FEBRUARY 2001

Wednesday February 28 2001

Main Headlines

Tuesday February 27 2001

Main Headlines

• A Palestinian boy Hussam Al- Dissi was killed last night near Kalandia north of Jerusalem. The 15 year old Al- Dissi was killed by the Israeli occupation soldiers as he and other Palestinians were demonstrating against the continuing occupation of the Palestinian land.
• Two Palestinian mothers travelling in different cars to hospitals died yesterday as Israeli occupation soldiers prevented the vehicles they were travelling in from crossing Israeli checkpoints placed on Palestinian roads. Nada Hanani a mother of eight from the village of Biet Fourick near Nablus and Mazuza Rimawi from the village of Biet Rima died on the way to hospitals.
• Jewish settlers demand that Sharon should eliminate President Arafat.
• On the eve of the Al- Adha festivals, Israel presents Palestinian prisoners in Israeli jails unwanted gift. The Israel prison authorities prevent families from visiting their sons and daughters in Israeli prisons.
• The US Department of State strongly criticizes Israel for violating Palestinian human rights.
• Amnesty International says Israel one of few world countries who import torture equipment made in the United States.
• Sharon promises Jewish settlers to study their demands.
• The biggest Jewish settlement campaign in the 90's was that implemented under Barak.
• The Labor Party votes to join Sharon in a 'national unity government'. Labor is accused of providing the fig leaf to Sharon's coming war policies.
• Special advisor to President Arafat says: US Secretary of State Powell was not a messenger from Sharon to President Arafat, and did not carry any Israeli conditions.
• Israel causes the failure of two security meetings supposed to have taken place between Palestinian and Israeli security officials in the presence of American officials. The Israeli delegation did not turn up at the last minute.

Monday February 26 2001

Main Headlines

• US Secretary of State Colin Powell does not expect speedy resumption of peace negotiations between Israel and the Palestinian people.
• Sharon conditions easing the siege on the occupied Palestinian territories by ending what he terms Palestinian violence. Sharon appears to have changed his motto to security for food.
• President Arafat to Powell: Negotiations will have to be resumed from where they ended, and calls for a stronger American position to stop Jewish settlements in the occupied Palestinian territories.
• Israel prevents President Arafat from using his helicopters to travel to the West Bank.
• The Israeli occupation forces murder a Palestinian driving his car in Tulkarm, destroy large areas of fertile Palestinian land, prevent the Palestinian people from travelling on normal roads effectively bringing Palestinian life in the occupied Palestinian territories into a halt. Large numbers of Palestinians are injured.
• Five Palestinian young men were injured one seriously by Israeli gunfire in the Palestinian city of Hebron. Israeli occupation forces block Palestinian roads with sand barriers and concrete blocks and divided Gaza into two. The atrocities of the Israeli occupation forces in Gaza and the west bank are on the increase.
• The suffering reaches each and every Palestinian home. Israel succeeded in turning each and every Palestinian into a force determined to end the Israeli occupation at any price.
• Two Jewish settlers were shot and injured while travelling on west Bank roads near Ramallah.
• In a meeting held in Ramallah, the Palestinian leadership looks forward for an international protection force to protect the Palestinian people under occupation.
• The Israeli Labor Party will decide today if it is in a coalition government with Sharon or out.

Sunday February 25 2001

Main Headlines

Arafat urges the Bush Administration to take a firm stance in support of the peace process

President Yasser Arafat meets in Ramallah today US Secretary of State Colin Powell who started yesterday a tour to the region . President Arafat presided over a meeting for the Supreme Negotiations Committee in Ramallah last night and is expected to chair a meeting tonight for the Palestinian leadership.

In a press statement in Ramallah, the Palestinian leader urged the Bush administration to take a firm stance in support of the Middle East peace process currently witnessing a state of stalemate.

President Arafat told reporters that he received assurances from President Bush that he will pursue the peace efforts for the conclusion of a peace agreement between the Palestinian people and Israel.

He said that his talks with Mr. Powell will focus on Israel's non-compliance to the peace agreements concluded under the former Clinton Administration.

