June 1995, Pages 22-28

Issues in the News

Compiled by Greg Noakes

FROM THE ISRAELI AND U.S. JEWISH PRESS:

Israel Satellite Success, Setback:

Israel's Ofek-3 satellite, a scientific and commercial satellite which also has military intelligence capabilities, was launched successfully by Israel Aircraft Industries (IAI) and currently is circling the earth at an altitude of 300 to 400 miles, according to the daily Ma'ariv. The satellite can "make out license plates in Baghdad," according to one IAI official, and is equipped with high-resolution photographic equipment and electronic surveillance devices. "The widening gap between Israel and its neighbors is measured in light years," Ma'ariv commented, "because they are still trying to produce missiles using World War II technology." Sources say Ofek-3, which has an expected life-span of one year, will gather intelligence on neighboring Arab states. The idea of an Israeli spy satellite was first floated in March 1991 by then-Defense Minister Moshe Arens, who was bitter over the Bush administration's decision to limit Israeli access to U.S. satellite intelligence on Iraq. A separate $3.5 million research and communications satellite built by the Technion-Israel Institute of Technology did not fare as well as the Ofek-3, however. The Gurwin-1 TechSat, named for New York businessman Joseph Gurwin, who helped finance the project, was destroyed shortly after it was launched by the Russian Space Agency on board a converted SS-25 missile. Technion officials said they were surprised and disappointed, and that future project cooperation with Moscow would depend on the findings of an investigation into the launch failure.

Morocco Opens Israel Office:

Morocco recently opened a liaison office in Tel Aviv, though without much fanfare, according to the Jewish Telegraphic Agency. The office, headed by Moroccan diplomat Talal Gofrani and staffed by two other Moroccan representatives, will issue visas to Israelis traveling to the North African kingdom but will not conduct diplomatic business since Morocco and Israel have yet to exchange formal diplomatic recognition. Morocco operates a similar liaison office with the Palestinian National Authority in Gaza. One Israeli official said the lack of a formal ceremony or even a public announcement of the Tel Aviv office's opening was due to the Moroccans' desire that "everything remain low-profile."

Al Hamishmar Folds:

Al Hamishmar, a daily paper associated with the Israeli left, ceased publication after 52 years due to mounting financial losses. The newspaper, owned by the collective Hakibbutz Ha'artzi, lost money over the last decade as its circulation slipped from a high of 14,000 readers to only 8,000 subscribers.

Rabin Warns of "Islamic Wave":

Israeli Prime Minister Yitzhak Rabin told the Knesset Foreign Affairs and Defense Committee that the rise of radical Islamism in the Muslim world poses the greatest threat to the nation's security, according to the Itim news agency. If people are "looking for the threat to Israel's security," Rabin said, "I wouldn't point at the Syrians but at Islamic extremism. If you have to define the true threat...it is the wave of Islamic radicalism." Rabin warned against proposed cuts in American foreign aid, saying, "The U.S. and Europe must understand that without economic aid, the face of the Middle East will change, because the Islamic wave is built on poverty." The prime minister noted that it is not only Israel which feels threatened, telling the Knesset that Turkish Prime Minister Tansu Ciller recently asked him to tell the Western world how her nation is fighting the spread of Islamic extremism.

Hebrew Requirement Revised:

Israel's Interior Ministry has revised its language requirement for citizenship applications by non-Jews in response to protests by the Israeli Druze community, according to the Jerusalem Post. The decision results from the case of Nassima Abu Hiya, who is married to an Israeli Druze citizen and has four sons currently serving in either the Israel Defense Force or Border Police. Mohammed Abu Hiya told reporters his wife's application for an Israeli passport was turned down because she was a Druze and spoke no Hebrew. Druze Knesset Member Assad Assad said the Abu Hiya case was not an isolated incident, pointing to a Druze Israeli military officer who was wounded in action in Lebanon but was denied Israeli citizenship because his parents were born in Syria. An Interior Ministry spokesperson said that Nassima Abu Hiya will receive her passport and that under new guidelines for the Law of Citizenship, "if somebody is married to an Israeli citizen and their children serve or have served in the army, [the Hebrew language] condition does not have to be applied." Non-Hebrew-speaking Jews remain unaffected by either the old or new rules, since they automatically qualify for citizenship under Israel's Law of Return.

Lahat Says Settlements Must Go:

Shlomo Lahat, a former leader in the Likud party who served as mayor of Tel Aviv for two decades, told a New York audience that Israel should permit the establishment of a demilitarized Palestinian state, forcibly remove all Israeli settlers from the occupied territories if necessary, and give the Palestinians all of the occupied territories except Jerusalem. Lahat, who is president of the Council for Peace and Security, a group of former Israeli military officers, said that a breakdown in the peace process could provoke an attack on Israel by Iraq, Iran, Syria and/or Libya within three years. Lahat said a continued Israeli presence in the occupied territories was untenable, arguing that "to dominate a people against their will always proved wrong." Lahat believes most settlers will leave the territories voluntarily if the Israeli government provides housing for them within the Green Line, but that force should be used against settlers who refuse to move, according to the Queens (NY) Jewish Week. "Are we going to let them stand in the way [of peace]?" Lahat asked.

