To: bprlist@egroups.com
Subject: [bprlist] Nov 9, 2000 TV Programs
From: "research-bpr" <research-bpr@philologos.org>
Date: Thu, 9 Nov 2000 08:40:29 -0500
8:00 PM Eastern
DISC - ON THE INSIDE - "Monster Waves" - Scientists
explore the causes of powerful waves off the coasts of
Hawaii.(CC)(TVG)
HIST - HISTORY'S MYSTERIES - "The Spanish Armada" -
Historians consider what really happened to Spain's
``invincible'' fleet.(CC)(TVG)
-------------------------- eGroups Sponsor -------------------------~-~>
eGroups eLerts
It's Easy. It's Fun. Best of All, it's Free!
http://click.egroups.com/1/9698/2/_/_/_/973778861/
---------------------------------------------------------------------_->
To unsubscribe from this group, send an email to:
bprlist-unsubscribe@egroups.com
Please visit The Bible Prophecy Research website:
http://philologos.org/bpr
========
To: bprlist@egroups.com
Subject: [bprlist] Pentagon addresses question of troops not being able to vote
From: <owner-bpr@philologos.org>
Date: Thu, 09 Nov 2000 13:46:10 -0000
http://www.worldnetdaily.com/bluesky_dougherty/20001107_xnjdo_bacon_de
ni.shtml
THURSDAY
NOVEMBER 9 2000
Bacon denies WND military-ballot report
Pentagon addresses question of troops not being able to vote
By Jon E. Dougherty
=A9 2000 WorldNetDaily.com
Defense Department spokesman Kenneth Bacon has attacked the
messenger -- WorldNetDaily -- in an attempt to undermine the
newssite's story that many U.S. servicemen and women stationed
overseas did not receive absentee ballots in time to vote.
In a press briefing Tuesday, Bacon referred to Saturday's WND story,
Military missing absentee ballots, as "ludicrous."
A reporter started the exchange:
Q: The premise of this Internet story is basically that there is some
plot to suppress the military vote, which they assume will be
Republican. Now what would you say to such a ...
Bacon: Well, I have no idea what the military vote will be, but the
premise of that story is ludicrous.
In response to a question about a postal snafu that led to delays in
delivery of ballots, Bacon said he had no knowledge of the problem,
adding that it is up to individual servicemen and women to secure
their own ballots.
During Bacon's briefing, a reporter, citing the WorldNetDaily report,
explained that mail delivery had been held up for entire foreign
units and asked Bacon to address the report.
Bacon attempted to shift blame away from the Pentagon and instead put
the onus on servicemen themselves, though he acknowledged that the
service branches -- at one point -- do handle mail for service
members.
"If you -- yes, that is precisely right, just as if you sent a letter
to a person aboard ship, or when you were on ship once, and if your
mother sent you a letter, or a girlfriend, it would be at some point
collected by the Navy and delivered to the ship," he said.
"But it was up to the mailer of the letter or the mailer of an
absentee ballot to get it in the mail at the right time, and get it
to the right address, where it would then be picked up -- an APO box
or FPO box -- and delivered to the ship," Bacon continued. "Now if
people requested the ballots too late, it could have been a
difficulty, or if there was a hiccup in the mail, just as if there --
if you were trying to vote absentee in the United States because you
planned to be traveling, and there was a hiccup in the mail, you
might not get your ballot on time."
One reporter, in an attempt to find out what information Bacon was
using to refute WorldNetDaily's story, asked, "How would you know
whether people are having problems [getting their ballots] or not?
How do you know that?"
Bacon: "Well, apparently somebody talked to this Internet service.
But I assume they could go to an official on the ship or at the base
and say, 'I haven't got my ballot.'"
Q: "But how would you know back here? In other words, on what basis
are you answering our questions today?"
Bacon: "Well, I'm answering your questions completely on the basis of
procedure; what the procedures are -- "
Q: "Right, so you don't know. There could be -- "
Bacon: - "and I think - I think - let me just point out; the most
important thing for everybody to realize is that the Pentagon
encourages people to vote, but it - and it tells them how to vote;
that is, it tells them the procedures to follow, and the procedures
generally involve requesting an absentee ballot from a local
authority well enough ahead of time so that the person can get the
ballot returned by election day. That's the primary role we play."
The Pentagon has also said that about 130,000 service personnel in
1996 -- because of a failure of ballot delivery or request by the
member -- did not get absentee ballots and could not vote.
Navy Lt. Dave Gai, the Pentagon spokesman who initially spoke to
WorldNetDaily about the story, admitted hearing reports "about this
[absentee ballot non-deliveries] within the past week," but said that
the Defense Department was "trying to get more information."
The day after the story broke, however, an agitated Gai contacted WND
to complain, saying the report was "biased" and incorrect -- though
he failed to cite any factual error, other than that he had been
incorrectly referred to as an Army spokesman instead of a Defense
Department spokesman.
Also Tuesday, United Press International reported that WorldNetDaily
said "the crew of the stricken USS Cole has been unable to vote."
In fact, WND had quoted Gai: "'The support team for the USS Cole may
not get their ballots due to intermittent mail,' Gai said. 'Some
ballots could very well be delayed for a number of reasons.'"
On Wednesday, Gai again criticized the overall flavor of the initial
WND report, calling it "biased" and "unprofessional."
"In general, personally, [the story] caused some heartache, but also
professionally the credibility on articles on the Net are questioned
anyway," he said. "When something this biased ... hits the Net, it
creates havoc with correspondents here."
However, when asked directly whether all U.S. military personnel that
requested absentee ballots in fact got them, Gai said he
couldn't "verify on an individual basis" and that he was "not aware
of any large-scale problems."
"The personnel [themselves] need to notify their commanding officers
that they didn't get the ballots and request Special Form 186," he
said.
Gai reiterated that sometimes -- especially with sailors and officers
stationed aboard U.S. Navy ships on assignment overseas -- "mail is
intermittent" and that there was "no way to control when it arrives
[or] when it goes out."
He also said in the case of the USS Cole that he initially told WND
the on-board support team "may not get" ballots in time, not that
they wouldn't get them.
Bottom line, he said, was that military personnel themselves "are
responsible for requesting absentee ballots. It's not the military's
responsibility. The Pentagon doesn't send out ballots."
WorldNetDaily was initially contacted by U.S. residents and service
members who said that, in contrast to prior election years, they had
not yet received their absentee ballots -- but that they had
requested them in the correct way.
Since the report broke, numerous other service members have also
contacted the newssite, complaining that they too had not yet
received ballots, even though they requested them.
A Florida Navy wife whose husband is stationed in Kuwait, writing the
newssite today, was typical:
"My husband is a registered Republican here in Florida and was quite
bothered that the results are so close and that he had no opportunity
to vote. He said many of the troops where he's at were also unable to
vote (most of them in favor of Bush)."
Bacon told reporters yesterday that the seven-ship battle group that
the USS Cole belonged to had received 2,100 standard Form 186 write-
in ballots for the purposes of voting. He also said that not all
personnel needed them because some had likely already voted via
absentee ballots obtained from their home districts.
The Pentagon spokesman was also vague in responding to a reporter's
question about the number of ballot complaints received by the
Federal Voting Assistance Program -- the office that handles voting
for military personnel stationed overseas:
Q: Are you aware that the Federal Voting Assistance Program has
received any complaints from service members who, for one reason or
another, were unable to cast an absentee ballot?
Bacon: I'm not aware that they have received an unusual number of
complaints.
Q: Well, what's the usual number?
Bacon: I don't know. I don't know about complaints. I mean, they may
have received complaints, but what I'm trying to explain is, if a -
we know that 2,000 ...
Q: We're just trying to get the fact on how many complaints -
Bacon: I don't know that. We'll try to find out how many complaints.
The Federal Voting Assistance Program is managed by the Pentagon. Gai
said Monday that the program "was not aware of any group non-
delivery."
At one point during the press conference, Bacon emphatically denied
that the Pentagon shared any culpability at all for "absent" absentee
ballots:
Q: Just to be absolutely clear, are you saying that if a member of
the military that was deployed overseas had a problem voting, it
wasn't your fault?
Bacon: I'm saying it is not the Pentagon's fault. But everybody in
the Department of Defense encourages - encourages - voting. And we
have worked very hard to encourage voting, and we're sorry if there
were some glitches that may have prevented people from voting on
time.
However, at no point during the press conference did Bacon deny that
some members of the military had not received ballots in time.
The issue of absentee ballots is nowhere more important than in the
state of Florida, which is undergoing a mandatory vote recount after
Texas Gov. George W. Bush and Vice President Al Gore came to within
several hundred votes of each other following yesterday's election.
Though final vote tallies had Bush slightly ahead, because it was a
margin less than 0.5 percent Florida law requires a mandatory
recount.
At issue is the number of overseas absentee ballots still waiting to
be counted. Most of those, all major news networks reported
yesterday, are from overseas military personnel. Also, the networks
agreed that traditionally most military service personnel vote
Republican -- an advantage for Bush and a potential coup de grace to
Gore's chances of winning.
In fact, a story on yesterday's Military.com noted that "an
unscientific poll conducted on the American Legion's website, which
was promoted on U.S. bases abroad, showed Bush ahead by a ratio of
nine to one." It also quoted Philip Pollock, professor of political
science at the University of Central Florida, as saying that in 1996,
roughly 2,300 service members submitted absentee ballots in Florida.
Other press reports suggested that WorldNetDaily's initial story was
a thinly-veiled attempt to advance a conspiracy theory that because
of an expectedly high pro-GOP military vote, the administration had
purposely delayed delivery of the absentee ballots to give Gore an
advantage.
However, at no point in WND's story was a conspiracy discussed, nor
was that question put to Lt. Gai or other service personnel who
contacted the newssite to report the discrepancy. The story contained
one sentence expressing the sentiments of some administration critics
who "have suggested that the Clinton administration may have
purposely delayed sending absentee ballots to military personnel
overseas because most, according to recent surveys, will vote
Republican."
Bacon also attempted to undermine the story by casting aspersions on
WorldNetDaily.
"I'd like to point out that that news service is the same news
service that's been spreading an absolutely false story about
President Clinton going to Vietnam on a Navy ship, which he's not
planning to do," Bacon said. "So I think you have to be careful about
some of these news stories."
After WND published an Aug. 23 story reporting that according to high-
level U.S. Navy sources President Clinton was planning a trip to
Vietnam before the end of his term, and that he was conspiring to
lower a Navy flag below the level of Vietnam's flag upon entering the
communist nation's territorial waters, a major uproar ensued.
Naval and congressional media representatives specifically denied
that there would be a Vietnam trip. Three weeks later, USA Today and
Associated Press confirmed that the Vietnam trip would indeed take
place -- after the election and before Clinton leaves office.
Although the main source in the first article said Clinton would make
the trip aboard a U.S. Navy ship, in a follow-up report last month,
WND quoted a CINCPACFLT officer clarifying that the intention was not
for Clinton to travel onboard a naval vessel. But rather, he said, "I
believe that the concept was for a port visit by one of our ships
concurrent with his visit."
Three high-ranking sources -- two Navy officers and one government
appointee -- have confirmed both the presidential trip to Vietnam and
the discussions of the flag controversy. WND has since been contacted
by congressional staffers who are monitoring the issue to assess if
or when legislation might be appropriate to preclude such controversy
in the future.
Bacon, who was Monica Lewinsky's boss at the Defense Department, made
headlines in April after a Senate Armed Services Committee hearing.
Pentagon Deputy Inspector General Donald Mancuso announced that
although Bacon had leaked information from Linda Tripp's private
Pentagon security file to New Yorker reporter Jane Mayer, Bacon and
his assistant, Clifford Bernath, would not be subjected to any
criminal prosecution for their actions. Bacon had openly admitted to
the leak in 1998, expressing regret for his actions.