President Arafat told a press conference in Amman after meeting the Jordanian Prime Minister Ali Abu el Ragheb that the urgent topic which he intends to discuss with Powell is the fate of the Palestinian-Israeli agreements achieved so far in view of the recent election in Israel and Sharon becoming a prime minister for Israel.

President Arafat expects the new American Administration to follow up on all the peace agreements concluded between Israel and the Palestinians in Sharm el Sheik, in Taba and elsewhere under American auspices.

Senior Palestinian officials told Reuters that President Arafat is deeply concerned for a likely less involvement by the new American Administration in the Arab Israeli conflict as requested by Israel. Such a position will encourage Israel to renege on its previous commitments and take more stiff actions to terminate the Palestinian Intifada . The Palestinians are concerned that Bush administration will side with Sharon's demand that violence cease before negotiations resume. Nevertheless Arafat told reporters in Amman he is personally optimistic that the current visit by Mr. Powell is a positive signal that Washington will not give up on its efforts to achieve peace in the Middle East.

Saturday February 24 2001

Main Headlines

Palestinian Security Forces foil an Israeli attempt to occupy a security position south of Gaza

Israeli occupation soldiers killed 21-year-old Raid Musa from Khadr village near Bethlehem and wounded 150 including four listed in critical conditions, during a large-scale military offensive against Ramallah, Bireh, Bethlehem, Gaza, Hebron and Qalkilya cities yesterday. The attack caused extensive material damage to scores of buildings in various Palestinian cities and towns.

The Director of the Palestinian Security Forces Maj. Gen. Abdulrazak Majaydeh said the ongoing Israeli military escalation will drive the area into a whirl of violence.

Palestinian medical sources said sixty-six Palestinians were admitted to Ramallah hospitals for treatment from wounds they received during violent clashes with Israeli occupation soldiers in Bireh and Ramallah.

One Palestinian was seriously wound in Qalkilya city by Israeli sharpshooters and ten civilians received light to moderate wounds in Hebron.

In Gaza, Palestinian Security forces repulsed an Israeli attack to occupy a security post near Beit Lahya.

Arafat Urges the EU to play a more influential role in the peace process

President Yasser Arafat arrived in Amman from Athens today where he held important talks with Greek officials.

In a press statement the Palestinian leader urged the European Union to play a more influential role to revive the Middle East peace process adding he still believes in the feasibility of achieving a genuine peace for all the peoples of the region.

A Jordanian official said Arafat's visit comes within the framework of coordination between the two neighboring countries on the eve of US Secretary of State Collin Powel tour to the Middle East, which he starts today.

President Arafat added I'm quite confident that the talks will continue between Palestinians and Israelis till the conclusion of a just peace.

The Palestinian leader asked the Greek government to intensify international efforts to avert the collapse of the peace process. He also discussed bilateral relations and updated Greek officials on the difficult conditions suffered by the Palestinian people as a direct result of the Israeli siege.

Thursday February 22 2001

Main Headlines

• Indiscriminate Israeli bombing of Palestinian residential areas particularly at Biet Jala near Bethlehem, Rafah and Khan Younis in the Gaza strip. Israeli tanks and heavy machine guns fire hit Palestinian homes, Israeli bulldozers rip into Palestinian fertile land, uproot fruit trees and lay waste to large areas of agriculture land and fields.
• In a report issued from its headquarter in New York, Human Rights Watch accuses Israel of indiscriminately shelling Palestinian areas, 9 Palestinians were killed by Israeli gunfire directed at Palestinian residential areas in Hebron and dozens were injured.
• Smoke fire and untimely death of Palestinian youngsters surround Biet Jala and Bethlehem. Israeli tanks enforce its positions surrounding these Palestinian areas.
• US Secretary of State is reported to have asked the Israeli government to pay funds owed to the Palestinian Authority and kept by Israel as one of its means to hurt the Palestinian economy and to cause the collapse of the PA.
• Palestinian Minister of International Cooperation calls on the Bush Administration to define its position on the peace process in the Middle East.
• The PNA called on UN Secretary General Kofi Annan to exert his efforts to provide much needed economic assistance to the Palestinian people under occupation and the PNA.
• Barak's resignation may open the road to establishing a 'unity government ' in Israel.

