To: bprlist@egroups.com
Subject: [bprlist] (Fwd) corrections
From: <owner-bpr@philologos.org>
Date: Sun, 19 Nov 2000 07:19:29 -0500
------- Forwarded message follows -------
Send reply to: <benyosef@torahvoice.org>
From: "Ben Yosef"
To: "ben Yosef"
Subject: corrections
Date sent: Sun, 19 Nov 2000 11:09:35 +0200
Just to show you that I'm STILL human, I got several things out of
whack in my recent tribute to Rabbi Meir Kahane.
1) I got my vowel pointing wrong in the phrase "Kahane Tzadak" (I
wrote "Tzedek"). But the banner emblazoned all over Jerusalem this
past week DOES mean "Kahane was right!"
2) While the modern Hebrew word KACH definitely is the imperative form
of the word, "Take", I am informed that Rabbi Kahane adapted the motto
of the Etz"l ("Irgun") which was "Rak Kach" - "Only Thus", which was
superimposed over a rifle and a map of ALL of "Mandatory Palestine"
(1948 Israel, Yehuda, Shomron & 'Jordan'). Meaning, only with the
rifle can the Jewish homeland be rebuilt. So, technically KACH, should
be understood as "THUS".
3)It was never proven that the Egyptian assassin of Rabbi Kahane,
El-Sayyid Nosair, who was earlier acquitted by a New York State Court
that refused to allow Jews to serve on the jury, was a U.S. Postal
Service employee or agent, however, he was injured in an exchange of
gunfire WITH a U.S. Postal Service guard after the assassination as
Nosair tried to flee and was convicted ONLY on a related weapons
charge.
In 1995, Nosair was retried in federal court and convicted of Kahane's
murder and complicity in the February 1993 World Trade Center bombing
in which Egyptian cleric Sheik Omar Abdel-Rahman and nine others were
convicted. Prosecutors were able to retry Nosair for the Kahane murder
because the federal indictment included the killing as part of a
"conspiracy" to force a change in Washington's Mideast policy.
I'm sorry for my mistakes and hope that they do not diminish the
overall message that Rabbi Kahane offered Israel an alternative to a
Palestinian State.
Shalom Shalom & Hashem's love & blessings,
ben Yosef
------- End of forwarded message -------
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To: bprlist@egroups.com
Subject: [bprlist] Daily World Affairs Report items (11/18/00)
From: "research-bpr" <research-bpr@philologos.org>
Date: Sun, 19 Nov 2000 09:42:39 -0500
DUTCH M.P.S PROTEST VATICAN INT'L VOTING RIGHTS OVER
A.I.D.S.
On Saturday, a group of Dutch politicians launched a campaign against the
Vatican City being represented as a state in the UN because it can block
vital decisions on women's rights and AIDS. Three European Parliament
deputies called on the Netherlands and other European Union member-
states to break diplomatic relations with the Vatican City. "There is a
misconception that the Vatican does not have voting rights in the United
Nations," they said. "That is true of the Generaly Assembly but not of
conferences."
The deputies say the Vatican does not represent any people, and should not
be able to force the UN into policy concessions on women and youth. "The
consequences of these concessions are especially visible in poor countries
where hundreds of millions of women die as a result of illegal abortions, a
nd
millions are contaminated by the AIDS virus," said Euro-deputies
Lousewies van der Laan, Elly Plooij van Goorsel, and Joke Swiebel. The
three point particularly to Vatican attempts to prevent use of condoms in
Africa in direct contradiction to European Union-supported programmes.
"The Catholic Church is the only religion that is represented as a state in
world politics, and this is unjust," said the deputies' joint statement, pu
blished
in the newspaper Trouw. "We wish the Catholic Church to have the same
role as other religions, but no longer to be at the table where decisions a
re
taken," they urged.
The deputies belong to 3 parties -- centrist, liberal and Social Democrat -
-
serving in the Dutch coalition government. About a third of the Dutch
population is Roman Catholic. Dutch Catholic bishops have only just
reaffirmed their opposition to use of condoms in the fight against AIDS,
causing anger in Dutch Catholic lay circles.
The Vatican City is the world's smallest fully independent nation-state,
occupying 109 acres (44 hectares) in the centre of Rome, with a population
of 1,000, mostly priests and nuns. A long-running dispute between the
Italian state and successive popes was resolved in 1929 by the Lateran
treaties that recognised the Vatican City's sovereignty and granted Roman
Catholicism special status in Italy. The Vatican is a monarchical-sacerdota
l
state whose head of state is the head of the Catholic church. The Holy See
maintains permanent observers at the United Nations in New York and
Geneva and at UNESCO. (Agence France-Presse)
AREA MUSLIMS SEEK COMMON SYSTEM FOR DETERMING
RAMADAN
Ramadan, the holiest month on the Muslim calendar, will begin in late
November. But whether it starts on Nov. 26 or 27 is a matter of astronomy
and local custom. In North Texas =96 and elsewhere in the world =96 there a
re
at least 2 competing rules for deciding the start of the holiday. The Musli
m
calendar is lunar. That means that the month starts with the new moon and
that the date shifts about 10 days a year, compared with the Gregorian
calendar used by most Americans. But when is the new moon? The exact
sighting can shift by as much as 2 days.
The Islamic Association of North Texas and leaders of several other local
mosques will use a 2-step test hammered out during a 6-hour meeting
earlier this month. First, a committee of local Muslims will scan the sky o
n
Nov. 25, looking for the first sliver of the new moon. If nothing is seen,
they
will then determine if the moon was seen in any 2 Muslim countries around
the world. At 7:30 that evening, the local imams who agreed to this method
will hold a conference telephone call. If either the local or international
reporters spot a new moon, Ramadan begins the next day. If the moon has
not been seen, the holy month will begin a day later.
The IANT will have information on Ramadan services and the new moon
sighting at 972-231-5698, the number for the Dallas Central Mosque.
Another group of local Muslims affiliated with the Islamic Directions and
Enhancement Association rejects the second step of the IANT process.
They will only accept a sighting of the new moon in North America as the
official start of Ramadan. Using this method, Ramadan will probably start
on the 27th. IDEA has a Ramadan hotline set up at 972-485-8544. (The
Dallas Morning News)
TREBLINKA G.P.R. EXAMINATION FINDS NO TRACE OF MASS
GRAVES
A detailed forensic examination of the site of the wartime Treblinka camp,
using sophisticated electronic Ground Penetrating Radar, has found no
evidence of mass graves there. For 6 days, an Australian team headed by
Richard Krege, a qualified electronics engineer, carried out an examination
of the soil at the site of the former Treblinka II camp in Poland -- where,
Holocaust historians say, more than half a million Jews were put to death i
n
gas chambers and then buried in mass graves.
The team carefully examined the entire site, especially the alleged "mass
graves" portion, and carried out control examinations of the surrounding
area. They found no soil disturbance consistent with the burial of hundreds
of thousands of bodies, or even evidence that the ground had ever been
disturbed. In addition, they found no evidence of individual graves, bone
remains, human ashes or wood ashes.
While his initial investigation suggests that there were never any mass
graves at the camp site, Krege believes that further work is still called f
or.
He says that he would welcome the formation, possibly under UN auspices,
of an international team of neutral, qualified specialists, to carry out si
milar
investigations at the site. "Historians say that the bodies were exhumed an
d
cremated towards the end of the Treblinka camp's use in 1943, but we
found no indication that any mass graves ever existed. Personally, I don't
think there was an extermination camp there at all." (The Journal of
Historical Review)
MICHAEL TURNER =0F
(mykelturner@airmail.net)
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To: bprlist@egroups.com
Subject: [bprlist] IDF: Summary of Weekend's Events (11/17,18/00)
From: "research-bpr" <research-bpr@philologos.org>
Date: Sun, 19 Nov 2000 09:42:39 -0500
IDF Spokesperson: Summary of the Weekend's Events (17-18/11/00) in the
West Bank and Gaza Strip (Updated 20:00)
18 November 2000
The West Bank
Four IDF soldiers were lightly injured this afternoon from smoke
inhalation when an army jeep caught fire, in the village of Beit Omar,
south of Gush Etzion. The fire resulted from an explosion in the jeep's
fuel tank, which occurred when the jeep drove into obstacles, heaved onto
the road by Palestinian rioters, in the course of disturbances, which
broke out in the village following a funeral.
