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An agreement about lifting the siege on Arafat: Prisoners to be transferred to Jericho under American and British supervision

Negotiations to end the siege of the Palestinian President, Yassir Arafat, are about to be concluded. Negotiations were mediated by the British and the US Consuls in Jerusalem. The Palestinian Authority agreed to transfer the prisoners wanted by Israel to a Palestinian prison in Jericho, the only remaining Palestinian city that has not been invaded by Israelis. American and British guards will supervise the prison to assure Israelis that the prisoners stay there. The agreement will allow the Palestinian President to move freely in the Palestinian territories. Negotiations still continue concerning ending the siege on the Church of the Nativity.

Four of the prisoners are members of the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine (PFLP), who were tried and sentenced last week for the assassination of the Israeli cabinet member, Zeeve. The assassination was in retaliation for the Israeli assassination of the former Secretary-General of the PFLP, Abu Ali Mustafa. Therefore, the PFLP did not approve of the trial or the current arrangements because the Israeli assassins of Abu Ali Mustafa have not been tried yet (Abu Dhabi TV, 4/30/02).

Israel delays the arrival of the UN fact-finding mission to Jenin until it complies with Israeli conditions

The UN Security Council is meeting today to discuss Israeli new conditions to allow the Jenin massacre fact-finding mission to do its job. Israel demanded another delay in order to have a guarantee that no Israeli army officers will be incriminated as a result of their testimonies. In other words, the Israelis want the UNSC to protect Israeli war criminals in advance. So, no matter what the results are, Israeli war criminals will not be charged or tried for their war crimes (Abu Dhabi TV, 4/28/02).

Israel rejects all Palestinian offers to end the siege of the Church of the Nativity

Palestinian-Israeli negotiations to end the siege of the Church of the Nativity did not move toward any progress. Israelis still want the Palestinian Authority (PA) to allow seven Palestinians inside the Church to be tried in Israel. The PA refuses saying that these are security officers who participated in defending the city of Bethlehem against the Israeli invasion. The Oslo accords allows the PA to try them if they have committed any crimes, but they have not. 

The PA offered to take them to Gaza but the Israeli government wants them either exiled or tried in Israel. Moreover, Israel refused providing about 220 people inside the Church with food supplies, including monks and civilians. A group of 22 European human rights activists tried to provide them with food, but Israeli soldiers took the food and sent the activists away. Palestinian Christians conducted the Sunday services outside the Church today (Abu Dhabi TV, 4/28/02).

Israel rejects a Hizballah offer to exchange Israeli prisoners of war for Palestinians taking refuge in the Church of the Nativity

President Bush offers American prison guards to assure Israelis that Palestinian prisoners will stay in prison

Following to Prince Abdallah's visit to Texas, President Bush suggested to the Israeli Prime Minister, Ariel Sharon to end the siege of President Arafat in Ramallah and the the Palestinians taking refuge inside the Church of the Nativity, in Bethlehem. The Israeli cabinet took a decision to accept a compromise. American and British prison guards would be used as observers, who would make sure that the four Palestinian prisoners, in Arafat's office, would be kept in jail. The original Israeli condition to withdraw from Ramallah completely was for the Palestinian Authority (PA) to extradite the prisoners. The PA could not do that because the Oslo accords give it the right to try and jail Palestinians.

The US and British Consuls in Jerusalem visited President Arafat today to talk about the details of this solution, which would set the Palestinian President free. However, Arafat announced that there would be no progress until Israeli occupation forces withdraw from all the areas it occupied during the previous four weeks, including the Church of the Nativity. 

One problem still goes without solution. Sharon wants six people to be observed by American and British observers, adding the Secretary-General of the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine (PFLP), Ahmed Sa'adat, and Fu'ad Al-Shoabaki, the PA officer accused of the attempt to smuggle weapons through the ship Karin A. The PA disagrees and considers the latter two outside the deal (Abu Dhabi TV, 4/28/02).

President Bush, repeating relentlessly that Israel should withdraw without delay from Palestinian cities 

For the fourth respective day, President Bush repeated that Israel should withdraw from the Palestinian cities and areas it occupied during the previous ten days. He used the word without delay and now, to express his emphasis that the Israeli government should not drag its feet any longer. His National security Advisor, Condi Rice, reiterated that position during several TV interviews, on Sunday. His Secretary of State, Colin Powell, also repeated that when he arrived at Morocco. However, the Israeli government has not listened yet. All what it did is withdrawing tanks from Tulkarem, Qalqilya, and Yatta but positioning them around these cities, instead of total withdrawal toward Israel (Abu Dhabi TV, Palestine TV,  4/9/02). 

More than 150 Palestinians killed in Jenin refugee camp 15 Israeli soldiers killed today

The Israeli war crimes continued in Jenin Refugee Camp, revealing the Zionist hatred toward Palestinian refugees in particular whose lands, towns, and villages were taken by Israelis in 1948. The Israeli occupation forces have killed about 150 Palestinians in the camp, and injured hundreds others. Palestinian sources say that the massacre is more than that and the number of the victims cannot be known until the Israeli occupation forces leave the camp.

