Israel Line 6/14/00
ny...@interport.net
Wednesday, June 14, 2000
*BARAK EXPRESSES HOPE THAT ASSAD WILL WORK FOR PEACE
*ISRAELIS, PALESTINIANS ACCELERATE WASHINGTON TALKS
*IRANIAN JEWS REPUDIATE CONFESSIONS
*INDIAN MINISTERS VISIT ISRAEL, STRENGTHENING TIES
*WATER SHORTAGE EXPECTED TO CONTINUE
*ECONOMIC BRIEFS
BARAK EXPRESSES HOPE THAT ASSAD WILL WORK FOR PEACE
Prime Minister Ehud Barak said on Tuesday that he hoped the apparent heir
to Syria's presidency Bashar Assad would move towards forging a region of
peace, THE JERUSALEM POST reported. Barak said during an interview with
Channel 1 that Assad "should see what is best for Syria and judge the
mistakes and the accomplishments of the past few years." He recommended that
Assad "lead Syria to an openness to the world, and work for stabilization in
Lebanon and for peace in the Middle East." Such peace, Barak added, would
benefit both Israel and Syria.
According to Israel Radio, KOL YISRAEL, U.S. Secretary of State Madeleine
Albright, while representing the United States at Assad’s funeral, expressed
appreciation for Bashar Assad’s commitment to follow in the footsteps of
his father who reached a strategic decision to achieve peace with Israel.
The two agreed to meet again to discuss the peace process.
Meanwhile, MA’ARIV reported that Channel 1 broadcast live from Damascus
for the first time on Tuesday night, airing pictures from Assad’s funeral
and interviews with the Israeli Arab delegation of MKs that traveled to
Syria. Channel 1’s news director Rafiq Halabi said that the assumes
authorization for the broadcast came from higher authorities in the
Government because "there are no broadcasts out of Damascus without
Government authorization."
ISRAELIS, PALESTINIANS ACCELERATE WASHINGTON TALKS
U.S. negotiators, expected to play an intensified role in the current round
of negotiations between Israel and the Palestinian Authority, were present
today at both the interim talks at Bollings Air Force Base and the
final-status talks at Andrews Air Force Base, THE JERUSALEM POST reported.
In an effort to speed up negotiations, the negotiators have been divided
into two teams, addressing final status and interim issues separately.
According to HA’ARETZ, the first team, headed by Minister of Public
Security Shlomo Ben-Ami and speaker of the PA parliament Abu Ala, is working
to complete a framework agreement on permanent status. The second team,
headed by Oded Eran and Saeb Erekat, is addressing unresolved issues from
the Oslo accords including the third withdrawal, prisoner releases and the
northern safe passage route.
Israeli Radio, KOL YISRAEL, reported that Palestinian Authority Chairman
Yasser Arafat is scheduled to arrive in Washington on Thursday to meet with
U.S. President Bill Clinton and Secretary of Sate Madeleine Albright.
Clinton is taking an active role in negotiations in an effort to determine
whether the two sides are close enough to convene a three-way summit.
Meanwhile, according to a senior Israel Defense Forces official, the IDF
is preparing for the possibility of another violent outbreak in the West
Bank before the slated date for the final status agreement in September. The
source said that "the Palestinians are not interested in a state achieved by
a piece of paper. They want to reach independence by confrontation." The
official also revealed that the PA has recently captured an Islamic Jihad
terrorist cell which intended to kidnap Israelis.
IRANIAN JEWS REPUDIATE CONFESSIONS
Four of the thirteen Iranian Jews arrested under allegations of spying for
Israel repudiated confessions they made last month, HA’ARETZ reported. The
spokesperson for the Iranians’ legal defense team, Ismail Nasari, said on
Tuesday that "the four said that their confessions were forced by the
Iranian government."
An additional hearing of the revolutionary court in Shiraz took place on
Tuesday, which according to Nasari, created optimism among the legal defense
team. To date, eight detainees have pleaded guilty, four have denied
allegations of spying and one allegedly confessed to transferring
information to Israel but denied that his actions constituted spying.
INDIAN MINISTERS VISIT ISRAEL, STRENGTHENING TIES
In a move to strengthen Israel-India relations, India's Home Affairs
Minister L.K. Advani is arriving in Israel today, HA’ARETZ reported.
Considered to be the second to Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee and in
charge of India’s police and security services, Advani is the most senior
Indian official to visit Israel since the two countries established
diplomatic ties in 1992. Next week, Indian Foreign Affairs Minister Jasvant
Singh is also expected to visit Israel.
On this trip, Advani will meet with President Ezer Weizman, Prime
Minister Ehud Barak, Minister of the Interior Natan Sharansky and Minister
of Regional Cooperation Shimon Peres and will be updated on developments in
the peace process. He will also exchange ideas with Israel regarding issues
facing the Middle East and the Indian subcontinent, including the fight
against terrorism and the protection of borders. Advani visited Israel five
years ago when he served as the General Secretary of the BJP Hindu
Nationalist Party and was one of the leading supporters for the
establishment of diplomatic ties with Israel.
WATER SHORTAGE EXPECTED TO CONTINUE
Mekorot Water company officials informed Israel’s Water Commissioner
Yaakov Efrati that Israel will face a serious water shortage next year that
may affect urban and even domestic use, endangering the quality of
groundwater and the water of the Kinneret, HA’ARETZ reported. From this
year's figures, it is already clear that by the end of the summer, the level
of the Kinneret will drop below the lowest red line discussed thus far—minus
214 meters. If Israel suffers yet another drought next year, it is likely to
suffer a shortage of drinking water of 130 million cubic meters.
Senior Water Commission officials also agreed that recent decisions made
by the Government, including the establishment of a desalination plant which
will create tens of millions of cubic meters of water, will not provide an
immediate solution to the crisis because their implementation will be not be
complete for several years.
ECONOMIC BRIEFS
* During the first five months of 2000, industrial exports grew by 14.5
percent, totaling $7.9 billion, GLOBES reported. Association data show that
the electronics sector posted a record 40 percent growth in the first five
months of the year, accounting for over 80 percent of the growth in exports,
mostly stemming from the start of operations at the Intel plant in Kiryat Gat.
* El Al intends to expand a prior deal with U.S. Boeing pursuant to which it
purchased five Boeing 737-00 and 737-800 passenger planes, GLOBES reported.
The 1998 deal is worth approximately $200 million. El Al bought the aircraft
from Boeing at a considerable discount, receiving three Boeing 737-800 at
$34 million each, and two 737-00 at $30 million each.
Today’s Israel Line was prepared by Riki Drori and Jeremy Bob at The
Consulate General of Israel in New York.
Israel Line is a daily summary of major news items taken directly from the
Israeli media.
To subscribe/unsubscribe to Israel Line, please use the on-line subscription
form at http://www.mfa.gov.il/mfa/listservform.asp