Free Republic

TOKYO • (AFP)A senior Palestinian minister said yesterday that he was pinning his hopes on US presidential candidate Barack Obama, believing he would seal an elusive deal on creating a Palestinian state. The Palestinian Authority's planning minister Samir Abdullah told reporters on a visit to Tokyo he expected Obama to win the election in November and “look at the Palestinian question and try to do something about it.” “He promised that he will not wait until the end of his term to launch negotiations and he will make it happen from day one. I hope that he will fulfil his...

Shortly Israel decided to open all the crossings into Gaza Saturday night several mortar shells were fired by Palestinian terrorists at the Karni Crossing area. It was unclear whether the shells landed in Israeli territory or fell short of the perimeter fence and there were no reports of wounded or damage. Deputy Defense Minister Matan Vilna'i, in consultation with defense chiefs, decided to allow 80 truckloads of food to cross from Israel to Gaza on Sunday. The crossings, including Karni, had been closed since Tuesday after Palestinians violated the Gaza cease-fire by shooting Kassams rockets at the western Negev. A...

(IsraelNN.com) French President Nicolas Sarkozy asked the Knesset on Monday to recognize that "France will always be Israel's friend" - and promptly called for the division of Jerusalem and for the expulsion of the Jews from Judea and Samaria. Speaking in French from the Knesset podium at a special session held in his honor, Sarkozy said, "Israel will always be every Jewish person's sanctuary. It is the only place where Jews will always be safe." He also called on the Palestinians to stop terrorism against Israel. Stop Construction, Deport Jews, Divide Jerusalem He emphasized, however, that there will never be...

Vice Premier Haim Ramon on Tuesday reacted harshly to reports of an imminent Gaza cease-fire, calling it a victory for radical Islam. "I am against a truce, because it is another triumph for radical Islam. It won in Lebanon and now it is about to win in Gaza. So what is the point of being moderate? Why would Hamas be interested in a resolution?" said Ramon at a Haifa University conference. Ramon, together with Transportation Minister Shaul Mofaz and Justice Minister Daniel Friedmann, abstained from a cabinet vote last Wednesday to refrain from embarking on a large-scale military operation in...

Secretary Condoleezza Rice En route Tel Aviv, Israel [implies Israeli security takes second place to improving Palestininian lives] "And I understand the security considerations as well as anyone, but the obligation was undertaken to improve the lives of Palestinians and we're going to have to work very hard if we're going to make that true in a broader sense." Remarks to the Traveling Press Secretary Condoleezza Rice En route Tel Aviv, Israel June 14, 2008 www.state.gov/secretary/rm/2008/06/105910.htm SECRETARY RICE: Okay. Look, why don't we just go directly to questions. You heard the President's press conference today, and we're now headed to...

US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice arrived here last night for two days of talks and criticized proposed housing expansion in Jerusalem over the Green Line as undermining the US-backed push for peace. As Rice arrived, she appeared more exasperated with the Israeli construction than she has in past condemnations of announcements of building plans that have often come just before or after her visits in the past 18 months. "Unfortunately, there have been a few [building plans], whether I'm coming or not," Rice told reporters on her plane. "Look, it's a problem, and it's a problem that we're going...

Former chief of General Staff Lt.-Gen. Dan Halutz said Saturday that it will hurt to give up the Golan Heights as part of a peace agreement with Syria, though it is a possibility. "The thought of ceding the Golan Heights gives me a bellyache, but for real peace one must be willing to pay a real price. Theoretically, Israel can do without the Golan," said Halutz during a cultural event in Beersheba, Saturday. Halutz refused to divulge whether he knew about the negotiations held for the past year between Syria and Israel with Turkish mediation since they began or whether...

In my article Refefining "What it means to be pro-Israel" I suggested that my definition of it is to advocate abrogating the peace process and annexing Judea and Samaria. Ami Isseroff commented that the problem with that solution was that no one will take the Arabs in. I agreed to the extent that to achieve such a solution would be extremely difficult. The world will vociferously oppose it. Ami then referred me to his article Zionism and Israel: Ideological house cleaning. It is extremely well researched and worth reading. Here's an extract. Solutions - Whatever solution to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict...

US president presses on with Mideast tour, meets with Egypt's Mubarak in Sham el-Sheikh. Due to speak at World Economic Forum on Sunday, Bush says he will outline vision for reaching agreement on future Palestinian state while still in office US President George W. Bush said on Saturday he remained confident a deal on Palestinian statehood could be achieved before he leaves office, as he sought to ease Arab doubts about his commitment to even-handed peacemaking. In the Red Sea resort of Sharm el-Sheikh for the final stop of his Middle East tour, Bush faces growing skepticism over his chances...