-------------------------- eGroups Sponsor -------------------------~-~>
eGroups eLerts
It's Easy. It's Fun. Best of All, it's Free!
http://click.egroups.com/1/9698/2/_/_/_/973778875/
---------------------------------------------------------------------_->
To unsubscribe from this group, send an email to:
bprlist-unsubscribe@egroups.com
Please visit The Bible Prophecy Research website:
http://philologos.org/bpr
========
To: bprlist@egroups.com
Subject: [bprlist] Background: Israeli Commission of Inquiry
From: "research-bpr" <research-bpr@philologos.org>
Date: Thu, 9 Nov 2000 08:58:18 -0500
Thursday, November 9, 2000
Background
A tool for healing a crisis of faith
By Ze'ev Segal
The cabinet decided yesterday to establish Israel's 14th state
commission of inquiry since the law governing such commissions
was passed in 1968. In doing so, it declared that last month's
rioting by Arab and Jewish Israelis was "a matter of vital public
importance at this moment that requires clarification."
A state commission of inquiry is different from any other kind of
fact-finding committee not only because it has broad investigative
powers, but also because it is completely independent: The
government has no say in who its members are and no control over
its activities. It is, to quote the Knesset debates that preceded
adoption of the commission of inquiry law, a "super-neutral" body.
The goal of setting up such a commission is thus to end the crisis
of faith between the public and the government caused by the
events it is investigating.
The commission's members are appointed by the president of the
Supreme Court, who usually chooses a present or past Supreme
Court justice as its chair. The commission generally has three
members, but the government, in consultation with the president of
the Supreme Court, can decide on any larger odd number. Several
past commissions of inquiry have had five members.
Furthermore, the government cannot limit the issues a commission
of inquiry chooses to examine. Past commissions have frequently
looked into matters that exceeded the scope of the cabinet's letter
of authorization, because they deemed it necessary to reach the
truth.
By law, the commission's sessions are open to the public, unless
it decides that a certain portion of its deliberations ought to be held
in camera.
Also by law, the commission's concluding report must be
published, unless there are portions that the commission itself
deems necessary to keep classified. The government has no power
to suppress publication of the report.
A commission of inquiry has powers usually reserved to the courts:
It can subpoena witnesses and require them to hand over
documents or other evidence. However, it is not governed by the
same rules of evidence as a courtroom; by law, it is permitted "to
accept any piece of evidence, in any fashion that it deems useful"
in order to enable it to reach the truth.
Testimony before a commission of inquiry cannot later be used as
evidence in any civil or criminal proceeding, other than prosecution
for perjury before the commission.
The commission itself is not a court, and has no power to
determine criminal liability. However, its findings do carry
considerable moral and public weight.
The cabinet's decision yesterday stated that the commission will
determine "facts and conclusions." But by law, it is also allowed to
make recommendations. Often, these include personal
recommendations (dismissal, demotion, etc.) regarding those
whom, at either the political or the operational level, the
commission deems responsible for the acts being investigated.
Traditionally, the government has taken it upon itself to implement
any personal recommendations made by a commission of inquiry.
As Professor (now Supreme Court Justice) Yitzchak Zamir once
wrote: "The cabinet's decision to set up a commission of inquiry is
like a declaration that the commission is qualified and authorized
to examine the question of whether the cabinet or any member
thereof bears any personal responsibility [for the events]... Only an
especially strong, important and substantive consideration could, in
principle, justify rejecting or deviating from the [commission's]
recommendations."
However, the same is not true for any policy recommendations the
commission might make, such as, for instance, investing more
money in a given area.
On policy matters, the cabinet retains broad discretion, and many
policy recommendations made by past commissions of inquiry
have been ignored.
http://www3.haaretz.co.il/eng/scripts/article.asp?mador=14&datee=
11/09/00&id=99817
-------------------------- eGroups Sponsor -------------------------~-~>
eGroups eLerts
It's Easy. It's Fun. Best of All, it's Free!
http://click.egroups.com/1/9698/2/_/_/_/973778928/
---------------------------------------------------------------------_->
To unsubscribe from this group, send an email to:
bprlist-unsubscribe@egroups.com
Please visit The Bible Prophecy Research website:
http://philologos.org/bpr
========
To: bprlist@egroups.com
Subject: [bprlist] Infobeat News items (11/9/00)
From: "research-bpr" <research-bpr@philologos.org>
Date: Thu, 9 Nov 2000 09:02:07 -0500
*** Kissing tied to AIDS-related virus
BOSTON (AP) - A form of the herpes virus that causes an AIDS-
related skin cancer appears to spread through kissing. Herpes
virus 8 was discovered six years ago and causes a skin cancer
called Kaposi's sarcoma. In the United States, the cancer occurs
almost exclusively in people with AIDS. Some had suspected that
the virus was transmitted through sexual intercourse, but the new
research from the University of Washington contradicts that idea.
Researchers tested 39 gay men who were infected with the virus
but did not have Kaposi's sarcoma. They found the virus in 30% of
their saliva samples and mouth swabs, compared with 1% of anal
and genital samples. When present, the virus levels were also
much higher in saliva than in semen. The study also found that
homosexual men who engaged in "deep kissing" - kissing that
involves a lot of contact with saliva - appeared to be at substantially
higher risk of catching the virus. Kaposi's sarcoma causes purple
skin blotches and can also attack the internal organs.
*** Elusive particle eludes scientists
GENEVA (AP) - Europe's top particle physics lab announced
Wednesday it was shutting down the machine it has been using to
find an elusive subatomic particle believed to be key to
understanding the makeup of the universe. The shutdown gives an
edge to scientists at a rival lab outside Chicago in the search for
the Higgs boson, believed responsible for all mass in the universe.
The head of the European Laboratory for Particle Physics said the
decision came after scientists determined the results so far weren't
sufficient to warrant spending $60 million more to keep the Large
Electron-Proton collider going for another year. The closure could
end CERN's hopes of discovering the Higgs boson before rival
Fermi National Accelerator Laboratory outside Chicago. Finding the
particle is almost certain to bring the Nobel Prize in physics. On
Nov. 2, CERN shut off the 11-year-old LEP in preparation for
replacing it with a much more powerful machine over the next five
years. The Higgs boson has proven invisible in the more than 30
years scientists have been looking for it. It exists for only a tiny
fraction of a second, so physicists have been trying to see the
particle while it is disintegrating.
*** Experts to test King Tut's DNA
CAIRO, Egypt (AP) - Experts announced DNA tests for two famed
mummies Wednesday to try to solve the centuries-old mystery of
whether Egypt's King Tut had truly been the rightful blood heir of
ruling pharaohs. Comparing Tut's ancient DNA with that of the
pharaoh traditionally held to be his grandfather should answer the
question of whether the boy-king really was of royal stock, said
Gaballah Ali Gaballah, head of Egypt's Supreme Council of
Antiquities. Tutankhamun ruled Egypt 3,300 years ago, reigning
from about age 8 to his death at 17. The boy-king is thought to
have succeeded Amenhotep IV, better-known as Akhenaten, and
official policy at the time associated Tut by blood to the great
pharaoh. Many Egyptologists question whether Akhenaten really
did father Tutankhamun, although they widely agree that the boy-
king had some sort of royal lineage. The experts plan to compare
DNA from Tutankhamun's mummy to that of Amenhotep III, whose
mummy is exhibited at the Egyptian museum in Cairo. Amenhotep
III is believed to have been Akhenaten's father. That would make
him Tutankhamun's grandfather.
-------------------------- eGroups Sponsor -------------------------~-~>
eLerts
It's Easy. It's Fun. Best of All, it's Free!
http://click.egroups.com/1/9699/2/_/_/_/973778932/
---------------------------------------------------------------------_->
To unsubscribe from this group, send an email to:
bprlist-unsubscribe@egroups.com
Please visit The Bible Prophecy Research website:
http://philologos.org/bpr
========
To: bprlist@egroups.com
Subject: [bprlist] Recount results / Controversial ballot
From: <owner-bpr@philologos.org>
Date: Thu, 09 Nov 2000 14:02:11 -0000
Florida's recount results
Click for county-by-county tabulations in Sunshine State
Fox News
http://foxnews.com/fn99/elections/florida_recount.html
----
See the controversial ballot
Here's what's sparking the uproar in Palm Beach County, Florida
Reuters
http://dailynews.yahoo.com/h/p/nm/20001108/pl/mdf129505.html
-----
Comment in The Morrock News Digest
for Wednesday, Nov 8, 2000:
Said our correspondent Jim Skoog: "I voted by
absentee ballot in Palm Beach County, Florida. My
punch card ballot was easy to understand and use.
Moreover, the people I dealt with at voter
registration where professional. Consequently I have
faith in the election system here, and I believe that
comments to the contrary (a la Jesse Jackson) smack of
sour grapes."
http://morrock.com
-------------------------- eGroups Sponsor -------------------------~-~>
eGroups eLerts
It's Easy. It's Fun. Best of All, it's Free!
http://click.egroups.com/1/9698/2/_/_/_/973778931/
---------------------------------------------------------------------_->
To unsubscribe from this group, send an email to:
bprlist-unsubscribe@egroups.com
Please visit The Bible Prophecy Research website:
http://philologos.org/bpr
========
To: bprlist@egroups.com
Subject: [bprlist] Anti-gay measure rejected by Oregon voters
From: <owner-bpr@philologos.org>
Date: Thu, 09 Nov 2000 14:11:35 -0000
http://www.oregonlive.com/newsflash/index.ssf?/cgi-
free/getstory_ssf.cgi?o0006_BC_OR-ELN--GayRights&&news&newsflash-
oregon
Anti-gay measure rejected by Oregon voters
By STEVEN DU BOIS
The Associated Press
11/9/00 3:35 AM
PORTLAND, Ore. (AP) -- In Oregon schools, Heather can still talk
about her two mommies and Bobby can show his love for Jimmy.
Voters narrowly defeated a proposal to ban Oregon educators from
discussing homosexuality in a positive way, dealing Lon Mabon and the
Oregon Citizens Alliance its third anti-gay election defeat in eight
years.
"This is an incredible victory for gay youth; Oregon voters have sent
a message that you can't choose which students are legitimate and
which students are not," said Jim Anderson, a spokesman for the Gay,
Lesbian and Straight Education Network, a gay-rights group that has
been criticized by the OCA.
With 95 percent of the votes counted Wednesday evening, Measure 9 was
losing 52 percent to 48 percent.
Measure 9 would have prevented Oregon public schools from providing
instruction that would encourage, promote or sanction homosexual
behavior. Schools found in violation would be punished by losing some
or all of their state financing, a decision that would be made by the
state superintendent.
--- MORE ---
-------------------------- eGroups Sponsor -------------------------~-~>
eLerts
It's Easy. It's Fun. Best of All, it's Free!
http://click.egroups.com/1/9699/2/_/_/_/973781365/
---------------------------------------------------------------------_->
To unsubscribe from this group, send an email to:
bprlist-unsubscribe@egroups.com
Please visit The Bible Prophecy Research website:
http://philologos.org/bpr
========
To: bprlist@egroups.com
Subject: [bprlist] Florida Jews may hold key to presidency
From: <owner-bpr@philologos.org>
Date: Thu, 09 Nov 2000 14:23:54 -0000
http://www.jpost.com/Editions/2000/11/09/News/News.15176.html
Thursday, November 9 2000 16:10 11 Heshvan 5761
Florida Jews may hold key to presidency
By Janine Zacharia
WASHINGTON (November 9) - In the end, it came down to bubbe and
zayde.
On Tuesday night, as the fate of the US presidential election hung in
the balance with Florida and its key 25 electoral college votes too
close to call, word spread that the uncounted precincts were the ones
most heavily populated by retired Jews from New York - Palm Beach,
Broward, and Miami Dade counties.
...snipped...
"Florida was by far the biggest state that was not known for certain.
No matter how you look at it, the Jewish community in Florida is
making all the difference," said David Harris, deputy executive
director of the National Jewish Democratic Council.
"We're talking about several floors of condominiums that could make
the difference," added Jason Isaacson, director of governmental
affairs at American Jewish Committee.
Palm Beach County, which includes the heavily Jewish towns of Boca
Raton and West Palm Beach, voted 2 to 1 in favor of Gore and remained
a focal point of election conflict yesterday, as news of a difficult-
to-decipher ballot there seemed to suggest that some people - as many
as 3,000 - may have accidentally cast their ballot for Reform Party
candidate Pat Buchanan.
