed to
peace, contacts for peace will take place without the pressure of
terrorism and violence. The Prime Minister similarly made it clear to
his American interlocutors that his government strives to distinguish
between dealing with terrorist elements and easing restrictions on
populations that are not involved with terrorism.

During his trip, Prime Minister Sharon enhanced his personal
relationship with US President Bush, senior administration officials,
leading members of Congress and American Jewish community leaders.

Israeli Ambassador to the US David Ivri will coordinate the bilateral
strategic cooperation dialogue. The US's commitment to Israel and its
security remains strong and is based on shared interests and values.

Prime Minister Sharon expressed his opposition to an international
observer force as part of Israel's opposition to the
internationalization of the conflict and in accordance with the
principle that there can be no reward for violence.

Prime Minister Sharon noted that he had raised the issue of Israel's
POWs and MIAs with US Secretary of State Colin Powell and UN
Secretary-General Kofi Annan, both of whom promised to help.

Prime Minister Sharon clarified the importance of relations with Egypt
and Egypt's role vis-a-vis regional peace, and stressed that Israel is
interested in maintaining the peace and improving relations with Egypt.
The Prime Minister noted that while in the US, he held no discussions on
the issue of American aid to Egypt.

2. Israel Police Inspector-General Commissioner Shlomo Aharonishki
briefed the Cabinet on issues having to do with domestic security and
public order ahead of "Land Day" on Friday, 30.3.2001, including police
deployment. He expressed the hope that the expected "Land Day" events
will be moderate, non-violent and reasonable in scope.

Inspector-General Aharonishki briefed the Cabinet on: 1) the
neutralization of a car-bomb in Jerusalem's Mea Shearim neighborhood
last Wednesday, 2) car-bombs in Jerusalem since November 2000 and 3) the
murder of Kibbutz Manara's security coordinator.

Inspector-General Aharonishki devoted a considerable portion of his
briefing to the latest violent crime wave in Israel. On this issue,
Prime Minister Sharon stated that violence in Israeli society - in the
family, among young people and in schools - is a national blight and a
harsh and disturbing social phenomenon. The Cabinet approved the Prime
Minister's proposal to form a ministerial committee on the struggle
against violence, to be headed by Minister Shmuel Avital. The committee
will - inter alia - monitor the scope and characteristics of violence
and crime, prepare a comprehensive national plan on the struggle against
all aspects of violence, and coordinate among the various law
enforcement bodies, the courts, schools and social services on the
issue. The committee will also consider the need for changes in
legislation and in the implementation of existing legislation in order
to step up the struggle against violence and crime.

3. The Cabinet approved the appointments of Yitzhak Hazan and Avigdor
Maoz as directors-general of the Labor and Social Welfare, and
Construction and Housing ministries, respectively.

4. The Cabinet approved the formation of a ministerial committee on
foreign service appointments to be chaired by Foreign Minister Shimon
Peres.

5. The Cabinet decided to rescind its September 2000 decision on the
disbanding of the Religious Affairs Ministry.

====

LETTER FROM YASSER ARAFAT TO PRIME MINISTER RABIN:

Yitzhak Rabin
Prime Minister of Israel

September 9, 1993

Mr. Prime Minister,

The signing of the Declaration of Principles marks a new era in the
history of the Middle East. In firm conviction thereof, I would like to
confirm the following PLO commitments:

The PLO recognizes the right of the State of Israel to exist in peace
and security.

The PLO accepts United Nations Security Council Resolutions 242 and 338.

The PLO commits itself to the Middle East peace process, and to a
peaceful resolution of the conflict between the two sides and declares
that all outstanding issues relating to permanent status will be
resolved through negotiations.

The PLO considers that the signing of the Declaration of Principles
constitutes a historic event, inaugurating a new epoch of peaceful
coexistence, free from violence and all other acts which endanger peace
and stability. Accordingly, the PLO renounces the use of terrorism and
other acts of violence and will assume responsibility over all PLO
elements and personnel in order to assure their compliance, prevent
violations and discipline violators

In view of the promise of a new era and the signing of the Declaration
of Principles and based on Palestinian acceptance of Security Council
Resolutions 242 and 338, the PLO affirms that those articles of the
Palestinian Covenant which deny Israel's right to exist, and the
provisions of the Covenant which are inconsistent with the commitments
of this letter are now inoperative and no longer valid. Consequently,
the PLO undertakes to submit to the Palestinian National Council for
formal approval the necessary changes in regard to the Palestinian
Covenant.

