Monday,
April 21
Sniper
Kills IDF Cameraman, Wounds Medics
IDF
cameraman Cpl. Lior Ziv, 19, from Holon, was killed early yesterday
and three other soldiers were wounded during an operation to destroy
a Hamas smuggling tunnel in Rafah. Ziv, a still photographer from
the IDF Spokesman's Office was assigned along with a video photographer,
Durel Gillerman, to an unit looking for tunnels. Almost immediately
after departing the armored personnel carrier, Ziv, who was wearing
a flak jacket and a helmet, was shot in the head and died instantly.
Gillerman was wounded. When two medics began attending them, they
also came under fire - one was seriously hurt and the other lightly.
All three were evacuated to Soroka Hospital in Be'er Sheva.
Elsewhere in the area, soldiers uncovered a large tunnel, 30 meters
deep, 300 meters long and 60 centimeters wide, which they blew up
with 200 kg of explosives. According to military sources, the tunnel
was used by Hamas, and its opening was under the home of Hamas activist
Naim Abu Ubeid. A smaller tunnel was also uncovered and destroyed.
(From Ha'aretz) more
Al-Qaida
Planned to Shoot Down Israeli Plane at Heathrow
Al-Qaida terrorists planned to
shoot down an airliner from a theme park close to Heathrow airport,
British media reported over the weekend. According to Yediot Aharonot,
Al-Qaida's target was a London-bound El Al flight. In February,
British troops and police went on high alert at Heathrow and at
other key London sites due to warnings of an impending terror attack,
but the exact nature of the threat was not revealed. A government
source told The Sun, Britain's biggest selling daily, that members
of the terror network planned to break into Legoland, near Windsor,
while it was closed for the winter to carry out the strike using
a shoulder-fired Strella 2 missile. "We had a lot of luck that
this information fell into our hands," an intelligence official
told the Sunday Express. "But, we should remember that the
missile launcher is still out there with the terrorists." (From
Israel Insider) more
Syria
Hosts Talks to Renew Boycott of Israel
Representatives
of Arab regional offices for the boycott of Israel opened a two-day
meeting in Damascus on Monday aimed at reviving a ban against companies
that do business with the Jewish state. The meeting, which brings
together representatives from 15 Arab states, will discuss the Arab-Israeli
conflict and ways of providing financial assistance to the Palestinian
uprising. Participants will also consider blacklisting new companies
that do business with Israel. Egypt, Jordan and Mauritania, who
are bound by peace accords with Israel, did not attend the meeting.
(From Jerusalem Post) more
IDF
Thwarts Pessah Suicide Attacks
The security forces have arrested
10 would-be suicide bombers and their recruiters in the West Bank
since the beginning of Pessah, thwarting a number of suicide bombings
planned over the holiday. The country was on high alert over the
holiday after authorities received 62 warnings of planned terrorist
attacks in Israel. Twenty-nine Israelis were slain one year ago
in a suicide bombing on Seder night at the Park Hotel in Netanya.
(From Jerusalem Post) more
Worshippers
Flock to Jerusalem for Pessah Celebrations
An estimated 20,000 people crowded
the Western Wall Plaza on Sunday to witness the Birkat Kohanim (priestly
blessing), a ritual dating back to the time of the Temple. "The
experience of watching the priestly blessings is just simply indescribable,"
Hizkiyahu Ben-Tzur told the Jerusalem Post. Ben-Tzur, born in Texas
and now a resident of the West Bank town of Shiloh, said participating
in the event at the Wall allowed him to "relive what our ancestors
did thousands of years ago."
Christian celebrations of Easter in the Old City were somber. (From
Israel Insider) more
Israel
Leading the Way in SARS Virus Detection
As concern over severe acute respiratory
syndrome (SARS) grows worldwide, Israeli technology is leading the
way in the race to develop a method of quickly detecting the presence
of viruses that cause such illnesses. Such rapid and early detection
will go a long way towards helping to slow their spread in the future.
Integrated Nano-Technologies, a leading U.S. company, is now using
Israeli technology developed at the Haifa Technion as the backbone
of a new DNA based testing system called BioDetect that will rapidly
and accurately test for the presence of biological pathogens, such
as the virus that causes SARS as well as anthrax, and smallpox.
(From Israel 21c) more
Tuesday,
April 22
Abu
Mazen Says He Will Not Continue Negotiations with Arafat
Palestinian prime minister designate Mahmoud
Abbas (Abu Mazen) Abu Mazen said Tuesday that he would no longer
conduct negotiations with Palestinian Authority Chairman Yasser
Arafat regarding posts in his cabinet, a mediator who met with both
Abu Mazen and Arafat said. Abu Mazen must present his new cabinet
by the Wednesday midnight deadline. Arafat and Abu Mazen have not
spoken since Sunday. Arab, European and U.S. officials have called
Arafat in recent days to press him to reach agreement with Abu Mazen
so that the latter can be sworn in as prime minister. The dispute
between Arafat and Abu Mazen over the formation of a new government
centers around the latter's plans to dismantle Fatah's Al Aqsa Brigades
and his intentions to confront Hamas and Islamic Jihad. (From Ha'aretz)
more
Knesset
Vote on Austerity Plan to Be Held Wednesday
The Knesset vote on the Government's
new economic plan has been postponed until Wednesday next week.
The delay, agreed to by Minister of Finance Benyamin Netanyahu and
Knesset Speaker Reuven Rivlin, gives more time for the treasury
and the Histadrut labor federation to reach an agreement on the
economic plan and avoid a general strike. So far, there has been
no significant progress in the talks between the treasury and the
Histadrut regarding the plan. One suggestion being put forward was
that only part of the plan would be put to a vote. Finance ministry
officials have hinted that "problematic" paragraphs -
such as the one calling for the dismissals of 3,000 public sector
workers and for an 8-9 percent cut in salary for those keeping their
job -- would not be passed through legislation. Meanwhile, negotiations
between teachers' organizations and the finance and education ministries
ended Tuesday afternoon without resolving the teachers' dispute.
(From Ha'aretz) more
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