Wednesday February 21 2001

Main Headlines

• Israeli occupation soldiers fatally wound 18-year-old Mohammed el Gorrabi in Beit Jala and demolish Palestinian homes in the city and in Ayda refugee camp.
• President Arafat receives two telephone calls from the Spanish Prime Minister and the Russian Foreign Minister.
• A Jewish settler was shot and injured near the Palestinian village of Surif west of Hebron. Israeli occupation forces arrested a Palestinian woman accusing her of stabbing a settler near Beit Ramano settlement in the Palestinian city.
• Amnesty International condemns the assassination policy perpetrated by Israel against Palestinians in the occupied territories.
• Gen. Mofaz admits Israel is waging a real war on the Palestinian people.
• PM Barak resigns the Labor Party chairmanship and will not join Sharon's government.
• Israeli bulldozers knock down two Palestinian houses in Beit Ommar and Arroub and damage large areas of fertile meadows in Yatta town.
• Al Aqsa Martyrs Brigades foil an Israeli military attempt to assassinate a senior Hamas activist in Jenin and wounds three Israeli soldiers.
• Dr. Shaath discusses with US Secretary of State Colin Powell the deteriorating situation in the occupied territories.
• The International Press Federation criticizes the Israeli government for raiding offices of the Palestinian media and harassing Palestinian journalists.

Tuesday February 20 2001

Main Headlines

• Israel assassinates a 25 year old Palestinian accusing him of being member of Hamas. Israel is resuming its liquidation policy against Palestinian civilians. Mahmoud Al- Madani was going to attend to his business selling vegetables in Balata refugee camp near Nablus.
• Tens of Palestinians including two foreign workers, a South African and a Dutch man were injured by Israeli tank and machine gun fire. Israeli occupation forces targeted residential areas and homes in Al- Khader village, Tulkarm and El- Bireh.
• The Jewish Agency Okays constructing more Jewish settlements in the West Bank.
• Israel said to have reduced its siege on Gaza allowing medicine and food to enter Gaza.
• Snowfall is expected in Palestine today. The cold weather is adding to the suffering of the Palestinian population under siege. Fathers and mothers can not afford buying heating fuel to warm their houses and children. Israel is preventing heating fuel including cooking gas from entering the occupied Palestinian territories.
• Coalition negotiations taking place in Israel face immense difficulties.
• Israel arrests two Palestinian pilgrims and returns back fifty others. Palestinian Muslim pilgrims suppose to travel to Mecca for the Hajj in the coming few days.
• President Arafat says, US Secretary of State visit to the region will push the peace process forward.
• An Israeli journalist calls his government to work towards the collapse of the PNA and the return of the so-called Jordanian option…
• King Abdullah of Jordan postpones a visit to Tehran because of the current crises in the Middle East.
• Richard Butler says, Iraq is capable of producing weapons of mass destruction and Israelis are worried of so called Iraqi threats. Israelis queue to receive gas masks in there thousands.

Monday February 19 2001

Main Headlines

• The Israeli government plans to construct a thousand house to accommodate Jewish settlers on Palestinian land in the Ghosh Asion area of the West Bank.
• A thirty three-year-old man from Ethna village near Hebron was shot and killed by Israeli occupation forces yesterday. Tens of others were seriously wounded by Israeli tank fire and heavy machine gun directed at Palestinian homes and residential areas in Hebron, Bethlehem, Biet Jala and other Palestinian areas. Civilians are terrified and made destitute by the Israeli occupation forces and their deadly fire against the Palestinian population.
• Sharon and Barak's government orders the supply of fuel and heating gas to the occupied Palestinian territories stopped. The winter cold season , the lack of work, the shortage of cash , the scarcity of food and the regular nightly shelling of Palestinian areas by Israeli tanks and heavy machine guns are causing tremendous suffering and hardships to the Palestinian people, men women and children.
• Israel releases a settler who murdered a Palestinian. Yoram Skolnik killed the Palestinian Moussa Abu Sabha in 1993 while lying on the ground - blindfolded and with his feet bound. The murderer Skolnik fired nine bullets at Abu Sabha from point-blank range. Israeli high court judges released Skolnik after spending eight years in jail on good behavior basis. Earlier this month, the same high court of Israeli justice sentenced the settler- murderer- of the child Helmi Shoshe to six-month community service. With justice like that who can complain!?
• The Palestinian leadership will take the issue to the Security Council in order to force Israel to stop its strangulation policy and inhumane treatment against the Palestinian people.
• Israel prevents newspapers and newsmagazines from entering the Gaza strip for the fourth day running.
• Israeli occupation forces arrest ten Palestinian youngsters accusing them of resisting the Israeli occupation.
• Joint Israeli - American military exercises to take place in Israel today.