Sincerely,

Yasser Arafat
Chairman
The Palestine Liberation Organization

--------------------------------------------
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From research-bpr@philologos.org Sun Mar 25 18:37:51 2001
Date: Sun, 25 Mar 2001 18:37:51 -0500
Reply-To: bprlist@yahoogroups.com
Subject: [bprlist] Researchers Find Grave Defect Risk in Cloning Animals

Researchers Find Grave Defect Risk in Cloning Animals

By GINA KOLATA The New York Times
<http://rd.yahoo.com/Dailynews/nyt/inlinks/*http://www.nytimes.com> Four
years after researchers in Scotland startled the world by announcing they
had cloned a sheep named Dolly, scientists say evidence is mounting that
creating healthy animals through cloning is more difficult than they had
expected.

Four years after researchers in Scotland startled the world by announcing
they had cloned a sheep named Dolly, scientists say evidence is mounting
that creating healthy animals through cloning is more difficult than they had
expected.

The clones that have been produced, they say, often have problems severe
enough developmental delays, heart defects, lung problems and
malfunctioning immune systems to give pause to anyone thinking of cloning
a human being. In one example that seems like science fiction come true,
some cloned mice that appeared normal suddenly, as young adults, grew
grotesquely fat.

It is not that one particular thing goes wrong or one specific aspect of
development goes awry, researchers say. Rather, leading cloning experts
and developmental biologists said in recent interviews, the cloning process
seems to create random errors in the expression of individual genes. Those
errors can produce any number of unpredictable problems, at any time in life.

Before Dolly's debut in 1997, scientists thought mammals could not be
cloned. But now they have cloned not only sheep but also mice, cows, pigs
and goats. With mice, they have even made clones of clones on down for six
generations. Dolly is apparently normal. And two infertility specialists
recently announced that they wanted to clone humans.

Initial fears raised about clones that they would age rapidly or develop cancer
turned out to be unfounded, scientists said. But as scientists gained more
experience, and tried to discern why efforts so often ended in failure, new
questions about its safety arose. Fewer than 3 percent of all cloning efforts
succeed.

In cloning, scientists slip a cell from an adult into an egg with its genetic
material removed. The egg then reprograms the adult cell's genes so that
they are ready to direct the development of an embryo, then a fetus, then a
newborn that is genetically identical to the adult whose cell was used to start
the process. No one knows how the egg reprograms an adult cell's genes,
but that, scientists think, is the source of the cloning calamities that can
occur. The problem, they say, seems to be that an egg must do a task in
minutes or hours that normally takes months or years. In the months it takes
sperm to mature, their genes are being reprogrammed.

The same thing happens in eggs, where over years they slowly mature in the
ovaries. And this reprogramming must be perfect, scientists say, or individual
genes can go amiss at any time in development or later life. "With cloning,
you are asking an egg to reprogram in minutes or, at most, in hours," said
Dr. Rudolph Jaenisch, a professor of biology at the Whitehead Institute at the
Massachusetts Institute of Technology. "That's where the major problem is,"
he said.

All the evidence so far, scientists say, indicates that the breathtakingly rapid
reprogramming in cloning can introduce random errors into the clone's DNA,
subtly altering individual genes with consequences that can halt embryo or
fetal development, killing the clone. Or the gene alterations may be fatal
soon after birth or lead to major medical problems later in life. Some
scientists say they shudder to think what might happen if human beings are
cloned with today's techniques. While arguments over the ethics of human
cloning have dominated the debate, these scientists say the real issue is the
likelihood that clones would have genetic abnormalities that could be fatal or
subtle but devastating. Until that problem is solved, they say, human cloning
should be out of the question.

"It would be morally indefensible," said Dr. Brigid Hogan, a professor of cell
biology at Vanderbilt University Medical Center in Nashville and an
investigator with the Howard Hughes Medical Institute.

"It would be reckless and irresponsible," Dr. Jaenisch said. "What do you do
with humans who are born with half a kidney or no immune system?" And,
he said, what about the real possibility of creating children who appear to be
normal but whose genes for neurological development work improperly?
Scientists say they see what appear to be genetic problems almost every
time they try to clone.

