Compiled by Greg Noakes

From the Jewish Press:

Last Ethiopian Jews to Arrive in Israel:

All Jews remaining in Ethiopia should be in Israel within six months, according to Simcha Dinitz, chairman of the World Zionist Organization and Jewish Agency Executives. The Jewish Telegraphic Agency reports that Jewish Agency emissaries have been working in the Gondar region to organize the departure of the last sizable Jewish community left in the country. Dinitz said that 100 to 150 Ethiopian Jews have been arriving per week since the Operation Solomon airlift of 14,000 "Falashas" to Israel last May 24-25.

Election Results Alarm Turkish Jews:

The relatively strong showing by the Islamic "fundamentalist" Welfare Party in recent Turkish parliamentary elections has many in Turkey's 22 ,000-strong Jewish community worried. The Welfare Party, led by veteran politician Necmettin Erbakan, received 17 percent of the vote and 62 out of 450 seats in Parliament. This fourth-place showing makes the Welfare Party a strong candidate for the coalition government to be put together by Suleiman Demirel's conservative True Path Party, according to the Jewish Telegraphic Agency. Erbakan repeatedly warned voters that the elections were a choice between "Greater Israel and Greater Turkey." In a nationally televised speech he cautioned: "If you don't want your sons, when they are soldiers, to be ruled by Solomon in Tel Aviv, you must vote for our party. " Sami Kohen, a veteran political columnist for Milliyet newspaper and a correspondent for the Washington Report, remarked, "There is some concern because Erbakan does not hide his anti-Semitic and anti-Israel feelings."

Likud Leaders Back Land for Peace:

According to a secret poll of the Likud Party's Central Committee taken in fate august, a majority of the committee would trade territory for peace. The results of the survey of 730 out of 3,000 committee members, published by the Israeli daily Ma'ariv and reported by the Jewish Telegraphic Agency, are sharply at variance with the official Likud position, which rejects the land-for-peace formula set forth in UN Security Council Resolutions 242 and 338.

Soviet Doctors Urged to Delay Aliya:

Professor Mordechai Shani, medical director of Sheba Hospital at Tel Hashomer, suggested that Soviet Jewish medical practitioners postpone or abandon plans to move to Israel because of a surplus of doctors and a consequent lack of jobs. The ratio of 300 doctors per 100,000 Israelis is much higher than in the West, where the highest ratio is 250 doctors per 100,000 inhabitants. Israeli government and Jewish Agency officials are angry over the public statement, although many conceded that Shani was probably correct, the Jewish Telegraphic Agency reports. Professor Shani's remarks to Israel radio follow reports that fewer Soviet doctors are immigrating not only because of poor job prospects, but also due to difficult qualifying examinations. Only 2,500 Soviet doctors immigrated to Israel in the first eight months of 1991, compared to 5,800 in 1990.

Justice Ministry Official Criticized:

Plia Albek, head of the Israeli Justice Ministry's Civil Division, has come under fire for a statement she issued to the Tel Aviv district attorney's office in response to a suit filed by Mohammed Jarjoun, a Gaza Palestinian, against the Israeli government for the killing of his wife, Safia, by Israeli soldiers in May 1990 Forward magazine reported that Albek wrote: "It should be stated that the plaintiff only gained from the death of his wife, because while she was alive he had to provide for her, but now he no longer has this duty, so that his damages are, almost, zero. " Despite calls for Albek's resignation, Justice Minister Dan Meridor said Albek has been reprimanded, but will not be dismissed.

Norwegian Resigns Over Mossad Scandal: Norwegian security chief Svein Urdal has stepped down after it was revealed that security police asked Arabic-speaking Mossad agents to interrogate 10 Palestinians seeking asylum in Norway, the Jewish Telegraphic Agency reported. The police introduced the Israeli secret service agents as "language experts" and relied on the Israeli version of the question-and-answer session. The asylum seekers said that they were members of the PLO who had defected from Yasser Arafat's Al-Fatah organization.

Taxi Driver Fired After Rescuing Arab:

An Israeli taxi driver was fired after rushing a wounded Arab to the hospital because the badly injured man left bloodstains on the cab's upholstery. The Jewish Telegraphic Agency reports that taxi driver Nissim Tevel, who lost a leg during the 1967 war, saw Abdul Hakim Daoud, a Palestinian night watchman at a construction site, being stabbed by two assailants and drove him to Sheba Hospital in Tel Hashomer. Tevel was fired because the blood-stained upholstery had to be replaced. Tevel said his employer also ordered him to pay for the two working hours lost while the taxicab was being cleaned. The Hashekem taxi cooperative has suspended the membership of the employer, Eliyahu Siman-Tov, pending a disciplinary hearing.