Sunday February 18 2001

Main Headlines

• The Israeli siege on the occupied Palestinian territories is being enforced. The Palestinian people are unable to travel to work, teachers, pupils and students are unable to reach their schools, and food is getting scarce in many areas.
• International, Arab and Muslim condemnation of the Anglo American attack on Iraq and its civilian citizens. Large number of the world countries including China, Russia, Egypt and Syria call on Washington to respect the sovereignty of Iraq.
• The Israeli occupation forces murdered six Palestinian young men over the last two days. Israeli tanks shell Palestinian residential areas in Hebron and Rafah, destroys a diary producing plant in Hebron ( Al-Rayyan Diary Products Plant) a plant that support many workers and their families numbering around 2500 Palestinians. The Israeli occupation forces destroy high-pressure drainage pipes in Gaza and attack Palestinian farmers , their fields and live stock.
• Israel is destroying slowly and gradually Palestinian economic infra structure. The number of unemployed in the occupied Palestinian territories reached 316,000 representing nearly 40% of the work force in Palestine.
• The PNA's financial revenues are drastically reduced to 25% of the its average annual value. The PNA employees may not receive their salaries for the month of February.
• France warns of a worsening situation, and Jordan calls for enabling the Palestinian people to face the Israeli occupation and siege.
• Norway calls for the resumption of peace talks on the basis of Oslo.

Saturday February 17 2001

Main Headlines

• Three more Palestinian martyrs and more than one hundred injured in Hebron and other Palestinian cities, towns and villages. The Israeli occupation forces uses it tanks and heavy machine guns against Palestinian homes in the occupied Palestinian territories.
• A Palestinian elderly man dies on an Israeli checkpoint on his way to hospital. The Palestinian man was on his way from Biet Leed village to hospital in the city of Tulkarm few miles away.
• Terje Larson, UN special representative to the PNA says: PNA institutions are on the verge of collapse. The continuous siege on the occupied territories will cause the collapse of the PNA.
• Sharon will announce his new government next week and Barak prepares for unilateral separation from the Palestinian people. Netanyahu refuses to join Sharon's government. Peres slated for the job of foreign minister and Barak the defense portfolio. The Likud MK's were relegated to sideline ministries.
• An Israeli soldier was killed and three others were injured in South Lebanon.

Thursady February 15 2001

Main Headlines

• Israel isolates the Palestinian occupied territories from the world
• President Arafat demands international presence to face the Israeli escalation of atrocities against the Palestinian people.
• The Israeli occupation soldiers assassinated two Palestinians in the last 24 hours.
• A Palestinian man rams into a crowded bus stop. Eight were killed seven of whom are Israeli soldiers and around twenty injured. The act is either an ordinary traffic accident that gone completely wrong or an act of a Palestinian man horrified by the Israeli actions and decided to take his personal revenge.
• The family of the Palestinian driver denies any link between their son and any organized groups.
• The driver was shot by Israeli police and is currently in hospital in serious conditions. This is according to Israeli reports.
• Bush sends his condolences to Barak, and forgets a Palestinian population under siege.
• Israel reinforces its occupation troops around Arab East Jerusalem
• Egypt's foreign minister says, Israel's assassination of Palestinians is the source of violence.
• The Palestinian Legislative Council calls on the world community to stop the Israeli continuing aggression on the Palestinian people and to provide international protection to protect the Palestinian population as a first step towards achieving the legitimate rights of the Palestinian people… to end the Israeli occupation of Palestinian land and to ensure Palestinian freedom from Israeli hegemony occupation and control.
• Jordan refuses the Israeli policies of assassinations and collective punishment exercised against the Palestinian people.
• Prime Minister of Turkey calls on Israel to lift it siege on the Palestinian occupied territories.