Palestinian Employment Falsified:

The Jerusalem Post reports that Hisham Hawartni, a professor of economics at An-Najah University, charges Israel's Central Bureau of Statistics (CBS) with willfully underestimating the jobless rate in the occupied territories. Recent CBS numbers show an unemployment rate in the West Bank (excluding Jericho) of 7.8 percent in 1994, while Hawartni quotes a Palestinian survey which found unemployment rates of 47 percent in the West Bank and 58 percent in Gaza. "Such deviation in the figures for average unemployment is not benign. We originally thought it was a methodological error, but now we see it is more than that," Hawartni said. "They want to send a message to the media and the World Bank that the situation is not so bad." CBS spokesperson David Neuman denied the bureau intentionally lowers the unemployment numbers for the occupied territories.

Labor Pushing Hamas to Vote:

Nissim Zvili, general secretary of Israel's ruling Labor Party, says Israeli officials are meeting behind the scenes with leaders of Hamas to encourage the Islamist movement to participate in future Palestinian elections. Ha'aretz notes the contacts are a departure from the Israeli government's original stance on the group's electoral participation. Now, according to Zvili, "it is very important to enable Hamas' participation in these elections. Everyone understands that if Hamas is to be moderated somewhat, it must be drawn into the process." Zvili said Hamas political leadership should not be held responsible for all of the actions of the 'Izz al-Din Qassem Brigades, the movement's military wing. "If the political leaders of Hamas think they can gain from the [electoral] process, this will be an incentive to isolate the armed branch," the Labor official said. Zvili added that before Hamas fields candidates the group must renounce its declared aim of the destruction of Israel and its support for armed struggle, but not its opposition to the peace process, as Israel demanded originally. Zvili noted that the Israel-Hamas contacts were "not official," but had continued for some time. "We have always had contacts with Hamas people," he said.

"Jerusalem 3000" Meets Opposition:

Israeli-organized festivities marking three millennia since King David named Jerusalem as his capital will be boycotted by the Vatican and the United Kingdom, and Israel's Foreign Ministry confirms that Israeli diplomats in other European countries are meeting with political opposition to the "Jerusalem 3000" celebration. According to the Jerusalem Post, the festivities are set to begin in September. Jerusalem Mayor Ehud Olmert said the celebration will not focus on Judaism, but instead will include non-Jewish events to show the interfaith nature of the city. "Jerusalem today is a city that permits a freedom of religion that never existed before, and we have an interest in demonstrating this to the entire world," Olmert declared. "We recognize that most of the world does not recognize Israeli rule in Jerusalem, but this is not the issue." Festival organizer Yossi Tal-Gan added, "We are talking about a celebration of an historic fact, not about making any kind of political statement." Scheduled events during the $11 million festival include the staging of Ludwig van Beethoven's opera Fidelio, a concert of Psalms by Spanish tenor José Carreras, a performance by the Pittsburgh Symphony and a light-and-sound show directed by Franco Zefirelli.

Congressional Alliance Favors Foreign Aid:

African-American members of Congress are joining with Jewish lawmakers and pro-Israel activists to protect U.S. foreign aid to both sub-Saharan Africa and the Middle East. The Jewish Telegraphic Agency reports the two groups came together at a Capitol Hill meeting in late March to pledge their mutual support for the continuation of current levels of aid to the two regions. The Congressional Black Caucus' Alcee Hastings (D-FL) called for the meeting "to continue our historic alliance and save this vital program." Annual U.S. aid to all of Africa totals some $800 million, a fraction of the billions of dollars set aside every year for Israel, and is considered more vulnerable to congressional budget cuts than aid to the Middle East. Jess Hordes, Washington director of the Anti-Defamation League of B'nai B'rith (ADL), said the alliance will prove mutually beneficial. "We need to work hard to keep the foreign aid package as large as possible," he argued. "This is a natural issue for us to work together on." An aide to a black lawmaker told the JTA, "I can assure you that the votes will not be there for aid to Israel if there is no aid to Africa. There's no way that my boss can go back to the district and defend giving Israel $3 billion if Africa gets little or nothing." Gary Ackerman (D-NY), Howard Berman (D-CA), Peter Deutsch (D-FL) and Eliot Engel (D-NY) were the Jewish lawmakers at the meeting, while the African-American contingent consisted of Hastings, Major Owens (D-NY), Albert Wynn (D-MD), Earl Hilliard (D-AL), James Clyburn (D-SC), William Jefferson (D-LA), Eddie Bernice Johnson (D-TX) and Congressional Black Caucus Chairman Donald Payne (D-NJ). Representatives from the ADL, the American-Israel Public Affairs Committee (AIPAC), the American Jewish Congress, the American Jewish Committee, the Religious Action Center for Reform Judaism and the World Jewish Congress also were in attendance.

Oz May Face Incitement Charge:

Likud Knesset Member Limor Livnat has called for noted Israeli author Amos Oz to face trial for writing an "inciteful article" in the New York Times, the Itim news agency reports. The editorial, "The Hamas-Likud Connection," unfairly links the two groups, according to Livnat. In addition to her demand for criminal charges, Livnat also called for the removal of Oz's books from Israeli schools and a ban on any appearances by the author before Israeli schoolchildren.