Israeli Quake Predicted:

Forward reports that Israeli seismological experts believe there is "a high likelihood of a strong earthquake" hitting Israel within the next 50 years, "similar to those which struck Safed in 1836 and Jericho in 1927." The panel reported that casualties in such a quake could be high because of the failure of authorities to enforce adequate building standards. Particularly vulnerable are buildings around Tiberias, the majority of which were built by Amidar, the state housing corporation. According to state comptroller Miriam Ben-Porat, the Interior and Housing ministries have failed to rectify the situation.

Druze Conscientious Objectors Freed:

Twenty Israeli Druze conscientious objectors were released from prison and discharged from military service, the newsletter The Other Israel reports. Sheikh Ja'aber Muadi, head of the Druze Initiative Committee, welcomed the release of the prisoners, who included the son of Knesset Member Muhammad Nafta Adi. Sheikh Muadi noted that his committee would continue to call for an end to compulsory military service for Druze youth, who are the only non-Jewish conscripts in Israel.

Arrow Missile Project in Doubt:

The Israeli Arrow anti-missile project is in danger of being cancelled following a third failed test, according to the Jewish Telegraphic Agency. The Arrow, designed and manufactured by the state-owned Israel Aircraft Industries corporation and bankrolled by the US government, is designed to protect Israel from long-range ballistic missiles. Following a failed seaborne launch of the Arrow, however, the US defense establishment is. having second thoughts about the project, which has received $440 million in US funding to date. The nature of the failure during the secret test was not revealed.

Diplomat Says 242 Favors Israel:

Danish diplomat Hans Tabor, who was president of the UN Security Council at the time Resolution 242 was drafted, says that the English text favoring the Israeli interpretation of the document is the original and intended version, the Jewish Telegraphic Agency reports. In an interview with the Danish daily Politiken, Tabor maintained that the English version calling for an Israeli withdrawal "from occupied territories" is in keeping with the Israeli view that the document mandates only a partial evacuation. The French version of the resolution reads "des territoires" and implies a withdrawal from all of the occupied territories. Tabor said that the English original "does not demand Israeli withdrawal from all of the territories that it occupied in 1967. On the contrary, the resolution permits Israel, due to security considerations, to hold on to some of the territories." The wording of the passage in question was a deliberate compromise, according to Tabor, "so that all of the parties could vote in its favor."

From the Middle East Press:

Expatriate Medical Fraud Widespread:

Over 50 percent of expatriate doctors operating in Arab hospitals hold no medical degrees and are fakes, according to an Egyptian report confirmed by the World Health Organization (WHO). According to the report, detailed in Kuwait's Arab Times, 8,000 expatriate doctors were expelled from the Gulf states during 1989, while 50 were arrested for fraudulently practicing medicine. Among 18 doctors who were expelled from Egypt, several were discovered to have been farmers from the Netherlands. Agencies operating out of several European and East Asian countries to supply qualified physicians for the treatment of difficult cases, instead provided recent medical school graduates or persons with no relation at all to the medical field. The WHO has asked respective governments to take punitive action against those involved in the fraud.

Environmental Costs of Gulf War Tallied:

Saudi Arabia has asked the international community to contribute an additional $2.7 billion to clean up beaches fouled by oil during the recent Gulf war. The Saudi Press Agency reports that a "pledging conference" will be held at the United Nations in the near future, and that the initial response has been positive. The UN Development Program estimates that Iraq pumped six million barrels of oil into the Gulf in an attempt to hinder coalition amphibious landings, while an additional three to four million barrels were spilled from tankers damaged or sunk during the conflict. The cleanup will take one year, the report said.

Iran also is seeking damages through the UN for environmental damage incurred during the Gulf war. Damage estimates are still being compiled by Iranian and German ecologists working in conjunction with the UN, according to the Iranian news agency IRNA, with crops and marine life in southern Iran said to be particularly hard hit.

