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Newsletter : 9fax1206.txt
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>Israel Faxx
>JN Dec. 6, 1999, Vol. 7, No. 225
Absorption Minister: 'No Change in Law of Return'
By IsraelWire
Israel's Absorption Minister Yuli Tamir told a Moscow news conference that the government will not change the Law of Return. The law guarantees immediate citizenship to Jews who move to Israel. This includes Jews who may have had only one Jewish grandparent. In recent weeks, members of the ultra-Orthodox Shas Party issued renewed, high-profile calls for amending the law.
Barak Accused of Promoting Jewish Settlements
By Ross Dunn (VOA-Jerusalem)
Left-wing Israeli activists and Palestinian officials accuse Prime Minister Ehud Barak of aggressively promoting Jewish settlement in the territories. The issue could undermine peace talks before Secretary of State Madeleine Albright visits the Middle East.
The Israeli left-wing group "Peace Now" issued figures it claims proves Barak has approved an expansion of Jewish settlements in the West Bank and Gaza strip at a faster rate than his right-wing predecessor Binyamin Netanyahu.
A spokesman for "Peace Now" says that since taking office in July the Barak Government has issued tenders for more housing units in Jewish settlements than the Netanyahu administration issued in an entire year.
The spokesman says Barak's government has issued tenders for nearly 3,200 new housing units in the territories -- compared with a yearly average of 3,000 during the Netanyahu administration.
Despite continued protests from the Palestinian Authority, the Israeli Housing Ministry published tenders Sunday for 500-more units in two West Bank settlements.
Palestinian negotiator Saeb Erekat says the West Bank is witnessing the largest expansion of Jewish settlements since the 1967 Middle East war, when Israel seized the area from Jordan.
He warned the Israeli Government its continued settlement activity could lead to violent reaction from the Palestinian community. He said it could also cause the entire peace process to collapse.
Erekat called for Albright to take up the settlement issue when she meets with Barak this week.
Internet Auctions of Nazi Memorabilia Criticized
By IsraelWire
The popular online eBay auction service is being pressed to halt its sales of Nazi-era memorabilia and Holocaust-related content over the internet.
The Los Angeles-based Simon Wiesenthal Center has called upon Ebay to stop the sales of armbands, comic strips and other items, which it says is a glorification of the Holocaust era.
This week in Berlin, a Wiesenthal Center official was said to be lobbying the German government for tougher legislation against the sales. More than 3,000 Nazi-related items are available through Ebay. A decades-old men's comic books from the U.S. featuring Nazi torture fantasies has been known to attract bids of up to $100 each. An armband from Auschwitz with a Star of David is being sold for $49.
Temple Menorah Ready for Chanukah
Arutz-7 News Service
The Temple Institute in Jerusalem has unveiled its newly-completed Menorah. Rabbi Menachem Makover, director of the Institute, said the approximately six-foot high Menorah has been built according to the exact specifications of the Torah. "This does not mean that it will necessarily be used for the Temple, and in fact we are forbidden to consecrate it now for Temple use. All those who contributed to the Menorah were made aware of this point. However, it is suitable for use in the Beit HaMikdash."
Makover said that while the original biblical Menorah was comprised of solid gold, "a kosher Menorah may be made of bronze, or may even be hollow - but if it is made with gold, then the gold or gold-plating must be of one piece. In order to do this, we built a bronze substructure, which we then immersed in a vat of gold. This Menorah is thus plated with almost 43 kilograms of 'one piece' of gold." He added a timely message: "We felt that on Chanukah, there could be nothing more appropriate than to have the golden Menorah return to Jerusalem as a symbol of the rebirth of the Jewish people and our march towards fulfilling the vision of building the Temple."
Arutz-7's Ariel Kahane pointed out that "some people have raised halakhic [Jewish legal] problems associated with building Temple vessels - maybe you're running ahead a bit too fast?" Makover replied, "We are simply fulfilling one of the Torah's commandments."
Hackers Discover Secret PLO Accounts
Arutz-7 News Service
Hackers have cracked the computer system of PLO headquarters in Tunisia, only to find that "Yasir Arafat has salted away billions of pounds for the Palestinian Liberation Organization in secret foreign bank accounts and investments."
The London Sunday Telegraph reported Sunday that the hackers discovered that the PLO maintains about $5 billion in bank accounts in Zurich, Geneva and New York, along with accounts containing smaller sums in North Africa, Europe and Asia. In addition, the records reportedly show that the PLO owns shares on the Frankfurt, Paris and Tokyo stock exchanges, including stock in Mercedes Benz (Chrysler), and property in prestigious areas of European capitals. The paper claims that the reports "are likely to prompt international donors. to ask why Mr. Arafat is still demanding aid for his Palestinian Authority."
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