For example, some mouse clones grow fat, sometimes enormously obese,
even though they are given exactly the same amount of food as otherwise
identical mice that are not the products of cloning. The fat mice seem fine
until an age that would be the equivalent of 30 for a person, when their weight
starts to soar, said Dr. Ryuzo Yanagimachi, a University of Hawaii
researcher who first cloned these animals and has studied cloning's
consequences in them.

Cloned mice also tend to have developmental abnormalities, taking longer to
reach milestones like eye opening and ear twitching, Dr. Yanagimachi has
found.

Cow clones are often born with enlarged hearts or lungs that do not develop
properly, said Dr. Mark E. Westhusin, a cloning expert at Texas A & M
University in College Station, Tex. Dolly herself, while apparently healthy,
grew fat and had to be separated from the other sheep and put on a diet. But
her experience is difficult to interpret since it is hard to draw conclusions
about a propensity to obesity from one animal.

The genetic effects most often seem to be fatal at the very start of life,
researchers say. With cattle, for example, 100 attempts to create a clone
typically result in a single live calf, Dr. Westhusin said.

Cloning mice is more efficient, Dr. Yanagimachi said. But even then, only 2
percent to 3 percent of his attempts succeed.

"Cloned embryos have serious developmental and genetic problems," Dr.
Yanagimachi said, which usually kill them before birth. Just after birth, he
said, more die, usually of lung problems. He added that inbred strains are
much harder to clone than hybrid strains of mice, which makes sense, he
said. Inbred animals have much less genetic diversity and so less
opportunity to bypass genetic errors than hybrid animals.

Dr. Westhusin says that when he thinks about what happens in cloning, "it's
a wonder it works at all."

Scientists knew that every cell in the body has the same genes so, in
theory, all the instructions for making a new copy of an adult are present in
every cell. But most of the genes in an adult cell, like a skin cell or a brain
cell or a liver cell, are silenced. That is why those cells, which have reached
their final stage of development, never change. A skin cell does not turn into
a heart cell. A brain cell does not turn into a liver cell. And no one expected
an egg cell to be able to reprogram such an adult cell, somehow stripping its
genes bare of their chemical masks.

Dr. Jaenisch and Dr. Westhusin say that from preliminary molecular biology
experiments they are starting to see confirmation of their belief that
reprogramming can go awry. They are looking at molecular patterns of gene
expression in embryos created by cloning and comparing them to the
patterns in embryos created by normal fertilization. Their results so far are
consistent with their hypothesis that reprogramming can result in random
errors in almost any gene.

But scientists say that every species is different, and it remains possible
that it will be easier and safer to clone humans than it is to clone other
species.

Mouse eggs are fragile, Dr. Jaenisch said, which may complicate efforts to
clone. The solutions used to bathe cattle embryos while they are grown in
the laboratory seem to create a large-calf syndrome, resulting in large
placentas and huge calves that often die around the time of birth. But fertility
clinics that do in- vitro fertilization have vast experience in growing human
embryos in the laboratory and have perfected the method.

Some like Dr. Richard Rawlins, who directs the in-vitro fertilization laboratory
for the Rush Health System in Chicago say it is only a matter of time before
someone announces that a human has been cloned. "In my opinion," he
said, "all it takes right now is time, money and talent." The only question is
who will do it first, he added. It may be the two fertility experts who recently
announced that they wanted to clone a human, Dr. Panayiotis Zavos of the
Andrology Institute in Lexington, Ky., and Dr. Severino Antinori, a fertility
doctor in Rome. Or it may be a relative unknown.

Academic scientists say they would not dare to think of cloning a human at
this time. The very experiment would be so controversial that they would
become scientific pariahs, said Dr. Alan H. DeCherney, chairman of the
department of obstetrics and gynecology at the University of California in Los
Angeles. "You'd ruin your career," he said.

In the meantime, the House Energy and Commerce Subcommittee on
Oversight Investigations will hold hearings on human cloning on Wednesday,
with a witness list including ethicists and scientists.

http://dailynews.yahoo.com/htx/nyt/20010324/ts/researchers_find_grave_defe
ct
_risk_in_cloning_animals_1.html

via: Third_Watch@yahoogroups.com

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From research-bpr@philologos.org Sun Mar 25 18:40:41 2001
Date: Sun, 25 Mar 2001 18:40:41 -0500
Reply-To: bprlist@yahoogroups.com
Subject: [bprlist] (Fwd) PM SHARON'S BUREAU: NO INTENTION TO EVACUATE