Today, the Palestinian resistance in the camp managed to kill thirteen Israeli soldiers when a two-storey building was blown up while Israeli soldiers were inside it. About nine other Israeli soldiers were injured in the attack. The Israelis replied with attacking the camp with more missiles from Apache helicopters and more shelling from tanks.

In Nablus Old City neighborhood, Palestinian resistance managed to kill two more Israeli soldiers and injure many others. At the same time, Israeli Apache helicopters and tanks continued their attacks on the neighborhood. Israeli soldiers continued to round up all men ages 15-45 for investigation.

In defiance to the curfew imposed on Nablus, Palestinians took out to the streets helping ambulances to evacuate tens of the corpses and scores of the injured and took them to hospitals. The Sharon government seems decided to ignore the US demands of withdrawal until killing most of Palestinian men in Jenin camp and Nablus neighborhood (Abu Dhabi TV, Palestine TV,  4/9/02). 

Arab demonstrations continue in Egypt, Lebanon, Mauritania and Bahrain  against Israel and the US

Arab demonstrations have continued against the Israeli brutal war against the Palestinian people and the US support for Israel. About half a million people demonstrated in Morocco at the arrival of the US Secretary of State, Colin Powell. When he arrived at Egypt, demonstrations broke out in Cairo and Alexandria. One student was killed by the police while attempting to prevent demonstrators from reaching the American Cultural Center in Alexandria. In Lebanon, a demonstration was organized in Saida. The second largest demonstration was in Khartoom, Sudan, where hundreds of thousands demonstrated in a huge rally against the Israeli aggression and the US support for Israel. Demonstrations also broke out in Mauritania, on the Atlantic coast, and Bahrain, in the Arabian Gulf (Abu Dhabi TV, Palestine TV, 4/9/02). 

500 Israeli tanks invade the Palestinian city of Nablus, 4 tanks destroyed by Palestinian resistance

After completing the occupation of Ramallah and Bethlehem, the Israeli war against the Palestinian people extended today to Nablus (100,000 people). Five hundred  Israeli tanks invaded the city with assistance from Apache helicopters. Members of the Palestinian resistance were able to destroy four tanks during the initial stage (Abu Dhabi TV, Palestine TV, 4/3/02). 

The Palestinian leadership calls the Palestinian people to prepare for a long-term armed struggle against the Zionist Israeli occupation

Realizing that Israel is in defiance to international law, and has demonstrated its intention to continue its occupation of Palestine, the Palestinian leadership has called the Palestinian people to prepare for a long-term armed struggle against the Zionist Israeli occupation. The call came from various leaders of Palestinian organizations (Abu Dhabi TV, 4/3/02).

Bethlehem churches under Israeli siege, Israelis prevent ambulances from taking injured and killed Palestinians to Bethlehem hospitals

The Israeli invasion of Bethlehem has resulted in many Palestinians killed and injured. Nobody knows the number of Palestinian casualties as a result of a lack of Palestinian government in the city. Several Palestinians, families and injured fighters took refuge in the city churches, including the Nativity Church. Israeli tanks surround these churches in preparation for attacking them later. Catholic, Greek, and Russian churches protested the Israeli siege (4/3/02).  

Oil prices jump to $27 in response to possible Arab oil embargo if Arafat is killed

Despite the fact that OPEC does not contemplate an oil embargo, oil prices have jumped into about $27 per barrel of crude oil. Energy dealers are speculating on the tension created by the Zionist Israeli government in the Middle East in order to make some profits. The tensions could escalate to threaten the pro-US Middle Eastern government, particularly if demonstrations escalate into civil disobedience and riots (4/3/02).

Israeli forces reoccupy Bethlehem, Bet Jala, Qalailia, and Tulkarem, killing, injuring, and arresting more Palestinians

Israeli tanks and armored vehicles reoccupied more Palestinian cities. This included Bethlehem, Bet Jala, Qalqilia, and Tulkarem. Like they have been doing in Ramallah for three days, Israelis have disconnected electricity and water lines. Without food supplies, particularly milk for children, the siege and curfews could lead to catastrophic consequences. Israeli death squads kill Palestinians, blow up buildings, and round up men 15-45 years old. The Israeli terrorist campaign is extending to the rest of Palestinian cities, with total silence and inaction from the world governments and total support from the US government (4/2/02).

The Israeli Prime Butcher, Ariel Sharon, declares war against the Palestinian people and considers Arafat as "enemy"!!!

In his most stupid speech so far that he made yesterday, the Israeli Prime Butcher, Ariel Sharon, declared "war" against the Palestinian people, as if his military campaign was not bloody or destructive enough to be described as a war. The most ridiculous part of the Butcher's speech, though, was declaring the Palestinian President, Yassir Arafat, as an "enemy." If Arafat has not been treated as an "enemy" by the Butcher and his Zionist regime, then what kind of treatment was that? War was launched against the Palestinian people and their government, including the President, the moment Israeli tanks started to reoccupy Palestinian territories. Arafat has been treated as an enemy from the beginning. First, Israeli tanks confined him to his office building, then they started demolishing the building until he was confined to two rooms only (4/2/02).