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December/January 1992/93, Page 57 Issues in the News
Compiled by Greg Noakes
From the Jewish Press:
Israeli Arabs Welcome Bosnian Orphans:Bosnian authorities have agreed to allow Israeli Arabs to evacuate up to 1,000 Muslim orphans to Israel, the Jewish Telegraphic Agency reports. An Israeli Arab delegation visiting the war-torn Balkan republic also discussed the creation of a refugee camp in the Bosnian-held area of the country to be staffed by Israeli Arab doctors, nurses and volunteers. Funding for the camp will come from donations given by Israeli Arabs.
Israeli Islamists a Threat?:Recent electoral successes by Israeli Arab Islamists have government officials worried about the rise of ''Islamic fundamentalism" within the country's borders. The Queens (N~ Jewish Week reports that Israeli Islamic Party candidates toppled incumbent Communist administrations in Um al-Fahm and Kafr Kassem in recent Israeli municipal elections due to Communist inefficiency and extensive educational and social programs launched by the Islamists prior to the elections. Although party chief Sheikh Nimr Hussein, mayor of Um alFahm, has been jailed by Israeli authorities for security offenses in the past, he declares that the party will operate within the bounds of the law and is in no way associated with groups like the outlawed Islamic Jihad, which reportedly has threatened Hussein's life. The Israeli Islamic Party platform calls for Israeli negotiations with the PLO, complete withdrawal from the occupied territories and an independent Palestinian state, and party officials say they support the current peace process. The pro-Islamist weekly newspaper Sawt Al Haq Wal Hurriya, though, regularly attacks Israel, Zionism and the peace talks, prompting former Israeli Adviser on Arab Affairs Alexander Thigh to call for consideration of the paper's ban. Party leaders say the paper is not an official party journal, and point out that virulently anti-Arab publications produced by the right-wing Kach movement are not prohibited. Former Defense Minister Moshe Arens, while noting that most of Israel's 800,000 Arab citizens are loyal and law-abiding, sees the rise of Islamism in Israel as a real threat. "The root of evil lies in the spread of Islamic fundamentalism, " he said.
Break for Black Hebrews:Israel has granted temporary residence status to the community of Black Hebrews, blocking a 1986 deportation order for 45 members of the sect who had overstayed their visas. The Jewish Telegraphic Agency said the Black Hebrews, Americans who claim to be descendants of one of the lost tribes of Israel in Africa, have been resident near the Negev town of Dimona for 23 years, despite a 1972 High Court of Justice ruling that the sect's members are not Jewish and therefore are not eligible for automatic Israeli citizenship. The government hesitated to enforce the expulsion order in the past for fear of harming relations between Blacks and Jews in the U.S. as well as Israel's ties to Africa. The Black Hebrews have accumulated hundreds of thousands of dollars in debts to municipal authorities, and the U. S. government has reportedly offered to provide the group with a $1 million grant to establish community institutions.
Ban on Communist Paper Lifted:Israel's Defense Ministry has rifled a ban on the sale and distribution in the occupied territories of the Israeli Communist Party's Arabic daily Al Ittihad as part of its policy of "improving the lives of Arab residents in the territories. " The coalition government of Yitzhak Rabin was formed partly due to the support of the largely Arab Hadash Communist Front and the Arab Democratic Party, in return for the Labor Party's promise of a series of measures designed to liberalize life in the territories and among Israeli Arabs.
No Australian Asylum for Settlers:Two Israelis from the West Bank settlement of Kiryat Arba have been denied refugee status by the government of Australia and now face deportation proceedings. Ayala and Yehuda Dror applied for asylum one day before the expiration of their tourist visas, claiming that they lived in constant fear of their Arab neighbors and "risked their lives" each time they left their home. The Jewish Telegraphic Agency said Jewish leaders agreed with the Australian government's decision, arguing that the Drors' claim implied the Israeli army is incapable of defending Israeli citizens.
