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1. Rabbi Eliyahu: Religious MKs Supporting Anti-Torah Terror Deal
by Gil Ronen
Rabbi Shmuel Eliyahu, the Head Rabbi of Tzfat (Safed), pummeled religious ministers and Knesset members for their support of the rumored deal to release 1,000 terrorists from jail in exchange for abducted IDF soldier Gilad Shalit.
"It is a wonder in my eyes, how religious and Hareidi Knesset members vote for a deal that contradicts the Torah,” he told Arutz Sheva. “Are Netanyahu and the media more important than the Torah for them? Murderers must not be released and murderers must not be assisted in murdering Jews. I have no doubt that [Shas spiritual leade Rabbi Ovadia [Yose knows these verses.”
The leading Zionist rabbi, who is the son of former Chief Sephardic Rabbi Rabbi Mordechai Eliyahu, told listeners that there are numerous Torah laws against the upcoming deal. “It is known that 'prisoners are not to be redeemed by more than they are worth,'” he quoted the Mishnah, “but that is a reason that pertains more to deals with an economic price.”
However, he said, there is also a serious prohibition on releasing murderers. “Even the release of [Nazi criminal Adol Eichmann, who already lacked the means to murder Jews, was forbidden,” Rabbi Eliyahu explained, “because putting a murderer on trial has a deterrent value, in order to signal that Jewish blood cannot be spilled freely.”
Another Jewish law forbids the sale of weapons to foreigners, even if it is known that they will be used to kill other foreigners. This is doubly true of assisting criminals, the rabbi said. :And here we are talking about an operation following which Jews will be murdered. This is several times worse,” he said.
The only way to free Gilad Shalit is by “turning off the taps” on Gaza, he said. “From a Jewish Law perspective, their electricity and water need to be shut off.”
By advancing the deal, “Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu is doing something that is opposed to Halacha and people must not vote for such a man,” Eliyahu warned. “If the State of Israel went in Torah ways, everything would seem simpler and quicker,” he added.
Comment on this story
by Gil Ronen
Rabbi Shmuel Eliyahu, the Head Rabbi of Tzfat (Safed), pummeled religious ministers and Knesset members for their support of the rumored deal to release 1,000 terrorists from jail in exchange for abducted IDF soldier Gilad Shalit.
"It is a wonder in my eyes, how religious and Hareidi Knesset members vote for a deal that contradicts the Torah,” he told Arutz Sheva. “Are Netanyahu and the media more important than the Torah for them? Murderers must not be released and murderers must not be assisted in murdering Jews. I have no doubt that [Shas spiritual leade Rabbi Ovadia [Yose knows these verses.”
The leading Zionist rabbi, who is the son of former Chief Sephardic Rabbi Rabbi Mordechai Eliyahu, told listeners that there are numerous Torah laws against the upcoming deal. “It is known that 'prisoners are not to be redeemed by more than they are worth,'” he quoted the Mishnah, “but that is a reason that pertains more to deals with an economic price.”
However, he said, there is also a serious prohibition on releasing murderers. “Even the release of [Nazi criminal Adol Eichmann, who already lacked the means to murder Jews, was forbidden,” Rabbi Eliyahu explained, “because putting a murderer on trial has a deterrent value, in order to signal that Jewish blood cannot be spilled freely.”
Another Jewish law forbids the sale of weapons to foreigners, even if it is known that they will be used to kill other foreigners. This is doubly true of assisting criminals, the rabbi said. :And here we are talking about an operation following which Jews will be murdered. This is several times worse,” he said.
The only way to free Gilad Shalit is by “turning off the taps” on Gaza, he said. “From a Jewish Law perspective, their electricity and water need to be shut off.”
By advancing the deal, “Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu is doing something that is opposed to Halacha and people must not vote for such a man,” Eliyahu warned. “If the State of Israel went in Torah ways, everything would seem simpler and quicker,” he added.