US POLICY on the Middle East suffered a major blow yesterday as Hezbollah fighters seized control of Muslim west Beirut, tightening their grip on the city after routing supporters of the western-backed government. At least 13 people have been killed and 30 wounded in three days of battles between pro-government gunmen and fighters loyal to Hezbollah. The fighting was the worst since the 1975-90 civil war, and brought familiar scenes of young men with ADVERTISEMENT assault rifles roaming the streets amid smashed cars and smouldering buildings. The White House said it was "very troubled" by Hezbollah's move and urged Iran...

LONDON - Palestinian Prime Minister Salam Fayyad warned Friday that peace talks could collapse unless Israel changes course and accepts a more conciliatory approach in negotiations. Fayyad, in London for diplomatic talks, said Israel has not complied with any of the obligations set out at the U.S.-backed peace conference in Annapolis, Md., late last year. "Israel has failed to meet any of its obligations from the road map, including a freeze in settlement activity," he said. "Unless that changes, the political process is being stripped of its meaning." Fayyad gave a highly pessimistic progress report after meeting with Israeli Foreign...

Condi Tips Her Hand by Emanuel A. Winston Holding back military resupply is an old trick. Fortunately, Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice and her Department of State team have gone a bit too far and exposed their hand. 'Coincidentally,' just after Rice’s team left, it was revealed that America will hold back military resupply to Israel 'until Israel needs it.' This would ostensibly save Israel billions of dollars in storage costs for equipment and weapons 'it may never use.' Holding back military resupply is an old State Department tactic, used best by Henry Kissinger in the 1973 Yom Kippur War,...

Norman Podhoretz, as you will recall, was a staunch supporter of GW Bush, and is staying the course, and was in support of Sharon's Disengagement. He now replies to his critics of both these positions, in his Commentary article, Israel and the Palestinians:Has Bush Reneged?. Anyone interested in the peace process from its beginning in Madrid should read this very informative article. He begins, On June 24, 2002, George W. Bush, having already become the first American President to come out openly and officially for the establishment of a Palestinian state, attached two stern conditions to that new policy. The...

Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice said Monday that Mideast peace talks are "moving in the right direction" although she warned Israel that it should stop new settlement activities that could upset progress. Rice's comments came after she held talks with Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas at the end of a three-day Mideast mission with the goal of achieving an agreement before President Bush leaves office next January. Earlier Monday, Rice met separately with both the Israeli and Palestinian negotiators in Israel and said that she was impressed by the seriousness of their work. "I think it's all moving in the right...

US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice believes that a framework for an agreement between Israel and the Palestinians could be reached by the planned May 14 visit to Israel of US President George W. Bush, Channel 1 diplomatic correspondent Ayala Hasson reported Sunday. Rice expressed this hope to a top Israeli leader Sunday when she met with Foreign Minister Tzipi Livni, Defense Minister Ehud Barak and Palestinian Authority Prime Minister Salaam Fayed. Rice's high expectations will put further pressure on the two sides, who were already meeting frequently in an effort to meet the November 4 deadline that Prime Minister...

(IsraelNN.com) Israeli diplomatic sources said Sunday that the American delegation was very surprised at the extent of Israeli concessions to the Fatah-controlled "Palestinian Authority" (PA) announced by Defense Minister Ehud Barak. However, Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice was quick to say that they were not enough, and vowed to monitor Israel's execution of its promises. The latest Israeli concessions to the PA in Judea and Samaria include permission for construction of two new Arab neighborhoods in the Ramallah area, with a total of 5,000 to 8,000 housing units. In addition, about 50 dirt roadblocks in Samaria will be removed, thus...

Unilateral measures taken by Israel main obstacle for peace, King Abdullah tells Rice during Amman meeting; stresses importance of increasing America's role in process Roee Nahmias and AP Published: 03.30.08, 23:24 / Israel News US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice headed to Amman from Jerusalem on Sunday to meet with Jordanian King Abdullah. The king warned that failure to achieve progress toward (Israeli-Palestinian) peace would ''threaten the region's future'', according to a statement from his palace. During his meeting with Rice Abdullah accused Israel of taking unilateral measures, particularly regarding the expansion of the West Bank settlements. According to the...

The newfangled "shelf agreement" concept which now serves as the basis for negotiations between Israel and the Palestinians is unworkable. The concept has no foundation in negotiation theory, especially in the history of Arab-Israeli negotiations. It incautiously assumes best case scenarios regarding the Palestinians which have no basis in reality; when in fact a durable "final status" agreement must anticipate all worst case scenarios. Furthermore, the historical record shows that even if Israel and the PA were to agree on a grand "endgame agreement," the Palestinians would proceed to bargain with Israel for additional concessions as the price of implementation....