Plant-Sitter Project Prepared:Once every seven years, ultra-orthodox households in the township of Bnei Brak throw away their house plants because of shmitta, the biblical fallow year when use of produce or other agricultural products from the land of Israel is prohibited. Next Rosh Hashanah, though, Arye Levkovitz of Bnei Brak's Ma'ayanei Yeshuah Hospital will offer an alternative, according to the Israeli daily Ma'ariv. Levkovitz has set up a system to take in the plants and care for them with a computer programmed to distribute water and fertilizer regularly. The plants will be grown hydroponically, so that the vegetation will not touch soil and can therefore be regarded as "furniture. " Levkovitz has yet to announce the rates for the shmitta-sitter service.
Pulmonary Patients Improve at Dead Sea:Lung patients who have to use oxygen tanks in Jerusalem can breathe without them at the Dead Sea, since the earth's lowest spot also has the highest barometric pressure, according to the Jerusalem Post. Eleven patients aged 12 to 77 spent a week at the sea's southern edge, and reported easier breathing and increased physical endurance, despite not using oxygen tanks. The patients suffer from a variety of lung conditions, including smoking-related emphysema, cystic fibrosis and surplus pressure in the lungs. Dr. Mordechai Kramer of Hadassah University Hospital in Ein Kerem said the patients "were not cured, but definitely enjoyed an improvement in their quality of life. " Construction of a Dead Sea sanatorium for pulmonary patients is being considered.
Enterprise Zone Proposed for Negev:Israel is considering the creation of a tax-free export zone in areas of the Negev in order to attract between $500 million and $750 million in American Jewish investment, according to Finance Minister Avraham Shohat. The Bank of Israel said current foreign investment in the country does not exceed $250 million annually. According to the Queens Jewish Week, some two dozen American Jewish entrepreneurs have promised to set up high-tech firms that could create up to 20,000 new jobs if the enterprise zone was established. One of the businessmen involved in the plan is Lawrence Tisch, chairman of the board of CBS Television, Shohat disclosed.
Hebron Hero Pays the Price:Two Palestinian doctors at the Alya Hospital in Hebron saved the life of an Israeli soldier wounded in an ambush, but one of the physicians received a nasty surprise two days later. Dr. Hisham Shahin and Dr. Hasin Froh performed emergency surgery on Eitan Michaelson, a soldier who suffered gunshot wounds in the stomach and chest after his car was ambushed by Palestinian guerrillas outside Hebron, according to Forward. Michaelson's heart had stopped beating, and the two doctors' actions probably saved his life, the report said. Two days later the doctors visited Jerusalem's Hadassah Ein Kerem hospital to see their patient, who was still sedated and linked to a respirator, and received the thanks of Michaelson's mother. Upon returning to Hebron, though, Froh found that 80 of his olive trees had been chopped down overnight by angry settlers retaliating for the attack which injured Eitan Michaelson.