---MORE---
-------------------------- eGroups Sponsor -------------------------~-~>
eLerts
It's Easy. It's Fun. Best of All, it's Free!
http://click.egroups.com/1/9699/2/_/_/_/973781352/
---------------------------------------------------------------------_->
To unsubscribe from this group, send an email to:
bprlist-unsubscribe@egroups.com
Please visit The Bible Prophecy Research website:
http://philologos.org/bpr
========
To: bprlist@egroups.com
Subject: [bprlist] (Fwd) PA "Mufti of Jerusalem and Palestine" discusses the Inti
From: "research-bpr" <research-bpr@philologos.org>
Date: Thu, 9 Nov 2000 09:37:34 -0500
------- Forwarded message follows -------
Date sent: Wed, 08 Nov 2000 22:46:56 -0800
To: MEMRI <memri@erols.com>
From: MEMRI <memri@erols.com>
Subject: PA "Mufti of Jerusalem and Palestine" discusses the Intifa=
da
Special Dispatch - PA
November 9, 2000
No. 151
Middle East Media and Research Institute (MEMRI)
P.O. Box 7837, Washington DC 20038-7837
Phone: (202) 955-9070
Fax: (202) 955-9077
E-mail: MEMRI@erols.com
Website: www.memri.org
[MEMRI holds copyrights on all translations. Materials may only be cited
with proper attribution.]
PA "Mufti of Jerusalem and Palestine" discusses the Intifada
Speaking to the Egyptian weekly, Al-Ahram Al-Arabi, (1) Sheik 'Ikrima Sabri=
,
the Arafat appointed Mufti of Jerusalem and Palestine, presents his opinion=
s
on several issues regarding the Israeli-Arab conflict - including his
admiration for the child martyrs. Following are excerpts from the intervie=
w:
"We haven't sacrificed enough yet to be worthy of liberating Al-Aqsa. To
liberate Jerusalem, Salah Al-Din Al-Ayyubi made great sacrifices for a long=
time, and we have to sacrifice until Allah's victory is completed=85"
"Our campaign is definitely religious and emanates from belief, although we=
try to avoid this slogan. The current Intifada of the [Arab and Islamic]
world is a religious outburst, because it relates to the Al-Aqsa mosque =85=
"
"The land of Palestine is not only Jerusalem; this land stretches from the=
[Jordan] River to the [Mediterranean] Sea. Naturally, the [Palestinian]
problem relates to all of this land. We cannot establish a homeland by onl=
y
liberating Jerusalem. It is true that Salah Al-Din did not rest until
Jerusalem was liberated, but this does not suggest that the rest of this
blessed land is to be neglected or given up=85"
Question: "Do you back continuing Intifada?"
Sabri: "Yes, I do, but I think we must try to reduce the number of
casualties=85 by reducing the clashes. Nevertheless, the Intifada is
necessary so that everybody will know that we are not going to sit still
about this."
Question: "The number of fatwas calling for Jihad in the Arab world has
diminished."
Sabri: "Every Palestinian is, in fact, in a state of Jihad, we don't need
more fatwas. Those outside of Palestine should make their own decisions. =
Jihad is continuing on our lands."
Question: "What do you feel when you pray [for the souls of the martyrs]?"
Sabri: "I feel the martyr is lucky because the angels usher him to his
wedding in heaven. I feel the earth moves under the occupiers' feet."
Question: "Is it different when the martyr is a child?"
Sabri: "Yes, it is. It's hard to express it in words. There is no doubt
that a child [martyr] suggests that the new generation will carry on the
mission with determination. The younger the martyr - the greater and the
more I respect him=85 One wrote his name on a note before he died. He wro=
te:
'the martyr so and so.' In every martyr's pocket we find a note with his
name on it. He sentences himself to martyrdom even before he becomes a
martyr."
Question: "Is this why the mothers cry with joy when they hear about their=
sons' death?"
Sabri: "They willingly sacrifice their offspring for the sake of freedom. =
It is a great display of the power of belief. The mother is participating=
in the great reward of the Jihad to liberate Al-Aqsa=85 I talked to a youn=
g
man=85 [who] said: '=85I want to marry the black-eyed [beautiful] women of=
heaven.' The next day he became a martyr. I am sure his mother was filled=
with joy about his heavenly marriage. Such a son must have such a mother."
Question: "How do you feel about the Jews?"
Sabri: "I enter the mosque of Al-Aqsa with my head up and at the same time =
I
am filled with rage toward the Jews. I have never greeted a Jew when I cam=
e
near one. I never will. They cannot even dream that I will. The Jews do=
not dare to bother me, because they are the most cowardly creatures Allah
has ever created=85"
Endnotes:
(1) Al-Ahram Al-Arabi (Egypt), October 28, 2000. Also see MEMRI Special
Dispatch No. 82, "An Interview with the Grand Mufti about the Pope's Visit,=
"
March 29, 2000.
The Middle East Media and Research Institute (MEMRI) is an independent,
non-profit organization providing translations of the Arab media and origin=
al
analysis and research on developments in the Middle East. Copies of articl=
es
and documents cited, as well as background information, are available upon
request.
------- End of forwarded message -------
-------------------------- eGroups Sponsor -------------------------~-~>
eGroups eLerts
It's Easy. It's Fun. Best of All, it's Free!
http://click.egroups.com/1/9698/2/_/_/_/973781352/
---------------------------------------------------------------------_->
To unsubscribe from this group, send an email to:
bprlist-unsubscribe@egroups.com
Please visit The Bible Prophecy Research website:
http://philologos.org/bpr
========
To: bprlist@egroups.com
Subject: [bprlist] Real World News -- 11/09/00
From: <owner-bpr@philologos.org>
Date: Thu, 09 Nov 2000 14:47:34 -0000
Selected items from...
REAL WORLD NEWS 11/09/2000
Visit Real World News online at http://www.realworldnews.net
PROSPECT OF BUSH WIN RELIEVES MANY ARAB STATES
The prospect of a victory by George W. Bush in the race for United
States president has pleased many Arab states but has worried
Israel. Arab diplomatic sources said Bush will return to a more hard-
headed approach to the Middle East that emphasizes U.S. interests and
the need to sell to Gulf oil states. The sources said this would
result in a policy that diminishes Israeli influence.
http://www.worldtribune.com/tout-6.html
ARAFAT WILL SEEK INDEPENDENT PROTECTION FORCE
The Palestinian Authority will seek a U.N. protection force despite
opposition by Israel and by U.N. chief Kofi Annan, said a Palestinian
official, who also called for Nelson Mandela to join a U.S.-named
commission investigating Middle East violence. The dispute over a
U.N. force came as Palestinian leader Yasser Arafat headed to
Washington amid a new flare-up of violence in the West Bank and Gaza
Strip. Palestinian gunmen ambushed and killed an Israeli customs
worker as she traveled to work, and four Palestinians died in clashes
with Israeli troops. http://www.washtimes.com/world/default-
2000119214457.htm
RADIATION FROM NUCLEAR REACTORS LEAKS INTO 2 RIVERS
Dangerous levels of radioactivity - exceeding the amount produced by
10,000 nuclear reactors - have been detected in two rivers near a
western Siberian nuclear complex, a U.S.-based nuclear watchdog said
in a report issued Thursday. The Government Accountability Project
said that more than enough radioactivity to meet the world's
electrical power demand had been found in the Tom and Romashka rivers
flowing from the Siberian Chemical Complex, Russia's largest nuclear
site. http://www.sptimes.ru/current/top/t_758.htm
PUTIN MEETS E.U., FRENCH LEADERS
Giving relations between the European Union and Russia a boost and
normalizing ties with Paris, President Vladimir Putin ended his visit
to France last week with what some experts say was a series of
foreign policy successes. Putin attended a Russia-European Union
summit and held direct talks with French President Jacques Chirac
during his four-day visit, patching up relations that had frayed over
France's criticism of his handling of the war in the North Caucasus.
He also met with top business leaders who said they were willing to
increase trade between the two countries.
http://www.russiatoday.com/news.php3?id=218832
BRITAIN UNDER ATTACK FROM "SUPER RATS"
Britain is being attacked by a breed of "super rats" which have grown
immune to modern poisons, pest controllers are warning. The Financial
Times quoted from a survey conducted by the National Pest Technicians
Association, published Wednesday, showing Britain's rat population
has soared to the highest levels in recent memory. With rat
infestations reported to local authorities rising 18 percent last
year, the association was set to urge the government to launch an
urgent investigation "before the situation gets out of control".
http://www.voila.co.uk/News/afp/uk/001108102846.l2ngxq7w.html
FLOOD-BATTERED BRITAIN BRACES FOR MORE HEAVY RAIN
British authorities warned on Thursday that more heavy rain this
weekend could inflict further misery on flood-battered Britain where
thousands of people have already been forced from their homes. The
Environment Agency said: ``There is more danger out there and some
areas of the north-east are about to be tested to the absolute
maximum in the next couple of days.'' With Britain suffering its
wettest autumn on record, the agency said it still had 174 flood
warnings in force, 25 of them critical.
http://dailynews.yahoo.com/h/nm/20001109/ts/weather_britain_dc_2.html
2003 DEADLINE CALL FOR LARGER E.U.
The European Commission sought to revive the stalled process of
European Union enlargement yesterday. It urged a swift end to the
interminable negotiations so that new members could be welcomed
by "the end of 2002". The annual Enlargement Strategy Paper sets out
a "road map" for the first time to reassure the EU's 11 candidate
countries that they will not be kept waiting for ever in a permanent
ante-chamber, compelled to adhere to the EU's costly rules without
enjoying the benefits of membership. http://www.telegraph.co.uk/et?
ac=001136033854542&rtmo=Qwmwww0R&atmo=kkkk
kkku&pg=/et/00/11/9/weu09.html
UGANDA'S EBOLA DEATH TOLL RISES
A Ugandan health official says the ebola virus has killed another
person well away from where the original outbreak started. Ninety-
nine people have now died since ebola first appeared in Gulu, in
northern Uganda, in September. The official the Assistant
Commissioner for National Disease Control, Alex Opio said that the
latest death was recorded in Mbarara in southern Uganda. He said two
other people showing Ebola-like symptoms are still in isolation in
Mbarara University hospital.
http://news.bbc.co.uk/hi/english/world/africa/newsid_1015000/1015169.s
tm
SOUTH AFRICANS OUTRAGED AT POLICE BRUTALITY ON VIDEO
South Africa reacted with horror on Wednesday to a video aired on
state television which showed police dogs repeatedly savaging black
prisoners during what was described as a training exercise for the
canine unit. ``Live Bait'' screamed the headline in The Citizen
newspaper over a photograph of a police dog tearing into a young
black man as a police officer kicked him in the stomach. ``Racist
Brutality'' said the headline in the Sowetan newspaper, the country's
largest black daily. http://live.altavista.com/e?
efi=898&ei=2305596&ern=y
MCDONALD'S ANGRY AT CLAIM HAMBURGERS 'NOT CATHOLIC'
The Italian branch of US fast food giant McDonald's reacted with
disbelief overnight Wednesday to claims by a Catholic newspaper that
hamburgers were a Protestant tradition and inappropriate for
Catholics. Theologian Massimo Salani condemned burgers in the
Italian bishops' daily Avvenire, saying they were "not Catholic". "At
McDonald's people want a fast meal and hunger is quenched as fast as
possible, so one can do something else, and one loses the value of
community," argued Salani, author of a book called "A tavola con le
religioni" (At table with religions). " Stung by the criticim,
McDonald's Italy reacted bluntly. "Fast food means that one is
served rapidly and not that one eats rapidly," said a company
statement.
http://sg.dailynews.yahoo.com/headlines/world/afp/article.html?
s=singapo
re/headlines/001109/world/afp/McDonald_s_angry_at_claim_that_hamburger
s_ _are_not_Catholic_.html
-------------------------- eGroups Sponsor -------------------------~-~>
eLerts
It's Easy. It's Fun. Best of All, it's Free!
http://click.egroups.com/1/9699/2/_/_/_/973781353/
---------------------------------------------------------------------_->
To unsubscribe from this group, send an email to:
bprlist-unsubscribe@egroups.com
Please visit The Bible Prophecy Research website:
http://philologos.org/bpr
========
To: bprlist@egroups.com
Subject: [bprlist] ReligionToday News Summary Thursday, November 9, 2000
From: <owner-bpr@philologos.org>
Date: Thu, 9 Nov 2000 09:49:51 -0500
------- Forwarded message follows -------
C U R R E N T N E W S S U M M A R Y
by the Editors of ReligionToday
November 9, 2000
Vouchers for private schools were defeated decisively at the
ballot box on Election Day. Measures to provide alternative
choices to public schools lost in Michigan and California in the
face of strong opposition by teachers' unions, local governments, and
the governors of both states, according to news reports. ...The
California proposal would have provided the parents of any child with
a $4,000 voucher for private school tuition. With no limit on the
number of students who could redeem the vouchers, it would have been
the most far-reaching voucher program of its kind in the nation.
