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Newsletter : 0fax0315.txt
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>JN March 15, 2000, Vol. 8, No. 49
Vatican: Pope's Apology Was Toned Down
By IsraelWire
According to an IBA English News report, Vatican officials are reporting that the apology made by Pope John Paul II on Sunday was toned down at the last minute following pressure by Church conservatives. It was reported that the pontiff toned down the text during his delivery of the special liturgy and used "more cautious language" to "soften the shock" for right-wing Catholics.
Jerusalem Suburb Won't Be Transferred
By Meredith Buel (VOA-Jerusalem)
Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Barak has decided not to include a Palestinian village bordering Jerusalem in the next transfer of West Bank land to the Palestinians. The decision came after a political outcry from opposition hard-liners who oppose any concessions to the Palestinians that could affect future negotiations over Jerusalem.
Barak issued a statement saying the village of Anata will not be included in the next transfer of 6.1 percent of the West Bank to the Palestinians. The decision came after Israeli media reported Anata would be included in the hand-over, along with two other Palestinian villages (Ubaydiya and Beitunia) near Jerusalem.
The reports caused an uproar from hard-line opposition leaders and Jewish settlers in the occupied territories who oppose the transfer of any West Bank land near Jerusalem to the Palestinians.
Cabinet Minister Binyamin Ben-Eliezer says none of the villages under consideration for transfer to the Palestinians is within the current borders of Jerusalem.
"Whether we like it or don't like it, when we are talking about Jerusalem, I know the borders of Jerusalem since the last century. I think the present borders of Jerusalem are the widest and the biggest since I have known. Any of the villages that so far have a potential to be given -- none of them is part of Jerusalem."
The prime minister's decision underscores the difficulties Israel and the Palestinians face in reaching an agreement over the status of Jerusalem. Israel regards all of Jerusalem, including areas captured in the 1967 Middle East war, as its "undivided, eternal capital." The Palestinians want East Jerusalem to be the capital of what they hope will be their future state.
The status of Jerusalem is perhaps the most difficult issue facing negotiators trying to reach a permanent peace agreement between Israel and the Palestinians. Barak is expected to present revised maps of the proposed land transfer to his security cabinet on Wednesday.
Israeli Air Force Bombs Terrorists
By Meredith Buel (VOA Jerusalem)
Israeli warplanes have bombed suspected terrorist bases in southern Lebanon following a series of attacks on Israeli and allied militia posts. Israeli jets fired two missiles at targets near the central sector of the Israeli-occupied security zone in southern Lebanon.
The airstrikes came shortly after gunmen attacked four military outposts manned by Israeli soldiers and militia members of the South Lebanon Army. The militia is trained and financed by the Israeli military and helps defend the nine-mile-wide buffer zone Israel maintains to protect communities on its northern border from Hizbullah attacks. There were no immediate reports of casualties.
This is the second straight day of violence in Lebanon and comes a day after Israeli warplanes attacked Palestinian guerrilla targets near the Syrian border. Israel has announced it will pull its soldiers out of Lebanon by July, but Arab leaders are warning a unilateral withdrawal could set off a new military conflict in the Middle East.
Female Witnesses Permit Rabbis to Cancel Wedding Ceremony
By IsraelWire
An impromptu wedding ceremony which may have left a 17-year-old Afula student married to the school's security guard, was "annulled" by the chief rabbi of the city when it was learned the witnesses to the ceremony were women.
The female student left her school and suddenly, the guard approached and affixed a safety pin to her and recited the necessary verse, "You are betrothed to me in accordance to the laws of Moses and Israel." The students then told school officials of what had taken place.
School officials were afraid that the young lady might have been married in accordance with Jewish Law. Afula Chief Rabbi Shmuel David was consulted. He explained that upon inquiring as to the cost of a safety pin, he learned it sold for 10 agorot (about 2.5 cents), enough of a sum to permit it to be used to make the young lady his wife. Further investigation revealed that all the witnesses were females, permitting the rabbi to say with certainty that the wedding was not valid since there must be two male witnesses in accordance to Orthodox Jewish law.
The report did not detail if any actions were taken against the security guard.
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