Moroccan Author Threatened:

Abdelmoumen Diouri, a Moroccan dissident living in exile in France, postponed publication of his book Who Owns Morocco? following anonymous threats against his life, the Middle East Times reported. Diouri's critical account of the personal fortune of King Hassan II was scheduled for publication a year after Gilles Perrault's Our Friend the King accused Hassan of widespread human rights violations and caused a rift in Franco-Moroccan relations. Diouri was expelled by France to Gabon earlier this year on the eve of his initial publication date on charges that he was in contact with Iraqi and Libyan agents. His expulsion was struck down by a French court following protests from human rights groups, and Diouri returned to France. He expects his book to be published before the end of the year.

Egyptian Jurist Allows Interest:

Egypt's grand mufti has ruled that fixed interest rates do not violate the religious prohibition on riba, or usury. Shaykh Muhammad Sayed Tantawi said that fixed interest rates do not contradict the Qur'an or the Sunna ("example ") of the Prophet, the Middle East Times reports. The multi's ruling is expected to draw criticism from more traditional Muslim scholars and jurists.

Turkiye is Turkey Again:

Tourism Minister Bulent Akarcali has announced that the Turkish government's campaign to change the official English spelling of the country's name from "Turkey" to "Turkiye" is being dropped. The change, prompted by concern that since "turkey" is also the name of a large fowl, this subjected the country to ridicule, would have cost millions of dollars and produced widespread confusion, according to Akarcali. The Turkish Daily News reported that the campaign received a mixed response within Turkey and was largely ignored internationally.

Saudia Flight Attendants to Don Hijab:

Female flight attendants and ground hostesses for Saudia Airlines have been directed to begin wearing scarves to cover their heads in accordance with the shariah, or Islamic law. The Saudi Gazette reports that these scarves will be replaced by a shawl (tarha) as soon as sufficient supplies are available. In addition, hemlines will be lowered on the new uniforms, which are designed by the French firm of Carven.

Sudanese Peace Talks Delayed:

Peace talks between the government of Sudan and the rebel Sudanese People's Liberation Army (SPLA) have been delayed in an attempt to close a rift in the SPLA ranks, Radio Nigeria reports. The talks were supposed to open Oct. 28 in Abuja, Nigeria's future capital, and be moderated by the country's president, General Ibrahim Babangida, who is also the current chairman of the Organization of African Unity.

Aid to Israel Will End, US Economist Says:

The Jordan Times quotes Herbert Stein, a State Department consultant on the Israeli economy and a former chairman of the President's Council of Economic Advisors, as saying that "Israel cannot count on a permanent and unconditional flow of aid from the US or any other foreign government. " Stein encouraged a State of Israel Bond leadership conference to wean the Israeli economy from foreign aid through basic reforms to improve investor confidence. Given the new strategic balance in the region and the attitude in the US towards large foreign aid packages, Stein holds that Israel should participate in "an orderly phase-out of US government economic aid to Israel," although he also spoke in support of the $10 billion loan guarantee proposal to meet the needs of new immigrants to Israel.

GCC Joint Military Force Studied:

Chiefs of staff from the six Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) states met in Muscat in mid-November to discuss the creation of a joint GCC military force, the Time's of Onum reported. After plans foundered earlier this year for a joint security pact between the Gulf states, Syria and Egypt, GCC plans have focused on a joint GCC force. A GCC ground force of 20,000 soldiers is already in place in Saudi Arabia, but does not include air and naval units. The concept of a GCC military force has been discussed since the mid-1980s without result, and diplomats say that most of the Gulf states favor expanding their individual armies and increasing the regional military role of the Western powers.

Sudanese Sign Oil Agreement With Libya:

The Khartoum-based Al-lnqadh Al- Watani reports that the Sudanese government will barter food for Libyan oil. Sudan has been hard hit by a fuel shortage; buses and taxis have stopped running in the capital and gas stations have no petrol to sell. Gasoline is being sold at $33 per gallon on the black market, or roughly 20 times the legal price. A new trade agreement with Libya stipulates that Sudan will ship thousands of tons of sorghum, sesame, meat and other produce, although Sudan faces serious food shortages in its south and other remote regions.

No Registration for "Pro-Iraqi" Students in Kuwait:

Kuwait's Public Authority for Applied Education and Training (PAAET) is refusing to register Arab students who are citizens of countries allied with Iraq during the Gulf war, the Arab Times reports. A PAAET official said that the students could re-register at the beginning of the second term, and that children of teachers, diplomats, military personnel, and Kuwaiti women married to non-Kuwaitis are exempt from the ban, as are students on scholarship.