Comment on this story
2. PA Signals Israel: Freeze is Pointless
by Hillel Fendel
Though Israel has stopped all construction in Judea and Samaria, top PLO official Ahmed Qureia has told the European Union envoy to the Middle East that there is no reason to return to negotiating table, in light of Israel’s intransigence and rejection of international law.
The PA’s Maan news agency reports that former PA prime minister Qureia, who now heads the PA’s Jerusalem Affairs Department, told Christian Berger this week, “As a result of the ongoing violations and Israel's refusal to recognize the Palestinian people's right to self-determination, as well as its rebuffing of its commitments under the Road Map plan and under international law, returning to negotiations will be meaningless."
Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu, Defense Minister Ehud Barak and other Israeli government leaders have emphasized that the controversial freeze is being implemented in order to persuade the PA to agree to resume negotiations with Israel.
Qureia, also known as Abu Ala, was discussing with Berger a Swedish proposal for the EU to declare eastern Jerusalem the capital of yet another Arab state - this one in the middle of the Jewish Biblical heartland.
The current EU president, Sweden, has drafted a proposal that is expected to be submitted to EU Foreign Ministers next week. The draft, which was leaked to the public on Tuesday, also implied that the EU would recognize a unilaterally declared Palestinian state. The U.S. and other countries have warned the PA not to take such a step.
The report omitted any mention of the recent Israeli decision to stop all Jewish construction in Judea and Samaria.
Comment on this story
by Hillel Fendel
Though Israel has stopped all construction in Judea and Samaria, top PLO official Ahmed Qureia has told the European Union envoy to the Middle East that there is no reason to return to negotiating table, in light of Israel’s intransigence and rejection of international law.
The PA’s Maan news agency reports that former PA prime minister Qureia, who now heads the PA’s Jerusalem Affairs Department, told Christian Berger this week, “As a result of the ongoing violations and Israel's refusal to recognize the Palestinian people's right to self-determination, as well as its rebuffing of its commitments under the Road Map plan and under international law, returning to negotiations will be meaningless."
Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu, Defense Minister Ehud Barak and other Israeli government leaders have emphasized that the controversial freeze is being implemented in order to persuade the PA to agree to resume negotiations with Israel.
Qureia, also known as Abu Ala, was discussing with Berger a Swedish proposal for the EU to declare eastern Jerusalem the capital of yet another Arab state - this one in the middle of the Jewish Biblical heartland.
The current EU president, Sweden, has drafted a proposal that is expected to be submitted to EU Foreign Ministers next week. The draft, which was leaked to the public on Tuesday, also implied that the EU would recognize a unilaterally declared Palestinian state. The U.S. and other countries have warned the PA not to take such a step.
The report omitted any mention of the recent Israeli decision to stop all Jewish construction in Judea and Samaria.
Comment on this story
3. MK Katz: Tear Up the 'Hellenist' Decree
by Gil Ronen
National Union Chairman MK Yaakov (Ketzaleh) Katz said Wednesday that the construction freeze ordered by the government against Jews in Judea and Samaria is “racist and illegal.”
"These are cruel decrees against Jews alone, and only because they are Jews,” he protested. “If an order like this were given in Paris, London and Berlin, the government of Israel would have convened for a special session and denounced them as anti-Semitic decrees that do not have a place in the enlightened world.
"All Jews must organize and fight for their lives, to build and be built,” Ketzaleh said, paraphrasing an old Zionist slogan. “The council heads must tear the anti-Semitic decree to bits. This decree must be fought from the Likud Central Committee all the way to massive construction on the ground, and demonstrations in front of the homes of ministers who dare to raise their hand against the Jews of Judea and Samaria. It is incumbent on every Jew to emphasize before every Knesset Member who helps prop up this government that it will be remembered as a government of Hellenists [as Jews who adopted Greek ways were called in Hasmonean times – ed who carried out crimes against the Jewish people.”
MK Katz expressed “wonder” at the fact that “the hareidi public and its rabbis, who are the ones who bear the brunt of the damage from this edict, allow the Knesset members [for the hareidi partie to continue to stand beside this rotten person Netanyahu.” Never in the history of the nation of Israel, he added, was there a Jewish leader who took such steps against the Jews as he has.