PNA Funding Jerusalem Schools:

The Jerusalem Post reports the Palestinian National Authority has taken over the funding of Islamic schools in Jerusalem while leaving the old Jordanian administration intact to appease Israeli authorities. The waqf (Islamic religious endowment) educational system, which includes 8,000 students enrolled in 20 schools, was under Jordanian authority from 1948 until the current school year, when the PNA assumed control. A recent budgetary crisis in the waqf schools was resolved after PNA Minister Without Portfolio Faisal Husseini raised the needed funds from Saudi Arabia as part of the Kingdom's multi-million dollar aid package for Palestinian development in the city. Jerusalem Mayor Ehud Olmert said the PNA's involvement in the schools violates the Oslo agreement and threatens Israeli sovereignty over the city, and has raised the issue directly with Israeli Prime Minister Yitzhak Rabin, according to the Post. "We are being very careful not to anger Israel," one Palestinian educational official told the paper. "But we are not really afraid. What is [Israel] going to do, close down all the schools? Israel tried to force its education system on East Jerusalem in 1967 but failed, and the Jordanian system remained intact. It won't be able to do anything to stop the Palestinian Authority either." In addition to its direct administration of the Islamic schools, the PNA's Education Ministry regularly sends supervisors to inspect other schools in East Jerusalem and will register the grades and diplomas of all of the city's 40,000 Palestinian students.

Shin Bet Shaken:

Shin Bet, Israel's internal intelligence service, has been rocked by internecine quarrels and high-level resignations since the appointment in early March of a new chief, Yediot Ahronot reports. "K," whose identity is considered an Israeli state secret, is accused by dissident Shin Bet officials of being too inexperienced in Palestinian affairs "to carry out the Shin Bet's main mission: the fight against Arabs in the territories." Half of the service's 12 department heads have resigned or plan to resign over "K's" appointment by Prime Minister Yitzhak Rabin. "K" is an expert on Jewish extremists, played a key role in dismantling networks of Jewish fanatics who killed Arabs and attempted to blow up Jerusalem's Al-Aqsa mosque in the 1980s, and authored a 1994 government report on the anti-Arab Kach movement which concluded that Jewish radicals constitute a long-term threat to Israeli democracy.

Peres Ordered Vanunu Kidnapping:

Israeli Foreign Minister Shimon Peres ordered the 1986 kidnapping of Mordechai Vanunu, a former technician at Israel's Dimona nuclear facility who leaked information about the country's nuclear weapons program to London's Sunday Times newspaper. The revelation of Peres' direct role in the abduction, which occurred during his tenure as prime minister, follows a decision by Israel's military censor to permit the weekly Kol Ha'ir to publish the information after the paper appealed to the Israeli Supreme Court. Foreign Ministry spokespeople refused to comment on the story or the foreign minister's involvement in the abduction. According to the report, Peres personally ordered the kidnapping of Vanunu with the stipulation that it not be carried out on British soil to avoid complicating Tel Aviv-London relations. Vanunu was lured from Britain to Rome by a female Mossad agent, taken into custody by Israeli intelligence and spirited back to Israel to stand trial for treason. Vanunu currently is serving an 18-year sentence in solitary confinement. Other new information in the Kol Ha'ir report includes excerpts from a letter written by Mordechai Vanunu before his arrest to his brother, Meir, in which he says he was leaking Israeli nuclear secrets for political and ideological reasons. In the past, Israeli officials have suggested Vanunu's actions were undertaken for financial gain. The report also discredited Israel's previous contention that Vanunu lost his job at Dimona in 1985 because of budget cutbacks, pointing to a Shin Bet report which labeled the technician a security risk after he joined a leftist political party and participated in protests against Israeli military operations in Lebanon.

Indyk Places Israeli Security over Palestinian Economics:

Martin Indyk, who recently was confirmed as U.S. ambassador to Israel, told the "CBS Morning News" that Israeli security concerns must be met before attention can be given to the economic needs of the Palestinians. In his remarks, carried by the Jerusalem Post, Indyk said "there will not be—cannot be—economic progress in circumstances where the Israelis find themselves in a situation where, to protect their citizens, they have to take actions which are having very negative economic effects on the Palestinians...So I think that the cart comes before the horse in this case and the security issues have to be dealt with."

Dogs Killed in Hebron:

Employees of the Israeli Civil Administration shot and killed dozens of dogs in Hebron while the West Bank city's Palestinian residents were confined to their houses under a nighttime curfew. Israeli officials say 90 dogs were killed in one night in April in order to eliminate the threat of rabies, but Hebron residents claim 150 animals were killed for a different reason. "The dogs were killed because they barked and alerted us to night operations whenever Israeli patrols came up through the streets," one Palestinian told the New York Times. "They didn't shoot the stray dogs kept by the settlers, did they?" Mesbah Tahboub, head of Hebron's municipal health department, said his department was notified only after the incident, adding that a number of the dogs that were shot were not strays and some were working dogs owned by local shepherds. "When you see that many of the dogs were domestic pets or shepherd dogs, you have to raise some questions about the motives," Tahboub said. The Itim news agency reports Environment Minister Yossi Sarid also was unconvinced by the Civil Administration's explanation of the killings. Sarid, a member of the leftist Meretz party, called the shootings "unacceptable" and cautioned against any other actions "that will hurt the feelings of so many people."