...Michigan's voucher program would have given $3,300 vouchers only to
parents of children in failing public school districts. The proposal
was supported by Roman Catholic churches and bankrolled by Richard
DeVos, co-founder of the Amway Corp., and members of his and his
wife's family, who together donated more than $4.75 million.
..."Vouchers as a concept have taken a fatal blow tonight," Gale
Kaufman, a consultant to the anti-voucher campaign in California, told
The Los Angeles Times (see link #1 below). "You had two very different
proposals in two big states fail." Opponents say vouchers drain money
from public schools, but supporters say they bring hope to students
trapped in failing schools.
Voters in several parts of the country acted on ballot questions
concerning homosexuals. A measure in Maine that would have
extended minority status to homosexuals was narrowly defeated,
CNN reported. In Oregon, voters rejected a provision forbidding
public school teachers from promoting, encouraging, or
sanctioning homosexual behavior.
...Nebraska approved a state constitutional amendment that bans
same-sex marriages. The measure is expected to become part of the
state constitution by mid-December. ...Nevadans approved an initiative
that gives constitutional status to the state's definition of marriage
as the exclusive union between a man and a woman. Supporters included
the Coalition for the Protection of Marriage, a group of conservative
Christian organizations. The Mormon Church raised more than $750,000
for the campaign.
Judge Roy Moore, known for refusing to remove the Ten
Commandments (see link #2 below) from his courtroom, won election as
chief justice of Alabama. ...Moore has said he believes that man's law
is deeply rooted in the Scriptures. "Remember the One responsible for
it all, and that's God," Moore, a Republican Etowah County Circuit
judge, told supporters. "This campaign is about morality. It's about
the loss of morality in our state and nation," he said, according to
the Birmingham News. ...Moore, a former West Point cadet and military
policeman in Vietnam, displayed the self-carved wooden tablets on a
wall behind his bench despite a lawsuit and an order by another judge
to take them down. He became a hero to thousands of Alabamans who held
rallies in his defense, and then-Gov. Fob James Jr. threatened to call
out the National Guard to defend the Ten Commandments against
court-ordered removal.
Religious groups fought against gambling initiatives on state
ballots, but voters gave the measures different receptions in two
Bible Belt states. South Carolina approved a state lottery to raise
$150 million a year for education. Gov. Jim Hodges supported it, since
South Carolinians spend $115 million a year anyway across the border
on Georgia lottery tickets, according to news reports. ...In Arkansas
voters rejected a measure to set up a state lottery and allow casinos
and charity bingo. Gov. Mike Huckabee, a Baptist minister, said the
government becomes "a pimp" when it uses lotteries to fill its
treasury, even to support schools, according to news reports.
...Massachusetts voters rejected a bid to end dog racing, and in South
Dakota voters kept their state-run video lottery and raised the limit
on single bets in Deadwood casinos to $100 from $5, according to news
reports. Residents of Greenbrier County, W.Va., rejected a proposal to
allow the state's first casino at the upscale Greenbrier resort.
Voters in Maine rejected an effort to make it the second state to
allow physician-assisted suicides. The proposal was modeled after an
Oregon law. ...Colorado voters rejected a 24-hour wait for women
seeking abortions. In Alaska, voters gave the cold shoulder to a
measure that would have made state marijuana laws the most liberal in
the country, even giving amnesty to people convicted of marijuana
crimes. ...In New Jersey, former Wall Street banker Jon Corzine, a
Democrat who spent a record $60 million of his money, defeated
Republican Rep. Bob Franks in the race for U.S. Senate. Both men
attend Christ Church (see link #3 below) in Summit, N.J., and have
been civil, even friendly to each other in the high-stakes race, which
could have turned nasty, according to news reports. Both say the
church connection helped mitigate campaign tensions. ...For more
election coverage from a Christian perspective (see link #4 below),
see Crosswalk.com's election site.
-----------
RELATED LINKS:
1: http://www.latimes.com/
2:http://www.religiontoday.com/Archive/NewsSummary/view.cgi?file00060
8.brf.html
3:http://www.religiontoday.com/Archive/FeatureStory/view.cgi?file0011
03.s1.html
4: http://news.crosswalk.com/city/
-----------
News from ReligionToday is Copyrighted by Crosswalk.com.
Content may be reproduced provided proper credit is
given to religiontoday.crosswalk.com. Please go to
http://www.crosswalk.com/info/copyright to be sure you
meet all legal requirements.
-------------------------- eGroups Sponsor -------------------------~-~>
eGroups eLerts
It's Easy. It's Fun. Best of All, it's Free!
http://click.egroups.com/1/9698/2/_/_/_/973790540/
---------------------------------------------------------------------_->
To unsubscribe from this group, send an email to:
bprlist-unsubscribe@egroups.com
Please visit The Bible Prophecy Research website:
http://philologos.org/bpr
========
To: bprlist@egroups.com
Subject: [bprlist] Skimpy Garb in Class Gets Student's Back Up
From: "research-bpr" <research-bpr@philologos.org>
Date: Thu, 9 Nov 2000 12:48:30 -0500
Wednesday, November 08, 2000
Skimpy Garb in Class Gets Student's Back Up
By JOE MAHONEY
Daily News Albany Bureau
It sounded more like the dress code for "Baywatch" than the
required attire for a medical school classroom.
Nevertheless, for a certain course at the New York College of
Osteopathic Medicine, female students were told to wear open-
backed bathing suits, shorts and halter tops to class.
This skimpy garb did not sit well with second-year student Donna
Loketch, whose beliefs as an Orthodox Jew suggested that
wearing so little clothing would be inappropriate.
"At first, I didn't think it would be much of a problem to work out
some kind of compromise, because this is a school that prides
itself in having a course in human diversity. But it didn't work out
that way," said Loketch, a mother of four who lives in the Rockland
County town of Monsey.
One of the laboratory courses she took at the college's Old
Westbury, L.I., campus, applied principles of osteopathic
manipulative medicine, involved hands-on manipulative training.
When Loketch insisted on keeping herself covered up during the
sessions, her instructors branded her unprepared for class and
lowered her grades.
When her efforts to work out a compromise with the college failed,
Loketch contacted Agudath Israel of America, a New York City-
based Orthodox advocacy group.
The rabbis there decided to go to bat for her and enlisted the
support of the civil rights division of state Attorney General Eliot
Spitzer's office.
"It seemed that this dress code was better suited to 'Animal House'
than it was to a medical school," said Agudath Israel spokesman
Rabbi Avi Shafran.
Spitzer said that once his office got involved in the matter, Loketch
and the college "were pretty quick to come to an understanding
that we think is quite reasonable."
Under the agreement reached with the school, Loketch can wear a
skirt during the lecture portion of the laboratory course, as well as
a T-shirt over her bathing suit and a covering for her head. She also
may limit the amount of clothing she removes when students are
required to play the roles of doctor and patient while practicing
techniques on each other.
Spitzer said the agreement also applies to Muslim and Sikh
students who had religious objections to the classroom dress
requirements.
Harriet Arnone, associate provost at the New York Institute of
Technology, the college's parent institution, said in a statement to
the Daily News that the school wanted to resolve the matter
quickly.
"We take pride in the diversity of our student body and are always
willing to work with students to extend reasonable
accommodations for all religious faiths," Arnone said.
http://www.nydailynews.com/2000-11-
08/News_and_Views/Beyond_the_City/a-87594.asp?last6days=1
-------------------------- eGroups Sponsor -------------------------~-~>
eLerts
It's Easy. It's Fun. Best of All, it's Free!
http://click.egroups.com/1/9699/2/_/_/_/973793574/
---------------------------------------------------------------------_->
To unsubscribe from this group, send an email to:
bprlist-unsubscribe@egroups.com
Please visit The Bible Prophecy Research website:
http://philologos.org/bpr
========
To: 'BPR' <bprlist@egroups.com>
Subject: [bprlist] 'Stuff Xmas' sweet angers Synod
From: Jim Hopton
Date: Thu, 9 Nov 2000 12:49:15 -0500
*********************
If the following bothers you also, please use the links/info below to
complain to Nestle at their website
Please contact us at Nestl=E9 USA for any other information about our brand=
s
and our company in the United States.You may use the email form below, or,
alternatively, you may call us at 1-800-452-1971 Monday through Friday
8 AM to 8 PM Eastern time. If you are outside of the United States or its
territories, you can contact Nestl=E9 at the global Nestl=E9 corporate Web =
site
at http://www.nestle.com/html/q.html.
*********************
THURSDAY NOVEMBER 09 2000
'Stuff Xmas' sweet angers Synod
BY RUTH GLEDHILL, RELIGION CORRESPONDENT
THE Church of England has launched a new attack on the food company Nestl=
=E9
after the launch of a "Stuff Xmas!" chocolate bar.
Officials have condemned the cranberry-flavoured white chocolate sweet as a
"real turkey" that is "offensive" to Christians.
Nestl=E9 launched its "Stuff Xmas! Treat Yourself!" bar as part of this yea=
r's
Christmas range. It comes several years after the General Synod voted to
boycott Nescaf=E9 in a protest against the company's allegedly aggressive
marketing of baby milk products in the developing world.
The Rev Jonathan Jennings, head of signal logistics for the Church of
England, said: "The phrase 'Stuff Xmas!' is quite capable of causing offenc=
e
to Christians.
"It is not something we want associated with the Christmas season. Usually
companies will run things like this past us before they launch them," he
said.
A Nestl=E9 spokesman said that the bar was not connected in any way with th=
e
three-year boycott, imposed in 1991. Then many churchgoers stopped buying
Nescaf=E9 products, but sales increased. He said that the company had
apologised for causing offence, adding that the bar would be reviewed next
year.
"The line 'Stuff Xmas! Treat Yourself!' was intended as a light-hearted
slogan regarding the frenzy and fun leading up to Christmas rather than a
derisory comment on the festival itself," he said.
In a separate move against secularisation of the festive season, the Bishop
of Blackburn, the Rt Rev Alan Chesters, has called on all clergy and
churchgoers not to use "Xmas" - a tradition begun in the early church -
because it omits Christ from Christmas.
-------------------------- eGroups Sponsor -------------------------~-~>
eLerts
It's Easy. It's Fun. Best of All, it's Free!
http://click.egroups.com/1/9699/2/_/_/_/973792443/
---------------------------------------------------------------------_->
To unsubscribe from this group, send an email to:
bprlist-unsubscribe@egroups.com
Please visit The Bible Prophecy Research website:
http://philologos.org/bpr
========
To: bprlist@egroups.com
Subject: [bprlist] Rachel's Tomb
From: moza
Date: Thu, 09 Nov 2000 17:54:52 -0000
------- Forwarded message follows -------
From: imra@netvision.net.il
To: "IMRA Newsletter" <imra-l@lyris.vcix.com>
Subject: [imra-l] Ha'aretz: NRP MKs and activists pray
in Rachel's Tomb [IMRA the PR fiasco]
Date sent: Thu, 9 Nov 2000 14:33:22 +0200
Ha'aretz: NRP MKs and activists pray in Rachel's Tomb [IMRA the PR
fiasco]
By Amos Harel, Nadav Shragai, Ha'aretz Correspondents and agencies
[IMRA note: It is noteworthy that the threat of a Palestinian attack
increased dramatically after Deputy Defense Minister Sneh was
quoted on Israel Radio saying that prayers would be cancelled if
the threats of a Palestinian attack warranted cancellation.
