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Newsletter : 9fax0128.txt
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>PD
>Israel Faxx
>JN Jan. 28, 1999, Vol. 7, No. 19
Malaysia bans "The Prince of Egypt"
Israel Faxx Staff Report
Malaysia has banned "The Prince of Egypt," the animated Hollywood
epic about Moses, on religious and moral grounds, officials said
Wednesday. "We ban films that don't serve the interests of the
people," said Lukeman Saaid, chairman of the Film Censorship Board.
"We found it insensitive for religious and moral reasons. Because
of the many races in Malaysia, religion is a very sensitive issue."
Sexton Found Murdered in Beersheva Synagogue
By IsraelWire
The sexton of a synagogue on Beersheva's Hadassim Street was found murdered inside the synagogue building in the old city Wednesday. Unconfirmed reports indicate the murder was particularly brutal. The victim was described as an Orthodox Jew in his 70s, affiliated with the local office of Agudat Yisrael.
Persons affiliated with the Agudat Yisrael Party are working to
prevent an autopsy of the unidentified victim, which was ordered by
police. Autopsies are forbidden according to Jewish law.
Syria Close to Sealing a $2 Billion Russian Arms Deal
By IsraelWire
News that Syrian Defense Minister Mustafa Tlass plans a 10-day
visit to Moscow suggests the two sides are on the verge of
finalizing a deal which will greatly enhance Syria's military
capabilities, says strategic affairs analyst Qassem Mohammad
Jaafar.
He said the arms deal with Russia, which now appears on the verge
of being finalized, will constitute a strategic breakthrough for
Damascus. Even though Israel would retain its huge military edge,
Syria's first major weapons deal with Russia, since the Soviet
Union's demise, would be a vital step toward redressing the balance
of forces with the Jewish state, Jaafar told Mideast Mirror.
He was commenting on a report in the pan-Arab daily al-Hayat which
quoted, in a Moscow-datelined dispatch, the Russian Interfax news
agency as saying Tlass and his aides would spend 10 days in Russia,
and suggested that "intensive talks" would be held during the
visit.
Among the Russian weapons systems Syria is reportedly interested in
acquiring, al-Hayat cited Sukhoi-27 fighter aircraft, T-80 tanks
and S-300 anti-aircraft and anti-missile Sam systems (NATO code
name SA 10), which it noted were equivalent to the US Patriot
missiles Washington is supplying to Turkey.
Al-Hayat said the visiting Syrian officials would also discuss
upgrading and/or acquiring spare parts for Soviet-made weapons
already in use by the Syrian armed forces, including tanks and
MiG-21, MiG-23 and MiG-29 fighters.
If consummated, this would be the first major military deal Syria
has concluded with Russia since the demise of the Soviet Union,
which had been Syria's major arms supplier.
In terms of impact, the acquisition of modern, state-of-the-art
weapons by the Syrian armed forces would greatly enhance Syria's
military capability, Jaafar said. The Sukhoi-27 is widely regarded
as equivalent to, if not better than, the US-made F-15s in service
with Israel. The T-80 is one of the latest-generation tanks, while
the S-300 system would enable Syria to defend itself against both
missile and air strikes.
Right-Wing Extremist Planned Suicide Attack on Temple Mount
By IsraelWire
According to the Shin-Bet, Demian (Chaim) Fackowitz, who was found
guilty of taking part in planning to place a pig's head on the
Temple Mount, admitted to conspiring to carry out a terror attack
on Jerusalem's Temple Mount. Yediot Achronot reported that
Fackowitz admitted to planning the attack three years ago, one that
would entail a suicide attacker.
Fackowitz was arrested last year for his part in the alleged plot
to place a pig's head on the Temple Mount during the Muslim holy
month of Ramadan. The action was intended to create a stir in the
Muslim world. During his trial in the Jerusalem District Court,
conversations between Fackowitz and Shin Bet were revealed to the
court.
The report indicated that a Shin Bet agent code-named "Gidi" told
the court that the suspect admitted that he wanted to take his own
life following relationships with women in Elkana and Kfar Saba.
According to Gidi, the suspect then told him that if he was going
to kill himself, he would do it in a big way.
Gidi told the court that Fackowitz stated he planned to disguise
himself as a Bosnian tourist and explode a 44 pound device as Muslim
worshipers left the Temple Mount area, killing himself and many
others in the area.
Shin Bet also told the court the suspect copied information from
Internet terror web sites with instructions in preparing explosive
devices.
He also told a girlfriend, a resident of Elkana, that he was
planning something "big." When she probed him for additional
information, he declined to elaborate. Fackowitz told his
interrogators that she then told him to seek psychiatric help. The
Shin Bet indicated they never questioned the Elkana woman.
Fackowitz is charged with placing a pig's head on the Nesher
gravesite of terrorist Izzadin el-Kassim, and with an attack on the
offices of the Dor Shalom organization. Fackowitz denies all the
charges leveled against him.
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