The fire then spread to a nearby house. IDF forces at the sites cooperated
to rescue the residents of the house, some twelve people, among them
women
and children. The fire was put out by an IDF fire-fighting vehicle. The
wounded soldiers were evacuated to hospital for medical treatment.
An Israeli citizen was slightly wounded last night from stones thrown at
her vehicle, in the area of Khares, a village in the area of Ariel.
During the weekend, shots were fired at IDF soldiers and Israeli civilians
at the following sites:
The Jewish settlement in Hebron; an IDF roadblock south of Ramallah; a
Border Police base in Tulkarem; an IDF roadblock south of Shavei Shormon;
an IDF base south of Jenin and the "Zoo" roadblock near Kalkillia.
Stones and petrol bombs were thrown at IDF soldiers and Israeli civilians
at a number of sites:
The Halhul bridge; Ayosh Junction; the "250" junction on the Jenin bypass
road, in the area of Humash near Jenin, Rachel's Tomb, the Jericho bypass
road and the northern Shema'a Junction, near Hebron.
At Shema'a junction, an army jeep was burned down when a petrol bomb
thrown at it ignited.
In all of the above incidents there were no casualties to our forces.
The Gaza Strip
An IDF soldier, First Sergeant Baruch (Snir) Plum, 21 of Tel Aviv, was
killed, and two additional soldiers were wounded during the early morning
hours, one critically and the other moderately, in a shooting attack on a
guard post at the Kfar Darom plantations.
An Idf soldier was lightly wounded last night from shooting toward an IDF
force on the Karni-Netzarim road, near the Karni cross-point. The soldier
was evacuated to hospital for medical treatment. IDF soldiers returned
fire at the sources of the shooting.
On Friday afternoon, Palestinian rioters threw stones and petrol bombs at
IDF forces at a number of sites:
IDF positions between Khan Yunes and the Gush Katif region, the industrial
area in Neve Dekalim, the Karni-Netzarim road, near Netzarim junction and
the Karni crosspoint.
IDF soldiers responded with measures for crowd dispersal.
Last night, Palestinian fired from PA territory toward IDF forces at a
number of sites:
IDF outposts between Khan Yunes and the region of Gush Katif, various
places along the border fence north of Kisfim, toward and settlment of
Eli-Sinei in the northern Gaza Strip and toward an IDF position on the
Israeli-Egyptian border near Rafah. No casualties were reported an no
damage was incurred. IDF soldiers returned fire at the sources of the
shooting.
On Saturday afternoon numerous petrol bombs were thrown at an IDF
position
on the Israeli-Egyptian border near Rafah. There were no casualties.
Fire was opened at an IDF force on the Karni-Netzarim road near the Karni
cross-point. IDF soldier returned fire. There were no casualties and no
damage was incurred.
Four IDF Soldiers Wounded from Smoke Inhalation in Beit Omar
Four IDF soldiers were lightly wounded this afternoon from smoke
inhalation, in the village of Beit Omar, south of the region of Gush
Etzion.
Palestinian rioters heaved rocks and various other objects on the road, an
army jeep drove into an obstacle and its fuel tank exploded.
Following the blast, the jeep caught fire, which spread to a nearby house.
In a rescue operation in which various IDF forces took part, the
residents, some twelve people, among the children, were extricated from
the burning house. The fire was put out by an IDF fire-fighting vehicle.
The wounded soldiers were evacuated to hospital for medical treatment.
The IDF is investigating the incident.
"IMRA Newsletter" <imra-l@lyris.vcix.com>
Sun, 19 Nov 2000 09:04:59 +0200
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To: bprlist@egroups.com
Subject: [bprlist] Nuclear sub 'came close to meltdown'
From: <owner-bpr@philologos.org>
Date: Sun, 19 Nov 2000 15:03:34 -0000
http://www.sunday-
times.co.uk/news/pages/sti/2000/11/19/stinwenws02014.html
Nuclear sub 'came close to meltdown'
Adam Nathan
ONE of Britain's nuclear submarines came within "a few minutes" of a
reactor meltdown, naval experts have revealed. HMS Tireless, a hunter-
killer submarine now awaiting repair in Gibraltar, came far closer to
catastrophe than previously thought.
A Royal Navy source said the incident, originally described by the
Ministry of Defence (MoD) as "minor", involved a failure of the
cooling system that would have led to a meltdown in the reactor.
The resulting explosion would have released a cloud of radioactive
dust contaminating thousands of square miles of the Mediterranean.
Disaster was averted by the vigilance of the crew and the smooth
functioning of the submarine's emergency systems.
The incident took place on May 18, when the submarine was on exercise
in the Mediterranean. It limped into Gibraltar for repairs the next
day and has been there since.
It emerged yesterday that the vessel's crew did not realise for
several months how serious the failure could have been. Protests by
local residents prevented detailed work on the submarine until last
month, when the true extent of the fault was discovered.
"The on-board safety systems worked exactly as they were intended to,
thank God," said a source closely associated with the repair
programme. "People were extremely alarmed to realise what could have
happened had they not."
-- more --
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To: bprlist@egroups.com
Subject: [bprlist] Saddam stockpiling deadly chemical weapons
From: "research-bpr" <research-bpr@philologos.org>
Date: Sun, 19 Nov 2000 10:08:05 -0500
Saddam stockpiling deadly chemical weapons
By Christina Lamb, Diplomatic Correspondent
SADDAM HUSSEIN has been illegally stockpiling an arsenal of deadly
chemical and biological weapons in schools and hospitals, Western
intelligence reports say. Among the items listed are 610 tons of precursor
chemicals for the production of VX, a nerve agent so deadly that one drop
can kill, in addition to large quantities of growth media used to make
biological weapons such as anthrax so potent that one teaspoon is enough
to dissolve the kidneys, livers and lungs of a million people.
Peter Hain, the Foreign Office minister, told The Telegraph: "We have good
reason to suspect that Iraq is still hiding chemical, biological and
weapons of mass destruction in a range of locations."
Satellite imaging has now revealed Saddam's elite force, the Republican
Guard, apparently shifting the weapons to new hiding places. The
disclosures, based partly on the debriefing of defectors, come amid
growing tensions over the 10-year sanction regime. There is mounting
opposition from Arab states and some in Europe such as France and Russia,
as the measures have failed to unseat Saddam.
Over the past month there has been a flurry of "humanitarian" flights to
the newly-reopened Baghdad International airport. Aircraft from France,
Ireland and Bulgaria have all landed carrying food, medicines and doctors,
but one from France included artists and politicians. Others from Russia,
Lebanon and the United Arab Emirates carried businessmen.
Critics claim that the sanctions, imposed in 1990 after Iraq's invasion of
Kuwait, are hurting only the old and sick. Mr Hain said, however: "There's
no reason at all for anyone in Iraq to be suffering." He pointed out that
Iraq is now receiving =A311 billion a year under the Oil for Food programme
.
"This amounts to three times per capita what Egypt spends on food and
medicines. If there are shortages it's because of stockpiling."
Mr Hain pointed out that before expelling the United Nations weapons
inspectors in December 1998, Iraq had admitted that it was hiding
chemical, biological weapons and missile parts in the desert, caves and
railway tunnels.
Mr Hain said: "Sanctions are not a perfect mechanism. We want to see them
suspended but only under the terms agreed at the UN which would allow
back
the weapons inspectors. If we just turned our back on Saddam who would
defend the Kurds in the north, as well as other countries in the region
from Kuwait to Israel who he constantly threatens?"
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/et?ac=3D000118613908976&rtmo=3DlvbSuQbt&atmo=3Dr
rrrrrrq &pg=3D/et/00/11/19/wsad19.html
via: Third_Watch@egroups.com
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=======
To: bprlist@egroups.com
Subject: [bprlist] Arafat seems serious
From: "research-bpr" <research-bpr@philologos.org>
Date: Sun, 19 Nov 2000 13:21:28 -0500
Sunday, November 19, 2000
Analysis
Arafat seems serious
By Danny Rubinstein
Arafat seriously intends to put a stop to shots fired by Palestinians from
Palestinian Authority (PA)-controlled areas against Israeli targets. A public
relations campaign undertaken yesterday by prominent Palestinian figures
reinforces this intention.
Speaking from Gaza on Friday about the issue of gunfire coming from PA-
controlled areas (Area A), Arafat referred to a discussion held a few days
earlier by the PA's national security council. An agreement crystallized at
this council meeting was in favor of issuing "explicit orders" against opening
fire against Israeli targets from Area A, Arafat said.