------- Forwarded message follows -------
Date sent: Sun, 25 Mar 2001 17:16:55 -0500
From: imra@netvision.net.il
To: imra@imra.org.il
Subject: PM SHARON'S BUREAU:
NO INTENTION TO EVACUATE
ANY SETTLEMENT

PM SHARON'S BUREAU: NO INTENTION TO EVACUATE ANY SETTLEMENT

(Communicated by the Prime Minister's Media Adviser)

Sunday, March 25, 2001

In the wake of various media reports regarding promises by Prime
Minister Ariel Sharon to the Palestinians, the Prime Minister's Bureau
wishes to make it clear that there is no intention to evacuate any
settlement whatsoever, neither in the Gaza Strip nor in any other
place. Similarly, there is no intention to hand over any land to the
Palestinians whatsoever beyond that which was agreed upon in the Wye
Agreement (<http://www.israel-mfa.gov.il/mfa/go.asp?MFAH07o10>) in the
third withdrawal, and this will only be after the Palestinians have
fulfilled their commitments.

--------------------------------------------
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From research-bpr@philologos.org Sun Mar 25 18:42:33 2001
Date: Sun, 25 Mar 2001 18:42:33 -0500
Reply-To: bprlist@yahoogroups.com
Subject: [bprlist] Arab ministers set agenda for Amman summit

Sunday, March 25, 2001

Arab ministers set agenda for Amman summit

Reuters

AMMAN - Arab foreign ministers met yesterday to prepare for an Arab
League summit facing two key challenges - how to support the Palestinians'
Al Aqsa Intifada, and how to tackle the divisive issue of Iraq.

Egyptian Foreign Minister Amr Moussa told his colleagues in a televised
opening session the Intifada had flared because of an impasse in peace
efforts and miserable living conditions generated by "aggressive Israeli
policies"

He said simultaneous deadlock on the Syrian and Lebanese peace tracks
had prompted frustration among Arabs who felt the peace process begun at
the 1991 Madrid conference was crippled. Referring to Israel's new
government of Ariel Sharon, Moussa said the Arabs must confront "the return
of an aggressive expansionist policy and the policy of threats and
provocation"

"There can be no retreat from that and no peace without it," said Moussa,
who is expected to be chosen unopposed at the summit as the next
secretary-general of the 22-member Arab League.

Palestinians will ask the summit to fulfill an unpaid pledge of $1 billion in
support of their six-month-old uprising. However, Arab leaders are unlikely to
heed calls for reviving an Arab boycott or breaking all Arab ties with Israel.

Ministers were beginning two days of talks in Amman, where King Abdullah
will host next week's summit.

They were due to draft resolutions for the approval of Arab leaders who gather
here on Tuesday for their first regular summit since Iraq's 1990 invasion of
Kuwait.

The Arab-Israeli issue and the "state of affairs between Iraq and Kuwait" top
the political agenda, followed by a raft of issues concerning individual Arab
League members. Iraq's most influential newspaper, Babel, urged the leaders
to concentrate only on the two main topics.

"There are indications the summit needs to discuss more than 40 subjects. If
so the meeting will be confused in these topics at the expense of the two
main issues - the embargo on Iraq and the Palestinian Intifada," said Babel,
which is owned by President Saddam Hussein's eldest son Uday.

Jordanian Foreign Minister Abdulilah al-Khatib said Arabs and Palestinians
expected the summit to provide "direct and effective support" to the
Palestinians to help them cope with a paralyzing Israeli blockade on the
West Bank and Gaza Strip

http://www3.haaretz.co.il/eng/scripts/article.asp?mador=14&datee=3/25/01&i
d=114532

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From research-bpr@philologos.org Sun Mar 25 18:53:53 2001
Date: Sun, 25 Mar 2001 18:53:53 -0500
Reply-To: bprlist@yahoogroups.com
Subject: [bprlist] Daily World Affairs Report items (3/24/01)

I MAY DELAY ELECTION, ADMITS BLAIR

Tony Blair admitted for the first time yesterday that the general election,=

planned for May 3, might have to be postponed because of the F&M
epidemic. As he prepared to fly back from Stockholm today to take charge
of the crisis, he acknowledged that the Government had only 10 days to
convince the country that it could bring the disease under control and go
ahead with the election. The Prime Minister was subdued and strained as
he addressed a press conference at the EU summit in the Swedish capital
that was overshadowed by the epidemic. "There is no disguising this is a
serious picture. It is going to be a long haul." Mr Blair appeared rattled by
confirmation that Britain was in the grip of its worst F&M epidemic on
record. (The London Telegraph)=0E

&: Tony Blair had hoped that the EU summit in Stockholm would be
another carefully planned event in his preparations for a general election on
May 3. He wanted it to send out a message that Europe was becoming a
dynamic world economy, boosting job creation and opening up its financial
markets. Instead, he found himself appealing to other EU leaders to send al l
available vets to Britain to bring the F&M epidemic under control and
fending off criticism of the way he had tackled the crisis.