MK Katz blasted local government heads in Judea and Samaria who consented to meet Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu. He compared the situation to a man who is unfaithful to his wife “and then invites her to discuss the new situation which has arisen. ...Until his racist anti-Jewish decree is canceled no one must meet with the man. When the husband ceases being unfaithful, it will be possible to meet him again.”
The head of the IDF's Civilian Administration in Judea and Samaria will provide local government authorities with a list of 84 planned structures that can be built despite the freeze on construction, the Government's Coordinator for the Territories stated Wednesday.
Comment on this story
by Gil Ronen
National Union Chairman MK Yaakov (Ketzaleh) Katz said Wednesday that the construction freeze ordered by the government against Jews in Judea and Samaria is “racist and illegal.”
"These are cruel decrees against Jews alone, and only because they are Jews,” he protested. “If an order like this were given in Paris, London and Berlin, the government of Israel would have convened for a special session and denounced them as anti-Semitic decrees that do not have a place in the enlightened world.
"All Jews must organize and fight for their lives, to build and be built,” Ketzaleh said, paraphrasing an old Zionist slogan. “The council heads must tear the anti-Semitic decree to bits. This decree must be fought from the Likud Central Committee all the way to massive construction on the ground, and demonstrations in front of the homes of ministers who dare to raise their hand against the Jews of Judea and Samaria. It is incumbent on every Jew to emphasize before every Knesset Member who helps prop up this government that it will be remembered as a government of Hellenists [as Jews who adopted Greek ways were called in Hasmonean times – ed who carried out crimes against the Jewish people.”
MK Katz expressed “wonder” at the fact that “the hareidi public and its rabbis, who are the ones who bear the brunt of the damage from this edict, allow the Knesset members [for the hareidi partie to continue to stand beside this rotten person Netanyahu.” Never in the history of the nation of Israel, he added, was there a Jewish leader who took such steps against the Jews as he has.
MK Katz blasted local government heads in Judea and Samaria who consented to meet Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu. He compared the situation to a man who is unfaithful to his wife “and then invites her to discuss the new situation which has arisen. ...Until his racist anti-Jewish decree is canceled no one must meet with the man. When the husband ceases being unfaithful, it will be possible to meet him again.”
The head of the IDF's Civilian Administration in Judea and Samaria will provide local government authorities with a list of 84 planned structures that can be built despite the freeze on construction, the Government's Coordinator for the Territories stated Wednesday.
Comment on this story
4. Anti-Freeze Voices in Government and Knesset
by Hillel Fendel
Cabinet ministers who voted for the freeze on Jewish construction, a Knesset subcommittee, and coalition MKs agree: The freeze has gone too far.
Finance Minister Steinitz
Finance Minister Yuval Steinitz of the Likud, who voted in favor of the construction freeze in the mini-security cabinet last week, is singing a different tune this morning. “"If the Palestinian Authority continues with its hostility and aggression towards Israel,” he told Voice of Israel Radio, “instead of responding to Israel’s outstretched hand, then the government will convene soon and reconsider the freeze." Though the statement was replete with conditions, qualifications and non-concrete commitments, it could signify a slowdown in the approach the government has taken thus far regarding the freeze.
Knesset Subcommittee
In addition, the Knesset Subcommittee for Judea and Samaria Affairs - under the auspices of the Knesset's Foreign Affairs and Defense Committee - resolved this morning that the Defense Minister must immediately suspend the construction freeze. Chairman MK Zev Elkin (Likud) explained: “The freeze orders were implemented in opposition to the manner stipulated by the Cabinet decision, and were not publicized beforehand as they were supposed to have been. The orders also do not provide any respite for those who are losing money because of the freeze. We therefore demand that the freeze be revoked, formulated properly, provide for compensation, and only afterwards can it be enforced.”