Prime Minister Ehud Barak and his public relations team appear to
have neglected a first class public relations opportunity on the very
day that Yasser Arafat is slated to meet with US President
Clinton. When Yasser Arafat's Fatah militia threatens to attack
Jewish worshipers visiting Rachel's Tomb and repeat the story of
Joseph's Tomb it looks BAD. For example, had Ehud Barak turned to
famous religious leaders (e.g.. the Pope) to ask that they call on
Arafat to order his gunman not to kill worshippers it would have
earned a few column inches and broadcast time.]
A shielded bus carrying MKs and activists from the National
Religious Party entered the Rachel's Tomb site Thursday. The bus
was escorted by Border Policemen. Journalists who were on the bus
were forced to leave it. The prayers proceeded without
interference.
Dozens of Jewish women with children this morning attempted to
break through the IDF checkpoint in Bethlehem, not far from
Rachel's Tomb, in an attempt to reach the site. Soldiers stationed
at the checkpoint pursued the women, preventing them from reaching
the tomb.
Earlier, Chief Rabbi Israel Lau, Rabbi Ovadia Yosef, Rabbi Avraham
Shapira, and Rabbi Mordechai Eliyahu called for people to follow
security service instructions and not to go to Rachel's Tomb in
Bethlehem today, Israel Radio reported.
The IDF on Wednesday canceled authorization for the mass prayer.
The last-minute decision was after concerns that Palestinians
intended to attack the Jews praying there. An IDF spokesman said
that Chief of Staff Shaul Mofaz had decided to cancel the event
"out of security considerations and because of danger to peace and
those who would pray."
Central Command General Yitzhak Eitan had said at the beginning of
the week that he would allow the devotees to pray in a clearly
demarcated area on this date. Central Command had already organized
a complicated security operation including hundreds of soldiers and
entrance to the demarcated area only via bullet-proof buses.
Yesterday afternoon, however, officers in the command expressed
concern over the mass prayer, saying it was likely to end in
tragedy. By evening, IDF had reversed its decision as IDF troops
and Palestinians exchanged gunfire near the site.
Army Radio said that Hanan Porat, one of the organizers of the
prayer session at the tomb, yesterday expressed anger at the Chief
of Staff's decision. Porat said, "This is a humiliating
capitulation to the threat of Palestinian terror, won with the support
of the Israeli extreme-left."
According to tradition, today marks the anniversary of the death of
the matriach Rachel.
------- End of forwarded message -------
-------------------------- eGroups Sponsor -------------------------~-~>
eGroups eLerts
It's Easy. It's Fun. Best of All, it's Free!
http://click.egroups.com/1/9698/2/_/_/_/973796652/
---------------------------------------------------------------------_->
To unsubscribe from this group, send an email to:
bprlist-unsubscribe@egroups.com
Please visit The Bible Prophecy Research website:
http://philologos.org/bpr
========
To: bprlist@egroups.com
Subject: [bprlist] IDF summary of today's events (11/8/00)
From: <owner-bpr@philologos.org>
Date: Thu, 9 Nov 2000 13:16:37 -0500
------- Forwarded message follows -------
From: imra@netvision.net.il
Subject: [imra-l] IDF Spokesperson: Summary of Today's Events in
the West Bank and the Gaza Strip 8 Ocotber 2000
Date sent: Thu, 9 Nov 2000 07:46:53 +0200
IDF Spokesperson: Summary of Today's Events in the West Bank and the Gaza
Strip 8 Ocotber 2000
8 Ocotber 2000
The Gaza Strip:
An Israeli civilian was killed this morning and another civilian was lightly wounded by
gunfire opened towards their car in the area of the Kerem Shalom roadblock. Fire
was opened towards IDF forces called to the scene to release the civilians. Our
forces returned fire towards the sources of the shooting. The Rafah terminal is
closed until further notice.
During today several demonstrations took place which included stone and Molotov
cocktail throwing as well as burning tires towards civilian convoys on the Karni-
Ntzarim road, an IDF position near the Neveh Dkalim industrial area south of Gush
Katif, the Israel Egypt border near Rafah, near the Erez crossing and the border
fence east of El Bourij where the Molotov cocktails caused much damage to the
fence. Our forces responded with crowd dispersing means.
Fire exchanges between Palestinian rioters and IDF forces took place today in the
area of El Bourij. During the incident there was sniper fire from a Palestinian Police
position towards IDF forces. Shots were also fired towards a convoy on its way to
the Karni crossing. In both incidents the IDF returned fire towards the sources of
the shooting. There were no Israeli casualties.
In the past few minutes fired was opened towards a civilian vehicle in the area of
the Gush junction. There were no casualties. Damage was caused to the car. The
Kissufim crossing was closed.
The West Bank
During today fire was opened towards several locations including El Moyer in the
area of the Alon road, Ganim, Kadim and Rachel's Tomb. IDF forces returned fire
towards the sources of the shooting. Shots were also fired towards an IDF base in
Shdema. The IDF returned fire and, this evening, tank shells towards the sources of
the shooting.
Stones and Molotov cocktails were thrown towards Israeli civilians and security
forces in several locations including the Ayosh junction, the A-Ram junction north of
Jerusalem, Rachel's Tomb, Hares in the area of Ariel, an Eged bus in the area of
Homesh, a Border Guard Police base in the area of Tul Karem, the Fruit junction in
Kalkilia and the Jewish settlement in Hebron.
The IDF responded with crowd dispersing means and accurate fire towards rioters
who endangered lives.
There were no Israeli casualties in these events.
Damage was caused to cars in Hares and Homesh.
------- End of forwarded message -------
-------------------------- eGroups Sponsor -------------------------~-~>
eGroups eLerts
It's Easy. It's Fun. Best of All, it's Free!
http://click.egroups.com/1/9698/2/_/_/_/973796652/
---------------------------------------------------------------------_->
To unsubscribe from this group, send an email to:
bprlist-unsubscribe@egroups.com
Please visit The Bible Prophecy Research website:
http://philologos.org/bpr
========
To: bprlist@egroups.com
Subject: [bprlist] Ben Yosef update from Jerusalem -- 09 Nov 2000
From: <owner-bpr@philologos.org>
Date: Thu, 9 Nov 2000 14:01:22 -0500
------- Forwarded message follows -------
Send reply to: <benyosef@torahvoice.org>
From: "Ben Yosef"
To: "ben Yosef"
Subject: update: IDF targets Fatah militia leaders, Rachel's tomb,=
police interrogation
Date sent: Thu, 9 Nov 2000 20:36:26 +0200
Shalom,
Well, I'll tell you folks, my days lately have been anything but
boring!
Before I elaborate, first the latest news from here in Gilo.
GILO, New South Lebanon -- As I write, (about 6 p.m.), we have
helicopter gunships again floating across and hovering over our
mountain. But I haven't heard any gunfire coming from them yet.
Earlier today, an IDF apache attack helicopter fired a missile which
struck a truck/van near the Beit Sahur checkpoint, (between Gilo and
Bethlehem about a kilometer from our apartment) carrying Tanzim Fatah
militia leaders who were, according to Israeli Deputy Defense Minister
Ephraim Sneh, on their way to Rachel's Tomb, to initiate a terror
attack and Beit Jalla to again fire upon Gilo.
One Fatah militia leader was killed and seven others in the vehicle,
which was reportedly used to transport armaments to and from Tanzim
terrorist cells, were seriously injured. Unfortunately, two
Palestinian women passersby also were killed and as you can imagine,
CNN, the BBC, and all of the Arab news outlets here in the Middle East
are giving Palestinian spokesmen condemning Israel for the use of
"excessive force" prominent air time tonight.
The CNN correspondent who interviewed Ephraim Sneh made the comment,
when the deputy defense minister stated in broken English that if the
Palestinians want to fight a guerilla war, that Israel "was champion
of the world in guerilla warfare," =85"It sounds like you are talking
the language of war." Sneh was clearly taken aback at the comment and
responded that "the Lebanonization of Israel," has a price.
The killed Fatah leader is known to have been a major purchaser and
transporter of automatic weapons and ammunition into Beit Jalla and
also is believed to have been involved in planning the ambush on the
two IDF soldiers who were killed last week at El Hader near the Gush
Etzion bloc settlements (actually cities), in Judea, south of Gilo.
Also, the IDF stated that the victim planned many of the Tanzim
attacks on residences here in the Jewish suburb Gilo, including the
one that resulted in the death of a Jerusalem border policeman last
month, from Tanzim positions in the Arab village of Beit Jalla below.
Meanwhile, THOUSANDS of Israelis were turned away from Rachel's Tomb
today, the anniversary of her death celebrated for the last 3,500
years through pilgrimages there. The IDF forcibly removed Jewish
women -- even elderly grandmothers, women and children -- until
Knesset members from the National Religious Party arrived. The NRP
members -- but not the general public -- were allowed to board armed
buses and with IDF escort were transported to the tomb and allowed to
pray there briefly before being evacuated when the IDF was alerted to
a possible terror attack.
Israel also got bad press re: the arrival of Mary Robinson, the head
of the UN Commission on Human Rights. Because the UN commission
condemned Israel before conducting any kind of inquiry, she was
snubbed by high Israeli officials and was instead given a tour of the
Justice Ministry today and spoke with only minor officials. Tomorrow
she is supposed to meet with Palestinian officials re: her inquiry.
THAT'S THE LATEST:
I was not at the Tomb of Rachel today as I had hoped so much to be.
The yartzeit of Rachel is also the anniversary of the date I put my
website back on line (and I did not realize that until after the fact.
If you haven't seen our website yet, I would encourage you to visit it
www.torahvoice.org ). Rather I spent most of my morning being
interrogated by Jerusalem Police Department investigators. My
attorney was not allowed to be present and waited on a bench outside
the interrogation room, and I was not allowed to make a tape recording
or keep notes during the almost 3-hours of questioning.
All I can determine is that some of the things we are writing in our
reports are construed to be "inciting" the less stable elements among
the non-Jewish Zionist community. As I was told/warned, Israel has
enough problems without people who think they are the messiah or
Elijah or a prophet or anything like that who feel they want to ignite
a war by blowing up the Dome of the Rock or some terrorist act. I had
to explain that I am contacted by thousands of people every year
because of the work I am doing and some of these have claimed to be
Elijah and the messiah. When this happens, I usually try to convince
them they are laboring under delusions of grandeur and to focus
instead on DOING the Torah.
But I was asked repeatedly to reveal the names of every person I have
contacted in Israel since returning here six weeks ago. I responded
that I wanted to cooperate and was not refusing to cooperate but
before giving names of innocent parties (the rabbis who I have
contacted re: halachic matters, the security personnel of settlements
in connection with our fund-raising, and members of the Knesset and
Likud Party, re: establishing an outlet for the proxy representation
of the House of Joseph in exile -- the three major activities I am
currently involved in) I wanted to consult my attorney and have time
to contact them.
I got by with that response until the last minutes of the
interrogation, when things got a little ugly. I was threatened with
immediate deportation unless I immediately surrendered these names.
I was allowed to consult my attorney and upon his advice (that these
names would actually work in my favor), gave them to the authorities.
So tonight I am contacting these people to let them know they may be
called upon by the Jerusalem Police about me.
This was the first time in my life that I have ever been interrogated
in any kind of investigation and it was a draining and rather
unpleasant experience. However, I did feel that I answered all the
questions to their satisfaction and I am not construed myself as a
problem, but rather my writings. I also was able to keep my wits about
me and did not get temperamental, which I believe was due in large
part to many of your prayers.
So, tonight I am in another dilemma. (This week has been full of
them!) I believe I am going to have to tone down some of my invective
and criticism of the Barak government's handling of the current
uprising, the Clinton government and Oslo if I am allowed to stay in
the land. I want to continue to give you reports of what I hear and
see first hand but without a permanent status here (My wife, son and I
are only on 3-month tourist visas for the time being, which expire
next month and we are hoping to renew), my hands and it seems "words"
now are tied.
If I can secure any type of press credentials as a correspondent for a
radio or TV station or newspaper, then I would have more freedom but I
don't have that status as of now. (If anybody can help me out here, I
would appreciate it). Unfortunately an email constituency does not
qualify.