According to Downing Street, the Prime Minister was spending every spare
moment he had working flat out to tackle the epidemic. For once, his spin
doctors were not exaggerating. Mr Blair has been knocked sideways by the
rapid spread of the disease. A Prime Minister who loves to be in control
has suddenly found his Government out of its depth and at the mercy of
events.

It happened for a brief moment last autumn when the fuel protest brought
normal life to the brink of a standstill. The protesters pulled back in the nick
of time and the crisis passed. However the F&M virus is still spreading lik e
wildfire and is developing into the most serious national emergency the
country has faced since New Labour came to power.

The change in mood within Government is marked. For the first time, the
Labour leadership is seriously facing up to the prospect that the planned
May election would have to be put on hold. Until yesterday, it was just a
matter of driving to Buckingham Palace on April 2 and asking the Queen to
dissolve Parliament. Poster sites have been booked, the campaign plans
drawn up and the manifesto drafted. May 3 has been pencilled in Mr Blair's=

diary as the best date for a 2nd term in power.

Mr Blair and his senior aides are still desperately clinging to the hope th at
the election can go ahead. But there is an air of uncertainty that was not=

evident before. Officials openly acknowledged the seriousness of the
epidemic and placed more emphasis on the Prime Minister's willingness to
"listen" to those calling for the May 3 local elections, and by implication the
general election, to be postponed.

Mr Blair had hoped to use Stockholm to send out the message that tourists
could come to Britain. Instead, he used his press conference to outline the=

measures that he was taking to control the disease. Mr Blair has sought to=

make competence the hallmark of his administration. He and his ministers
made much of what they claimed was the Tories' failure to tackle BSE.
Now they will be judged on how they deal with a potentially even more
serious crisis for British agriculture. The Government faces an agonising
dilemma. Until now, its strategy has been to maintain an appearance of
normality and "business as usual" so that a general election could be held in
May.

Tory MPs are convinced one of the reasons why the Army has not been
mobilised in greater numbers is because the Government feared that it
would make it more difficult to justify calling an early election. But by
taking personal charge of the crisis, Mr Blair has raised the stakes. John=

Major, the former Prime Minister, claimed yesterday that the public might
conclude that the Prime Minister had taken leave of his senses if he were
to force a premature election before the disease was under control. He stil l
has an overwhelming Commons majority and a 5-year mandate that does
not run out until May next year.

When he was caught on camera talking to Romano Prodi, President of the
European Commission, Mr Blair unwittingly let slip that he has 10 days left=

in which to make up his mind. At that moment, Mr Campbell was telling
journalists that Mr Blair's #1 priority was foot and mouth and that he was=

"not remotely focused on the general election" which, he said, was the
concern of the press and Conservative politicians.

It was an embarrassing moment. But it highlighted the difficult decision th at
Mr Blair faces. Press ahead with the election and risk being accused of
putting party interest before country. Or decide whether or not to risk
calling the election, or even to postpone it. Given the scale of the crisis ,
October now seems the earliest realistic date that the election could be
held, as it is unlikely to be under control by June. (The London Telegraph) =0E

PEERS PETITION QUEEN ON EUROPE

Four peers invoked ancient rights under the Magna Carta yesterday to
petition the Queen to block closer integration with Europe. The Duke of
Rutland, Viscount Masserene and Ferrard, Lord Hamilton of Dalzell and
Lord Ashbourne were imbued with the spirit of the ancient Charter, thrust
on King John in 1215. In accordance with the Charter's Clause 61, the
famous enforcement clause, they presented a vellum parchment at
Buckingham Palace, declaring that the ancient rights and freedoms of the
British people had to be defended.