MK Eldad
Committee member MK Aryeh Eldad (National Union) was more biting: “The Defense Minister, who likes to speak about law enforcement, himself totally disregards the law. He causes the IDF Central Commander to sign an order in opposition to the Cabinet decision – which stated that it takes effect only after it is publicized – and this has yet to be done. In addition, he is in violation of Knesset laws. He instructed his representatives not to appear at our committee session – which he may do only if he himself appears in their stead. This he did not do, and I plan to present legislation stipulating that in such a case, he should be forcibly brought to the Knesset just like any other lawbreaker.”
Ministers Begin and Yaalon
Furthermore, Cabinet Ministers Moshe Yaalon and Benny Begin – Likud hawks who voted in favor of the freeze – said on Wednesday that the freeze is being implemented in a “draconian” manner. They noted that the freeze was only supposed to apply to construction that has not yet begun, whereas in fact, the Defense Ministry has issued stop-work orders to some 2,000 units that have already been started or approved. Yaalon and Begin asked Netanyahu to ensure that Defense Minister Barak “calms down” in his rush to enforce the orders.
MKs from UTJ
MK Menachem Eliezer Moses of the government coalition's United Torah Judaism party, opposes the freeze for both political and economic reasons. Speaking in the Knesset on Wednesday, he said, “Whoever thinks that after ten months of a freeze, all of sudden they’ll start building again, is mistaken. This is the salami method – first one slice, then another, etc.”
Moses also explained the economic ramifications of the freeze: “Innocent citizens who purchased apartments on paper, or land, and took out a mortgage to do so, now find themselves unable to proceed. So for an additional ten months they’ll have to pay double: rent and mortgage. Why are they at fault? Did they buy illegally? They all paid good money so that they can live in a home, and now they have to suffer? And what about all the suppliers, and subcontractors, and advisors, and architects, and everyone else – what will happen to them? And what about a family with 10 children that wants to expand its 3-room apartment - they’re stuck? And what about the banks that finance these projects – when they see that the government zig-zags like this and decides on a Disengagement from construction, they will simply decide to pull out of these projects.”
MK Moses and his party colleague Uri Makleb have proposed legislation that will provide compensation for all direct or indirect damages caused by the construction freeze.
Comment on this story
by Hillel Fendel
Cabinet ministers who voted for the freeze on Jewish construction, a Knesset subcommittee, and coalition MKs agree: The freeze has gone too far.
Finance Minister Steinitz
Finance Minister Yuval Steinitz of the Likud, who voted in favor of the construction freeze in the mini-security cabinet last week, is singing a different tune this morning. “"If the Palestinian Authority continues with its hostility and aggression towards Israel,” he told Voice of Israel Radio, “instead of responding to Israel’s outstretched hand, then the government will convene soon and reconsider the freeze." Though the statement was replete with conditions, qualifications and non-concrete commitments, it could signify a slowdown in the approach the government has taken thus far regarding the freeze.
Knesset Subcommittee
In addition, the Knesset Subcommittee for Judea and Samaria Affairs - under the auspices of the Knesset's Foreign Affairs and Defense Committee - resolved this morning that the Defense Minister must immediately suspend the construction freeze. Chairman MK Zev Elkin (Likud) explained: “The freeze orders were implemented in opposition to the manner stipulated by the Cabinet decision, and were not publicized beforehand as they were supposed to have been. The orders also do not provide any respite for those who are losing money because of the freeze. We therefore demand that the freeze be revoked, formulated properly, provide for compensation, and only afterwards can it be enforced.”
MK Eldad
Committee member MK Aryeh Eldad (National Union) was more biting: “The Defense Minister, who likes to speak about law enforcement, himself totally disregards the law. He causes the IDF Central Commander to sign an order in opposition to the Cabinet decision – which stated that it takes effect only after it is publicized – and this has yet to be done. In addition, he is in violation of Knesset laws. He instructed his representatives not to appear at our committee session – which he may do only if he himself appears in their stead. This he did not do, and I plan to present legislation stipulating that in such a case, he should be forcibly brought to the Knesset just like any other lawbreaker.”