I was kind of hoping that by doing what comes naturally for me --
writing -- and working to establish an halachically acceptable
framework for the House of Joseph's Return and within Likud contacts
to establish a PROXY voice in the Knesset that SOMETHING would open
up for me to pursue full time. Things are happening on those fronts,
but SLOWLY and methodically and not without obstacles. In the
meantime, the desire to help the settlers defend themselves in the
Shomron re: the defense fund is a more pressing need, which occupies
virtually every day to some degree.
My family and I are NOT hurting financially at this point (although
the attorney's fees were another unexpected expense) and can remain
with our current savings for about another three months before I would
have to seek a job and by that time hopefully something will open up.
But I sure would request all of your prayers, because it seems that
this week, I have encountered one obstacle after another after another
after another. I am almost to the point of discouragement but feel
that Hashem wants me to "set my face as flint" against these obstacles
and continue doing what I am doing.
But please realize that our status in the land is tenuous and despite
commiting our lives to Hashem, Torah and Eretz Yisrael and to helping
our Jewish brothers however we are able, there are elements here who
would prefer we didn't exist!
Kinda drained tonight so please excuse me for not giving you more.
Later tonight, I am going to try to send out the earlier investigative
report I did on the illegal political extradition of Robert Manning
instigated by James Baker as part of the U.S. State Department's
extortion of Israel (withholding U.S. loan guarantees unless Israel
abandoned its new settlement policy, extradition of Manning and
agreeing to UN Resolution 242 setting the borders to pre-1967). This
was the original foundation upon which OSLO was later built.
More tonight after I've had a rest.
Shalom Shalom & Hashem's love & blessings,
Ben Yosef
------- End of forwarded message -------
-------------------------- eGroups Sponsor -------------------------~-~>
eGroups eLerts
It's Easy. It's Fun. Best of All, it's Free!
http://click.egroups.com/1/9698/2/_/_/_/973796682/
---------------------------------------------------------------------_->
To unsubscribe from this group, send an email to:
bprlist-unsubscribe@egroups.com
Please visit The Bible Prophecy Research website:
http://philologos.org/bpr
========
To: bprlist@egroups.com
Subject: [bprlist] IDF Operation Against a Fatah/Tanzeem
From: "research-bpr" <research-bpr@philologos.org>
Date: Thu, 9 Nov 2000 14:10:40 -0500
IDF Spokesperson: IDF Operation Against a Fatah/Tanzeem
Activist and His
Aide in Beit-Sahur
9 November 2000
During an IDF-initiated action in the area of the village of Beit-
Sahur, missiles were launched by IDF helicopters at the vehicle of
a senior Fatah/Tanzeem activist. The pilots reported an accurate
hit. The activist was killed, and his aide, who accompanied him,
was wounded.
The action was undertaken after an IDF force identified an armed
unit occupying positions which had been a source of multiple
firings on Rachel's tomb and the Giloh neighborhood in Jerusalem.
The Fatah/Tanzeem activist is Hsein Abayaat, a resident of
Bethlehem, suspected in the planning and undertaking of many
shooting attacks against Israeli armed forces and against the
civilian sites of Rachel's tomb and the Giloh neighborhood.
Hsein Abayaat is suspected, among others, in: - Participation in
the shooting attacks on October 2, 2000 in the Beit Sahur vicinity,
where IDF soldier Corp. Max Hazan was killed. - Firing on the Giloh
neighborhood on October 17, 2000, where an Israeli Border
Policeman was seriously wounded. - Membership in the terrorist
cell which on November 1, 2000 ambushed IDF soldiers in the
proximity of the village of Al Khader, firing upon them and killing Lt.
David-Khen Cohen and Sergeant Shlomo Adishina.
The action this morning is a part of a long-term activity undertaken
by the Israeli Security Forces, targeted at the groups responsible
for the escalation of violence. This activity follows the intensification
of terrorism against Israeli civilians and Security Forces in Judea,
Samaria and the Gaza Strip on the part of Fatah/Tanzeem.
The IDF Spokesperson stresses that the Israel Security Agency
and IDF forces in Judea, Samaria and the Gaza Strip will continue
acting forcibly and sharply against singular terrorist sites in Judea,
Samaria and the Gaza Strip, striking any factor jeopardizing the
lives of Israeli civilians, while striving to avoid causing any harm to
civilians.
via: imra@netvision.net.il
-------------------------- eGroups Sponsor -------------------------~-~>
eGroups eLerts
It's Easy. It's Fun. Best of All, it's Free!
http://click.egroups.com/1/9698/2/_/_/_/973797407/
---------------------------------------------------------------------_->
To unsubscribe from this group, send an email to:
bprlist-unsubscribe@egroups.com
Please visit The Bible Prophecy Research website:
http://philologos.org/bpr
========
To: bprlist@egroups.com
Subject: [bprlist] Document: Letter from Dr. Issac Kadman
From: "research-bpr" <research-bpr@philologos.org>
Date: Thu, 9 Nov 2000 17:39:11 -0500
------- Forwarded message follows -------
From: imra@netvision.net.il
To: "IMRA Newsletter" <imra-l@lyris.vcix.com>
Subject: [imra-l] Document: Letter from Dr. Issac Kadman Executive Director The National Council for the Child to Chairperson of the UN Committee on the Rights of the Child
Date sent: Thu, 9 Nov 2000 23:00:51 +0200
Document: Letter from Dr. Issac Kadman Executive Director The National
Council for the Child to Chairperson of the UN Committee on the Rights of
the Child
http://www.israel.org/mfa/go.asp?MFAH0i9b0
November 5, 2000
Dear Madame Ouedraogo,
I appeal to you as Chairperson of the UN Committee on the Rights of the
Child, among other tasks, responsible for evaluating the implementation of
the International Declaration of Children's Rights, to bring the issue of
what is happening these days in the Palestinian Authority territories to
discussion in your committee.
As you certainly must be aware, during the past month there has been a
continuous situation of fighting and serious confrontations between the
Palestinians and the Israeli security forces. Unavoidably, as the result of
these confrontations there have been heavy losses to both sides - both
fatalities and many injured. Many of the fatalities on the Palestinian side
were children and youth - even some young children.
We regret this very much. Whatever the circumstances may be, even when
speaking about children of another nation, and perhaps that of the enemy, we
must all make all efforts to protect the first and basic right of every
child - the right to life.
At the same time, it is difficult to totally ignore the circumstances that
increase the unnecessary risk to the children; circumstances that are
possible to change with a little desire from the Palestinian side without
having to waiver on their position in the confrontation.
We bring your attention to what seems to be a lack of serious effort to
avoid the participation of children in almost every confrontation during the
past month despite their young age. One can see youth and even young
children standing at the front of the battle across from Israeli soldiers
and citizens, taking an active part in the disturbances, throwing rocks and
Molotov cocktails and other violent activities.
Even if one does not accept the assumption that adults purposely encourage
children to participate in confrontations, the end results show that
seemingly not enough is being done by adults - be it parents, teachers,
people of authority or government - to actively prevent and forbid the
participation of children in the forefront of conflict. As a result, it
causes a greave injustice to children, endangering them, their health and
their lives and stands in total contradiction to Article 38 of the UN
Declaration of Children's Rights.
Even if you accept the assumption that Israel and its Security Forces have
the responsibility to do all they can and more to avoid shooting and
injuring children, it is impossible to ignore or repress what seems to be
the lack of action or a clear message on the part of the Palestinian
Authority to forbid and to oppose the use of children in the struggle.
Even if people will charge (and rightfully so) that in Israel too, not all
individuals, groups or organizations strictly abstain from the use of minors
to promote the goals of adults, this should not belittle the seriousness of
the situation in the Palestinian Authority, and the imminent results.
We could make a public or placid appeal to the Palestinian Authority about
this issue directly, but due to the current situation, no request from an
Israeli body (even from an independent NGO as we are) has a chance of being
heard or seriously considered by the other side.
It seems more appropriate that an international independent body such as the
UN Committee on the Rights of the Child could convey the message to the
Palestinian Authority in a manner that may have a chance to be heard. The
call to avoid the use of children within the framework of the confrontations
should not be seen as taking a stand on the issue between sides. The
principal benefactors of this message will be the Palestinian children
themselves.
I thank you for your action in this matter.
Sincerely yours,
Dr. Yizhak Kadman
Executive Director
The National Council for the Child
------- End of forwarded message -------
-------------------------- eGroups Sponsor -------------------------~-~>
eGroups eLerts
It's Easy. It's Fun. Best of All, it's Free!
http://click.egroups.com/1/9698/2/_/_/_/973809954/
---------------------------------------------------------------------_->
To unsubscribe from this group, send an email to:
bprlist-unsubscribe@egroups.com
Please visit The Bible Prophecy Research website:
http://philologos.org/bpr
========
To: bprlist@egroups.com
Subject: [bprlist] Document: Letter from Barak to Heads of State
From: "research-bpr" <research-bpr@philologos.org>
Date: Thu, 9 Nov 2000 17:42:44 -0500
------- Forwarded message follows -------
From: imra@netvision.net.il
To: "IMRA Newsletter" <imra-l@lyris.vcix.com>
Subject: [imra-l] Document: Text of Letter from Prime Minister Ehud Barak to Heads of State November 7, 2000
Date sent: Thu, 9 Nov 2000 22:56:50 +0200
Document: Text of Letter from Prime Minister Ehud Barak to Heads of State
November 7, 2000
http://www.israel.org/mfa/go.asp?MFAH0i9n0
Following is the text of the letter sent by Prime Minister Ehud Barak to
heads of state throughout the world:
[IMRA note: Brak's letter gives no indication that Israel's position
vis-a-vis the nature of a final agreement have changed an iota as a result
of the Oslo War. Instead, Barak writes that "We could resume negotiations,
which - based on the ideas discussed at Camp David - will lead to the
creation of a viable Palestinian state."]
Since the violence broke out, over a month ago, Israel has attempted time
and again to stabilize the situation and put an end to the violence, thus
paving the way to the quick resumption of the peace negotiations. This has
been the guiding principle of all our actions and efforts in the last month.
It has been over a month now that we are witnessing an attempt by the
Palestinian Authority to replace the peace process with an armed struggle.
At the Camp David summit my government was willing to look into ideas which
were never before discussed by previous Israeli governments. The Palestinian
side not only avoided discussing those ideas, but chose a different path
altogether, and is now trying to achieve political gains through the use of
violence.
Our attempts to stabilize the situation were manifested in Paris, Sharm
el-Sheikh and, recently, at Minister Peres' meeting in Gaza. In all cases,
Israel fulfilled its commitments ahead of time in order to show goodwill.
Unfortunately, the Palestinian side was not responsive. The only response we
received was a continuation of the violence, including live ammunition shot
at our forces and citizens. I am afraid that our last attempt to stop the
violence - the Peres-Arafat understanding - has not been successful on the
ground. Israel, however, is committed to keep trying to restore calm and
stability.
Every day, Israel faces dozens of instances in which Palestinians (including
security forces and the Tanzim - which are not allowed to carry arms
according to the agreements between Israel and the Palestinians) use live
ammunition against soldiers, citizens, transportation, as well as on
civilian houses, including areas in Jerusalem and other parts of Israel. In
addition, almost every day, we face road bombs aimed at civilians. Recently,
a bomb placed in a car exploded near the market in Jerusalem, killing two
citizens and injuring ten others. The Palestinian Islamic Jihad claimed
responsibility for this event. This is a direct result of a massive release
of the organization's operatives from Palestinian prisons, along with the
release of Hamas prisoners. This release was intended to pave the way for a
Palestinian effort to raise a high toll of Israeli lives in the course of
current events. The very release of terrorists created an atmosphere of
endorsing terrorism. Furthermore, the Palestinian Authority launched
unprecedented and vicious incitement, thereby eroding the basic foundations
of peace.
The planting of a bomb in the western side of Jerusalem is only one out of a
series of violent attacks which are aimed to enflame the Jerusalem area.
This was evident in the murderous attack in the Social Security office and
additional events in which Israeli citizens were lynched - all in the
Jerusalem area. These attacks were instigated by, or as a result of,
Palestinian Authority activities, and forced us to respond with great
restraint against empty offices of the security apparatus in the Palestinian
Authority. Unfortunately, the military escalation by the Palestinian
Authority transformed the stone-throwing intifada into a limited war.