Wednesday February 14 2001

Main Headlines

• Washington warns of a regional war in the Middle East and declares the situation very serious. Washington calls on both the Israeli and Palestinian sides to stop violence.
• Israeli shelling kills a fetus in his mother's womb in Gaza, and injured the mother critically.
• President Arafat declares that Israel uses forbidden weapons against the Palestinian population. Nerve gas bombs were used against Palestinians in Gaza, and depleted uranium shells were used before. Israeli official sources said earlier that Israel stopped using depleted uranium shells a year ago.
• King Abdullah of Jordan says, the negotiations between the Palestinian and Israeli sides should resume from the points reached at Taba late January.
• The European Union calls on Israel to resume the negotiations from the point it reached while taking place in Taba.
• A specialist committee is formed to investigate Israel's use of poisonous gases against the Palestinian people. Palestinian minister of health will inform other countries of Israel's use of internationally forbidden weapons against the Palestinian people.
• In response to the so-called Israeli high court of justice, Barak justifies the deliberate assassination and liquidation of Palestinians.
• A Palestinian officer of Force 17 was assassinated by Israeli gunships yesterday. Palestinian officials describe the assassination as state terrorism.
• Barak congratulate his occupation army of murderers on the assassination of the Palestinian officer in Gaza.
• The Israeli occupation authorities decide to close the Palestinian airport in Gaza again.
• Arab League Secretary General expects Sharon's government not to last for long.
• President Mubarak of Egypt against the idea of reviving the Madrid International Conference.

Monday February 12 2001

Main Headlines

• President Arafat will meet Mubarak today to coordinate the Palestinian - Egyptian stands in the light of the new changes in the Middle East.
• The Israeli occupation forces indiscriminately and severely shelled Palestinian residential areas in Bethlehem, 12 Palestinians were injured and two Palestinian homes were set on fire at Aydah refugee camp.
• Arafat: we will judge Sharon as a peace partner by the coalition he will form and the policies he will adopt. Arab foreign ministers gave Sharon 50 days to spell out his commitment to the peace process. - Barak's government declared Clinton's proposals raised at Taba peace talks as no longer officially binding to Israel.
• Amman's foreign ministers' meeting decides to accelerate transferring funds to the PNA to enable it pay salaries of its employees.
• Clinton says: Sharon's election is not an Israeli rejection to peace. The chances to form an Israeli national unity government between the likud and labor parties are higher than ever. Peres expectations of an Israeli unity are 50 - 50, Sharon said that a unity government is likely .
• The Israeli occupation authority partially lifted the embargo on Gaza International Airport and opened Rafah crossing point for Palestinian pilgrims only.
• The Israeli occupation forces bulldozed agricultural lands near the Palestinian houses, which they threatened to demolish in Khan Yunis.

Sunday February 11 2001

Main Headlines

President Arafat rejects Sharon's proposals

President Yasser Arafat announced yesterday the Palestinians prefer to wait before giving a premature judgment on the fate of the Middle East peace process.

He said we like first to know the American position toward the peace process especially after US Secretary of State Collin Powel decided to start a Middle East tour late this month, and to see what Prime-Minister elect Sharon is going to offer. He also rejected a proposal by Sharon to sign a non-belligerence pact.

Chief Palestinian negotiator Dr. Saeb Erekat also asked the Bush administration to declare its commitment to UN Security Council Resolutions 242 and 338 relevant to the Arab-Israeli conflict.

Erekat rejected Sharon's proposals and urged the international community to press the Israeli government to resume peace talks and stop settlement expansion in the occupied Palestinian territories.

In Gaza President Arafat received members of a UN panel delegated with probing the Israeli violations against the Palestinian people. The Palestinian leader updated the panel on the severe conditions sustained by the Palestinians under Israeli military occupation and the long siege, which paralyzed the economic life in Palestine.

He said the Israelis are destroying our factories and practicing collective punishment against our people and the labor force in particular.

President Arafat is scheduled to meet with his Egyptian counterpart Hosni Mubarak in Cairo late this week to discuss the repercussions of Sharon election as Prime Minister of Israel.