Ministers Begin and Yaalon
Furthermore, Cabinet Ministers Moshe Yaalon and Benny Begin – Likud hawks who voted in favor of the freeze – said on Wednesday that the freeze is being implemented in a “draconian” manner. They noted that the freeze was only supposed to apply to construction that has not yet begun, whereas in fact, the Defense Ministry has issued stop-work orders to some 2,000 units that have already been started or approved. Yaalon and Begin asked Netanyahu to ensure that Defense Minister Barak “calms down” in his rush to enforce the orders.
MKs from UTJ
MK Menachem Eliezer Moses of the government coalition's United Torah Judaism party, opposes the freeze for both political and economic reasons. Speaking in the Knesset on Wednesday, he said, “Whoever thinks that after ten months of a freeze, all of sudden they’ll start building again, is mistaken. This is the salami method – first one slice, then another, etc.”
Moses also explained the economic ramifications of the freeze: “Innocent citizens who purchased apartments on paper, or land, and took out a mortgage to do so, now find themselves unable to proceed. So for an additional ten months they’ll have to pay double: rent and mortgage. Why are they at fault? Did they buy illegally? They all paid good money so that they can live in a home, and now they have to suffer? And what about all the suppliers, and subcontractors, and advisors, and architects, and everyone else – what will happen to them? And what about a family with 10 children that wants to expand its 3-room apartment - they’re stuck? And what about the banks that finance these projects – when they see that the government zig-zags like this and decides on a Disengagement from construction, they will simply decide to pull out of these projects.”
MK Moses and his party colleague Uri Makleb have proposed legislation that will provide compensation for all direct or indirect damages caused by the construction freeze.
Comment on this story
5. Glick: Time for a Noisy UN Ambassador
by Gil Ronen
Israel's UN Ambassador, Prof. Gavriela Shalev, is “very quiet,” and her replacement needs to have a more powerful personality, journalist Caroline Glick told Arutz Sheva Wednesday. Recent reports in the media indicate that Foreign Minister Avigdor Lieberman intends to replace Shalev, who was appointed by Tzipi Livni when she was Foreign Minister, with a person of his choosing.
Glick, a senior contributor to the Jerusalem Post and the founder of satire website Latma, said that Shalev once even gave a “shocking” interview to the IDF's Army Radio in which she called on Israelis to be “less suspicious” toward the United Nations and proclaimed that she would not just be Israel's ambassador to the UN but also “the UN's ambassador to Israel.” The interview exposed “the most severe type of confusion,” Glick added. She praised the previous ambassador, Danny Gillerman, for responding correctly to the attacks on Israel.
Glick said that the hatred of Israel has been characteristic of the UN for over 30 years, and explained that November 29th – the anniversary of the UN resolution which partitioned British-controlled Palestine – has become an annual day for attacking Israel in the UN.
Israel needs to make a dramatic change in the way it deals with the UN's hostility, she said, adding that “We cannot ignore it. Israel needs to use the UN's hostility in order to attack the hypocrisy of the international community regarding Israel. This is the anti-Semitism of the new era – the negation of our right to self determination is a kind of anti-Semitism.”
“I do not see any difference between the old anti-Semitism and and today's anti-Semitism,” she explained. “They ignore the abuses of human rights in China, Rwanda and Sudan. Everything is focused on us. Israel is the only country which has been saddled with a representative whose job it is to look into complaints against it.”
Glick said that the next ambassador “needs to take the initiative, organize conferences, actions, cooperating with the Jewish community in protests against the UN and more. The State of Israel thinks that if it collaborates, this will somehow help us. There is a belief here that quiet diplomacy gets the job done and this is not true. We need to begin taking the initiative.”
Comment on this story
by Gil Ronen
Israel's UN Ambassador, Prof. Gavriela Shalev, is “very quiet,” and her replacement needs to have a more powerful personality, journalist Caroline Glick told Arutz Sheva Wednesday. Recent reports in the media indicate that Foreign Minister Avigdor Lieberman intends to replace Shalev, who was appointed by Tzipi Livni when she was Foreign Minister, with a person of his choosing.