Orthodox Brawl in Bnei Brak:Yeshiva students were patrolling the streets of Bnei Brak after Orthodox supporters of the Shas and Degel Ha Torah parties exchanged blows and blasts from a water cannon. Supporters of Rabbi Eliezer Schach and the Degel Ha Torah faction of the United Torah Judaism Party have held demonstrations demanding the immediate resignation of Shas, another Orthodox party, from the Rabin government. Shas mentor Ovadia Yosef has reportedly received telephone calls threatening him if the party stays in the coalition, while Absorption Minister Yair Tsaban said daily attacks in the pro-Schach Yated Ne'eman have driven Shas to sharpen its criticism of Education Minister Shulamit Aloni to precipitate a government crisis. Shas supporters struck back by demonstrating in front of Schach's house in Bnei Brak, which led to clashes between the two groups. The religious weekly Yom Hashishi said the fighting was unprecedented and "shocking," adding, "You could see hatred in people's eyes. "
Peace Prize Winner Charges Israeli Connection:Rigoberta Menchu, winner of the 1992 Nobel Peace Prize, says Israel violated human rights by providing the government of Guatemala with military aid, including weapons and computers used to put down that country's 30-year-old guerrilla insurgency. In an interview with Israel's Davar newspaper, Menchu said, "If the government of Israel is continuing to grant this aid, we are pleading: Enough. Do not lend a hand to continuing the violation of human rights in my country. " An Israeli Defense Ministry spokesperson denied Menchu's claim that Israel had supplied Guatemala with most of its weapons, but added, ''Israel did provide Guatemala widespread assistance in the areas of agriculture, medical care and community development. " Menchu, whose mother, father and brother were killed after opposing the Guatemalan military and landowners, received the Nobel Prize for her "work for social justice and ethno-cultural reconciliation based on respect for the rights of indigenous peoples. "
Israel Develops Salt Bullets:The Israeli military has developed a new bullet to be used in dispersing Palestinian demonstrators in the occupied territories. The bullet is made of concentrated salt and is designed to inflict a wound and then spread salt over the area, causing a painful burn which is supposed to subside after two days. The bullets are to be fired in rounds of six at a time. Israeli writer B. Michael asked in Ha'aretz, "If it turns out that salt does not put an end to the intifada, what are the next spices we will use to season the local population? We can provide the salting units with English pepper bullets, bay leaf rockets and onion ring lassos. " In addition to standard cartridges, Israeli units have previously used plastic bullets, rubber bullets, exploding "dum-dum" bullets, sound bombs, and cannons that shoot marbles, gravel and hot water.
From the Middle East Press:
Israel to Spend $1 Billion on Settlements in '93:Ran Cohen, Israel's deputy housing minister and Meretz coalition Knesset member, says the Rabin government has allocated $1 billion of its proposed 1993 budget for settlements in the occupied territories, according to the Oman Daily Observer. The money will be used to complete some 11,000 housing units already under construction and to build roads and infrastructure. "According to this budget there is a slight change and not an absolute halt to settlement in the occupied territories," Cohen said. No figures for money spent on settlement construction this year are available, but Peace Now said the 1991 allocation was $1. I billion. "The budget proposal is nearly a copy of budget proposals presented by the Likud government, " Cohen charged, adding that money for settlements should be redirected to investments that would create jobs. The proposed housing budget calls for $3 billion.
Starving Sudan Sends Supplies to Somalia:Despite its own reliance on foreign relief aid to feed millions of victims of war and drought, the Sudanese government is sending some 1,000 tons of food and medicine to Somalia, according to the country's SUNA news agency. The aid is to be dispensed over the next six months by the Arab and Islamic People's Congress, an organization headed by Hasan Al Turabi which was formed as an alternative to the more conservative Organization of the Islamic Conference during the Gulf war. The Sudanese government gave the group some $500,000 to transport the supplies to Somalia. Sudan offered relief assistance to Egypt following last October's earthquake, largely as a slap at its northern neighbor since relations between Cairo and Khartoum have been strained of late. Sudan has also announced that it will export 20,000 tons of beef to Iraq, which will be considered as food for humanitarian needs under U. N. sanctions imposed on Baghdad. While Sudan distributes its largesse, however, United Nations teams are providing relief aid to approximately 3.7 million people displaced by drought and civil war in southern Sudan in an attempt to avoid widespread famine in the area. U.S. officials, noting that the United States is the largest donor of humanitarian aid to Sudan, having shipped 75,000 tons of food worth $30 million to the country last year, charged that "for one reason or another, the Sudanese government has decided to export rather than to feed its own people. "
Qaddafi Boots Abu Nidal Trainees:In a move to ease pressure from the West on his government, Muammar Qaddafi has closed down and in some cases destroyed Libyan training camps used by Abu Nidal's radical Fatah Revolutionary Council. The CMBU Bulletin, quoting "well-placed sources,'' reports that most of the camp residents are now in Sudan, Lebanon and Iraq. British officials welcomed the move, but said Qaddafi must also halt other forms of support for terrorists, including logistical support, and that Libya's action did not substitute for compliance with U.N. Security Council resolutions concerning the surrender of two suspects in the Pan Am Flight 103 case and cooperation with inquiries into the1989 bombing of a UTA passenger jet over the Sahara.