Yesterday, a number of top PA officials worked the media, explaining
Arafat's policy regarding Area A. PA minister Ziyad Abu Zayad, and other
ranking PA spokesmen, expressed forthright support for Arafat's no-shooting
order.
The question, of course, is whether the ban will be enforced.
Having just returned from a visit to the Gulf states, Faisal Husseini led a
group of foreign diplomats yesterday on a tour of sites in Bethlehem and Beit
Jala that have been damaged by IDF strikes. When he was asked whether
the Arafat-led PA security system can impose the new policy and hold back
would-be shooters, Husseini responded that "first of all, it's important to
acknowledge that there's a decision to halt the shooting."
At the same time, Husseini added, "We are aware of the fact that there are
those among the Palestinian public who can not endure the injustice and
exploitation wrought by Israel, and they're acting on their own initiative."
One thing that might help Arafat enforce the order is the fact that in many
parts of the territories, there is public opposition to gunfire. Palestinians in
these areas believe that the shooting provides a pretext for much more
severe Israeli reprisals.
On the other hand, at least three times in recent weeks the PA has issued
bans prohibiting shooting in crowded areas and prohibiting carrying and using
guns at demonstrations, but these bans were never implemented.
The difference between these past orders that were never imposed and the
new ban on shooting from Area A is that Arafat publicly announced the new
policy on television, and his statement was accompanied by large
announcements in the Palestinian media.
Palestinian spokesmen stressed yesterday that the new policy does not
apply to Area B and Area C, since Arafat cannot be responsible for incidents
in areas controlled by Israel.
http://www3.haaretz.co.il/eng/scripts/article.asp?mador=14&datee=11/19/00&
id=101303
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To: bprlist@egroups.com
Subject: [bprlist] Catch an Eclipsing Star
From: <owner-bpr@philologos.org>
Date: Sun, 19 Nov 2000 18:39:25 -0000
http://www.wired.com/news/technology/0,1282,40225,00.html
Catch an Eclipsing Star
by Dan Brekke
2:00 a.m. Nov. 18, 2000 PST
North American skywatchers not put off by having to get out of bed a
little early in the late fall chill have a chance to see a true
rarity Monday: A 41-mile-diameter asteroid speeding through space 133
million miles from Earth will "occult," or eclipse, a plainly visible
star in the predawn sky.
The International Occultation Timing Association (IOTA), a Maryland-
based group that records such eclipses to aid astronomical research,
is alerting observers along a 65-mile-wide path that stretches from
North Carolina to arctic Alaska in hopes of getting event images.
The asteroid Sulamitis, 41 miles in diameter, will obscure the star
Tejat, a red giant 100 times the diameter of the Sun that lies in the
constellation Gemini.
The occultation will be visible at about 6:40 a.m. EST in Raleigh,
North Carolina; 6:41 a.m. in Huntington, West Virginia; 5:43 a.m. CST
in Chicago and Madison, Wisconsin; 5:44 in the northern suburbs of
Minneapolis; and 5:45 in Grand Forks, North Dakota.
(IOTA's site includes detailed path maps and sky charts for those
wanting to locate Tejat and video record the event).
"We've never predicted anything quite like it before," said David
Dunham, IOTA's president and a researcher at Johns Hopkins
University's Applied Physics Laboratory.
For non-scientists, the event is notable for the opportunity to watch
a star wink out for 10 seconds or so as an obscure chunk of rock 133
million miles away flies past it. More significant, Dunham said, the
occultation will give researchers a chance to more accurately measure
Sulamitis and detect peculiarities in its shape.
"We've been finding double asteroids and dogbone asteroids," he
said. "As we learn more about these objects, which are very, very
old, we learn more about the solar system and how it was formed."
The occultation of a star by an asteroid is not unusual in itself. On
Monday, for instance, astronomers have forecast two other instances
in which the huge chunks of rock, most of which orbit the Sun in a
wide belt between Mars and Jupiter, will eclipse stars.
But in those cases, as in the hundreds of other asteroid occultations
predicted this year, the stars in question have a magnitude of 6 or
higher -- the higher the magnitude, the dimmer the object -- and are
thus invisible to the naked eye.
Tejat is magnitude 2.9. Dunham said that this is only the second time
in the 25 years that asteroid occultations have been routinely
forecast that "a naked-eye star" has been so eclipsed.
He added that Monday's show is just a prelude to a forecast
occultation in April 2002, when the asteroid Pandora is expected to
move across the 1.1-magnitude star Pollux, also in Gemini. That event
will be visible from metropolitan Tokyo, northern Korea, and
northeastern China.
Monday's occultation is just one of a number of cosmic displays on
tap for the last six weeks of the year 2000.
Other highlights include the Leonid meteor shower, expected to reach
a peak early Friday; the Geminid meteors, on the nights of Dec. 12-
14; and a partial solar eclipse that will be visible across North
America on Christmas morning (the moon will cover just over half the
sun's disk for New York City watchers and just one-sixth or so for
those viewing on the Pacific coast).
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To: bprlist@egroups.com
Subject: [bprlist] PALESTINIAN MILITARY PERFORMANCE AND THE 2000 INTIFADA
From: <owner-bpr@philologos.org>
Date: Sun, 19 Nov 2000 15:05:19 -0500
------- Forwarded message follows -------
From: BSaphir
Date sent: Sun, 19 Nov 2000 12:30:15 EST
Subject: PALESTINIAN MILITARY PERFORMANCE AND THE 2000 INTIFADA
To: freemanlist@lists.io.com
To our readers: This is a !!MUST READ!! analysis of the Rosh Hashana
War of 2000 (herein called the 2000 INTIFADA) and beyond. We
recommend you send it to your lists and that they also forward it on.
Keep in mind that Barak's government knows all this and chose to do
little about it. Also Please send to your local newspapers and
Congresspeople. All the Best, Gail & Emanuel Winston
From: "Winston MidEast Analysis & Commentary" <gwinston@interaccess.com>
To: "Middle East discussion group & Zionist news releases" <eretz-
yisrael@shamash.org>
Sent: Sunday, November 19, 2000 10:02 AM
Subject: Lieutenant colonel IDF (Res.) Gal Luft: PALESTINIAN MILITARY
PERFORMANCE AND THE 2000 INTIFADA
Lieutenant colonel IDF (Res.) Gal Luft: PALESTINIAN MILITARY
PERFORMANCE AND THE 2000 INTIFADA
The violent upheaval by Palestinians in the West Bank and Gaza during
September-November 2000 raised many political issues. One of the most
interesting but least addressed is the role of Palestinian police and
military units during this second intifada. At various times, they
tried to stop violence, participated in it, or acted merely as
onlookers. What does this tell us about the capabilities, political
function, and future character of these all-important institutions?
Four years earlier, following the September 1996 opening of the
Hasmonean Tunnel in Jerusalem, Palestinian policemen and Israeli
soldiers exchanged heavy fire throughout the West Bank and Gaza Strip
leaving 85 Palestinians and 16 Israelis dead, and more than 1,200
Palestinians and 87 Israelis wounded. The "September riots," as they
were called, showed the Palestinian security services (PSS) acting
very differently than had been expected under the Oslo agreements,
which gave them the task of providing for peace and security in the
Palestinian Authority (PA) ruled territories.
While engaging in diplomatic negotiations with Israel, the
Palestinians have been planning and preparing for the scenario of a
failed diplomatic option and the possibility of a next round of
violence. After the 1996 events, the 41,000-strong security forces
improved their tactical sophistication, introduced new training
methods and obtained new weapons and equipment.
But after weeks of intensive fighting in September-November 2000
between PSS troops and the Israel Defense Force (IDF) the PSS's poor
performance is puzzling.
Certainly, during those demonstrations, the Palestinian police failed
to fulfill all the duties and functions assigned to them by the Oslo
agreements. These include: the maintenance of internal security and
public order; the protection of property and places of special
importance such as Jewish holy places in Palestinian-controlled
territories; the prevention of incitement to violence and the fight
against terrorism.
At the same time, though, PA Chairman Yasir Arafat and his lieutenants
not only refrained from using their armed forces as an instrument to
impose peace, they also did not--contrary to some analysts'
predications--use their troops as a tool of war either. Throughout the
clashes Palestinian troops did not demonstrate even a fraction of the
capabilities they had developed. They inflicted minimal casualties on
the IDF, used virtually none of the special weapons--such as anti-tank
missiles--in their possession, and failed to initiate and execute any
significant military operation against Israeli targets.