The clause, one of the most important in the Charter, which was pressed on=

King John at Runnymede, allows subjects of the realm to present a quorum
of 25 barons with a petition, which 4 of their number then have to take to=

the Monarch, who must accept it. It was last used in 1688 at the start of t he
Glorious Revolution. The 4 peers, who were all thrown out of Parliament in=

November 1999, proved they had that quorum by presenting Sir Robin
Janvrin, the Queen's private secretary, with the petition signed by 28
hereditaries and letters of support from another 60. In addition, they clai m
the support of thousands of members of the public.

They say that several articles in the Treaty of Nice agreed by Tony Blair i n
December will destroy fundamental British liberties. The Queen has 40
days to respond. Under the Magna Carta's provisions, if the Sovereign does=

not observe the Charter the people may rise up and wage war on her,
seizing castles, lands and possessions until they have redress. (The London=

Telegraph)

BOSSI EVOKES FASCIST PAST WITH TORCHLIT MARCH

Umberto Bossi, whose Northern League (NL) is poised to win power as
part of a centre-right coalition in Italian elections in May, will lead his green-
shirted vigilantes tonight in a torchlit march against illegal immigration near
Venice, despite accusations that such parades have sinister Fascist
overtones. Yesterday, as NL officials pasted up green posters advertising
the fiaccolata (torchlit march) in Mestre, the industrial suburb on the
mainland opposite Venice, Signor Bossi's aides denied that the league was=

racist or xenophobic. "We have nothing in common with J=F6rg Haider in
Austria," said Giovanni Fabris, a Venetian lawyer and former senator for=

the NL. "Like him we are defending the identity and traditions of our
citizens, but we are a democratic party."

Pietro Folena, a leader of the Party of the Democratic Left (PDS), the
main element in the centre-left Government, said that Signor Bossi and his=

followers were living out a dangerous fantasy. "They use extreme rhetoric ,
and have invented a country, Padania, that does not exist." Signor Bossi, a n
unkempt, unpredictable, gravel-voiced 60-year-old who knows how to play
a north Italian crowd, uses local dialect and rough humour to whip up anger=

against his targets. These range from illegal immigration to Freemasonry
and homosexual marriages, as well as the Left, which he routinely
describes as Red Fascism, and rule from Brussels ("the Soviet Union of
Europe").

He is invariably flanked by members of the 3,000-strong green-shirted
"Padanian National Guard", drawn from the ranks of the retired and the=

unemployed, who act as stewards at party rallies and patrol neighbourhoods=

to counteract street crime, much of which the League blames on illegal
immigrants. That Venice is a stronghold of the League may surprise those
who think of La Serenissima as a romantic tourist destination, but Signor
Bossi is able to draw on deep-seated resentment of rule "by the thieves o f
Rome and Brussels" in Venice itself, which had a long tradition as a
maritime republic, and in the surrounding region, the Veneto. (The London
Times)

BULGARIA'S EXILED KING HOPES TO BE PREMIER

The former monarch of Bulgaria, King Simeon II, is to return to the country=

and enter full-time politics after 50 years living in a mock castle in Madr id.
On his return, he will issue a "loud and clear" message of his political
intentions, he said. He plans a new cross-party political grouping that may=

present him as its candidate for prime minister in parliamentary elections=

scheduled for June. "I see after so many years, and after a lot of patience ,
this is definitely the moment to act. I am going back to enter Bulgarian
politics full-time with a view to winning a majority with a coalition of
political groups."

Simeon's father, Boris III, died in 1943, rumoured to have been poisoned by=

agents of Hitler. Crowned when he was 6, Simeon was driven out of
Bulgaria by the Communists 3 years later. The king - Simeon Borisov Saxe-
Coburgotski, 61, a financial consultant who speaks 6 languages - commands
considerable popularity in Bulgaria. He was considered the only contender
capable of ousting Petar Stoyanov in October's presidential election, even=

though he was a distant 2nd in the opinion polls.

The constitutional court ruled that he was not eligible for the presidency as
he had not lived in Bulgaria for enough time during the past 5 years.
Simeon's announced entry into politics has caused a frenzy of activity
among Bulgaria's parties, groups and movements. Over the past few
weeks, each faction has sent a delegation to Madrid to woo him. But he
said: "The aim is to work for Bulgaria, not for one party. If the majority of
Bulgarians see the advantages of a constitutional monarchy, very well. If
they don't, there are other ways to serve the country." (The London
Telegraph)