(IsraelNN.com) US Secretary of State Condoleeza Rice will break with standard protocol and will not meet with Opposition Leader Binyamin Netanyahu during her upcoming visit to the region, apparently as punishment for Netanyahu's recent call to build up the so-called E-1 corridor between Jerusalem and Ma'aleh Adumim. The United States opposes the plan. The snub is the second this year from senior US figures for Netanyahu. In January President George W. Bush refused to meet with the Likud chairman until a public outcry forced him to schedule time with the Opposition Leader. Rice is due to visit the region in...

The Bush Administration’s search for partners to promote “peace” and “democracy” within the Palestinian Authority (PA) resembles Lord Charles Bowen’s “blind man in a dark room looking for a black hat – which isn’t there”. For the first time, the Bush Administration plans to give $150 million in cash directly to the Palestinian Authority (PA) Treasury, as part of a $496.5 million “aid” package, including $410 million for development programs. This added to the $86.5 million for CIA “security training”, which Congress authorized in April 2007. The CIA has apparently assumed the Palestinian terrorist-training role previously held by the former...

RAMALLAH, West Bank (AP) -- A Mideast peace agreement will require "painful concessions" by Israelis and Palestinians who must work together to defeat those "committed to violence," Vice President Dick Cheney said Sunday. After meeting with Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas, Cheney stressed the U.S. commitment to the creation of an independent Palestinian state, saying it was "long overdue." "Achieving that vision will require tremendous effort at the negotiating table and painful concessions on both sides," said Cheney, whose stop in Ramallah came just two months after President Bush's trip to the West Bank. Abbas, a moderate, controls the West Bank...

JERUSALEM (Reuters) - Vice President Dick Cheney, starting a visit on Saturday to try to push forward Israeli-Palestinian peace talks, said Washington would never pressure Israel to take steps that threaten its security. Palestinians accuse Israel of undermining the U.S.-sponsored peace talks by expanding Jewish settlements, refusing to remove West Bank roadblocks and mounting offensives against militants in the Hamas-controlled Gaza Strip who fire cross-border rockets into the Jewish state. "America's commitment to Israel's security is enduring and unshakable, as is Israel's right to protect itself always against terrorism, rocket attacks and other attacks from forces dedicated to Israel's destruction,"...

JERUSALEM, March 11 (Reuters) - The United States is not satisfied with the pace at which Israel is moving to implement a long-stalled peace "road map", U.S. and Western officials said ahead of a key meeting to assess compliance with the plan. Officials said Washington also believed the Palestinians needed to do far more to meet their obligations to boost security and rein in militants in the West Bank, though U.S. officials have privately complained to Israel that its frequent raids were undermining those efforts. U.S. and Western officials said Washington was particularly critical of Israel's decision to push ahead...

White House urges Israel, PA to keep negotiations going despite attack on Jerusalem yeshiva. 'The most important thing is that the peace process continues,' says White House spokesman Reuters Published: 03.07.08, 19:17 / Israel News The White House on Friday urged Israel and the Palestinians to stick with US-backed peace efforts despite a shooting attack that killed eight students at the Mercaz Harav yeshiva in Jerusalem. "The most important thing is that the peace process continue and that the parties are committed to it," White House spokesman Tony Fratto told reporters. Thursday's attack by a Palestinian gunman dealt another blow...

At the outset of Phase I: Palestinian leadership issues unequivocal statement reiterating Israel’s right to exist in peace and security and calling for an immediate and unconditional ceasefire to end armed activity and all acts of violence against Israelis anywhere. All official Palestinian institutions end incitement against Israel. Israeli leadership issues unequivocal statement affirming its commitment to the two-state vision of an independent, viable, sovereign Palestinian state living in peace and security alongside Israel, as expressed by President Bush, and calling for an immediate end to violence against Palestinians everywhere. All official Israeli institutions end incitement against Palestinians.

Prime Minister Ehud Olmert will meet with U.S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice while both are in Japan next week. The meeting was requested by Rice. It is particularly surprising because Rice is due to come to Jerusalem for a working visit the following week. Government officials predicted that the meeting would focus on the situation in the Gaza Strip, and said that Rice probably wanted to express her concern over the humanitarian situation there. General William Fraser, the U.S. envoy responsible for monitoring implementation of the road map peace plan, visited Israel this week and met with officials in...