Glick, a senior contributor to the Jerusalem Post and the founder of satire website Latma, said that Shalev once even gave a “shocking” interview to the IDF's Army Radio in which she called on Israelis to be “less suspicious” toward the United Nations and proclaimed that she would not just be Israel's ambassador to the UN but also “the UN's ambassador to Israel.” The interview exposed “the most severe type of confusion,” Glick added. She praised the previous ambassador, Danny Gillerman, for responding correctly to the attacks on Israel.
Glick said that the hatred of Israel has been characteristic of the UN for over 30 years, and explained that November 29th – the anniversary of the UN resolution which partitioned British-controlled Palestine – has become an annual day for attacking Israel in the UN.
Israel needs to make a dramatic change in the way it deals with the UN's hostility, she said, adding that “We cannot ignore it. Israel needs to use the UN's hostility in order to attack the hypocrisy of the international community regarding Israel. This is the anti-Semitism of the new era – the negation of our right to self determination is a kind of anti-Semitism.”
“I do not see any difference between the old anti-Semitism and and today's anti-Semitism,” she explained. “They ignore the abuses of human rights in China, Rwanda and Sudan. Everything is focused on us. Israel is the only country which has been saddled with a representative whose job it is to look into complaints against it.”
Glick said that the next ambassador “needs to take the initiative, organize conferences, actions, cooperating with the Jewish community in protests against the UN and more. The State of Israel thinks that if it collaborates, this will somehow help us. There is a belief here that quiet diplomacy gets the job done and this is not true. We need to begin taking the initiative.”
Comment on this story
6. Rumors on Shalit: Lots of Smoke but No Fire
by Tzvi Ben Gedalyahu
The Hamas rumor mill is spinning almost without control, with one Arab newspaper reporting that kidnapped soldier Gilad Shalit is in Egypt and another declaring that convicted arch-terrorist Marwan Barghouti refuses to be freed if Israel demands he be deported to an Arab country.
The al-Jarid newspaper of Kuwait maintained that Shalit, kidnapped to Hamas-run Gaza more than three years ago, was taken in secret to Egypt several days ago. Circumstantial evidence for the report is that there has been an unusual increase in Egyptian security personnel around Rafiah, which is located on both sides of the Egyptian-Gaza border.
Israel and Hamas are tight-lipped about negotiations for Shalit’s release and about the rumors, in accordance with a gag order agreement with a German mediator. Israel’s High Court has rejected legal petitions that the military censor’s gag order is not justified as being necessary for national security.
As in previous “almost-deals” for the return of Shalit, Hamas reports have verged from the deal being a near-certainty to its being in doubt. Arab media have reported that Hamas is likely to add more conditions after Israel’s agreement on principle to release hundreds of terrorists, including those who have murdered Israelis or helped arrange suicide bombings,
Marwan Barghouti, serving five life terms in prison for his involvement in murderous attacks, is now rumored to be on the list of terrorists Hamas wants freed, although he is not officially a member of the Hamas terrorist organization. He recently said from his jail cell that he sees no difference between Hamas and its rival Fatah.
A London-based Arabic-language newspaper reported that Israel may agree to release him but only on condition that he be deported to an Arab country, a provision the newspaper said he has rejected. Cabinet ministers are divided on whether he should be freed, with Foreign Minister Avigdor Lieberman, chairman of the Yisrael Beiteinu party, one of the most vocal opponents.
Barghouti is considered the most popular personality in the PA-controlled areas.
The Kuwaiti newspaper also said the deal is now “underway,” a virtual impossibility because by law the government must give at least 48 hours notice to the public on which terrorists are to be freed.
In a ruling on an appeal against from a “goodwill” release of terrorists last year, the High Court warned the government that it may not be legally acceptable to put the wheels in motion for freeing terrorists and then give the public only 48 hours to appeal on what may be a fait accompli.
