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Newsletter : 9fax0624.txt
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>JN June 24, 1999, Vol. 7, No. 114
More Jews in Iranian Detention
By IsraelWire
Representatives of the Iranian Jewish community in Israel met with Chief Rabbi Yisrael Meir Lau. Iranian Jewish leaders said there was another wave of arrests by Iranian authorities aimed at the Jewish community. One of the community leaders told the chief rabbi that the current situation is a "blood libel" aimed at the Jewish community of Iran. It now appears their are 22 Jews in detention, not 13 as reported earlier.
Arabs Won't Sit Down with Israel at UN
By Arutz-7 News Service
In a move reminiscent of the frosty relations of earlier decades,
Arab delegates at the United Nations this week refused to sit down
with Israelis to discuss ways of handling the Y2K problem.
The incident highlighted once again Israel's untenable position at
the UN, where it is the single member country denied entry to one
of five regional groups, and consequently precluded from
participation in numerous key bodies, including the Security
Council.
The scheduled discussion was part of two days of meetings on
handling problems associated with the year 2000 "millennium bug,"
and attended by delegates from 170 countries.
The conference was to share information regarding the efforts and
methods used by various countries. Ironically, other nations in the
region could learn from Israel, which was declared Tuesday to be
one of the world's 12 countries best prepared for the Y2K problem.
Arab nations lag far behind. In March, a UN official warned that
many Arab states could be serious affected by the millennium bug,
as most had given the problem little thought, let alone drawn up
plans to avoid it.
Assad Calls Barak "Honest Man"
By Ross Dunn (VOA-Jerusalem)
In a rare interview, Syrian President Hafez al-Assad has described Israel's Prime Minister-elect, Ehud Barak, as an honest man who wants to make peace.
Assad told the London-based Arabic language newspaper "Al-Hayat"
that Barak appears to be what he called a "strong and honest man."
The Syrian President added that it is clear the Israeli leader
wants to achieve peace with Syria and says Barak is moving at a
careful, studied pace toward that objective.
Moshe Mao'z, a professor at Hebrew University and author of a
biography of Assad, said the Syrian president is not known for
his effusive praise of other leaders, most particularly those in
Israel. "He (Assad) is (normally) very, very stingy in his words,
as you know. He is a cold fish so in a sense what he said has some
significance."
Mao'z says for years he's believed that Assad wanted to reach peace
with Israel -- but only on condition that Syria won back the
strategic Golan Heights captured during the 1967 war. The Israeli
scholar says more than ever, there is an awareness in Israel that
Assad will settle for nothing less.
Thaw in Israeli-Iranian Relations?
By Arutz-7 News Service
Iran has vociferously denied a report saying President Mohammed Khatami was seeking ways to improve relations with archenemy Israel, but some analysts believe the report to be true, and leaked purposely by the Israelis to send a warning to extremists in Tehran.
Ha'aretz quoted a senior British official as saying the Khatami
administration had relayed proposed confidence-building steps to
Israel, via the British, aimed at breaking "the current circle of
distrust and suspicion."
They said Iran was anxious to quell Israeli fears about Iran's
nonconventional weapons program, and that Tehran wanted Israel to
know the weaponry was directed not at the Jewish state but at other
regional countries perceived as threats, such as Iraq and
Afghanistan.
Britain and Iran were quick to deny the report, which the Iranian
foreign ministry called "futile efforts by the Zionist propaganda
machinery" to undermine Khatami.
Israel and Iran are currently involved in a dispute over the fate of 13 Iranian Jews held on suspicion of spying for Israel and the United States. Some experts believe the arrests are part of a campaign by extremists to discredit Khatami.
PA Will Prevent Jewish Prayer at Machpelah Tombs
By Arutz-7 News Service
Hebron's Deputy Mayor Kamal Dweik provided some insights into how the Machpelah Cave - one of Judaism's most ancient and holy sites - will look if Hebron is abandoned by Israel.
"It is a mosque, not a synagogue," Dweik said, explaining why Jewish prayer would not be allowed. "It will be open to all visitors. It will not be divided. It is a mosque. Not a church. Not a synagogue. It is a mosque. It will be returned to being a mosque and the Jews who want to visit the mosque are welcome [but not to pray]. Jewish prayer would mean that it is a synagogue... And we refuse this thing. But to visit the Tomb of Abraham and the others, as visitors, that's OK."
The Bible recounts that six of Judaism's Patriarchs and Matriarchs
- Abraham, Sarah, Isaac, Rebecca, Jacob, and Leah - are buried at
the Machpelah Cave, which was bought "for the full price" by
Abraham for the purpose.
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