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Newsletter : 1fax0613.txt
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>JN June 13, 2001, Vol. 9, No. 98
U.N. Sec'y. Gen, Begins Tour to End MidEast Violence
By VOA News
U.N. Sec'y Gen, Kofi Annan arrived in Egypt Tuesday at the start of a regional tour aimed at ending violence between Israel and the Palestinians.
Annan will push for full implementation of recommendations of the U.S. led Mitchell commission's report on ending the violence and returning to peace talks. The UN chief also will visit Syria, Jordan and Lebanon before stopping in Israel on Saturday and the Palestinian territories on Sunday.
Palestinians Accept Plan to End Mideast Violence
By VOA News
CIA Director George Tenet and Palestinian leader Yasir Arafat have reached an agreement on a U.S. plan to end eight months of violence between Israel and the Palestinians. The agreement was reached Tuesday night during a meeting between Tenet and Arafat in the West Bank town of Ramallah.
The Israeli media reported that the Tenet plan calls for immediate halt to hostilities and the arrest of militants, suspected by Israel of masterminding attacks. It also calls for the immediate Israeli withdrawal of its forces from Palestinian population centers and lifting Israeli restrictions on Palestinians.
U.S. officials said the Palestinians accepted the U.S. plan but objected to an Israeli idea which calls for a buffer zone between Israel and the West Bank as well as for the call to arrest militants.
Tenet held the last minute talks with Arafat after preparing to return to the United States. He had been trying for days to persuade the two sides to hold security talks without concrete results. Israel said earlier it has accepted the Tenet plan which is aimed at cementing a ceasefire and an end to the violence which has claimed more than 500 lives.
The latest victim of the violence was a Greek Orthodox monk who was killed in the West Bank late Tuesday. Israeli officials said the monk, an Israeli citizen, was hit by a bullet on the chest while driving alone.
Israelis Using Ammunition That Propels High Speed Metal Arrows
By VOA News
The Israeli army confirmed Tuesday its troops in the Gaza Strip are using ammunition that propels metal arrows at high speed upon explosion.
Israeli officials insist the use of Flachette shells is legal. But the commander of Israeli troops on the West Bank has banned troops from using the Flachette because of the high risk of injuries to civilians.
A Flachette shell was responsible for the deaths of three Palestinian women in overnight fighting Saturday. The Israeli government has expressed its regrets over the killings. The human rights group Amnesty International has called for an independent investigation of the incident.
Lebanon's Hizbullah Fires On Israeli Warplanes
By VOA News
Lebanon's Hizbullah guerrilla movement said it has fired on Israeli warplanes that violated Lebanese airspace in the southern part of the country. A statement said its anti-aircraft forces fired unsuccessfully on the planes Tuesday as they flew over Bint Jbeil.
Israeli planes routinely fly missions over Lebanese villages and cities. But the French news agency says this is the first time Hizbullah has shot at the planes since the Israeli military withdrew from southern Lebanon in May last year.
Palestinian Youth Favor Suicide Terrorism
By IsraelNationalNews.com
A survey conducted at the Bir Zeit University north of Ramallah indicates that 90 percent of Palestinian youth now support suicide attacks.
Within the general Palestinian population, support for suicide attacks stands at about 75 percent - a 50 percent increase in recent months.
Ambassador Says Turning Point in Violence May Have Been Reached
By VOA News
The U.S. ambassador to Israel says Israel and the Palestinians may have reached a turning point in ending their cycle of violence.
In a speech Tuesday at Jerusalem's Hebrew University, Martin Indyk said there are tentative indications the Palestinian Authority may finally be taking action to stop the violence, including turning off the inflammatory rhetoric behind it.
The French news agency quoted the U.S. diplomat also as saying it was critical that Israel ease its blockade of the Palestinian territories to avoid the Palestinian people turning against Yasir Arafat's declaration of an unconditional ceasefire.
Express Electric Train Service Planned
By IsraelNationalNews.com
Transportation Minister Ephraim Sneh announced Tuesday that a new 33-mile route will be paved via Modiin and Ben Gurion International Airport, at a cost of roughly $600 million.
Six million passengers are expected to use the service during the first year of operation. Sneh said that the old Tel Aviv-Jerusalem route, through Beit Shemesh and Ramle, will also be upgraded.
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