Was the poor military performance a result of pure incompetence? Lack
of will? Or was it a result of Arafat's calculated strategy of
incremental use of force that leaves, for now, the Palestinian
military units in their camps?
PALESTINIAN MILITARY BUILDUP SINCE SEPTEMBER 1996
Being more than a regular police force and short of being a
fully-matured army, the 12 branches of the PSS have invested great
efforts to learn the lessons from the previous major clashes with the
IDF. New weapons and tactics have been introduced, and training has
improved considerably.
Palestinian police officers go through a rigorous training program.
Junior officers are being trained in the Jericho police academy; more
senior company and battalion commanders received professional training
in Egypt, Yemen, Algeria, and Pakistan as commanders of combat units.
(1) This training enabled them to think and plan as field commanders
rather than as police officers.
Since 1996, the PSS have increased the size of formations capable of
executing independent military operations from small-sized units such
as platoons and companies to full battalions. In the first half of
2000 alone, half a dozen battalion-level exercises were held in the
Gaza Strip. (2) Despite the fact that live-fire training has been
restricted to platoon level, the battalions trained in rather
complicated combat scenarios such as gaining control of an area of
land and mock attacks on IDF posts and Jewish settlements.
In an attempt to increase the number of Israeli casualties in case of
a war, the Palestinians recruited a large number of snipers equipped
with telescopic sights for their M-16 and AK-47 rifles. In addition,
it has been reported that some of the Palestinian security apparatuses
obtained weapons prohibited by the Oslo agreements such as light
anti-armor weapons, rocket propelled grenades, anti-tank missiles,
light mortars, land mines and hand grenades. Several reports indicated
that the Palestinians also obtained shoulder-launched anti-aircraft
missiles and truck-mounted anti-aircraft guns. (3)
The PA succeeded in amassing stocks of weapons and ammunition through
smuggling and theft from Israeli military bases and private homes.
Cross-border smuggling, mainly from Jordan and Egypt, also enriched
the PA's arsenal. In this way, Palestinians were able to more than
triple the number of light weapons originally entrusted to them by the
Oslo agreements and, hence, arm civilian militias such as the Tanzim
and veterans of the Fatah Hawks militia.
Preparing for a long, protracted military confrontation with Israel
also required the build-up of a strong logistical base to supply
Arafat's forces with food, water, medications, weapons and ammunition.
Throughout the West Bank and Gaza Strip, the PA established warehouses
where war material was prepared and stored. Prior to the eruption of
the al-Aqsa intifada, the PA imported large amounts of food supplies,
stored large amounts of water and oil and prepared an alternative
power source by deploying large generators in various locations in the
PA. [Where? was this all smuggling or also legal imports?
ASSESSMENT OF PSS PERFORMANCE DURING THE RIOTS
The massive wave of violent demonstrations that broke out on September
29 was met with a weak response by the Palestinian police. In
September 1996 Palestinian policemen formed, in many cases, human
chains to prevent demonstrators from advancing on Israeli settlements
and military outposts. During the current crisis, they did not
interfere with Palestinians demonstrating against Israel in such areas
as Nezarim Junction in Gaza or outside the West Bank towns of Nablus,
Ramallah, Tulkarm, Qalqilia Bethlehem, and in Hebron.
Two incidents in October--the destruction of the Jewish holy site
Joseph's Tomb in Nablus and the murderous attack on the Palestinian
police station in Ramallah where two Israeli soldiers were held by the
police--showed the Palestinian police's lack of resolve in dealing
with a rioting mob. In many cases, Palestinian policemen took off
their uniforms, joined the demonstrators and opened fire on IDF
troops.
There were several reasons for this conduct. First, the PSS have had
relatively little training in crowd control. They also lack necessary
equipment such as shields, helmets, flak jackets, clubs, radio
equipment, armored vehicles, tear gas and other non-lethal weapons to
contain massive demonstrations.
Second, the policemen themselves are strong nationalists who support
the demonstrators' cause and methods. As one Western diplomat put it:
"they don't have their hearts in it because they'd probably prefer to
be throwing stones at the Israelis themselves." (4)
The Palestinian police showed in the past that it could put down
violent riots aimed against the PA itself. On Friday, November 18,
1994, the PSS clashing with thousands of Hamas demonstrators outside
the Filastin Mosque in Gaza killed 13 and wounded about 200
demonstrators. This kind of resolution could not be demonstrated when
demonstrators attack IDF troops. PSS personnel do not want to be seen
as Israeli lackeys and would not even contemplate opening fire at
their own people.
Third, the PSS is responsive to Arafat's orders. This explains the
difference between its performance during the earlier part of the 1996
violence and the role it played during the 2000 violence.
Nevertheless, the PSS also seemed to show less military ability in
2000 compared to the part it played in the rioting of 1996. Despite
the heavy volume of fire exchanged between Palestinian policemen and
the IDF--and despite the long training undergone--Palestinian
policemen didn't reach a high level of marksmanship and proficiency
with their weapons. Unlike the September 1996 riots in which PSS
officers succeeded in killing 14 Israeli soldiers including some
senior officers, in the al-Aqsa intifada not one Israeli soldier has
been killed in combat with Palestinian police officers. This outcome
could be attributed to the great efforts the IDF made since 1996 to
improve its troops' protection, but the main reason for the IDF's low
casualty rate lies in the fact that most Palestinian fire was sporadic
and inaccurate. The sniper units were not put into action.
GOOD COP, BAD COP
The main problem in the PSS's operations is lack of coordination among
the various security services and between members of the official
security services and the civilian militias. The PSS is comprised of
no less than 12 different services, the most prominent of which are
the Civil Police, National Security Forces, Preventive Security
Forces, General Intelligence, Civil Defense, Military Police, Military
Intelligence and the Presidential Security Forces, better known as
Force 17.
Most of the branches have two commanders, equal in rank: one in the
West Bank and the other in the Gaza Strip. Those regional commanders
report directly to Arafat rather than being subjected to an
intermediate level of operational command or a general staff-like
body. Competition, suspicion and tense relations exist between the
security chiefs to the extent that in several cases armed clashes
occurred between members of competing services. Palestinian security
apparatuses invest great efforts undermining each other and are
encouraged by Arafat to spy on each other. Arafat, as a result, is the
only one who can arbitrate among the different forces and through him
their chiefs communicate with each other. This system of command
ensures that none of the security forces becomes powerful enough to
pose a threat to Arafat's leadership. But in time of war Arafat's
style of command impairs coordination and unity of effort between the
security apparatuses. Heads of security apparatuses receive, mostly
through unsecured phone lines, contradictory orders from Arafat's
office. Simultaneously, one service may receive an order to tighten
control over the crowd while the other receives an order to loosen it.
Arafat's differing use of his security services can be seen in his
treatment of Hamas and Islamic Jihad members. One PSS unit may be
ordered to arrest opposition activists while another unit may be
instructed to release Hamas prisoners or allow them to "escape" from
prison. IDF head of the Southern Command Major General Yom-Tov Samia
revealed that the senior PSS officers who are in daily contact with
the IDF are aware of the fact that Arafat "speaks in a different
language with each body in the PA's security establishment." (5)
Consequently, PSS chiefs do not feel accountable to agreements Israel
entered with their colleagues. Israeli military officials complained
that at least three times during the first two weeks of the clashes
they succeeded in securing commitments by senior PSS military
commanders--among them commander of National Security Forces in Gaza
General Abd al-Raziq Majaida and his West Bank counterpart General Haj
Ismail--to reduce the violence but to no avail.
The Palestinian commanders admitted that they could not exercise their
control over any security forces not under their direct command. In
most countries, all the branches of the military forces submit to the
command of a general staff headed by a chief of staff. By way of
contrast, Arafat is the only person who controls all the PA's military
bodies. But for seven of the first nine days of the crisis Arafat was
away from the battle scene. Rather than managing the crisis from his
command post in Gaza, Arafat preferred to travel between Jordan,
Egypt, France and Spain. In his absence, the PSS became an even more
confused, chaotic organ that did not have much effect on events on the
ground.
The Palestinians' weak system of command and control may undermine
their capability to engage in a long, protracted war against Israel.
The disunity between the services and the absence of a general
staff-type body prevents effective control over essential elements of
the war effort such as supplies, manpower, weapons and ammunition.
