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Newsletter : 1fax0723.txt
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>Israel Faxx
>JN July 23, 2001, Vol. 9, No. 124
War Preparations Around The World
Israel Faxx Staff
The IDF plans to establish emergency induction centers in several world cities, including New York. Los Angeles and London to help Israelis abroad return home in the event of war.
It's expected that if the need arises, local media time will be purchased to tell reservists to contact the offices, and El Al Airlines will likely operate an airlift operation to bring the reservists to Israel.
Israel Fires Missiles at Hamas Leader's Home
By VOA News
Palestinians said Israeli attack helicopters have fired missiles at the West Bank home of a leader of the Palestinian Islamist militant group, Hamas.
The attack allegedly took place late Sunday in the northern West Bank town of Jenin. Local news reports say no one was in the home of Hamas senior activist Ibrahim Jabir at the time of the attack. There are no reports of casualties. Israel radio said Jabir was on the Israeli security forces' wanted list.
The international community, including the United States, has criticized Israel for its policy of targeted killings of alleged Palestinian terrorists.
Israeli Police Discover Bombs in Haifa
By Ross Dunn (VOA-Jerusalem)
Israeli police are warning of more terror attacks after uncovering
several bombs in Haifa. Police set up
roadblocks around Haifa and are also conducting checks of
pedestrians and vehicles after discovering several unexploded bombs
in the northern port city.
Security officials have placed the entire northern area of the country on alert after receiving information that more explosives are being planted and that militant Islamic groups are planning a major suicide operation.
There are fears the attacks are to avenge the deaths of three Palestinians including a three-month-old baby killed on Thursday, apparently by Jewish extremists.
Israel's Defense Minister Binyamin Ben-Eliezer said Israeli troops and police are being deployed in large numbers around the country in anticipation of terror attacks following the killings.
CIA Tells UPI: Israel Will Attack
By Gamla News Service
The Central Intelligence Agency is convinced, according to United Press International, that Israel is poised to carry out a retaliatory full-scale attack on Palestinian-controlled territory "in a matter of days."
One former CIA official, referring to Prime Minister Ariel Sharon, said: "There's no question that he's going in."
The sources believe Sharon will wait until after the summit of the Group of Eight industrialized nations that ended in Genoa Sunday. Another believed he would wait for the next car-bomb attack before launching a full-scale assault designed to drive Arafat into exile and destroy the Palestinian Authority.
According to those sources, Palestinian leader Yasir Arafat is already engaged in talks with Syria about relocating Palestinian leaders to Damascus.
(Editor's note: Israel Faxx previously transmitted a Gamla report stating that Arafat has made arrangements to move his base of operations to Baghdad, Iraq.)
UPI quoted senior Israeli officials, including Sharon himself, as insisting that troop movements this week and the beefing up of tank forces on the West Bank and Gaza Strip were intended to strengthen Israel's defensive position.
The agency noted that reports of an impending attack come amid worsening relations between Israel and the CIA. CIA Director George Tenet was disappointed by the breakdown of the ceasefire he negotiated last month.
A State Department official in Washington told UPI: "The situation does not look good. We are all watching it." He would not confirm the impending attack, but said that the Hadassah chain of hospitals has been "ratcheting up" its medical preparations. According to an intelligence source, "The administration is talking to Sharon every day counseling patience."
Israel's plan, as described by UPI, would come in the form of a "huge, full-force invasion that would involve two infantry and paratroop divisions, an armored force, plus large numbers of U.S.-supplied F-16 and F-15 jet fighters and Apache helicopter gunships, that would attack the West Bank and Gaza, including the major Palestinians cities of Ramallah, Qualqilya, Jericho, Tulkarm, Nablus, Jenin and Bethlehem. Portions of the West Bank and the Gaza Strip would be captured and held for an indeterminate length of time.
"The Israeli forces would also capture and kill any members of Hamas, Hizbullah, the Islamic Jihad or other organizations defined by Israel as "terrorist." A wanted list has already been drawn up.
DEBKAfile noted that the UPI report has not been confirmed or
denied by any Israeli spokesman.