FROM THE MIDDLE EASTERN PRESS:

Palestine

Mossad Forecasting Faulty:

Israeli Foreign Minister Shimon Peres told former U.S. Defense Secretary Les Aspin that the vaunted Mossad intelligence agency predicted at the onset of the peace process that the Arab-Israeli talks were doomed to failure, PLO Chairman Yasser Arafat would never make any concessions, and Jordan's King Hussein would not sign a peace treaty ahead of Syria. Aspin told a Washington, DC dinner forum that during a recent visit to Israel Peres told him, "There isn't one thing that has happened on this peace process that those guys...in the Mossad predicted, not one...They were telling us this, they were telling us that—all of which turned out to be wrong." According to the Khaleej Times, Aspin told the dinner audience there is "huge disgruntlement with the intelligence community in Israel because they failed to predict all the peace initiatives."

Shaath Predicts Palestinian State:

Nabil Shaath, planning and international cooperation minister in the Palestinian National Authority, told the Jerusalem Times that despite present difficulties in the peace process, he has "no doubt that the Palestinian state will be created in five years' time...I have no doubt either that all Palestinian refugees will return to their homeland. The settlement issue will be solved and the Palestinian economy will progress." Nevertheless, Shaath conceded there are obstacles in the path to peace. "I am pessimistic about the tactical progress but optimistic from the strategic point of view," he said. "My pessimism comes from the Israeli side and their policy of delay during the negotiations."

AID Cuts Close Disabled Society:

Cuts in financial support from the U.S. Agency for International Development (AID) are forcing the closure of Gaza's Society for Handicapped Children, the Jerusalem Times reports. Hatem Abu Ghazaleh, head of the organization, appealed to AID officials to reconsider the cuts. The society employs 263 workers and serves 3,000 disabled children in the Gaza Strip.

Husseini Cautions on Israel Ties:

Palestinian National Authority official Faisal Husseini warned Arab states not to normalize relations with Israel before it implements its accord with the Palestinians and signs peace agreements with Syria and Lebanon. He also urged Arab leaders to link the opening of bilateral relations with Israel to a commitment by Tel Aviv to a non-nuclear Middle East, according to the Saudi Gazette. "If Israel succeeds in normalizing relations with the Arab and Muslim states without paying any price for peace, it would feel that there is no reason why it should respect the rights of other countries," Husseini said. The PNA official's remarks were made in Jeddah during a Middle East tour designed to secure support for the Palestinian position on the final status of Jerusalem.

Mufti Calls for Jerusalem Liberation:

Sheikh Akrama Sabri, the Yasser Arafat-supported mufti of Jerusalem and imam of the Al-Aqsa mosque, supports a jihad to free the city from Israeli occupation but added that this does not necessarily mean armed struggle. "It is a duty of all Muslims to stand together to liberate Holy Jerusalem and return it to Arab and Islamic sovereignty," the mufti told Ash-Sharq Al-Awsat. Sabri said any proposed "internationalization" of Jerusalem was "another mask for Israeli occupation" and suggested instead giving responsibility for the city's Muslim religious sites to "an Islamic authority from various Islamic countries until occupied Jerusalem is liberated and becomes the Palestinian capital." Sabri told the London-based daily that "nothing has changed" since the signing of the Declaration of Principles in September 1993. "Blood is still flowing, the honor of the Palestinians is still being violated and massacres by the occupying forces are continuing," the mufti declared.

Sourani Dismissal Criticized:

The dismissal of Gaza Center for Rights and Law Executive Director Raji Sourani by the center's board of directors has been criticized severely by the Palestinian human rights community, according to the Jerusalem Times. The board said Sourani had been dismissed for "professional reasons," but Sourani said the motive was political. "[The board members] are a cheap tool executing a policy," he said. "The PNA doesn't like what we have been doing here...We were severely attacked when we criticized the policy of collective arrests and the establishment of the state security courts...[t]he only people who supported the idea of the state security courts are Israeli Prime Minister Yitzhak Rabin, French Foreign Affairs Minister Alain Juppé and U.S. Vice President Al Gore." Over a dozen of the center's employees took out an advertisement in the Al-Quds daily which expressed support for Sourani, condemned the board of directors' decision to fire him, and demanded his reinstatement. A number of Palestinian human rights organizations, including Al-Haq, the Mandela Institute, and the Palestinian Human Rights Information Center, sent a letter to the board condemning Sournai's ouster, while Hanan Ashrawi's Independent Palestinian Commission for Citizens' Rights is launching an investigation into the affair. "We are convinced that there is injustice and unprofessionalism regarding this case," Ashrawi said. Board chairman Zuheir Rayyes responded by saying Ashrawi "portrayed the situation as a violation of democratic behavior, but overlooked the fact that the decision was made by all members of the board. Hanan Ashrawi should know that in a Third World country some young men are always sniffing around for authority and these men will become pretentious and lose interest in teamwork." Sourani said his human rights activities will continue. "The core of the center has been moved to my private office," he told the Jerusalem Times.