Another intimation that the deal is not imminent is President Shimon Peres’s statement earlier this week that internal disputes in Hamas are holding up progress in reaching an agreement for the return of Shalit.
Any release of terrorists who have not completed their prison sentence is dependent on Peres's signature. The president indicated to 10th grade students this week that he would agree to sign despite "the high and painful price the government must pay.”
Nearly 180 Israelis have been murdered by terrorists released by the government in the past, most of them as part of ”goodwill measures” to bolster the standing of Palestinian Authority PA Chairman Mahmoud Abbas.
Comment on this story
by Tzvi Ben Gedalyahu
The Hamas rumor mill is spinning almost without control, with one Arab newspaper reporting that kidnapped soldier Gilad Shalit is in Egypt and another declaring that convicted arch-terrorist Marwan Barghouti refuses to be freed if Israel demands he be deported to an Arab country.
The al-Jarid newspaper of Kuwait maintained that Shalit, kidnapped to Hamas-run Gaza more than three years ago, was taken in secret to Egypt several days ago. Circumstantial evidence for the report is that there has been an unusual increase in Egyptian security personnel around Rafiah, which is located on both sides of the Egyptian-Gaza border.
Israel and Hamas are tight-lipped about negotiations for Shalit’s release and about the rumors, in accordance with a gag order agreement with a German mediator. Israel’s High Court has rejected legal petitions that the military censor’s gag order is not justified as being necessary for national security.
As in previous “almost-deals” for the return of Shalit, Hamas reports have verged from the deal being a near-certainty to its being in doubt. Arab media have reported that Hamas is likely to add more conditions after Israel’s agreement on principle to release hundreds of terrorists, including those who have murdered Israelis or helped arrange suicide bombings,
Marwan Barghouti, serving five life terms in prison for his involvement in murderous attacks, is now rumored to be on the list of terrorists Hamas wants freed, although he is not officially a member of the Hamas terrorist organization. He recently said from his jail cell that he sees no difference between Hamas and its rival Fatah.
A London-based Arabic-language newspaper reported that Israel may agree to release him but only on condition that he be deported to an Arab country, a provision the newspaper said he has rejected. Cabinet ministers are divided on whether he should be freed, with Foreign Minister Avigdor Lieberman, chairman of the Yisrael Beiteinu party, one of the most vocal opponents.
Barghouti is considered the most popular personality in the PA-controlled areas.
The Kuwaiti newspaper also said the deal is now “underway,” a virtual impossibility because by law the government must give at least 48 hours notice to the public on which terrorists are to be freed.
In a ruling on an appeal against from a “goodwill” release of terrorists last year, the High Court warned the government that it may not be legally acceptable to put the wheels in motion for freeing terrorists and then give the public only 48 hours to appeal on what may be a fait accompli.
Another intimation that the deal is not imminent is President Shimon Peres’s statement earlier this week that internal disputes in Hamas are holding up progress in reaching an agreement for the return of Shalit.
Any release of terrorists who have not completed their prison sentence is dependent on Peres's signature. The president indicated to 10th grade students this week that he would agree to sign despite "the high and painful price the government must pay.”
Nearly 180 Israelis have been murdered by terrorists released by the government in the past, most of them as part of ”goodwill measures” to bolster the standing of Palestinian Authority PA Chairman Mahmoud Abbas.
Comment on this story
7. Ahmadinejad: Israel, the West 'Can't Do a Damn Thing' to Stop Us
by Nissan Ratzlav-Katz
For the third time this week, Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad made it clear that his country will not curb its nuclear program regardless of international opposition.
Iranian government media claimed on Wednesday that Ahmadinejad addressed cheering crowds in Isfahan regarding the Islamic Republic's nuclear program. "In our opinion," he declared, "the nuclear issue has come to an end and our nation will not negotiate [i." Instead, he continued, Iran will independently produce 20-percent enriched nuclear fuel to supply a Tehran nuclear reactor.