Saturday February 10 2001

Main Headlines

Arafat and Sharon agree to pursue the peace track

UN Middle East peace envoy Terry Larsen announced yesterday President Yasser Arafat and Prime Minister elect Ariel Sharon agreed during their first telephone contact to pursue the peace process.

The Norwegian diplomat known as the architecture of the Oslo Accords said the new Israeli Prime Minister is determined to continue dialogue with President Arafat and the Palestinians.

He added that Sharon has assured him with his intention to meet President Arafat to discuss a program of work for the peace process. According to reliable Israeli sources President Arafat has stressed during the telephone call with Sharon his interest to resume the negotiations and Sharon replied that they must reach a peaceful settlement for generations and to full security.

The Palestine News Agency WAFA said PM-elect Sharon told President Arafat his intention to continue peace efforts with the Palestinian people.

Sharon's affirmations came within the context of a letter sent to President Arafat in reply to a cable of congratulation dispatched by the Palestinian leader to him on the occasion of his election as Prime Minister.

Palestinian political sources said the next few weeks will be a real test for the peace process especially after the election of Sharon and the declaration by the Bush administration that the Clinton peace plan no more valid for a peaceful proposal between the Palestinian and Israeli people.

Arafat's aide Nabil Abu Rudineh told France Press the political changes in the US and Israel prompt new change in style and context and that the next weeks will be a real test to the fate of the Middle East peace process. He also called for resuming the peace talks from the point it has reached .

The Speaker of the Palestinian Legislative Council Ahmad Qrei also warned against possible retreat in the talks as this will lead to more frustration in the Palestinian and Israeli street alike. Such frustration will automatically produce more bloodshed and violence, which we don't like to see.

According to Israeli sources PM-elect Sharon favors concluding a non-belligerence pact with the Palestinians in lieu of a final peace agreement., He also criticized Barak's separation plan as impracticable on ground.

Thursday February 8 2001

Main Headlines

The Palestinian leadership calls on the new Israeli government to resume negotiations on the basis of what has been achieved in Taba peace talks

During its weekly cabinet meeting held in Gaza Wednesday, the Palestinian leadership confirmed the Palestinians commitment to peace as a strategic choice. In the statement released after the meeting, it called upon the new Israeli government to resume the Israeli - Palestinian peace negotiations to finalize the issues discussed recently in Taba with Barak's government. It affirmed that the Israeli - Palestinian negotiations should be resumed on the basis of land for peace and UN Resolutions 242, 338 ad 194.

On the other hand, it decided to exert serious efforts on the Arab and international levels to force Israel to lift its closure and sanctions imposed on the Palestinian people in the occupied Palestinian territories.

The Israeli occupation forces discriminatory shell residential areas in the Palestinian territories

The Israeli occupation forces opened fire on school kids in the old city of Hebron injuring five children while tear gas bombs suffocated others. Meanwhile, the Israeli occupation forces discriminatory shelled yesterday Al -Mintar crossing point as well as Al Bireh with heavy artillery and continued its assaults on other places in the West Bank.

Monday February 5 2001

Main Headlines

Arafat presides over a meeting of Fateh Central Committee

President Yasser Arafat presided over a meeting of Fateh Central Committee in Gaza city yesterday. The meeting, which was the first since the flare up of Al Aqsa intifada provoked by Sharon's visit to Al Aqsa Mosque, discussed the political and security situations in the Palestinian territories including the devastating results of the Israeli siege . A statement issued by the meeting said the Committee discussed the current political developments in the area and its impact on the Middle East peace process.

It also reiterated Fateh and the Palestinian leadership commitment to peace as the only strategic option . The Palestinians commitment to pursue the peace process is based on UN Security Council Resolutions relevant to the Middle East, the statement clarified. The statement added the aspiration of lasting peace in the area should be based on an Israeli withdrawal from all occupied Arab territories including east Jerusalem and reaching an acceptable solution to the problem of Palestinian refugees in conformity with UN Resolution 194.

The meeting adopted a number of decisions to enhance national unity and arrange the Palestinian home to what may ensure the rule of law.

Abed Rabbo expects high-level Palestinian-American contacts

The Minister of Information and Culture Yasser Abed Rabbo held the Bush administration the responsibility of maintaining the Mitchel Panel set up to investigate the causes behind the flare up of the Palestinian uprising.