GERMANY TO PULL COMPLETE FORCE FROM MACEDONIA

The German Defense Ministry decided on Friday to withdraw all of its
peacekeeping forces from Macedonia because of the violent uprising being
waged there by Albanian rebels, a spokesman said. The ministry also is
sending an additional 170 soldiers who belong to an artillery unit in Germa ny
to Kosovo, the area neighboring Macedonia where NATO maintains a
peacekeeping force. The troops were sent in response to a request from
NATO, the spokesman said. The Macedonian-based troops now are
moving into Kosovo. (Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung)

&: The German contingent had been increasingly concerned that the
Macedonian government wanted to suck them into the fighting.Macedonian
tanks firing into the rebel positions in hills around Tetovo were positione d
close to the KFOR base, and Capt Hans Gunther Bender accused the
Macedonian government of deliberately trying to provoke NATO
casualties. He said that within days the rest of his unit's vehicles and
equipment would be transferred from Tetovo to positions in Kosovo and
elsewhere in Macedonia, leaving only a small force of soldiers to protect
the barracks and remaining equipment. (The London Telegraph)

MACEDONIA FAULTS U.S. RESPONSE

Senior Macedonian officials are becoming increasingly frustrated by the
lack of American engagement with the conflict here. They believe that
direct U.S. diplomacy coupled with a forceful condemnation of violence can=

stanch the growing support for ethnic Albanian extremists who launched a
guerrilla campaign last month. "It's classic," said Jason Miko, a senior
adviser to the Macedonian president, Boris Trajkovski. "The Americans
always come in too late. In Albanian eyes, the Americans can do no wrong.
And a strong statement of support would be very helpful. But it has not
been forthcoming."

A U.S. official rejected the criticism, saying "we have been extremely
engaged and we are not going to let this become another Bosnia." The
official said a White House statement on Macedonia was imminent.
Macedonian officials hope that a phone call expected from the U.S.
secretary of state, Colin Powell, to Mr. Trajkovski will be the beginning o f
an American effort to end the conflict and a catalyst for dialogue between=

the 2 communities in this increasingly ethnically divided country. "It's
obvious that the U.S. is not doing enough," said Antonio Milososki, a
spokesman for the prime minister, Ljubco Georgievski. (Int'l Herald
Tribune)

E.U. LEADERS BEG MACEDONIA TO SHOW MILITARY
RESTRAINT
The EU begged Macedonia to show military restraint against ethnic
Albanian extremists yesterday. One senior EU official said that the region=

was "on a knife-edge". EU leaders received President Trajkovski of
Macedonia, at their Stockholm summit in a show of support for his
Government. They promised to "stand by Macedonia in this critical moment=

in its history", and urged it to respond to extremist provocations "in a
restrained and proper manner".

"It must be clear extremism has no place in 21st century Europe," Goran=

Persson, the Swedish Prime Minister and summit host, said. "We urge the
people of Macedonia, not least the young people, to make a serious choice
for a Europe of co-operation, not extremism and isolation." EU officals s aid
they hoped to discourage Mr Trajkovski from unleashing a military
incapable of doing the job required of them. (The London Times)

U.S. MILITARY TURNS EYES TO THE EAST

America's military will look towards Asia and the Pacific rather than
Europe and the Atlantic under the Bush administration, White House
sources said yesterday. Donald Rumsfeld, the new Secretary of Defence,
is said to have presented President Bush with a strategic overview of the
armed forces this week which will presage a change in America's outlook
on the world. Sources said no decisions had yet been taken on the kind of
weapons the Pentagon might commission, but in broad terms the era of the
great aircraft carriers seemed likely to end. Mr Rumsfeld told Mr Bush that=

the US Navy should be looking to operate smaller, stealthier carriers that=

were less vulnerable to missile attack.

The US air force is expected to spend more on long-range bombers and
unmanned aircraft than on fighters such as the F-22 and the joint strike
fighter, in which Britain has already invested £2bn. A cut to that
programme, which looks increasingly likely, would embarrass the Ministry
of Defence and would not improve relations between the Government and
the White House.