Saudis Count Heads:Some 30,000 enumerators and supervisors fanned out across Saudi Arabia to conduct the Kingdom's second-ever census during the first two weeks of October. The Arab News reports pollsters asked questions about the size of families, levels of education, and employment status, among others, in order to gauge demographic and geographic trends to assist Saudi planners. Response was good, according to the census project's directors. The country's only other census was taken in 1974, and is badly in need of updating. Plans are now under way for an annual census.
Army Pressures Pakistani Press:A series of stories in Pakistani papers blaming senior military officers for the 1988 plane crash which killed President Zia Ul Haq has prompted a sharp warning from the Defense Ministry. The official APP news agency quoted a spokesman as saying "there is no truth in such stories, " and that the aim of the reports was "to bring into disrepute individual military officers in particular and the Pakistan armed forces in general. " The army spokesman went on to add that the media should not publish stories "full of conjecture and rumor, " and warned that "any propaganda which defames or brings into ridicule the armed forces is an offense under the law and must not be indulged in. "
Austerity for Algerians:Algeria's government has announced a rigorous austerity plan combined with higher domestic taxes and incentives for foreign investment in an attempt to solve the country's deepening economic crisis, according to the official Algerie Presse Service. The promise of "rigorous austerity, drastically reducing the need to import" if foreign investment does not materialize, is likely to have political repercussions in a country where poverty, unemployment and a severe housing shortage already fuel riots, according to Algerian and foreign observers. The government plan aims at the creation of a market economy through state allocation of foreign currency to crucial sectors like agriculture, housing, education and health. Of the country's $12 billion annual revenue from petroleum, $8.4 billion goes to service the country's debt and a further $2 billion is spent on food imports. The government blamed past mismanagement, high inflation, mushrooming population growth and the erosion of state authority leading to violence for Algeria's economic woes.
Saddam Sold on Democracy?:In a highly unusual move, Iraqi state media carried a statement issued by a group of eight intellectuals calling for reform of the country's one-party system and increased attention to opposition demands. The statement, printed in Al Jumhuriyya and carried by the official Iraqi News Agency, followed on the heels of an editorial written by Saddam Hussain's son, Uday, in his daily Babil newspaper which also called for greater democracy. The media coverage appears to be a government attempt to rally public support for the regime in the face of increasing hardship, as well as a demonstration that Saddam's government is not as repressive as it is portrayed internationally. Shi'i opposition leaders said the intellectuals who signed the statement were known "collaborators, " and a spokesman for the opposition Iraqi National Congress called the statement "a clear sign of weakness. "
Jibril Saw Arad, Denies Pan Am Attack:Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine General Command chief Ahmad Jibril says he has seen captured Israeli airman Ron Arad and that he was in good health, according to Al Wasat. Jibril, who did not say where or when he saw the downed navigator, said he was not certain of Arad's subsequent fate at the hands of his Lebanese captors. Jibril, who has been linked in some reports to the 1988 bombing of Pan Am Flight 103 over Scotland, also told the newsmagazine that he is ready to give his testimony on the case to a neutral court in Switzerland. Denying any participation in the attack, Jibril said, "The Americans do not have any evidence against us. "
"Lulu Island" Launched:Abu Dhabi is moving into the final planning stages for "Lulu Island," a Disneyland-style amusement park to be built on the Gulfs first man-made island, according to the Saudi Gazette. The park will be designed with its Gulf setting in mind, said a spokesman for Abu Dhabi's public works department. "It will be Islamic and it will be Arabic, and the design will reflect our region and heritage. You'll see it in the buildings, the arches, the rides, the exhibits and the films," he said. The park, which could cost as much as $2 billion when finished, will be located on a l,050-acre artificial island near the emirate's corniche. Some businessmen in the UAE privately said they are opposed to transforming the horizon into a view of flashing lights and carnival rides, despite the lure of tourist dollars. The government spokesman gave no completion date for " Lulu Island."