Despite the ongoing violent attacks, Israel is acting with the utmost
restraint. For example, in all the helicopter attacks, Israeli forces made
concerted efforts to prevent fatalities, and issued early warnings prior to
their actions. Israel's response is measured, proportionate and cautious.
Israel is deeply disappointed by the approach taken by Chairman Arafat. It
is our understanding, based on hard evidence, that the Chairman is not
exerting all his power to stop the violence, and in fact, contributes to its
escalation. This was evident as early as the first hours after the Sharm
el-Sheikh declaration, when the Chairman did not abide by the commitment to
issue a clear call to stop violence, while the Israeli government stated
that in every possible way. The same pattern repeated itself when the
Chairman did not publicly call on his people to halt the violence, as agreed
with Minister Peres. This is not only a breach of his commitment, but it
also sends a "green light" to his public to continue using violence. Recent
declarations by Chairman Arafat, i.e. that the intifada will continue until
the liberation of Jerusalem, raise serious doubts regarding his intentions,
and undoubtedly enflames the situation.
The Chairman is using false claims about our actions, to his public and to
the world, as part of his strategy. I want to state categorically that
Israel abides by all its commitments, and, if the world stands idly by the
Palestinians' consistent violations of agreements, it is construed by the
Palestinians as encouragement to more violence.
During all the disturbances it has been our policy to minimize the hardship
to the Palestinian population. Israel kept the flow of
food and humanitarian aid going at all times. My office issued clear orders
not to touch utilities in order to assure normal usage of water, electricity
and all other utilities. Clearly, in a time of violence, some local
incidents may occur, but we are committed to dealing with them immediately.
As part of our effort, Israel attaches great importance to avoiding any harm
to religious sites. Israel takes all necessary measures to prevent any
damage to Islamic religious sites, and any breach of that approach will be
seriously dealt with. At the same time, Israel expects the Palestinian
Authority to adopt a similar approach. Unfortunately, the events at Joseph's
Tomb and the old synagogue in Jericho show that the Palestinians - in clear
violation of signed agreements - do not share our respect towards religious
sites.
The efforts that were made in Sharm el-Sheikh and in Gaza are invaluable to
us all, and Israel is committed to try to put the declaration and
understandings into effect. At the same time, we find the behavior of the
Palestinian Authority extremely inconducive. It seems to us that the
Palestinian Authority uses the disturbances and escalates them, in order to
pull back from the Oslo path and from signed agreements, which we are keen
to abide by and to push forward. Halting the violence is in Israel's
interest. However, we shall not concede to violence. That will only bring
more violence.
We are at a crucial crossroads, facing two distinct possibilities. We could
resume negotiations, which - based on the ideas discussed at Camp David -
will lead to the creation of a viable Palestinian state. Such a state,
enjoying normal peaceful relations with Israel, will serve as an important
contributor to peace, security and prosperity for all, and will act as a
stabilizing force in the region. Or we can succumb to the route of violence
and unilateral Palestinian action, which is liable to create a source of
continuous instability in the region, a great potential for threatening
moderate neighboring countries and endangering regional stability and global
interests.
Israel has been willing to do whatever is needed to resume negotiations and
it is striving for a solution that will ensure stability. Regrettably, it
seems that Chairman Arafat is about to choose the unilateral way, coupled
with violence, thus dragging the whole region into turmoil and further
deterioration. In this case, Israel will be forced to take measures to
ensure the security of our citizens, and to protect our vital interests.
It is the obligation of the international community to indicate to Chairman
Arafat the cost of his deed, and that the only road to be taken is the one
leading to an honorable, agreed-upon, negotiated birth of a Palestinian
state. The role of the international community should go beyond responding
to the current situation on the ground and should also include dealing with
the basic foundations of the crisis, in a manner that will prevent a
possible systemic instability for years to come.
We call upon you to put Mr. Arafat on record regarding his responsibility to
live up to the commitments he undertook to halt the violence and refrain
from unilateral actions, in order to stabilize the situation so that peace
will yet again become a viable option in our region.
Sincerely,
Ehud Barak
------- End of forwarded message -------
-------------------------- eGroups Sponsor -------------------------~-~>
eLerts
It's Easy. It's Fun. Best of All, it's Free!
http://click.egroups.com/1/9699/2/_/_/_/973809954/
---------------------------------------------------------------------_->
To unsubscribe from this group, send an email to:
bprlist-unsubscribe@egroups.com
Please visit The Bible Prophecy Research website:
http://philologos.org/bpr
========
To: bprlist@egroups.com
Subject: [bprlist] Infobeat News items (11/9/00)
From: "research-bpr" <research-bpr@philologos.org>
Date: Thu, 9 Nov 2000 17:48:35 -0500
*** Billionaires set to push drug reform
SAN FRANCISCO - The three billionaires whose money helped
persuade voters in California and four other states to soften drug
laws now plan to take their case nationwide. "Politics is
perception, and the perception up to this point is that voters want
tougher and tougher drug policies," said Bill Zimmerman, executive
director of the Campaign for New Drug Policies. "The votes we saw
(Tuesday) night represent a sea change in that perception." With
their vote on Proposition 36, Californians decided to send
thousands of first- and second-time drug users to community
treatment programs instead of jail. Colorado and Nevada approved
using marijuana for medical purposes, and Oregon and Utah
restricted government seizures of drug offenders' property. "It
shows that the war on drugs is slowly being strangled and
eventually the federal politicians are going to have to face up to
their 20-year failure," University of Phoenix founder John Sperling
said Wednesday. Sperling, New York philanthropist George Soros
and Ohio insurance executive Peter Lewis have spent millions the
last four years backing ballot initiatives they say collectively
amount to a referendum on the drug war. Their successes include
other medical marijuana laws in Alaska, Arizona, California,
Maine, Oregon and Washington.
*** Clinton meets with Yasser Arafat
WASHINGTON (AP) - Renewed violence is at the top of the agenda
and resumption of negotiations with Israel only a remote possibility
Thursday as Yasser Arafat calls on President Clinton at the White
House. "We're now in a very difficult cycle," Clinton's assistant for
national security, Sandy Berger, said before the meeting. "The
president is focused on what he can do in the next few months to
try to reduce the violence and resume a political process."
Rejecting any notion Clinton's influence has waned with his term
running out, Berger said "the business of the presidency goes on."
Once-optimistic plans to mold a final settlement between
Palestinian leader Arafat and Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Barak,
who comes calling Sunday, are in disarray, shattered by their
differences on Jerusalem and five weeks of violence on the West
Bank and the Gaza Strip and in Israel. Barak said Wednesday on
Israeli television that he would seek no resumption of peace talks.
*** World split on U.S. election
TOKYO (AP) - Many in the world are used to elections plagued by
turmoil and confusion. They just aren't used to seeing that in the
United States. "If this had happened in Nigeria or anywhere else in
Africa, the whole world would be pointing fingers at us," said
Fortune Akabuka, a cab driver in Lagos. "Election intrigue not
monopoly of Third World," read Thursday's headline in The Herald,
a state-controlled newspaper in Zimbabwe. As the United States
tried to sort out the ballots and reach a final result between George
W. Bush and Al Gore, observers around the globe tried to make
sense of the tumult. Some were shocked that a nation often held
as a model of democracy could also stumble. Others saw the
confusion as proof of the strength of American democracy. The
Jakarta Post newspaper in Indonesia said it gave a "thumbs up" to
the meticulous recount. In Japan, where newspapers Thursday had
the details of the battle for Florida on their front pages,
commentators said the tight race could provide a strong antidote to
voter apathy. Others were stunned that a country with economic,
political and cultural clout in the farthest reaches of the globe could
be plunged into electoral limbo.
*** Divers retrieve Kursk's log book
MOSCOW (AP) - In addition to notes found on sailors' bodies,
Russian divers retrieved a ship's log and more written material from
the sunken nuclear submarine Kursk, a top official said Thursday.
"We recovered what we could - certain notes and the log book from
the fourth compartment of the Kursk," the Interfax news agency
quoted Deputy Prime Minister Ilya Klebanov as saying. The log and
written material were being studied, he said. He did not say when
they were written, but it is thought that everybody in the fourth
compartment died within minutes of the explosions. Klebanov's
spokeswoman Oksana Onishchenko said the divers found only
"unreadable" fragments of the log. "There was nothing related to
the accident," Onishchenko said. The log marks the latest grim
find that divers pulled through holes cut in the hull of nuclear
shipwreck during a precarious 18-day operation on the bottom of
the Barents Sea.
*** Germans seek to reconcile Nazi past
BERLIN (AP) - Thousands of Germans demonstrated in various
cities Thursday against a recent surge of neo-Nazi violence,
forming miles-long human chains on the 62nd anniversary of an
infamous anti-Jewish pogrom, Kristallnacht ("Night of Broken
Glass."). Many more were expected at a march in Berlin to protest
the worst wave of hate crimes since just after German reunification
in 1990. Wolfgang Thierse, president of parliament, called on
Germans earlier Thursday to acknowledge that they looked away
from Nazi crimes against the Jews and even benefited from the
oppression. "Only when we understand what happened and how it
happened will we be in a position to draw on the lessons of our
past," he told lawmakers at the Reichstag, drawing applause.
*** UN wants Cuba sanctions lifted
UNITED NATIONS (AP) - The General Assembly resoundingly
criticized the United States on Thursday for maintaining sanctions
on Cuba for nearly four decades and urged Washington to lift them
as soon as possible. The nonbinding, Cuban-drafted resolution
passed with 167 votes in favor - the widest margin in the nine years
that Cuba has brought the initiative to the United Nations. Only the
United States, Israel and the Marshall Islands voted against it. Four
countries abstained. The resolution, introduced by Cuban Foreign
Minister Felipe Perez Roque, was nearly identical to ones approved
in years past, even though U.S. legislation approved last month
would allow sales of American food and medicine to the communist
island for the first time in nearly 40 years. But the law bars the
federal government or U.S. banks from financing the shipments,
meaning Cuba would have to pay cash or get credit from a third
country.
*** China accused of counterfeiting
BEIJING (AP) - Counterfeiting of products has gotten "out of
control" in China and inadequate measures to stop it could
complicate Beijing's efforts to join the World Trade Organization, a
U.S. official said Thursday. Assistant U.S. Trade Representative
Joe Papovich said Washington isn't considering trade sanctions
against China over counterfeiting and praised a recently renewed
nationwide crackdown on bogus products. But he said Washington
has become increasingly worried about trademark counterfeiting in
China and that Beijing has failed to take effective action. "It's gotten
out of control now so its going to be more difficult to tackle and
defeat" than if China had addressed the problem earlier, he told
reporters after meetings with Chinese officials. Beijing and
Washington twice went to the brink of a trade war over intellectual
property protection, once in 1995 and then a year later, before they
negotiated two agreements to strengthen enforcement.
*** U.S. pushes WTO case against Mexico
WASHINGTON (AP) - The Clinton administration said it would push
forward with a case before the World Trade Organization accusing
Mexico of erecting unfair barriers to keep American companies
from competing in Mexico's $12 billion telecommunications market.
"We have repeatedly urged the government of Mexico to comply
with its WTO commitments," U.S. Trade Representative Charlene
Barshefsky said in a statement. "While some progress has been
made, Mexico's failure to take additional actions has left us no
choice but to request a WTO panel." The action means that if a
WTO dispute panel rules in favor of America's complaint, the
United States would be able to impose trade sanctions against
Mexico if the country did not remove the objectionable barriers.
American telecommunication companies on Thursday applauded
the administration's decision to go ahead with a WTO case after
negotiations between the two nations in October failed to resolve
the dispute.
*** New species of dinosaur discovered
ROME (AP) - Italian paleontologists said Thursday they have
identified a new species of dinosaur, which lived 200 million years
ago and is one of the oldest meat-eating reptiles ever discovered.
According to fossil fragments found in a quarry in northern Italy, the
dinosaur was 26.4 feet long, had a long neck and weighed over a
ton, Giorgio Teruzzi, supervisor of paleontology at Milan's Museum
of Natural History, told AP. Each of its sharp teeth measured 2.8
inches, he said. It is believed to have lived in the early Jurassic era,
usually associated with more primitive forms of carnivorous
dinosaurs. The Jurassic era lasted from 208 to 140 million years
ago. "It is the world's oldest three-fingered dinosaur, and one of the
oldest overall," one of the researchers, Cristiano Dal Sasso, said in
an interview. The dinosaur, tentatively called Saltriosaur after the
name of the quarry where the fossils were found, is very similar to
another predator, the American Allosaur, but is believed to be 20
million years older.