Syria/Lebanon

Lebanese Missing Declared Dead:

Lebanon's parliament has passed legislation allowing the 17,000 Lebanese still missing as a result of the country's 15-year civil war to be declared officially dead. An-Nahar reports the legislation will permit relatives of the missing to inherit property held in trust and spouses of those presumed dead to remarry. Current Lebanese law prohibits families from declaring missing members dead for up to 100 years, and each of the country's major religious groups has its own teachings: Maronite Christians permit the declaration of death after one century, Shi'i Muslims hold to a 10-year waiting period, and the four Sunni Muslim law schools have different rulings. Not all relatives accept that their loved ones are dead, however. Samira Berri, a Shi'i, told the New York Times that she believes three of her sons were kidnapped by a Christian militia in 1982 and have been held in Israel since 1989, at which point she lost contact with them. In Oct. 1993 the International Committee of the Red Cross said Israel was holding 11 Lebanese kidnap victims, though Tel Aviv has refused to comment on the charge.

Torture in SLA Prison:

"What the captives at Khiam jail suffer is more than what the human mind can imagine," said one Lebanese doctor after treating prisoners released by Israel's proxy South Lebanon Army (SLA). Some 250 prisoners still are held without trial at the SLA's Khiam prison, which is located in Israel's self-declared "security zone" in southern Lebanon, according to Lebanese radio. Dr. Ra'ef Rida told reporters that his examinations of recently freed captives "found results that are in contradiction to the United Nations' international declaration forbidding mistreatment, beatings and physical and psychological pressure." Doctors in Beirut found some captives had suffered broken fingers and ripped-out fingernails, head injuries from beatings, malnutrition, arteriosclerosis and low blood pressure in the legs as a result of being forced to stand for long periods of time.

Hezbollah Calls Off Truce:

Lebanon's Shi'i Hezbollah militia has declared it will no longer be bound by an informal 21-month truce with Israel and "will confront the enemy unrelentingly" following an Israeli helicopter assault on its positions, according to the Khaleej Times. The tacit agreement between Hezbollah and Israel was brokered by the United States in July 1993 following an Israeli attack which killed some 100 Lebanese residents. Hezbollah had agreed to stop firing rockets into northern Israel if Tel Aviv halted attacks against civilian targets in south Lebanon. A recent Israeli helicopter attack killed a Hezbollah military commander, however, and prompted the militia to launch a barrage of Katyusha rockets against Israel the following day. "If the enemy bombards our villages, we will bombard his," declared Sheikh Hassan Nasrullah. "The inhabitants of southern Lebanon will not be the only ones forced to flee."

Jordan

Hussein Cured of Cancer:

Jordan's King Hussein says his American doctors have given him a clean bill of health and are confident he is cured of cancer. In a letter to his brother, Crown Prince Hassan, read over Jordanian television, Hussein wrote, "I'm happy to tell you that all medical tests...showed my complete recovery from cancer and doctors have assured me that it will not recur." The king underwent surgery in August 1992 at Minnesota's Mayo Clinic to remove cancerous growths from his ureter and kidney.

Jordan Will Curb Hamas Activities:

Jordanian Foreign Minister Abdelkarim Kabariti told reporters that Jordan does not condone violent acts by Hamas and pledged to curb "illegal" acts within its territory by any group, according to the Petra news agency. "Jordan refuses to take the responsibility for any terrorist activities not related to any certified Jordanian group," Kabariti said, adding that as a Palestinian organization, Hamas "activities fall within the boundaries of the self-rule zone and the Palestinian occupied territories." Interior Minister Salameh Hammad reportedly summoned Amman-based Hamas spokesman Ibrahim Ghosheh, who is also a Jordanian citizen, and warned him against making statements which might "harm another state."

Israeli Tourism a Bust:

Jordanian hopes for a windfall from Israeli tourism in the Hashemite Kingdom have failed to materialize six months and 20,000 Israeli tourists after the signing of the Israeli-Jordanian peace treaty. According to the Khaleej Times, 900 Israeli tourists are admitted to Jordan each day, but they appear to be leaving most of their money at home. "Israeli tourists are tight with their money," complained one carpet-seller in Madaba, a town south of Amman which boasts a Byzantine church with a map of Palestine set in mosaic. "I prefer the Americans and Europeans who have never seen Jordanian craftwork before," said another Madaba merchant, noting that similar goods are offered for sale in the Old City of Jerusalem and thus have little novelty for Israeli buyers. Officials in Amman, fearful of possible reactions among Jordanians, have arranged for discreet security escorts for Israeli tour groups. Some Israeli extremists reportedly have tried to lay claim to certain sites in Jordan, such as Jabal Harun, near the Nabatean city of Petra, thought to be the site of the Prophet Aaron's tomb. Both the Israeli and Jordanian press have carried reports of Israeli tourists accused of theft and attempting to defraud their Jordanian hosts by passing off old Israeli shekels as legal tender or using forged Jordanian dinars. According to an Israeli press report, one Israeli couple was arrested after leaving their Amman hotel room with everything of value, including the bathroom fixtures.