** EXCERPT ** Those who seek to undermine Barack Obama's credibility with his Jewish and non-Jewish voters who feel strongly about the Israeli issue, frequently mention two names: Bob Malley and Zbigniew Brzezinski. Malley was a member on former U.S. president Bill Clinton's peace team, and Brzezinski was an advisor for an earlier U.S. president, Jimmy Carter. If these people are Obama's friends, his detractors say, then he cannot be seen as a friend of Israel. A claim which invites scrutiny. Malley is one of the few people who believe that the Israeli-American narrative for the reasons that caused the...

I would have posted an article, but I can't recall any that I've seen. Our policy toward Israel seems to have always been an issue in presidential debates in the past. But this year it seems to be a topic seldom if ever discussed. I certainly haven't watched every debate, listened to every stump speech, or read every position paper. Maybe others are more up on this subject than I am.

(IsraelNN.com) US President George W. Bush delivered his State of the Union address Monday evening, praising the 2005 election of Mahmoud Abbas and once again calling for a Palestinian state. Bush lauded the election of Fatah chief Mahmoud Abbas in 2005 as PA chairman as proof of a rejection of terrorism among PA Arabs. “We are also standing against the forces of extremism in the Holy Land, where we have new cause for hope. Palestinians have elected a president who recognizes that confronting terror is essential to achieving a state where his people can live in dignity and at peace...

(IsraelNN.com) Allegations of police abuse and a call for a public fast day Thursday by leading rabbis herald the third week in jail for seven teenage girls arrested for building a hilltop outpost. Police forced several of the girls, who are all under the age of 16, to strip in prison, according to their parents. Police also subjected the youngsters to sleep deprivation, a tactic used by the Shabak (General Security Service) when dealing with ‘ticking-bomb’ terrorists, to break their determination. The girls have been held under harsh conditions and have not yet been charged. They refuse to identify themselves...

RIYADH, Saudi Arabia - Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice said Tuesday that Arab nations must do more to reach out to Israel, as a way to do their part to nudge a Mideast peace accord into being. Rice spoke from Saudi Arabia, at the side of its foreign minister, Prince Saud al-Faisal, giving her words and the U.S. position more weight. President Bush, traveling through the Mideast for eight days in part to build support for the Israeli-Palestinian peace process, made the same request from Jerusalem earlier in his trip. She stepped gingerly around the sensitive question of whether the...

KUWAIT (Reuters) - U.S. President George W. Bush wrapped up his mission to Israel and the occupied West Bank on Friday, emboldened enough to have predicted a peace treaty within a year but with no major breakthroughs for his efforts. Concluding his first presidential visit to the Holy Land, Bush arrived on Friday evening in Kuwait, the first of five stops with Arab allies he hopes will aid the fragile peace process and help contain Iran's growing regional clout. Tonight Bush will meet Kuwait's ruler and thank him for his support and for democratization efforts in the Gulf state that...

Illegal outposts will be removed, official says; how many is a question mark MIGRON, West Bank - Israel will tell President Bush during his visit this week that it is committed to "expeditiously" evacuating unauthorized settlement outposts in the West Bank, a spokesman for Israel's premier said Monday. Bush has said he expects Israel to comply with its 5-year-old pledge to take down the outposts, tiny encampments seen by the Palestinians as a major impediment to a peace deal. Bush arrives Wednesday on a three-day mission to push for progress in recently restarted Israeli-Palestinian peace talks. Most of the outposts...

(IsraelNN.com) In the upcoming days, billboards all over Jerusalem will be plastered with a new poster on the eve of U.S. President Bush’s visit to Israel. Pictured in the poster is a gigantic Bible, towering over the walls of the Old City. The caption says: “Bush, read your Bible. God gave Israel to the Jews.” Tzvi Fishman, of the Am K’Lavee organization, and an Arutz 7 blogger, says “The poster is designed to refocus Israel’s opposition to further withdrawals back to our Divine claim to the Land of Israel, as documented again and again in the Bible.” Am K’Lavee organizes...

(IsraelNN.com) "Jews! We have already dug your graves," declared Hamas official Mushir al-Masri at a half-million strong rally of support for Hamas in Gaza’s central square Saturday. Al-Masri said that Hamas was eager to combat the IDF in any upcoming conflict. “The enemy’s exit from Gaza will be nothing like its entrance,” he said. “Gaza will become a graveyard for its soldiers.” The Hamas official was joined by the terrorist group's top brass, some via teleconference, at a massive show of support for the Islamist movement that unequivocally broadcast a message of support for terrorism and the ongoing war with...