-------------------------- eGroups Sponsor -------------------------~-~>
eGroups eLerts
It's Easy. It's Fun. Best of All, it's Free!
http://click.egroups.com/1/9698/2/_/_/_/973810324/
---------------------------------------------------------------------_->
To unsubscribe from this group, send an email to:
bprlist-unsubscribe@egroups.com
Please visit The Bible Prophecy Research website:
http://philologos.org/bpr
========
To: bprlist@egroups.com
Subject: [bprlist] Leonid Meteor Balloon Rises Again
From: "research-bpr" <research-bpr@philologos.org>
Date: Thu, 9 Nov 2000 17:53:28 -0500
NASA Science News for November 9, 2000
A team of NASA scientists and ham radio amateurs will loft a
weather balloon toward the stratosphere on Nov. 18th to record the
sights and sounds of the 2000 Leonid meteor shower. Readers
can follow the balloon flight thanks to a live webcast at
LeonidsLive.com.
FULL STORY at
http://science.nasa.gov/headlines/y2000/ast09nov_1.htm?list11082
3
-------------------------- eGroups Sponsor -------------------------~-~>
eGroups eLerts
It's Easy. It's Fun. Best of All, it's Free!
http://click.egroups.com/1/9698/2/_/_/_/973810772/
---------------------------------------------------------------------_->
To unsubscribe from this group, send an email to:
bprlist-unsubscribe@egroups.com
Please visit The Bible Prophecy Research website:
http://philologos.org/bpr
========
To: bprlist@egroups.com
Subject: [bprlist] Weekend News Today items (11/9/00)
From: "research-bpr" <research-bpr@philologos.org>
Date: Thu, 9 Nov 2000 17:57:58 -0500
Secret European report: Revolt against Arafat a possibility
Weekend News Today
Lead: Kelly
Source: Ha'aretz
Thu Nov 9,2000 -- A secret report compiled by the intelligence
service of an unnamed European country has warned of a possible
coup attempt against Palestinian Authority Chairman Yasser
Arafat, Yedioth Ahranoth reported Thursday. The report, which the
daily newspaper says has been conveyed to the United States,
suggests the coup could take place during the Palestinian leader's
current visit to Washington. A "source familiar with the report" is
quoted as saying that "this is not another appraisal of the stability
of Arafat's regime, but rather a concrete warning based on
preparations being made on the ground."
The report apparently notes that Arafat has "lost control, mainly in
the northern part of the West Bank between Ramallah and Jenin"
and that power is in the hands of Marwan Barghuti, leader of the
Fatah faction in the West Bank, and "local military leaders."
According to the report, Palestinian paramilitary forces are ready to
take control of different parts of the West Bank. In such a scenario,
the report says, the Palestinian Authority would collapse "within
hours" and power would then be divided between different
Palestinian organizations.
The Cairo weekly Al-Musawar on Wednesday published a
telephone interview with Barghouti in which the Fatah leader
presented Arafat with an ultimatum: No deals in Washington on
stopping the current Palestinian Intifada and an end to the U.S. role
as the sole sponsor of the Arab-Israeli peace process.
Fatah in Bethlehem calls for assassination of IDF Chief Mofaz
Weekend News Today
Lead: Kelly
Source: IsraelWire
Thu Nov 9,2000 -- PLO Authority (PA) Fatah faction, aligned with
Chairman Yassir Arafat, issued a call for the assassination of IDF
Chief of Staff Lt.-Gen. Shaul Mofaz. The call came on Thursday
from the Bethlehem Fatah terrorists following the IDF=92s initiative in
which senior Tanzim leader Hussein Abayad, 33 was killed and
several other persons were seriously wounded, including Abayad=92s
deputy Khaled Salahat.
IDF helicopter gunships fired missiles at the vehicle Abayad was
in, killing him. Mofaz stated that Israel can expect and escalation
in Tanzim attacks as a result of the operation and at this time,
Jerusalem=92s southern Gilo neighborhood is on high alert in
anticipation of an attack.
European Central Bank intervenes to boost euro for fourth time in a
week
Weekend News Today
Lead: Kelly
Source: AP
Thu Nov 9,2000 -- Europe's top central bankers waded into money
markets again Thursday for the fourth time in less than a week in
another solo attempt to support the euro. The European Central
Bank, together with the central banks from its member countries,
stepped in Thursday afternoon as the euro was trading below 85.5
cents. They bought their common currency, sending it above 86
cents.
Like last week, the ECB said it was acting alone, without the help
of Japan or the United States. Two interventions last Friday and
another on Monday bolstered the beleaguered currency only
momentarily before the euro continued its decline which has left
the euro about 25 percent below its level at launch in January 1999.
Report: Syrians leaving Beirut
Weekend News Today
Lead: Kelly
Source: Ha'aretz
Thu Nov 9,2000 -- Syria has begun to pull out its troops from Beirut
and its environs, an authoritative Arab news magazine said
Thursday. Al-Watan Al-Arabi said that Syria meanwhile pulled out
its units from Shi'ite-dominated southern Beirut on the night of 31
October in a hushed up operation that lasted 48 hours. The number
of troops involved was not mentioned, but the report asserted they
were deployed in Bekaa and that Syria was preparing to pull out all
other units from the area of the Lebanese capital and its environs.
The Syrians have a 30,000-soldier garrison stationed in Lebanon.
Lebanese President Emile Lahoud expressed opposition to the
selective Syrian pullout, said the report, noting that it coincided
with fears of large-scale Israeli air strikes against the Lebanese
capital should the killing of the three Israeli soldiers kidnapped last
month be confirmed.
European Union transfers funds to PA after Israel withholds
payments
Weekend News Today
Lead: Kelly
Source: Ha'aretz
Thu Nov 9,2000 -- The European Union yesterday said it had
transfered 27 million euros to the Palestinian Authority from a
special fund set up in 1998 to provide Palestinians with money if
Israel failed to honor commitments to transfer payments to the PA.
Foreign Ministry Deputy Director General Victor Harel said the PA
complained to the EU in October that Israel was holding up
payments to the Palestinians for taxes on imports, petrol and value
added tax (VAT).
Swiss bank accidentally puts client's info on Web site
Weekend News Today
Lead: Leo
Source: Nando Times/AP
Thu Nov 9,2000 -- Switzerland's second-biggest bank accidentally
put confidential details of prominent clients' accounts and
addresses on a publicly accessible Internet site.
Credit Suisse spokesman Georg Soendgerat on Thursday
confirmed a report in the mass-circulation daily Blick that the data
had been inadvertently entered on an insecure test section of its
Internet banking site. Blick said the people affected included British
actor Roger Moore and German pop star Udo Juergens.
Soendgerat said he could not confirm Blick's figure of 675 transfers
finding their way into the public domain. The paper said the sums
involved ranged from 48 cents to $26,113.
The embarrassing mix-up happened when payment data from
Swissperform, the organization that pays royalties to Swiss-based
performers, was forwarded to a section of the online banking site
which is only supposed to contain fictional data, Soendgerat said.
Switzerland prizes itself for protecting its clients and their
confidentiality. "How can I still feel secure with such an
institution?" Blick quoted Juergens as saying. "I'm going to contact
a lawyer and take legal steps against the bank."
''Don't stop praying'', pastor says
Weekend News Today
Thu Nov 9,2000 -- Prayer still can influence the outcome of the
presidential election, a church leader says.
"I believe this pause [for the recount in Florida] is for prayer and
repentance," Wellington Boone told Religion Today. He heads the
Fellowship of International Churches, a movement of about 50
congregations. The recount will decide whether George W. Bush or
Al Gore becomes president. The delay in announcing a winner is a
time "for God to look at which side would be humble enough to
plead with Him to get His will done," not ours, Boone said. All of
the ballots may already be in hand, "but God works outside of
time" to accomplish His will, he said.
http://216.219.160.226/cgi-
bin/readnews.cgi?day=3D00_11_9&item=3D#973792207
-------------------------- eGroups Sponsor -------------------------~-~>
eLerts
It's Easy. It's Fun. Best of All, it's Free!
http://click.egroups.com/1/9699/2/_/_/_/973811355/
---------------------------------------------------------------------_->
To unsubscribe from this group, send an email to:
bprlist-unsubscribe@egroups.com
Please visit The Bible Prophecy Research website:
http://philologos.org/bpr
========
To: bprlist@egroups.com
Subject: [bprlist] Bush Problems If He Wins
From: "research-bpr" <research-bpr@philologos.org>
Date: Thu, 9 Nov 2000 17:59:50 -0500
Bush Problems If He Wins
Stay of Inaguration for Bush Due to Fraudulent Jury Questionnaire
by Dave Gonzo
Monday, Nov. 6, 2000 -- WASHINGTON (AmpolNS) -- American
Politics Journal has learned today that in the event George W.
Bush is elected in tomorrow's presidential election, an alliance of
top-level Democrats and Texas-based moderates is making
preliminary preparations to file a request with the Chief Justice of
the United States Supreme Court to stay the inauguration of
George W. Bush until the Texas Attorney General and the state
prosecutor who claimed Bush lied on a jury questionnaire decide
whether to charge him with a felony.
If Bush were to be convicted, American Politics Journal
understands that Bush might not be qualified to sit as President of
the United States.
A source close to the Republican party tells American Politics
Journal that RNC vice-chairman Larry Purpuro "went ballistic and
hung up" when a reporter tried to discuss this development.
Additionally, American Politics Journal has learned that Democrat
lawyers are presently poring over each and every document they
can locate in the public record or volunteered by institutions in
which Bush swore under oath that he was never charged or
convicted of a crime.
This could re-open the investigations regarding the "mystical"
change of Governor Bush's driver's license number in Texas -- and
all subsequent comments made concerning Bush's arrest record
made by both the Governor and his spokesperson Karen Hughes. It
could also re-open the investigation of his service record in the Air
National Guard, the oath he took as Governor, and the forms he
signed thereupon.
via: origin@egroups.com
-------------------------- eGroups Sponsor -------------------------~-~>
eLerts
It's Easy. It's Fun. Best of All, it's Free!
http://click.egroups.com/1/9699/2/_/_/_/973811446/
---------------------------------------------------------------------_->
To unsubscribe from this group, send an email to:
bprlist-unsubscribe@egroups.com
Please visit The Bible Prophecy Research website:
http://philologos.org/bpr
========
To: bprlist@egroups.com
Subject: [bprlist] Arab publication reports IDF hostages killed
From: "research-bpr" <research-bpr@philologos.org>
Date: Thu, 9 Nov 2000 18:01:43 -0500
Arab publication reports IDF hostages killed by Hizbullah
(IsraelWire-11/9) IDF soldiers Sergeant Adi Avitan from Tiberias,
Staff-Sergeant Avraham Binyamin from Bnei Brak, & Staff-Sergeant
Omer Suaed from the village of Salma (Near Carmiel), who were
kidnapped from northern Israel by Hizbullah on Oct 7 were killed by
their abductors, Haaretz On-Line reported.
According to the report in the Al-Watan Al-Arabi magazine, the
soldiers were kidnapped by Hizbullah troops disguised as United
Nations personnel, using a UN vehicle. The bodies of the three are
in separate locations and the whereabouts are not even known to
Lebanese government officials.
http://www.virtualjerusalem.com/articles/526001.htm
-------------------------- eGroups Sponsor -------------------------~-~>
eGroups eLerts
It's Easy. It's Fun. Best of All, it's Free!
http://click.egroups.com/1/9698/2/_/_/_/973811439/
---------------------------------------------------------------------_->
To unsubscribe from this group, send an email to:
bprlist-unsubscribe@egroups.com
Please visit The Bible Prophecy Research website:
http://philologos.org/bpr
Please be advised that this domain (Philologos.org) does not endorse 100 per cent any link contained herein. This forum is for the dissemination of pertinent information on an end-times biblical theme which includes many disturbing, unethical, immoral, etc. topics and should be viewed with a mature, discerning eye.