Lebanese Environment a "Disaster":Ricardos Habr, head of the Lebanese Friends of Nature, says the country is an "environmental disaster area" whose land, water and forest resources are all threatened by pollution and poor conservation practices. Habr, in an interview with the Beirut monthly Lebanon Report, said Lebanon's environmental laws are adequate, but were not being enforced, possibly because government officials had financial interests in environmentally questionable projects. Habr hopes that international donors make their aid to Lebanon contingent on the Beirut government's actions to safeguard the country's environment.
Palestinian Research Center Sealed:The Aseel Research and Information Center, an East Jerusalem institute which surveys and studies Palestinian opposition to the peace process, was ordered closed for one year by the Israeli government, Al Fajr reports. The Israeli intelligence officers who sealed the center refused Aseel director Hani Isawi's request for a 24-hour grace period to remove the institute's files and equipment. "We had to turn in the office keys and were told that our office is now a closed military area, " Isawi said, adding that the staff was warned they would be tried before a military court if they are seen in or near the center. The Israeli authorities said the office's closure was necessary for "the public's wellbeing and general security. "
Islam Bounces Back in Albania:Some three years after the lifting of a two decade ban on the practice of religion, Islam is making a comeback in Albania, the Oman Daily Observer reports. Some 70 percent of the country's population is Muslim, with the remainder consisting of Orthodox and Catholic Christians. Qur'anic schools are opening in cities throughout the country, often with Arabs or ethnic Albanians from the Kosovo region of the former Yugoslavia as teachers. Mosques dispense lessons in theology, the Arabic language and the memorization of the Qur'an, according to Hafiz Hasan Quluku, the imam of Tirana's largest mosque. ''We are aiming to join Europe with our brand of Islam, " Quluku added.
Ethiopian Press Policy Eased:Nearly four decades of media censorship and government controls on Ethiopia's print media have ended with the passing of new press legislation, the Ethiopian News Agency reports. Former Emperor Haile Selassie banned private ownership of newspapers and magazines in 1955, and since that time all media outlets have been owned by the government in power in Addis Ababa. Some 10 monthly Amharic magazines and four weekly newspapers have been created since the fall of Marxist dictator Mengistu Haile Mariam last year.
Islamic Jihad Spokesman Escapes Assassination:Muhammad Abu Samarah, spokesman for the organization Islamic Jihad in Palestine, narrowly escaped an assassination attempt in West Beirut, according to As Safir. Gunmen opened fire on Abu Samareh and his family near their house, wounding four people and kidnapping one of Abu Samareh's aides in the attack, the report said.
Assad to Stay On:Syria's ambassador to Iran says reports published in the London paper The Guardian that President Hafez Al-Assad will step down and be succeeded by his brother Rif'at AlAssad are baseless. The IRNA news agency reports the ambassador as saying Hafez AlAssad will continue in his post as Syrian president. Rif'at's return to Syria after nearly a decade in exile has produced speculation that he is again in line for the presidency, having fallen out of favor in 1983 when he prematurely pressed his claim to leadership following his brother's heart attack.
Development Drains Gulf Water Reserves:Discussion at the first Gulf Water Conference held in Dubai centered on the depletion of the region's water reserves as a result of ambitious agricultural projects and large water subsidies, according to the Oman Daily Observer. While tap water is generally supplied from desalinization plants, water for irrigation of crops is provided, often free of charge, from underground aquifers. Governments in the Gulf, attempting to cut food imports by producing irrigated crops locally, have placed unsustainable demands on the aquifers, according to conference participants. Delegates were urged to consider reducing or eliminating government subsidies for water from underground sources.