Several times during the clashes, Palestinian fighters ran out of
ammunition and had to cease fire. There were warehouses of weapons and
ammunition not far away but these belonged to another security force
which would not reduce its own supplies (and, hence, power) by giving
equipment to another group. There is little mutual logistical
assistance among the forces and they do not coordinate their
operations.
THE PROBLEM OF TANZIM
Another problem the PSS face is the growing power of the Tanzim, the
armed wing of Fatah, the largest faction of the Palestine Liberation
Organization. Tanzim led the rioting and confrontation with the IDF in
September 1996 and the Nakba riots of May 2000. It has about 20,000
members, some of whom are armed with automatic weapons and trained by
the PSS. The turning over of arms to the Tanzim contradicts the Oslo
agreements. The Tanzim's primary duty is to control opposition to
Arafat in the PA. For this purpose, Arafat has been funding and
grooming the organization. At the same time, though, Arafat has
distrusted and tried to undercut the power of the Tanzim's chief,
Marwan Barghuti, leader of Fatah in the West Bank. For his part,
Barghuti has often criticized Arafat indirectly and battled the PA's
official security organs, which he accuses of corruption. The
organization, however, has grown in power and prestige, at the expense
of the PA's military apparatus.
Armed Tanzim activists often brush off the uniformed policemen and
disobey their instructions. Palestinian policemen are reluctant to
confront the militia which has grown to become the most visible and
active armed body of the PA. Arafat prefers to yield leading role of
his armed intifada to the popular, plainclothes Tanzim activists since
this lets him present the Palestinian struggle as an authentic popular
uprising.
Several times during the first weeks of the clashes, Arafat instructed
the Tanzim to escalate the violence, while at the same time giving his
uniformed security chiefs opposite instructions. As a result,
Palestinian policemen find themselves confronted by an uncontrolled
armed force backed by Arafat. Hence, they are prevented from
exercising the power and authority granted to them by both the Oslo
agreement and the PA itself. Another problem is that many members of
Tanzim, especially in the Gaza Strip, are in fact PSS employees.
During the day, these people work as intelligence agents and police
officers enforcing the law. Off-duty, they participate in the same
activities they are being paid to thwart.
One incident demonstrates the complex relations between Tanzim and the
PSS. When a critically wounded IDF soldier was trapped on October 1 in
Joseph's Tomb in Nablus, the IDF requested that two PSS commanders in
the West Bank, Preventive Security chief Jibril Rajub and Palestinian
Police chief Haj Ismail facilitate his evacuation. But the tomb
compound was surrounded by Tanzim activists. For two hours, the Tanzim
prevented the PSS chiefs from entering the compound. The soldier died
of his wounds before medical assistance was allowed to arrive while
the helpless PSS chiefs stood by powerless to act.
Since the beginning of the clashes, many speculated on the extent in
which Arafat controls the Tanzim. The dominant assessment is that the
Tanzim is tightly controlled by Arafat and will continue to submit to
his authority, whatever personal or political frictions take place
between Arafat and Barghuti. (6)
Yet this situation also creates a new problem for Arafat in regulating
the relations between the official security forces and the unofficial
forces of the Tanzim. Failure to do so would continue to erode the
PSS's power, let the Tanzim claim credit for waging the struggle, and
lead more Palestinian policemen to give their loyalty to the Tanzim
and not their own commanders. As a result, Arafat could face
resentment from the security forces and a challenge from the Tanzim
itself.
CONCLUSIONS
At first sight, the PSS's performance during the recent clashes in the
West Bank and Gaza Strip may raise doubts about the Palestinians'
military effectiveness and the PSS's ability to pose a serious
challenge to the IDF. But the apparent weakness of the Palestinian
police is more likely due to a calculated decision by Arafat to spare,
at least for the moment, his uniformed armed forces from the fray.
Arafat seems to have chosen to keep the lion share of his security
forces disengaged from the fighting and put them into action only if
and when an all-out war with Israel broke out. Seeking international
sympathy and wary of the IDF's military superiority, Arafat did not
want to escalate the battle too much. To do so would have destroyed
any chance of using a diplomatic option. Thus, the PSS as such did not
launch concerted attacks or use certain weapons in its possession,
while Arafat portrayed the rioting as a defensive but popular struggle
of the masses.
Equally important, Arafat surely knows that an exposure of the PA's
true military capabilities might confirm the Israeli claim that the PA
has been clandestinely developing an army under the disguise of a
police force. Exposing the PA's military capabilities at this stage
would be self-defeating because it would enforce the legitimacy of the
Israeli demands for Palestinian demilitarization as part of future
negotiations. Indeed, to show the capability of the PA's military
could also be a serious disincentive for Israel to make concessions or
accept the creation of an independent Palestinian state. Beyond a
certain point, it is against Arafat's interest to expose the threat
that Palestinian forces could pose to Israel under such circumstances.
A month into the clashes, when Palestinian casualties were 12 times
higher than those of Israel, Jibril Rajub commented in an interview:
"So far the PA has shown restraint in its conflict with Israel but the
crimes of the settlers, the closure, the collective punishment and the
heavy hand of the IDF will leave no other alternative to the PA but to
respond." (8) Rajub's comment should indicate to Israel that it would
be imprudent to draw premature conclusions on the PSS's poor military
effectiveness based on its performance during the events of autumn
2000.
* Lieutenant colonel IDF (Res.) Gal Luft is a doctoral candidate at
the Johns Hopkins University School of Advanced International Studies
and author of The Palestinian Security Forces: Between Police and Army
(Washington, DC: 1998). His article, "The Palestinian Armed Forces"
appeared in Meria Journal, Vol. 3 No. 2 (June 1999).
Notes
(1) Ha'aretz, July 12, 2000.
(2) Yediot Ahronot, Weekend Supplement, June 23, 2000.
(3) Ha'aretz, June 23, 2000, Yediot Ahronot, November 3, 2000.
(4) The Washington Post, October 22, 2000.
(5) Interview with Maj. General Yom-Tov Samia, Yediot Ahronot, October
8, 2000.
(6) Yediot Ahronot, Weekend Supplement, October 13, 2000.
(7) For a discussion of the security forces, the Tanzim, and their
political positions, see Barry Rubin, The Transformation of
Palestinian Politics (NY, 1999). See also Gal Luft, "The Palestinian
Armed Forces" Meria Journal, Vol. 3 No. 2 (June 1999). Available at
<http:\\meria.biu.ac.il>.
(8) Ha'aretz, internet edition, October 27, 2000.
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To: bprlist@egroups.com
Subject: [bprlist] update URGENT: Israeli deputy consul in Jordan shot
From: <owner-bpr@philologos.org>
Date: Sun, 19 Nov 2000 16:23:03 -0500
------- Forwarded message follows -------
Send reply to: <benyosef@torahvoice.org>
From: "Ben Yosef"
To: "ben Yosef"
Subject: update URGENT: Israeli deputy consul in Jordan shot
Date sent: Sun, 19 Nov 2000 23:00:58 +0200
GILO, Jerusalem -- All remains quiet here on the southern front of
Jerusalem, for the fourth consecutive night but the violence remains
unabated elsewhere. As we sat down to write, Palestinians were rioting
at the Dehaishe refugee camp, south of Bethlehem. The IDF was
responding with rubber bullets and tear gas.
The major news tonight is the shooting and attempted assassination
today of Israel's deputy-consul in Jordan, Yoram Havivian by a
heretofore unknown Jordanian Islamic Resistance and by the Ahmed
Dagmashe Group. The groups vowed tonight to carry out further attacks
on Israelis, until Jordan breaks off ties with Israel.
Havivian was shot while about to enter his car before driving to work
at the Israeli Embassy in Amman. He was treated by emergency medical
personnel in Jordan and was returned to Jerusalem where he is
hospitalized tonight at Hadassah Ein Karem. His injuries were
described as "light."
Jordanian authorities said they would seek out and bring the attackers
to justice.
Meanwhile, Israeli Ambassador to Amman David Dadon told Israeli Radio
tonight that the atmosphere in Jordan is "not sympathetic" towards
Israel and Israelis are "not popular with the man-on-the-street
there."
The emergence of "Islamic Resistance" in Jordan is yet another
ominous sign that the Palestinian uprising MAY escalate into a
regional conflict that will pit at least Lebanon, Jordan and Syria
against Israel.
This is foretold in Jeremiah 49:1-6, which predicts that the "king" of
Jordan will go into exile when this conflict emerges.