Egypt/Sudan

Bashir Warns Against Rebel Attacks:

Sudanese President Omar Hassan al-Bashir warned southern Sudanese rebels and the outlawed Umma Party against any armed assaults on government targets in the north, saying they would "be playing with fire" and that the regime "would swiftly respond to any attacks." Bashir's warning was made on Sudanese state television in reponse to reports that the southern Sudanese People's Liberation Army (SPLA), which has fought successive governments in Khartoum since 1983, had formed an alliance with the former ruling Umma Party, which was overthrown by Bashir in a 1989 coup. Former Prime Minister Sadiq al-Mahdi denied reports of a common front with the SPLA and plans for joint attacks in the north of the country, saying his Umma Party was opposed to the use of violence in the restoration of democracy in the Sudan.

Moonlighting Teachers Arrested:

Some 60 teachers in the northern Egyptian city of Alexandria have been arrested and could be fired after complaints by parents that they were forcing children to take expensive private tutoring sessions, Al-Ahram reports. The arrests are the first sign of Education Minister Hussein Kamel Bahaeddin's declared "war on tutorials." The minister announced in March that a "private lessons mafia" of teachers was forcing students to hire tutors, in some cases assaulting pupils who refused to pay for lessons. Some teachers were earning over $800 a month from private teaching sessions, according to reports.

Turabi Raps Rights Groups:

Hassan al-Turabi, head of Sudan's National Islamic Front and one of the Muslim world's pre-eminent Islamist leaders, accused Amnesty International of being in the pay of British intelligence and questioned the impartiality of Western human rights organizations. According to the SUNA news agency, Turabi told a news conference marking the end of a four-day meeting in Khartoum of the Popular Arab and Islamic Conference (PAIC) that Western human rights organizations criticize Sudan unfairly "because it has chosen an Islamic identity." Regarding Amnesty International, Turabi remarked, "I have spent seven years of my life in prison, but my name was not mentioned in their reports because I am what they call the 'fundamentalist Dr. Turabi.' Who is it that funds [Amnesty]? It is the British intelligence service," Turabi charged. Turabi said the PAIC, formed as a non-governmental alternative to the more conservative Organization of the Islamic Conference (OIC) during the Gulf war, "suggested reformulating an Islamic human rights charter according to our view, which is close to the real Christian view," and called for the creation of an international Islamic human rights organization.

Police Nab Profligate "Prince":

Egyptian police arrested a man who swindled members of Cairo's elite out of thousands of dollars by posing as a Gulf prince, the Egyptian Gazette reports. The man adopted a fake Gulf accent, stayed in five-star hotels in Cairo and Alexandria, and spent other people's money extravagantly, according to Egyptian authorities. Over 30 companies and individuals lost money to the unidentified man, who police say has a prior criminal record. Egyptian officials caught up with the "prince" after he allegedly stole a car from a belly dancer he met at a party.

North Africa

Saharan Plebiscite Postponed Again:

United Nations Secretary-General Boutros Boutros-Ghali announced that the U.N.-supervised referendum on the future of the Western Sahara will be postponed again. The MAP news agency reports the plebiscite, rescheduled for October 1995 after numerous delays, will not take place before January 1996. Morocco claims the Western Sahara, a Spanish colony until 1976, as sovereign Moroccan territory, while the Polisario Front has declared it the independent Sahrawi Arab Democratic Republic. Arguments over voter eligibility, Polisario charges of U.N. favoritism toward Morocco, and allegations that Rabat is populating the disputed territory with Moroccan settlers in violation of international law have hampered the referendum process, which the U.N. began in 1991.

Dialogue the Path to Peace:

Algerian Foreign Minister Mohammed Salah Dembri told reporters in London that creation of a national dialogue is the key to ending Algeria's civil strife and that all political organizations are welcome to participate if they reject violence. The APS news agency said Dembri confirmed the government's intention to proceed with presidential elections before the end of the year, despite a demand by opposition parties that elections be preceded by the creation of an interim national unity government. Dembri criticized last January's Rome meeting of major Algerian opposition groups, saying, "What we do not understand and what we condemn is the moving of discussions abroad. There is no reason why dialogue should not be carried out in Algeria and a solution reached in Algeria. When we have democracy it will be in Algiers, not in Rome." Dembri also said unofficial estimates that 40,000 Algerians have been killed since the army's cancellation of elections in January 1992 are too high, noting that the official tally stands at 10,000 dead.

Arabian Peninsula

Saudis Reject Development Bank:

Saudi Arabia's rejection of a proposed Middle East development bank is final, according to Saudi Minister of Commerce Soliman al-Solaim. In an interview with Ash-Sharq Al-Awsat, Solaim said the region's existing financial institutions are sufficient for its needs and there is no need for the development bank, which was proposed at last year's Casablanca economic summit and has considerable American and Israeli support. Solaim also said that Saudi Arabia soon will upgrade its participation in the World Trade Organization (WTO) from observer status to full membership. The minister argued it was better to be a participant within the WTO than to remain outside and still be affected by the body's decisions.