Whisky is Risky, but Beer in the Clear for Iraq:A U.N. Security Council committee monitoring sanctions on Iraq has refused a request by an exporter in Manchester to send a shipment of 11,000 cases of Scotch whisky to an importer in northern Iraq, the Middle East Times reports. The Japanese member of the committee argued that the shipment, valued at $462,000, was non-essential. Similar requests to ship Iraqi companies 20,000 cases of canned beer worth $252,000 and 19,200 cases of cigarettes, worth some $3.2 million, were approved by the same committee, however.
Palestinians Get Permission for Bank:A group of Palestinian businessmen in Ramallah has received verbal permission from Israeli authorities to open the first Palestinian commercial bank in 25 years, Al Quds reports. The venture, tentatively named the Palestinian Commercial Bank, would begin with 10 million Jordanian diners, or $15.3 million, in capital. Sources said shares in the company would soon be put up for sale.
Medieval Monuments Rocked by Cairo Quake:Many of Cairo's numerous medieval mosques, madrasas and mausoleums were badly damaged by the recent earthquake, with experts warning that a number of landmark structures could collapse within months unless action is taken immediately. The Middle East Times says that out of Cairo's 600 registered Islamic monuments, at least 120 suffered obvious damage and all were affected structurally, exacerbating an already serious state of disrepair. Egypt's last surviving minaret from the Ayyubid period is reported to be on the verge of collapse, and may not survive the year, while minarets at the Shaykhu mosque and Sarghatmish and Sultan Barquq madrasas are also considered at risk. The 16th century Mosque of Al Ghuri and the 13th century Qalawun Mosque and Madrasa have been closed to the public after keystones fell from arches and cracks widened. Al Azhar lost about 30 percent of the stucco around its courtyard, some of the ornamental crenellation fell and the minaret was damaged. Other famous sites, including the Citadel, the Madrasa of Sultan Hasan and the Mosque of Ahmad Ibn Tulun, received minimal damage. Many unregistered and privately owned historic buildings may also have been damaged. Critics of the Egyptian Antiquities Organization said damage to the buildings was maximized because of years of neglect and improper maintenance of the sites.
Chechenya Considers Shariah:The predominantly Muslim republic of Chechenya, which declared its independence from the Russian federation last year, is considering implementing criminal punishments based on Islamic law, or shariah. The semi-official Golos Chechenskoi Respubliki published a draft law which prescribes amputation of the hand as the penalty for theft and the possibility of execution for rape or murder. The Chechen republic is located in the north of Russia's Caucasus region.
UAE Adopts Death for Drug Dealers:Confronted with a growing narcotics trafficking problem, the United Arab Emirates is introducing the death penalty for convicted drug dealers, the official WAM news agency reports. The UAE, which is often used as a transit point for drugs moving from Africa and Asia to Europe and North America, previously imposed jail terms ranging from 7 to 25 years for dealers and from one to three years for drug users. The death penalty is designed "to contribute positively and effectively to the global campaign against drugs and to counter this destructive blight which endangers the lives of youth throughout the world," an official spokesman said.
Islamic Council Urges Travel Boycott:Jerusalem's Higher Islamic Council issued a statement urging Muslims to refrain from traveling to the city, claiming that Israel is making concerted efforts to attract Muslim tourists to Jerusalem in order to blur its occupied status. The statement said Saudi businessman and Iran-Contra figure Adnan Khashoggi is leading the "Muslims Tour Jerusalem" program in coordination with Israeli Yacov Nimrodi, Al Fajr reports. Plans are being made to bring pilgrims from Mecca to Jerusalem following the hajj, according to the Higher Islamic Council, which called on Muslim individuals and organizations not to cooperate with the scheme.
Israeli Intelligence Busy in Balkans:The UAE daily Al Ittihad quotes British sources as saying that Israel has sent some 300 experts to Serbia and Montenegro to train Serb forces and set up military camps. Israel has also provided intelligence on Bosnian forces to Serbian military officials, the report said. The intelligence cooperation allegedly took place over the summer.
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