As long as the late King Hussein ruled Jordan, this seemed highly
unlikely as the late king commanded the respect of every Arab nation,
the Western world and even several Israeli prime ministers. Through
at least the pretense of being "distant" from Israel, he was able to
walk the delicate tightrope that kept Islamic uprisings and
Palestinian uprisings at bay, although as we mentioned before his
clandestine meetings with Israeli leaders are legend.
But now Jordan has a new king and the young Abdullah is already being
tested in the same areas. Jordanian police recently had to turn back
tens of thousands of "Palestinian refugees" attempting to cross the
Allenby Bridge into Judea-Samaria. And now this assassination attempt
by an organization clearly identifying itself with Islam.
Jeremiah 49 indicates that the young king may not be as successful as
his father:
Concerning the Ammonites, thus saith HASHEM; Hath Israel no sons? hath
he no heir? why then doth their king inherit Gad, and his people dwell
in his cities? Therefore, behold, the days come, saith HASHEM, that I
will cause an alarm of war to be heard in Rabbah of the Ammonites; and
it shall be a desolate heap, and her daughters shall be burned with
fire: then shall Israel be heir unto them that were his heirs, saith
HASHEM. Howl, O Heshbon, for Ai is spoiled: cry, ye daughters of
Rabbah, gird you with sackcloth; lament, and run to and fro by the
hedges; for their king shall go into captivity, and his priests and
his princes together. Wherefore gloriest thou in the valleys, thy
flowing valley, O backsliding daughter? that trusted in her treasures,
saying, Who shall come unto me? Behold, I will bring a fear upon thee,
saith the Hashem GOD of hosts, from all those that be about thee; and
ye shall be driven out every man right forth; and none shall gather up
him that wandereth. And afterward I will bring again the captivity of
the children of Ammon, saith HASHEM.
The only question remaining is which nation will give the young king
and his advisers asylum?
Meanwhile, the violence in Judea-Samaria and Gaza continued unabated
today. A senior Palestinian Authority figure told Itim News Agency
today, "Arafat's announcement of a halt to shootings from
PA-controlled territory was meant only for American and European
ears."
The most potentially serious incident was another drive-by shooting
near Ramallah where a Jerusalem resident narrowly escaped injury this
afternoon when a passing Palestinian vehicle sprayed bullets at his
van. The driver escaped with minor injuries and no further information
was available.
Today's violence included a shooting at yet another Israeli bus on the
Karni-Netzarim road in Gush Katif. No one was hurt. Gush Katif
spokeswoman Dalia Yitzchaki said that there have been "non-stop"
incidents, and that the shooting and mob riots at N'vei Dekalim last
night lasted four hours. Palestinians there were rolling burning tires
toward IDF soldiers. Shots were fired at an IDF position near Ofrah.
More rocks were hurled near Gush Etzion and at Jewish homes in
Hevron... A 20-kg. explosive was discovered and safely dismantled
along the Israel-Egypt border.
Four IDF soldiers were lightly injured from smoke inhalation when
their jeep caught fire, in the village of Biet Omar, south of Gush
Etzion, after it drove into obstacles heaved onto the road by
Palestinian rioters. When the fire then spread to a nearby house,
soldiers helped rescue its occupants, which included children, and
extinguished the fire.
At Shema'a junction, south of Hevron, a firebomb destroyed an army
jeep. Shots were fired at IDF targets in Hevron, Tulkarm, near
Ramallah, near Shavei Shomron, and elsewhere. In addition to the bus
attack, last night a soldier was lightly wounded by Palestinian
gunfire on the Karni-Netzarim road.
The IDF also reported Palestinian gunfire last night and this morning
directed at various Israeli targets in Gush Katif and vicinity, and
towards an IDF position on the Israeli-Egyptian border near Rafiah. An
Israeli woman was slightly wounded from stones thrown at her vehicle,
near an Arab village in the area of Ariel.
More riots, tire-burning, and firebomb incidents were reported
throughout Judea and Samaria this afternoon, including at the Kalandia
refugee camp between Jerusalem and Ramallah, the Ayosh junction, and
Hevron. The IDF responded with tear gas and rubber bullets. Itim News
Agency noted that Arafat's instructions to his men regarding a
ceasefire did not preclude rocks or firebombs, nor did they apply to
areas B and C, which are not under total Palestinian control.
Rock-throwings by Israeli-Arabs in the Galilee continued over the
weekend. Most of the incidents occurred near the village of Arabeh,
not far from the Jewish communities of Lotem and Yodfat. The "orders"
given by Arafat (for the benefit of western observers) that the
Palestinian Authority to halt the violence from Palestinian controlled
areas did result in fewer incidents today and last night however,
according to O.C. Southern Command Maj.-Gen. Yom Tov Samiyeh.
However, Security Services reported tonight that the "lull is only
temporary." Deputy Chief of Staff Moshe Ya'alon said, "The
Palestinians are taking time out."
Also, in spite of Arafat's "order", Staff-Sgt. Baruch Snir Flum, was
murdered and a second IDF Sgt. was critically injured and a third
lightly injured yesterday in Gaza when a Palestinian policeman
penetrated an IDF outpost near the greenhouses of Kfar Darom and
opened fire. Prime Minister Ehud Barak stated that Israel "cannot
afford to initiate an attack against the Palestinian Authority in
connection with Flum's death."
Barak said that "in light of the situation in recent days and the
chance for implementing the Sharm a-Sheikh understandings, Israel
would be mistaken in bringing about an immediate escalation, since
there is no doubt that we would be blamed for torpedoing a possible
relaxation."
His comments came at the beginning of today's Cabinet meeting, which
he opened with the statement that Israel "views with utmost gravity
the recent attack at Kfar Darom... The IDF will draw the necessary
lessons from the event and will continue to provide security for Kfar
Darom and the other communities in the area... Our goal is to reduce
terrorism, violence and incitement... The test for the implementation
of this goal is in actions on the ground, not mere declarations... we
must wait several days before reaching any conclusions in this
regard."
News analysts here commented after Barak's statement that his goal has
dwindled from "greatly reducing" the violence last Wednesday, to
"significantly reducing" it two days ago, down to mere "reducing"
today.
Flum, one of the last Israelis to be pulled out of Lebanon, was buried
in Kiryat Sha'ul Military Cemetery this afternoon. His friend, Sgt.
Sharon Shitubi, was critically wounded by a bullet to the head in the
same attack. Doctors are still struggling to save his life.
The Palestinian Authority, meanwhile, asked Israel not to retaliate
for the killing, as "it is believed to be a private initiative and is
under investigation." But Israeli Radio tonight reported that the
killer was an officer of Muhammad Dahlan's Palestinian Preventive
Security Service, the attack was carried out with the knowledge - if
not the encouragement - of the organization and the officer has been
promoted by two ranks since the attack! He was praised for his
bravery on the front page of an official Palestinian Authority
newspaper.
An aunt of Shitubi, told Arutz-7 today that the family is disgusted
with Barak's military response: "There's just nothing to say. How can
he tie their hands and not let them fight!? Why do we have to stand by
and watch what [the Palestinians] are doing to our soldiers and how
they're being turned into washrags? You should hear what the soldiers
are saying here!"
Barak also briefed the Cabinet on the various means of economic and
diplomatic pressure being exerted on the Palestinians adding that the
army would continue, in accordance with government directives, "to act
with strength and at a time and scope that serves Israeli interests."
Barak also again reiterated Israel's opposition to the arrival of
international observers BUT WORDED IT CURIOUSLY stating Israel would
oppose these observers "before the implementation of a final-status
agreement." This raises the question of whether Barak has already
agreed to international observers in the context of a final-status
agreement, which has many people here concerned.
Senior IDF officers hinted at such a move yesterday stating that an
international force in the Gaza "would not be such a bad thing."
Shas MK Ya'ir Peretz today announced that he is leaning toward
supporting an idea being promoted by an unnamed Meretz M.K. to call
for new elections only for Prime Minister, while leaving the Knesset
intact. Such an eventuality would require the support of a 2/3
majority of the Knesset, or 80 MKs. Shas MK David Tal said today that
if it were up to him, he would not renew the party's safety net.
In recent days there have been dozens of demonstrations in Jerusalem.
Last night hundreds of army officers in reserves demonstrated outside
the Defense Ministry in Tel Aviv, demanding the establishment of a new
commission of inquiry to investigate the Mt. Eval and Joseph's Tomb
incidents.