Kuwaiti Islamist Blasts Liberals:

Kuwaiti Islamist politician Ahmad Baqr told Al-Anbaa that the country's liberals violate the principles of Islam and rush to embrace Western values at the expense of their heritage. Baqr, a member of Kuwait's parliament, said, "Liberals do not respect any issue based on shariah [Islamic law]. They mock every Islamic matter and take pride in any Western thing and regard it as divine, even if it is bad." Baqr also criticized those Islamists who participate in Kuwait's governing coalition. "What do the religious brothers in the government do? Don't they see the catastrophic programs broadcast by the [state-operated] television?" he asked. "There is not a single song broadcast by television without a dancing woman. Does that conform with the Islamic shariah?"

Bahrain Takes Tough Line on "Terrorism":

Bahraini Interior Minister Sheikh Muhammad bin Khalifa Al Khalifa told the country's Shura Council that "acts of violence, sabotage and terrorism will end and will be quashed," and charged that an "extremist religious organization" is behind recent civil unrest in Bahrain. The Gulf News Agency quoted Sheikh Muhammad as saying "a religious fundamentalist organization" with "illegal aims and objectives" was "linked to a foreign political party and is backed by a foreign power," though he provided no details. Prime Minister Sheikh Khalifa bin Salman Al Khalifa told the Saudi Gazette that "the incidents were instigated from outside and were thwarted and firmly dealt with before they upset the stability and tranquility of Bahraini society," adding that "life is absolutely normal now in Manama and the surrounding towns and villages, even though some among the misguided...do try to venture out at night." The prime minister criticized "malicious and totally unfair propaganda disseminated abroad" about the unrest, which began last December, and warned other members of the Gulf Cooperation Council to confront such media campaigns firmly, "for what happens to one country today may happen to another in a different form in the future."

IDB Supervising Hajj Sacrifices:

Saudi Arabia's Islamic Development Bank (IDB) is importing some 500,000 sheep and 15,000 head of cattle and camels for this year's hajj in Mecca. One of the final rituals of the Muslim pilgrimage is the sacrifice of an animal. The Arab News said the sheep will be sold to pilgrims at a price of $100 per head, including the slaughtering and skinning of the animal and shipment of the meat to Muslim poor around the world. Destinations for the meat this year include Bosnia, Albania and Chechnya, according to IDB President Usama Faqeeh. Over 25,000 workers are involved in the IDB operation, including veterinarians, butchers, administrators and Islamic religious scholars who supervise the sacrifices. Over two million pilgrims are expected to perform hajj this year.

Kuwaiti Population Nears 2 Million:

A recent Kuwaiti census places the emirate's population at 1.8 million, a post-Gulf war record, according to the Arab Times. The government census found that the proportion of Kuwaiti nationals continues to fall, however, and now stands at 37 percent. Arab expatriates totalled 24.5 percent of the population, while non-Arab expatriates—the overwhelming majority of them Asians—made up 31.5 percent of Kuwaiti residents. The country claimed a total population of 2.2 million people before the August 1990 Iraqi invasion, according to the paper.

Sharjah Boasted Bactrian Camels:

A recent study in the United Arab Emirates of 13 camel skeletons found at two archeological sites in Sharjah demonstrates that the Arabian peninsula was once home to wooly, two-humped Bactrian camels. The Khaleej Times reports the skeletons date back to between 250 B.C. and 300 A.D. and says the camels apparently were buried alive by their owners, a common ritual practice at the time, according to Nasser Aboudi of the Sharjah Department of Culture and Information. Aboudi noted that "Bactrian camels usually live in cold places," and that Bactria, located in the area between Pakistan and Afghanistan, is noted for its frigid climate. The Sharjah skeletons are the first physical evidence of Bactrian camels found in the peninsula.

Iraq

Uday Reported Wounded:

Jordanian and Iraqi sources report Saddam Hussain's oldest son, Uday, is recovering in an Amman hospital from gunshot wounds to the neck and abdomen he sustained in a failed assassination attempt in mid-March, although both Jordanian and Iraqi officials denied the rumors. A radio station run by the Iraqi opposition Patriotic Union of Kurdistan (PUK) announced the assassination attempt on Uday, carried out by snipers in Baghdad, was followed by reports of unrest and widespread military movements within Iraq. Uday supposedly was rushed by helicopter to Amman's Hussein Medical Center, a well-equipped facility usually reserved for Jordanian military officers and their families. One Jordanian source said that Uday was in the clinic's intensive care unit.

Conviction in Teledyne Case:

Edward Johnson, an employee of Teledyne Industries, Inc., was convicted by a Miami jury on four counts of conspiracy and export violations for falsifying export records on zirconium worth $3.5 million bound eventually for Iraq. The Khaleej Times reports that during the 1980s, Johnson sold the zirconium, used in the manufacture of anti-personnel cluster bombs, to Chilean arms dealer Carlos Cardoen, not to a mining company as indicated on export certificates. The zirconium eventually was shipped to the Iraqi military. Johnson faces up to 20 years in prison and a $1 million fine, though his lawyer said an appeal would be filed.