Abed Rabbo who represents the Palestinian side to the panel said if the new administration decided to abandon it, this will be a serious precedence giving Israel the right to renege its commitments,

He also said the next few weeks will witness high-level Palestinian-American political contacts.

Sunday February 4 2001

Main Headlines

Israel steps up its attack and tighten its siege against the Palestinian people

As the day set for the Israeli election draws closer, the Israeli occupation forces flanked with Jewish settlers stepped up their attacks and tightened the siege against the Palestinian people.

In Gaza 21-years-old Abdullah Abu Karsh died yesterday as a result of a head injury he suffered Jan.29 near al-Shohada (Martyrs) junction south of Gaza city.

In another incident a shepherd from Akraba village, east of Nablus, was seriously wounded by Israeli occupation soldiers and was admitted to Hadasha hospital in Jerusalem.

In Daherrya town, three Palestinian laborers were wounded, one reported in serious condition, when an Israeli military patrol opened fire against them.

The wounded were identified as Motaib Jabbarin, Raid Jabbarin, and Mohammad Awaysa.

In Hebron, Israeli occupation forces shelled Abu Sneineh neighborhood allegedly in retaliation to a Palestinian attack against Jewish settlement spots and a military vehicle.

In Gaza several Palestinian positions came under fire by Israeli occupation soldiers causing the injury of a number of Palestinians near Al Shohada junction including 14-year-old Mazen Rifi.

In Silwad town, east of Ramallah city, which is subjected to a military curfew since last Thursday, Israeli troops brutally attacked elderly people on their way to the shops to buy food and essential supplies for their families.

On the Political front, President Yasser Arafat yesterday accepted the credentials of the new Qatari and Australian representatives to the PNA.

Minister of Local Government and senior Palestinian negotiator Dr. Saeb Erekat met in Jericho yesterday with a number of distinguished ambassadors and Consuls General to update them on the status of the peace process.

Dr. Erekat told the meeting that the only venue to peace is the implementation by the Israeli government of all UN Security Council Resolutions pertaining to the Arab-Israeli conflict.

In Rammallah, Secretary of Fateh Committee, Marwan Barghouthi said Fateh will step up the Palestinian Intifada following the Israeli elections set for next Tuesday.

The PNA Minister for Parliamentarian Affairs, Nabil Amr, said the PNA accepted the decision taken by the Palestinians inside the Green Line to boycott the Israeli elections.

Saturday February 3 2001

Main Headlines

Israel maintains a tight blockade on the Palestinian territories.

The meeting of the Israeli occupation forces leadership with the security unites yesterday resulted in renewing the tight blockade imposed on the Palestinian occupied territories, except for Qalqelia and Jericho. They renewed their orders to close the roads connecting the Palestinian cities and villages and to increase the number of checkpoints in order to hinder further Palestinian movements between cities, villages and towns.

The PLO supports a Palestinian - Israeli separation plan based on a complete withdrawal from the Palestinian Territories.

The PLO supports a separation plan based on the International Legitimacy Resolutions, which stipulate a complete Israeli withdrawal from the Palestinian occupied territories in 1967.

Al Aga said that Barak aims at a racial separation plan which is not based on any legitimacy resolutions; but, and according to his own images and illusions, based on protecting the Israeli settlers. This plans means imposing a siege on the Palestinians and confiscating their freedom under the pretext of providing security to the Israelis.

Thursday February 1 2001

Main Headlines

Palestinian priorities

Al Ayyam newspaper published an article written by Talal Okal titled " Palestinian priorities"

In his article Okal started with saying that it is too late for us to sit and wait for a miracle that could bring triamph to Barak over his opponent Sharon in the upcoming Israeli elections. Instead, says Okal, the Palestinians should actually concentrate on rearranging their own house through fostering a stronger national unity. In that context the writer listed examples to show the possibility of achieving unity, citing that most of the Palestinian factions attended the last session of the Palestinian National council, and the fact that the Palestinians are conducting negotiations with Israel while having the option of resistence still open.

The writer called for paying attention to what the average Palestinian has to say on certain issues such as corruption and mismanagement in the PA.

Finally, Okal called for respecting the law, saying all must abide by law and that it is the rule of law that creates a just society.