In both cases, Israelis were left wounded and under fire, and the IDF
did not rescue them for several hours. Lt.-Col. (res.) Shmuel
Hershkovitz addressed the rally last night and said, "The layer of
whitewash painted by the committee that investigated the events [and
found that the decision to rely on the PA for help in rescuing Yusuf
was 'reasonable'] is so thin that even a blind person could see
through it and see [the degree to which] the army malfunctioned." He
attacked the use of the ambivalent term "reasonable," as did Maj.
(res.) Haggai Eldar, whose resignation sparked the protest: "What this
word means is that if one of us lies wounded in the next battle, it
will be 'reasonable' not to evacuate us - when it is of course not
reasonable!"
The Yesha Council's ongoing sit-down strike outside the Knesset, under
the theme, "Let the IDF Win!," was joined today by members of the
Golan Residents Committee, as well as residents of the Galilee. The
Golan tent is called the "Tent of Friendship," expressing the support
that the Golan people wish to show the residents of Yesha. Yoni Nagar,
one of those who helped in erecting the Tent of Friendship, told
Arutz-7, "We [in the Golan] have had some emergency meetings over the
past few days, with the feeling that we couldn't simply stand by and
do nothing while we see Jews under fire... We are joining together
with the People of Israel who are coming to express solidarity and
protest... This is not political, but just an attempt to encourage and
uplift the spirits of the people who are undergoing these troubles...
and we hope also to offer concrete help to residents of Gilo and other
places..."
Likud MK Prof. Yuval Shteinitz speaking for the group said re: the
government's policy of restraint:
"There is an equation here, based on the premise that neither side
[Israel or the Palestinians] wants a war. The more restraint and
caution shown by one side, the more the other side can be daring and
escalatory, knowing that the situation will not escalate. In this
case, the more cautious Israel is, the more aggressive the
Palestinians can be - including even shooting on Jerusalem, knowing
that our reaction will be restrained...
"In the last several weeks, something very strange happened to this
equation: one side - us - convinced itself that the other side wants
an escalation, under the current assumption that Arafat is interested
in international intervention. We therefore keep on acting with
restraint, assuming that we are thus working against Arafat's
interests. The fact is, however, that Arafat does not want an
escalation - for if he did, he could have easily attacked Gilo, or
Psagot, or any Yesha town. Neither is he interested in lowering the
flames - he likes it the way it is. And this is very dangerous,
because we are dancing according to his tune. The fact that he calls
the shots is the worst thing. The damage is long-term, because for
instance when he shoots on Jerusalem, our capital, and the sky doesn't
fall in, this is practically a direct invitation for him to start
outright shelling on Jerusalem next time, or to start launching
katyushas towards the Tel Aviv region. And at that point, we won't be
able to respond in kind, because it will be considered totally
disproportionate..."
In yet another protest, several dozen residents of Beit El protested
the entry of Arab workers into their town. The protestors claim that
the workers are often not guarded during the day, and sometimes do not
meet the criteria that had been set by local officials for their entry
- over the age of 35 and with a valid permit. Beit El resident MK
Benny Elon joined the protestors, and later said, "Why should we
provide support for our enemies? They come to our homes, scout out the
town, report back to their relatives - while our wives and mothers
have to be afraid to walk around outside." Housing Minister Binyamin
Ben-Eliezer has proposed a plan for the arrival of 10,000 foreign
workers for the construction industry; Finance Minister Avraham
Shochat objects.
In the north, Hizbullah terrorists were observed walking the border,
armed and ready to act. Although the Northern Command has pressed the
Barak government to take stronger action, media sources report the
government has not given that authorization. There was no official
word from the government. Meanwhile rock throwing incidents increased
at IDF forces who first responded with shots in the air and then shot
one rock thrower in the leg.
The government did not respond to rocks thrown over the border four
months ago, and did not respond to firebombs three months ago, and did
not respond to the kidnapping of the three soldiers several weeks ago.
Analysts now believe we will have to deal with even worse aggression
in the near future.
Also on the diplomatic front tonight, former president Ezer Weizman
said he believes it is now important to present Israel's side of the
Palestinian confrontation to Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak. Weizman
said Arafat relies heavily on Egypt, who heretofore has been a
moderate influence in the various Arab summits. But the Palestinians
are misinforming the Egyptians, Weizman said. He was speaking on his
return from Sharm e-Sheikh after meeting with Mubarak along with
Barak's security adviser Danny Yatom. Weizman said "both sides learned
something new about the other side."
On a personal note, by friend Bruce and I will be leaving Gilo bright
and early in the morning headed for the Shromron Gav Ha'Har
settlement-bloc towns of Itamar, Elon Morey, Rechelim and time
permitting, Har Brachah, Yitzhar and K'far Tapuach.
We will be meeting with the head of security for the settlement bloc
who has recently taken on the responsibility of directing security for
30 Shomron settlement-towns. The purpose of this trip is to meet with
residents and security personnel at Itamar primarily and get videotape
footage showing the major security needs.
We also will be meeting again with the rabbi of Itamar, who was given
the first installment of settlement defense funds from this email list
last week and will be delivering more of your letters to the settlers.
Bruce and I have flack jackets and his M-16 but his van is NOT
bulletproofed. We would greatly appreciate it if you can set aside
time tomorrow/tonight to cover us in prayer. (Our departure will be
about 7 a.m. Monday (midnight CST tonight) and we plan to return
before dark about 10 a.m. CST).
Finally, I just got the latest report from Hadassah and more email
commitments. The settlement defense fund is now committed to slightly
over $11,000 and we have about $8,000 in the bank!!
I will have receipts for the expenditure of funds to post to this list
shortly. All of the non-military supplies have been purchased and
delivered. The remainder of the funds are allocated toward night
vision equipment and scopes for M-16s, which we have decided to
purchase in the States (at less than half of the cost here).
Also, I am still waiting to hear back on the progress of the
fund-raising for the bullet-proof bus but have been assured that
Joseph Good and Prime Time will be raising funds toward this purchase.
Thank you again, JOES (or whoever the rabbis think we are) for your
sacrifical outpouring of support to the settlers.
Shalom Shalom & Hashem's love & blessings,
Ben Yosef
Bruce adds his greetings!
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=======
To: bprlist@egroups.com
Subject: [bprlist] Election 2000
From: "Moza"
Date: Sun, 19 Nov 2000 20:08:14 -0500
[This is from another list I am on.--Moza]
Dear Sirs and Ladies,
I voted for Bush - as what you call a "one issue voter" (really two
issues) - I do not believe that either of these men have any magic
wand idea to fix social security or anything else, but Al Gore is PRO
ABORTION and favors the intrusion of open homosexuals into our schools
and businesses. On these 2 matters alone, I could never support Al
Gore, even if he were the man with the answer for everything else. It
would have to be my choice to suffer under a bumbler rather than to
prosper under a murderer and a pervert. God is noticing, too.
I am also wary of the end of "gun control" legislation (even though I
do not own a gun).
I do not understand the ramifications of environmental legislation -
or the real stakes: but I do know that America's prosperity comes of
BUSINESS, and not of secular/pagan ideology. I would rather be ruled
over by a greedy rich man than an idealogue. Stalin and Hitler were
idealogues. At least rich tyrants make room for and use geniuses,
while idealogues always have to kill or control all the geniuses and
artists and writers as soon as possible.
I have prayed about this election: asking God to preserve America as
long as I am here, by whatever means He can do it according to His own
righteousness. I know that EVENTUALLY America is going to "really get
it".
I also am led to believe that both Al Gore and Joe Lieberman are
apostates from their own professed faith. Al Gore dropped out of
seminary (one wants to know what that is all about!), and Lieberman
was (supposedly) excommunicated from his own Synagogue because of
his
pro-abortion/pro-homosexual opinions. It will be a sorry thing if we
have 2 "formal" apostates in the top office of the land.
But since I prayed, I do not think it is "of faith" or wise to embrace
any kind of "panic" over the matter. God always picks the king - the
Bible plainly says so. If God has given us Al Gore, it is because He
is determined to curse this nation for the further sin that will be
committed, or it is to preserve this nation because He knows something
we do not know about George Bush. Things went "well enough" under
Bill Clinton, didn't they? (I voted for Bush then, too).
Both Gore and Bush are silver-spoon beltway kids who have NO IDEA
what life is really like for us "commoners".