Kurd Says Iran Undermining Saddam:

Jalal Talabani, head of the Patriotic Union of Kurdistan (PUK), told Al-Hayat that Iran is joining with Iraqi opposition groups in a bid to topple Iraqi President Saddam Hussain. Tehran has made overtures both to Kurdish groups in northern Iraq and Shi'i rebels in the south, according to Talabani. The PUK chief said Iran's new activism is a result of Turkish attempts to facilitate a reconciliation between Baghdad and rebel Iraqi Kurd groups as a way to neutralize the Kurdish Workers' Party, or PKK, a Turkish Kurd group waging a violent campaign against the Ankara government and the target of recent Turkish military operations in northern Iraq. Talabani confirmed that representatives of his PUK and the rival Kurdish Democratic Party (KDP) of Masoud Barzani were meeting in Tehran to end their bloody feud. "Tehran is trying a reconciliation between the Kurds so that they can join other Iraqi opposition forces in an action against Baghdad," Talabani told the paper.

Iran

Tehran Paper Urges "Iron Fist":

The Tehran Times urged Iranian authorities to "use an iron fist to prevent counter-revolutionaries from succeeding in their dirty mission aimed at destroying the Islamic republic." The admonition came in response to rioting in the Tehran suburbs of Akbar Abad and Islamshahr sparked by rising transport prices and water shortages. Revolutionary Guards opened fire on the rioters, killing at least 10 people, according to witnesses. "Nobody denies that the people there have problems," the Tehran Times wrote, "but these problems will be resolved in the near future through government action." Chief Justice Ayatollah Mohammed Yazdi said the Iranian judiciary system would deal firmly with dissidents "who damage the social order or the economy."

Ban on Western Words Debated:

Iran's parliament is considering draft legislation that would ban the use of Western words in Farsi-language speeches, correspondence, news programs and advertising. The IRNA news agency said Reza Taqavi, head of the parliament's Islamic guidance, art and mass media committee, called on senior Iranian officials to stop using "unfamiliar" Western words. Vice President Hassan Habibi said that while the committee has compiled a list of Western words found in various Iranian magazines and provided suitable Farsi synonyms, implementing such a language ban would be costly and unwieldy.

Central Asia

Islam Re-emerging in Kazakhstan:

Sheikh Ratib Beik, the mufti of Kazakhstan, told the IINA news agency that donations from the international Muslim community are contributing to a rebirth of Islamic life in the former Soviet republic. Kazakhstan's 10.5 million Muslims account for 65 percent of the country's population, but are served by only four poorly funded Islamic schools, according to the mufti. Beik said Egypt is building a $15 million Islamic university in Alma Ata which will offer courses in Islamic law, economics, commerce, arts, history and civil law. Beik praised Cairo's Al-Azhar University for its support of Kazakh Muslims, noting that 80 Kazakh students currently are studying at the prestigious Islamic institution.

The Subcontinent

Indian Army Officers Sanctioned:

Fifteen Indian army officers, including a lieutenant colonel, have been punished for committing abuses during search-and-seizure operations in Kashmir, the Times of India reports. Punishments ranged from 12 years of rigorous imprisonment to dismissal from the military to extra duty assignments. The officers were accused of crimes including rape, inflicting death and injury on prisoners in custody, and assault and molestation of civilians. Indian government officials say the sentences reflect a growing "transparency" in Indian military operations in the strife-torn state.

Bangladeshis Urge NGO Ouster:

Leaders of the Combined Action Council, an ultra-conservative Bangladeshi group active in organizing protests against controversial writer Taslima Nasreen, now are demanding that Prime Minister Khaleda Zia expel non-governmental organizations (NGOs) from Bangladesh. "We are giving the government a month to ban the NGOs or else we will go to war to achieve our goals," Mawlana Mohiuddin Khan told a crowd of 2,000 protesting in front of the parliament building in Dhaka. The group accused various international development and relief agencies of conducting anti-Islamic activities which are destroying religious morals and cultural norms, according to the Khaleej Times.

The Balkans

Symbol of Sarajevo Suffering Dies:

Irma Hadzimuratovic, the Bosnian girl severely wounded in an August 1993 mortar attack which also killed her mother, died in her sleep at a London hospital two years after being evacuated from Sarajevo. Doctors at Great Ormond Street Children's Hospital said Irma developed a blood infection as a result of intravenous feeding, which was required due to complications from shrapnel injuries to her abdomen. Irma's case garnered worldwide attention two years ago when United Nations regulations left the five-year-old stranded in a Sarajevo hospital which lacked the resources to treat her life-threatening injuries. News reports prompted thousands in Britain to call the office of Prime Minister John Major. The British government then instituted Operation Irma, which brought the little girl and 20 other seriously wounded Bosnian children to the United Kingdom for medical treatment. Since the summer of 1993, hundreds of other wounded and chronically ill Bosnians have been evacuated as a result of new U.N. rules made to accommodate Irma.