Israel and its leaders, Ahmadinejad added, are meaningless and "can not do a damn thing" to stop Iran.
Ahmadinejad further claimed that his regime made the decision to independently supply its needs after the International Atomic Energy Agency refused to supply Iran with 20-percent enriched uranium fuel. However, Iran recently rejected a deal worked out with the U.N. in which the Iranian uranium would be enriched abroad and shipped back to Iran for those energy and medical uses which they claim to be pursuing.
"We have declared to the world that the international organizations are being ruled by corrupt powers," Ahmadinejad is quoted as saying.
'No One Can Isolate Iran'
On Tuesday night, the Iranian leader declared that his nation "is not obligated to report to the IAEA about nuclear facilities it is building, rather just about technology it imports." He called the efforts to isolate Iran over its refusal to cooperate with international oversight of its nuclear program "psychological warfare waged by the Western nations. Iran is a unique nation and no other country can isolate it. Sanctions will have no effect on Iran."
In reaction to Russia's decision to support the IAEA position against Iran, Ahmadinejad said, "Russia made a mistake in supporting the anti-Iranian decision and we believe that their analysis in this matter was mistaken."
Earlier this week, Iranian media reported that the Islamic Republic's Nuclear Energy Council was instructed to begin construction of five new facilities for uranium enrichment. According to the government's decision, officially revealed on Sunday, the new facilities are to be the size of the central nuclear enrichment plant in Natanz. That facility has over 8,500 centrifuges for enrichment purposes.
According to the report in Iran's government controlled media, the locations of the five new plants have already been decided upon. Construction is to start within two months.
Ahmadinejad will also reportedly order his Nuclear Energy Council to determine what is needed for Iran to enrich the uranium it has already produced.
Comment on this story
by Nissan Ratzlav-Katz
For the third time this week, Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad made it clear that his country will not curb its nuclear program regardless of international opposition.
Iranian government media claimed on Wednesday that Ahmadinejad addressed cheering crowds in Isfahan regarding the Islamic Republic's nuclear program. "In our opinion," he declared, "the nuclear issue has come to an end and our nation will not negotiate [i." Instead, he continued, Iran will independently produce 20-percent enriched nuclear fuel to supply a Tehran nuclear reactor.
Israel and its leaders, Ahmadinejad added, are meaningless and "can not do a damn thing" to stop Iran.
Ahmadinejad further claimed that his regime made the decision to independently supply its needs after the International Atomic Energy Agency refused to supply Iran with 20-percent enriched uranium fuel. However, Iran recently rejected a deal worked out with the U.N. in which the Iranian uranium would be enriched abroad and shipped back to Iran for those energy and medical uses which they claim to be pursuing.
"We have declared to the world that the international organizations are being ruled by corrupt powers," Ahmadinejad is quoted as saying.
'No One Can Isolate Iran'
On Tuesday night, the Iranian leader declared that his nation "is not obligated to report to the IAEA about nuclear facilities it is building, rather just about technology it imports." He called the efforts to isolate Iran over its refusal to cooperate with international oversight of its nuclear program "psychological warfare waged by the Western nations. Iran is a unique nation and no other country can isolate it. Sanctions will have no effect on Iran."
In reaction to Russia's decision to support the IAEA position against Iran, Ahmadinejad said, "Russia made a mistake in supporting the anti-Iranian decision and we believe that their analysis in this matter was mistaken."
Earlier this week, Iranian media reported that the Islamic Republic's Nuclear Energy Council was instructed to begin construction of five new facilities for uranium enrichment. According to the government's decision, officially revealed on Sunday, the new facilities are to be the size of the central nuclear enrichment plant in Natanz. That facility has over 8,500 centrifuges for enrichment purposes.
According to the report in Iran's government controlled media, the locations of the five new plants have already been decided upon. Construction is to start within two months.
Ahmadinejad will also reportedly order his Nuclear Energy Council to determine what is needed for Iran to enrich the uranium it has already produced.
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