Around the Jewish world
By JTA
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Olmert: No way to curb Jerusalem Arabs
JERUSALEM (JTA)—Israel has no way of preventing spontaneous terrorist attacks by Jerusalem Arabs, Ehud Olmert said.
The Israeli prime minister was asked during an appearance July 27 before the Knesset Foreign Affairs and Defense Committee whether the security forces can prevent a repeat of the recent twin rampages by Palestinian bulldozer drivers in the capital. “Whoever thinks it is possible to live with 270,000 Arabs in Jerusalem must take into consideration that there will be no way of preventing terror attacks of this kind—in bulldozers, tractors and cars,” Olmert said, according to an official briefing. “If we continue with the current situation, we will have to accept that residents of Jerusalem can move freely around the entire country, and there is no way of knowing what they might do,” he said.
Gaza: ‘rebel-held territory’?
JERUSALEM (JTA)—The Palestinian Authority is mulling a proposal to declare the Gaza Strip “rebel-held territory.” Azzam al-Ahmad, a senior parliamentarian from Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas’ Fatah faction, made the revelation in an interview with Asharq al-Awsat daily newspaper published July 27. Fatah’s Islamist rival Hamas seized control of Gaza last June after a brief civil war. Abbas responded by dissolving his coalition government with Hamas and reviving peace talks with Israel. Ahmad accused Hamas of recalcitrance and said the Palestinian Authority may be forced to declare the territory to be under hostile rebel rule. “It is the right of a legitimate government to use force to put down a rebellion,” Ahmad said in the interview, but added that the Palestinian Authority would prefer to avoid this option.
Gaza blasts stoke Hamas-Fatah tensions
JERUSALEM (JTA)—A wave of bombings against Hamas targets in the Gaza Strip has stoked intra-Palestinian tensions. Bombs left at various Gaza City locations linked to Hamas killed seven Palestinians July 24, among them five gunmen from the Islamist group and a young bystander. Hamas blamed Fatah for the attack, arresting some 200 of the rival faction’s activists in Gaza over the weekend. In the West Bank, where Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas of Fatah still holds sway, dozens of Hamas members were detained in what appeared to be a punitive round-up.
Ahmadinejad: U.S. behavior more positive
NEW YORK (JTA)—Iran’s president noted a positive shift in U.S. behavior toward Iran. Mahmoud Ahmadinejad said July 26 in an interview with NBC News anchor Brian Williams, “Today we see new behavior shown by the United States and by the people of the United States.” The interview, held at the presidential compound in Iran, followed a July 19 meeting in which the No. 3 ranking official in the U.S. State Department, William Burns, participated in multilateral talks with Iranian diplomats about ending Iran’s enrichment of uranium. Iran is suspected of seeking to use the uranium for an illicit nuclear weapons program. NBC showed only clips of the interview. Ahmadinejad said, “We are not working to manufacture a bomb,” according to Williams. After the interview, Williams reported, “It was clear to all of us watching and listening he brought with him a new approach.” The approach, he said, is that “If the American approach changes, Iranians will have a positive response.”
Syria envoy talks peace
NEW YORK (JTA)—Syria’s ambassador to the United States called on Israel to make peace with his country. We desire to end this state of war between us, to conclude peace between two states and to recognize each other,” Imad Moustapha told Americans for Peace Now. “Let us sit together; let us make peace; let us end once and for all the state of war. The negotiations are a historic opportunity for Israel to make peace, not just with Syria and Lebanon, but with the whole Arab world.”
Some Muslim students back religious killings
NEW YORK (JTA)—Nearly one-third of British Muslim students support killing in the name of religion, a new survey found. In addition, 60 percent of active members of campus Islamic societies said such killings can be justified, according to a report released July 26 by London’s Center for Social Cohesion. The report, “Islam on Campus: A Survey of U.K. Student Opinion,” examined Muslim students’ attitudes on issues including religious tolerance, gender equality and integration. The survey polled 1,400 students; more information was gathered in fieldwork and interviews. Some 79 percent of Muslim students polled said they respected Jews, with 7 percent answering that they had not very much or no respect at all for Jews. In other findings, 59 percent of those polled believed it was important to Islam that Muslim women wear the hijab. Forty percent of respondents backed the introduction of Sharia, Islamic law based on the Koran, into British law for Muslims, and one-third supported the introduction of a worldwide Caliphate, or head of Islam, based on Sharia. Support for a Caliphate rose to 58 percent when active members of campus Islamic societies were polled.
Panel to probe Israel’s water crisis
JERUSALEM (JTA)—A Knesset committee agreed to establish a state commission of inquiry into Israel’s water crisis. The Knesset State Control Committee said it would set up the commission to investigate why the recommendations of professionals and government decisions were ignored. It will be charged as well with making recommendations for both the short and long term to ensure an adequate water supply. Israel’s main source of fresh water, the Sea of Galilee, earlier this month reached its bottom red line, beyond which pumping water can cause irreversible damage. Experts have predicted it will reach its black line, beyond which pumping is impossible, by December.
