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Prepared for the
Conference of Presidents of Major American Jewish Organizations by the Jerusalem Center for Public Affairs
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To contact the Presidents Conference: click here In-Depth Issues:
Palestinian Terrorists in Jenin Fire Rockets at West Bank Settlements - Amos Harel (Ha'aretz) Israel Campus Beat - June 5, 2005 Point Counter-Point: Two Views on Zionism and Israeli Nationalism
Anarchy Continues in Palestinian Territories - Khaled Abu Toameh (Jerusalem Post)
Useful Reference:
Liberation of the Temple Mount and Western Wall
by Israel Defense Forces Search
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News Resources - North America, Europe, and Asia:
The Bush administration is showing signs of easing its hard-line approach toward Hamas, in response to the militant group's rising political clout in the Palestinian territories and appeals for flexibility from European allies, officials and diplomats said. The White House acceded to Hamas running candidates in Palestinian elections, even though the group has refused to disarm and Washington lists it as a major terrorist organization. Senior administration officials said they may be open to contacts with some of Hamas's political affiliates, and would not rule out dealings with the group if it gave up its weapons and ended violence. The White House said President Bush has not changed his view that Hamas is a terrorist group that must be disarmed. "We're not acquiescing," a senior administration official said. "We do not deal with...terrorists." But the official added: "How do you pursue this without limiting democratic choices?" Another senior official called it a shift in emphasis, not policy. It could be reversed if Hamas-sponsored violence escalated, experts said. (Reuters) See also below Observations: Hamas Finding Fertile Ground in West Bank - Charles A. Radin (Boston Globe) The Bush administration wants the EU to hold off on signing a trade and aid pact with Syria, citing doubts Damascus has withdrawn all intelligence agents from Lebanon and concerns about its role in Iraq, U.S. and European officials said on Saturday. In talks with EU leaders this week in Washington, Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice and other officials said such a step would be premature. (Reuters/Washington Post) Hizballah, the armed Shiite Muslim movement, and its Shiite Amal allies said they had won all 23 seats in southern Lebanon in the second stage of national elections Sunday. "All the south came out today to send a clear message to the Americans that they embrace the resistance weapons and that they are independent in their decision and they are not subservient to international resolutions," said Sheik Nabil Kaouk, Hizballah's commander in southern Lebanon. (AP/Washington Post) See also The Struggle for Lebanon's Soul - Michael Young Saadeddine Hariri, son of the late Rafik Hariri who was assassinated on Feb. 14, was abruptly elevated in April to inheritor of his father's political mantle by Saudi Arabia's Crown Prince Abdullah (the Hariri fortune was made in the kingdom, and the family bows to Saudi authority). The young Mr. Hariri has revived Sunni Lebanese morale, while seeking electoral alliances across the political and sectarian spectrum. He is expected to control, with his close ally Walid Jumblatt, the Druze leader, almost two-thirds of the seats in the new parliament. The other largest blocs will include two Shiite parties - Hizballah and Amal. Hizballah refuses to disarm, and has threatened violence if disarmament is forcibly attempted. No one doubts its readiness to place its interests above those of the rest of society. However, faced with a domestic consensus for change and an international community patiently, but firmly, insisting on implementation of UN Resolution 1559, Hizballah could soon find its position untenable. The writer is opinion editor of Beirut's Daily Star. (Wall Street Journal, 6June05) Whether Sami Al-Arian crossed the line from outspoken advocacy to terrorism is now a central question as he and three co-defendants go on trial in federal court in Tampa on Monday on terrorism and racketeering charges. Al-Arian is accused of being a leading figure in Palestinian Islamic Jihad and in financing and organizing terror attacks. The case, a decade in the making, has served as a flashpoint for debates over the limits of academic freedom, the role of American Muslims in supporting the Palestinian intifada, the government's expanded powers under the USA Patriot Act, and its strategy in terror investigations before and after the Sept. 11 attacks. In preparation for the trial, the government has collected more than 20,000 hours of taped phone conversations through wiretaps. (New York Times) News Resources - Israel and the Mideast:
Tens of thousands of onlookers lined the sidewalks of Manhattan's Fifth Avenue Sunday to view the annual Salute to Israel parade - one of the most spectacular in the 41 years the "salute" has been held. Some 100,000 people participated in the parade, according to the organizers. (Ha'aretz) See also 5th Avenue Goes Blue-and-White for Salute to Israel Parade - Uriel Heilman (Jerusalem Post) Several hundred Arab teens pelted police and Jewish visitors with stones on the Temple Mount Monday, lightly injuring two Jewish visitors, police said. The clashes came as Israel marked Jerusalem Day, and 38 years since the reunification of the capital. (Jerusalem Post) Israel has gone to great lengths to prevent the PA from executing approximately 50 Palestinians convicted of collaborating with Israel. Israel approached U.S. Ambassador Dan Kurtzer on the matter, and went ahead with the release of Palestinian security prisoners last Thursday only after the PA said it did not intend to carry out the sentences. (Ha'aretz) An Israel Defense Forces soldier lost an eye after being hit by a stone during a demonstration by hundreds of Palestinians against the separation fence on Friday in the West Bank village of Bil'in, near Ramallah. Attending the protest were PA minister Ahmad Majdalani and Israeli MK Ahmed Tibi. (Ha'aretz) Global Commentary and Think-Tank Analysis (Best of U.S., UK, and Israel):
Suspicions are being voiced that the delay in the Palestinian Legislative Council elections is due to the desire of leading figures in Fatah, Abu Mazen's own party, to gain a few months' grace in order to put their house in order and improve their chances of winning. Fatah's image among Palestinians is very negative and it is currently torn by internal power struggles. Hamas, unlike Fatah, is seen to have "clean hands." Hamas has thus far boycotted the PA as a by-product of the despised Oslo Agreements and it has therefore not been contaminated by involvement in the day-to-day management of PA affairs. Instead, Hamas, like other Islamist movements, has maintained its own network of social welfare agencies that provide educational, health, and charity services to the needy and reinforce its image as a decent alternative to the regime. The circle supporting Abu Mazen within Fatah estimates that it needs several months to carry out the necessary internal reforms and get rid of the corrupt "Tunisians" (those who came with Arafat from Tunis). They also assume that a few more months of peace and quiet will bring about perceptible improvements in living standards and that these, along with implementation of the Israeli disengagement, will enhance Fatah's popularity. (Jaffee Center for Strategic Studies-Tel Aviv University) Syria still exercises considerable leverage in Lebanon, and despite the threat of further sanctions from Washington, it has no intention of limiting its regional role. Bogged down in Iraq, Washington probably lacks the stomach to overthrow Bashar. However, under the Syria Accountability Act it holds the threat of financial sanctions over a regime which badly needs to inject life into a moribund economy. In response to the sanctuary enjoyed by Iraqi insurgents, American troops could also claim the right of hot pursuit across the Syrian border. It is not in the region's interest that a malevolent power like Damascus should throw down the gauntlet with impunity. (Telegraph-UK) Observations: Hamas Finding Fertile Ground in West Bank - Charles A. Radin (Boston Globe)
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