In their 90-minute meeting on Wednesday, Mr Bush and Mr Rumsfeld
discussed how the Pacific would become the most likely theatre for future
US military operations as China increases as a threat while Russia declines .
There is growing fear in the Pentagon and on Capitol Hill that Mr Rumsfeld=

is about to institute root-and-branch reforms such as the US military has n ot
seen since the 1920s. (The London Telegraph)

MICHAEL TURNER =0F
(mykelturner@airmail.net)

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From chrispatt@yahoo.com Mon Mar 26 01:06:46 2001
Date: Sun, 25 Mar 2001 22:06:46 -0800 (PST)
Reply-To: bprlist@yahoogroups.com
Subject: [bprlist] Fwd: GAMLA: Arafat Plans Revived Palestinian Strikes from Lebanon

GAMLA Staff <email@gamla.org.il> wrote:
Date: Mon, 26 Mar 2001 00:39:23 -0500 (EST)
From: GAMLA Staff
Reply-to: GAMLA Staff
To: chrispatt@yahoo.com
Subject: GAMLA: Arafat Plans Revived Palestinian Strikes from Lebanon

***********************************************************************
GAMLA: NEWS AND VIEWS FROM ISRAEL
***********************************************************************
Volume 2 Issue 17 Jerusalem, Israel
2 Nissan, 5761 * * March 26, 2001

Inside:

1. Arafat Plans Revived Palestinian Strikes from Lebanon
2. Disarray Greets Arab League Summit

====================================================================== Gamla HomePage: http://www.gamla.org.il/english
Want to subscribe? : http://www.gamla.org.il/english/sub.htm
=======================================================================

Arafat Plans Revived Palestinian Strikes from Lebanon
*****************************************************

Syrian ruler Beshar Assad has decided he won't meet Arafat after all - even
in Amman, because of the Palestinian leader's insistence that they discuss
coordinating their two struggles and joining forces. Assad is willing to
discuss anything but that.

Arafat is doing much better in Baghdad. This morning, his special envoy, Azzam
al Ahmed, was given the formal title of Coordinator of Palestinian-Iraqi
relations. He was also received by the head of the Iraqi delegation to the
summit, Izzat Ibrahim, who is a member of the Iraqi Baath leadership. Together
they put the final touches on a joint strategy for the conference.

Arafat also sent a delegation to Beirut headed by Faisal al Husseini. This
morning, the group headed south for a visit to the Ein Hilweh refugee camp of
Sidon. For years, the dissident Fatah factions of south Lebanon have kept
their distance from Yasser Arafat's mainstream movement, objecting to Oslo and
any peace moves. Husseini's mission was to patch up the long quarrel. To this
end, he called on Muneir Makdakh head of Fatah militia of south Lebanon to
discuss burying the hatchet and recruiting his militiamen to the intifada.
Sending Lebanon-based Palestinians to launch terrorist strikes against Israeli
targets in Galilee and Golan is Arafat's ploy for opening his own second front
against Israel, without depending on a by-your-leave from the Hizballah and
Syria.

Disarray Greets Arab League Summit
**********************************

Saudi foreign minister Saud el Faisal walked of the foreign ministers'
conference in a temper and flew straight back to Jeddah, telling his entourage
that his government could not care less what the Arab foreign ministers do. He
turned his back on his bickering colleagues and their wrangles over they draft
resolutions they were preparing for the Arab League summit conference opening
in two days time in Amman, the first such regular conference since Iraqi
invaded Kuwait in 1990.

DEBKAfile's Arab affairs sources add that King Muhammed of Morocco has finally
decided to stay away, like the Saudi, Omani and Kuwaiti rulers, and has even
ordered his prime minister not to attend the summit. All those countries will
be represented by low-level officials.

The Arab world is still deeply divided over Saddam Hussein's Iraq. One of the
two main camps is led by the Saudis and Kuwaitis who want to block pro-Iraqi
decisions and the moves to restore Iraq to the Arab fold. The other, led by
Egypt and Syria, favors Iraq's full rehabilitation in the Arab arena. The
argument has caused the Palestinian question to be dropped to second place on
the agenda. The most important draft decision expected from the foreign
ministers is a united Arab call on the UN to release one billion euros of
frozen Iraqi oil revenues to be channeled as assistance to the Palestinians.
This would be yet another ruse for breaking through the wall of UN sanctions
against Iraq in place for 11 years.

Other decisions call for unreserved Arab support for the Palestinian intifada,
a $40m a month subsidy to finance the struggle, a demand to try Israeli
leaders as war criminals and a committee to consider re-activating the
anti-Israel Arab boycott.

The last item was put forward by Syrian foreign minister Farouk el Shara.
Moroccan King Muhammad's absence could be important because, as chairman of
the Arab League's Jerusalem Committee, it cuts the ground from under Arafat's
plan to make Jerusalem a core issue at the summit.

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