They are both being disingenuous as they prosecute their cause in this
unsure election. Bush signs a bill for hand counts in Texas, but
doesn't want that in Florida - WHY? Gore supporters may be cheating
in the counts - but how, and who can prove it? I now suspect that the
statewide hand count is the only resolution to the matter. Bush
should go along and if he is really a real Christian (as he claims),
pray. If Bush wins by an arbitrary decision made by a judge
somewhere, the hostility level between the parties and the
split-down-the-middle Americans will be greater than ever. But maybe
even that is good! Gridlock is usually good - how many more new laws
do we really need?
God is causing America to pause and consider in this fiasco. I really
do think the only 2 issues that are ultimately decisive and indicative
for the majority who voted are abortion and homosexual rights. Those
who voted for Gore want to guarantee their right to get rid of
inconvenient babies and promote homosexuals into every area of
American life. Bush supporters prefer restraint on these matters.
Even those who are not homosexuals and would never personally have an
abortion have voted for Gore - just in case they or their friends or
families should ever need freedom in these matters.
The Gore camp has made much ado of their pro-abortion and
pro-homosexual stands, while the Bush camp has tried to avoid these
issues. This is because both camps presume that the mood of America
basically favors the right to both these immoral perversions. Gore is
counting on getting the votes from people who do not want their
"freedom" to commit these abominations taken away - and that is,
unfortunately, the apparent majority!
One more thing - my personal unanswered concern about both parties. I
would like to know exactly why American foreign aid is always loans to
other governments that are underwritten by American working folks.
Why not make and ship 1000 American made 24 foot trucks to the
Ukraine? Do they not realize that that move would totally change the
quality of life for the common man in the old Soviet Union? American
jobs would be preserved; a demand for American parts would be created.
Because this kind of thing is not done nor even openly discussed by
either party - I think they are both subverted.
PERMIT ME - why not pay the American small farmer to grow food and
then send that all over the world?
Same question. We could say, "Take our trucks and wheat, or get
nothing", and they would take them.
For this reason alone, I must regard politics as a war between the
liars and conspirers - all leading towards the New World Order - no
matter who they are or what they say.
Heb 10:37-39 For yet a little while, and he that shall come will come,
and will not tarry.
38 Now the just shall live by faith: but if any man draw back, my soul
shall have no pleasure in him.
39 But we are not of them who draw back unto perdition; but of them
that believe to the saving of the soul.
Psalm 35:27
Dean, and,
"US" 1 John 4:6
Main site front page
www.apostasynow.com
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To: bprlist@egroups.com
Subject: [bprlist] Kahane Tzedek -- "Kahane was right"
From: <owner-bpr@philologos.org>
Date: Sun, 19 Nov 2000 01:54:56 -0000
------- Forwarded message follows -------
Send reply to: <benyosef@torahvoice.org>
From: "Ben Yosef"
To: "ben Yosef"
Subject: Kahane Tzedek -- "Kahane was right"
Date sent: Sun, 19 Nov 2000 03:14:43 +0200
Shalom,
There have been posters plastered all over Jerusalem this past week
saying "Kahane Tzedek," (Kahane was Right!).
The late Rabbi Meir Kahane, who was assassinated 10 years ago this
past Thursday in New York City made a startling and "off-the-wall"
prediction in 1984 which shows him today to have been something of a
prophet!
In 1984, during his bid for re-election to the Knesset, Rabbi Kahane
also known as the founder of the Jewish Defense League, stood before
the members of the Israeli Knesset:
"This time," Kahane said, "it's not either Kahane or the Likud =85
this time it's either Kahane or Arafat! =85 If, Heaven forbid, we don't
get elected, in another ten years we will have here Arafat!"
Kahane founded the now-outlawed Kach (the Hebrew command: "Take")
Party in Israel, which, despite winning a few seats in the Knesset
was BANNED because his stance of transferring the Palestinian
population was considered "racist."
He was also founder of the Yeshivat Ha-Ra'on Ha-Yehudit (Yeshiva of
the Jewish Idea) in Jerusalem's ultra-religious Mea Sha'arim
neighborhood. The "idea" was to instill even the militant principles
of Torah in his young followers who would thereby rid themselves of
the "ghetto" mentality, which resulted in Jews by the millions in
Eastern Europe willingly marching to the gas chambers rather than
putting up a fight.
His motto was, "Never Again!" and he punctuated it with the outline
of a raised fist over the all-too-familiar "yellow star." Kahane was
also far right of the Right Wing Likud but was immensely popular
among the youths of the religious community. At his funeral here in
Jerusalem, the procession of followers was almost a mile long and
even bigger than the funeral procession for former Prime Minister
Menahem Begin. When the youths mesmerized by Kahane would have
reached voting age, he and the Kach Party would have been a major
force for the State of Israel to reckon with.
But all that was cut short when he was gunned down during a fund-
raising tour for his yeshiva in New York City in 1990.
I worked in the news media here in Jerusalem during the Kahane years
and the years after his assassination. I saw first hand that -- in my
opinion -- he was NOT dealt with fairly by the news media including
The Jerusalem Post where I worked. If a story crossed the desk that
involved a member of the Kach Party, it was always cast in a negative
light, played-up, hyped-up. Even long after Kahane's death, someone
who had been aligned with Kach would be maligned in the press just
because of that association. (Robert Manning and his wife, Rochelle,
were such victims. The illegality of political extraditions obtained
by former U.S. Secretary of State James Baker - in violation of
Israel's treaty with the U.S. -- against them did not see the light
of day in the local press because Manning was Kahane's body guard and
because of the prejidous of a former Jerusalem Post managing editor.
As far as the charges of "racism", judging from what the situation is
today, I would have to say that Rabbi Kahane offered Israel and the
Palestinians the most humanitarian of solutions. In other words, as
the signs plastered all over Jerusalem this week indicate,
Kahane's "solution" was much better in the long-run than the war of
annihilation Arafat, Clinton, Peres, Rabin and Barak and the Left
have chosen for the Palestinian people.
"Buy out if necessary, the Arab population who were occupying Judea-
Samaria and relocate them to any one of 22 Arab nations, who could
support them indefinitely on just one day's revenue from oil
production," Kahane advocated=85. Much more "humane" than even the
fate
Hashem has in store for the descendants of Esau (if you read Obadiah
15-21 carefully).
I won't tell you that I agree personally with every word that Meir
Kahane spoke or wrote in his more than a dozen books detailing the
Jewish "idea." And I can't agree with some of his followers who I
believe went too far in their all-too-imposing demonstrations and
even in avenging Jewish blood. I personally draw the line at "civil
resistance" (non-violent demonstrations that do not break any laws).
But I will tell you that Volume II of Rabbi Kahane's Torah
commentary "Ra'on Ha'Yehudit, is probably the most "sane, logical
and biblically relevant" commentary I have found which could be
applied to the current situation. He would have had MUCH to say to
the House of Joseph today.
Kahane preached very simply but also very forcefully that the
children of Esau and the children of Jacob can NEVER live together in
peace, so from the standpoint of the Torah, the "peace" process was
fundamentally flawed. I heard him speak often and never heard him
deviate from that stand. Some -- who did not trust Hashem and the
Torah -- construed him to be racist in those remarks. But those who
knew him, also knew that he did not HATE the Arab population. Rather,
he so loved the vision of a Greater Israel encompassing all of Judea-
Samaria and saw Palestinian ultra-Nationalism standing in the way of
that fulfillment. But he did HATE mediocrity in Torah observance.
This won him very few friends and made a lot of enemies outside of
the religious community.
When Arafat and his PLO terrorists were expelled from Jordan in the
1970s -- those that remained alive that is -- (Remember Black
September), and Lebanon in the mid 1980s, it became obvious that NO
ARAB NATION wanted either Arafat or his Freedom Fighters, but the
decision was made somewhere by some parties that they would be a
handy propaganda tool against the Zionist state of Israel. At the
same time, Kahane's "solution" was gaining in popularity and
complicated another vision for a Palestinian homeland, so somewhere,
some parties made the decision to eliminate Kahane.
I have come to believe that Kahane was an obstacle in even a more
sinister game, who stood in the way of some parties' interests in
Middle Eastern resources -- namely OIL -- which was attainable only
if the Palestinians could be accommodated. So, an off-duty U.S.
Postal Service worker with a Middle Eastern accent gunned down Kahane
in what remains one of the most obvious unsolved conspiracies.
In memory of Rabbi Kahane,
ben Yosef
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