February 2002 News from Al

February 2002 News from Al-Jazeerah Information Center

Azmi Bisharah, a Palestinian member of the Israeli Parliament is on trial by the Sharon government for his political views

The Sharon government has started the trial of a Palestinian member of the Israeli Parliament for his political views. Dr. Azmi Bishara (45), was a political scientist, who taught at Bir Zit University before becoming a member of the Parliament. He got attention after attempting to run for election as a prime minister. The Sharon government is putting him on trial starting from today because of his visit to Syria with a group of elderly Palestinians who did not see their relatives there since 1948. But it is his criticism of the Israeli measures in the occupied territories that made zealot Zionists mad against him. On November 7, 2001, an Israeli court lifted his parliamentarian immunity, as a step toward his trial. In an interview with Abu Dhabi TV today, he said that he will put the Israeli Zionist regime in trial. He will show the pseudo-democratic nature of Zionism, which does not accept coexistence with other perspectives.

Israeli attacks against Palestinians decline during the Islamic Holidays: Only one Palestinian and one Israelis were killed yesterday

Palestinians have been persistent in telling international mediators that if Israelis cease fire, they cease fire, too. This view was supported yesterday when Israel did not use its American-made F-16s, helicopters, tanks, and ships to attack the Palestinian people. Only two people were killed, one Palestinian and one Israeli together with several injuries on both sides (one Israeli injury by Israeli fire). The Palestinian was Ferras Al-Bua (22), from Halhul, near Hebron. Israeli soldiers shot him dead claiming that he was approaching their position. In another incident, an Israeli settler was driving his car and shooting at Palestinians, injuring several of them, near Hebron. Israeli soldiers saw him shooting and fired at him thinking that he was a Palestinian. Another Israeli settler was shot dead, but by Palestinian fire this time. The settler was driving his car near the Givat Zeev settlement, south of the Palestinian city of Ramallah.

The Israeli army also besieged Ramallah completely, where President Arafat is forced to stay by Israelis. Israeli soldiers prevented Ramallah residents from leaving the city and fired on them if they tried to get closer to Israeli positions, which block the roads from and to the city. Israeli forces divided Gaza Strip into three parts preventing residents from traveling to and from anyone of them. Israeli bulldozers continued destroying Palestinian farms and occupying Palestinian homes in border areas and near to roads.

In a positive development, About 5000 members of the Israeli Peace Now movement demonstrated on Saturday, in Tel Aviv, for peace and against the Israeli occupation of Palestine. Hanan Ashrawi, a member of the Palestinian Legislative Coucil, welcomed the demonstration for peace, during an interview in the Palestinian TV, yesterday. She also mentioned that there were contacts between several Israeli and Palestinian peace groups.

Israelis kill a Palestinian Policeman, injure 20, and arrest 13; Palestinians kill an Israeli soldier and an Israeli commander is killed by a Palestinian house wall he was demolishing

A unit of Israeli commandoes, known as "Mustaribin," raided a Palestinian village near Tulkarem today. They killed one Palestinian civilian and demolished a house while another Palestinian was inside. However, he survived and came out from under the rubble to be arrested by the Israeli soldiers who were waiting for him. The commander of the Israeli military unit was killed by the wall he ordered to be demolished. Palestinian resistance members killed an Israeli soldier near Ramallah. The Israeli American-made F-16 bombers attacked a building occupied by the Palestinian police in Jabalia Refugee Camp. The raid resulted in killing a policeman and injuring 20 Palestinians 15 of who were civilians. Israeli tanks fired on Al-Maghazi Refugee Camp (Abu Dhabi TV).

Is Cheney more Israeli than Ben Iliezer?

Israeli newspapers reported that the Israeli Defense Minister, Ben Iliezer, said that Vice President Dick Cheney told him that the Palestinian President Yassir Arafat "should be hanged." Both Cheney and Condi Rice also told him that talking to Arafat is "a waist of time." As a damage control of the leaked story, Ben Iliezer and Cheney's top advisor, Mary Matalin, denied the story (NY Times, 2/12/02).

Arabic News, translated from Al-Rayah Qatari newspaper (2/11/02)

Sharon will be in Washington again in April

Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon will be in the White House in April. This is the 5th time since President Bush took office. At the same time, the Palestinian President Yassir Arafat has never been invited by President Bush to visit Washington. Does this help the U.S. image as a mediator in the Palestinian-Israeli conflict?

Arafat replies to Sharon's attempt to discredit him

On daily basis, Arafat receives thousands of Palestinians in his office building, who come to support him as their leader. The Israeli government has confined him to his office in the Palestinian city of Ramallah hoping that this would lead to overthrowing him. However, the Palestinian people, the Arab states, Muslim countries, and the European Union, all expressed their support for him as the elected leader of the Palestinian people.

Two Palestinians attack Israeli soldiers

Two members of Palestinian resistance attacked Israeli soldiers in a restaurant near a military camp in Bir El-Saba. Before they were killed, they were able to kill to two Israeli soldiers and to injure five other Israelis. Israel retaliated against the entire Gaza Strip area (more than one million people) by dividing it into three areas, in order to prevent traffic from going from one of them to the other.

23 Saudis are still arrested in the U.S.

The Saudi Embassy in Washington, D.C. announced that there are 23 Saudi citizens under arrest, while about 20 others the Embassy does not know about are still missing. About 17 other Saudis were released after arrest and returned to Saudi Arabia. They were arrested for visa violations.

Iraqi newspapers comment on Cheney's M. E. tour

On its comment on the next Middle East tour Vice President Dick Cheney intends to start next month, the Iraqi newspaper, Al-Qadisiya, warned that he would interfere in internal Arab affairs. Al-Thawrah stated that the U.S. administration accuses Iraq of possessing weapons of mass destruction as a pretext in order to block any Iraqi attempts to lift the embargo. Babyl mentioned that when the U.S. attacks Iraq, it does so without any U.N. justification or support. The Iraqi Vice President, Taha Ramadhan, said that Iraq is willing to hold talks with the U.N. concerning any allegations about weapons of mass destruction. The Iraqi Foreign Minister, Naji Sabri, announced that the American and British attacks on Iraq, after the Gulf War, led to the killing of 1476 and wounding 1330 Iraqis, in addition to the destruction of many civilian installations.

Arabic News, translated from Al-Itihad U.A.E. newspaper (2/12/02)

Israeli American-made F-16s and Apache helicopters attack Gaza City and Nablus

Israeli American-made F-16s and Apache helicopters attacked Gaza City and Balatah Refugee Camp, near Nablus in the West Bank Palestinian territory. The attacks resulted in one death and about 80 injuries among Palestinian civilians. Attacks also destroyed Palestinian Authority buildings, part of the Israeli plan to destroy all the buildings used Palestinian Authority personnel, security, and police forces. Israeli troops fired on civilians east of Jabalia Refugee Camp. The Palestinian cabinet member, Saeb Erikat, said that these Israeli attacks come as part of a plan of continuous war against the Palestinian people and its government. But the Israelis would use an excuse, like the Hamas launching of its locally-made short-distance missile, "Al-Qassam," in its resistance of the Israeli occupation. Israeli troops enter the Palestinian territories, on daily basis, firing on civilians, like what happened yesterday in Nablus and Al-Maghazi Refugee Camp.