Washington - Looking to the post-Bush era in American politics, Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert is attempting to enlist leading presidential candidates to support his renewed push for a settlement with the Palestinians. When Olmert was in the United States for the Annapolis, Md., peace summit, he took the opportunity to call each of the leading presidential candidates to brief them on the plans for engaging in final-status talks with Palestinian leader Mahmoud Abbas. “I found that all the candidates had a lot of good will toward Israel,” Olmert said later in a press briefing. “They were all very friendly...

What a difference a week makes. The depth of the crisis facing the US and Israel may be difficult to fathom, but the Prime Minister of Israel appears hard-put to confront it or even acknowledge it. Back in Annapolis, Ehud Olmert enjoyed his fifteen minutes of fame and glory, and the fleeting embrace of George W. Bush. But after the Joint Understanding was filed away, and the reporters filed their stories, the Israelis began to realize the extent of the bait-and-switch that had been pulled on them, and what a sea-change in relations with the United States they were facing....

WASHINGTON (CNN) -- President Bush on Wednesday called the Mideast summit in Annapolis, Maryland, a "hopeful beginning," but added, "no matter how important yesterday was, it's not nearly as important as tomorrow and the days beyond." "I wouldn't be standing here if I didn't believe peace was possible. And they wouldn't be here either if they didn't think peace was possible," he said, referring to Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert and Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas, who stood beside him in the White House Rose Garden. "It's very important for the international community to support these two leaders during the...

ANNAPOLIS, Md. - President Bush said in remarks prepared for delivery Tuesday at the Annapolis conference that the time is right to relaunch Mideast peace talks because "a battle is under way for the future of the Middle East." Bush said it won't be easy to achieve the goal of creating two states — Israel and Palestine — living side by side in peace after decades of conflict and bloodshed, yet he urged the two sides to work together for the sake of their people. "Today, Palestinians and Israelis each understand that helping the other to realize their aspirations is...

(IsraelNN.com) An estimated 25,000 people took part in a mass prayer service at the Western Wall against the positions that Israeli government leaders plan to take at the Annapolis summit. The prayer service is to be followed by a massive protest, co-sponsored by the Yesha Council of Jewish Communities of Judea and Samaria, near the Prime Minister's residence. The protest is entitled, "It Will Blow Up in Our Face." Prime Minister Olmert, of course, will not be at home; at the time of the prayers, he was meeting in Washington with U.S. President George Bush in preparation for the Annapolis...

Saudi Arabian Foreign Minister Saud al-Faisal tells TIME that he is optimistic about this week's Middle East peace conference in Annapolis because of what he calls U.S. determination "to see this through." Continuous U.S. mediation in post-conference negotiations, including pressure on Israel, he says, "can turn things around" and lead to a comprehensive settlement before President Bush's term expires in 13 months. But, speaking in Paris just hours before his scheduled arrival in the U.S., Prince Saud warned Israelis that they would have no peace until Israel withdrew from Arab territories captured in the 1967 war. Saud, who will be...

WASHINGTON (CNN) -- A top Palestinian official Sunday hailed the fact that representatives of Arab countries will attend Tuesday's summit in Annapolis, Maryland. "After seven years of total stalemate, President Bush with [Secretary of State Condoleezza] Rice are providing an opportunity for us and the Israelis to resume the negotiations," chief Palestinian negotiator Saeb Erakat said. "The different thing today from any other conferences throughout our conflict -- you have the Arab world coming." Erakat told CNN's "Late Edition" the inclusion of the wider international community will correct the mistakes of the last Israeli-Palestinian peace talks in the United States....

While their leaders meet in the United States to negotiate, thousands of Palestinians and Israelis will be given the chance to determine the fate of the Mideast - virtually. The Peres Center for Peace on Sunday said it is distributing 100,000 copies of a computer game called PeaceMaker to Israelis and Palestinians. The game disk will be handed out on Tuesday, the same day that Prime Minister Ehud Olmert and Palestinian Authority Chairman Mahmoud Abbas are scheduled to meet in Annapolis, Maryland. The summit, hosted by U.S. President George W. Bush and attended by Arab countries and dozens of other...

WASHINGTON — The Bush administration was able to declare a clean sweep when Syria, the last Arab world holdout, said Sunday it would attend this week's high-stakes Mideast peace conference. Top negotiators awaited a meeting with Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice to finalize details. The White House reacted to Syria's last-minute announcement by trying to keep the focus on the broad list of participants. "We welcome the attendance of so many countries from the region and around the world," said Gordon Johndroe, spokesman for President George W. Bush's National Security Council. "This large number signals broad support for Israeli-Palestinian peace...

George Bush is the only man who can bring an independent Palestine closer GEORGE BUSH is not likely to be remembered by history as the saviour of the Middle East. He botched Iraq, dropped his democratic “freedom agenda” when the Arabs started voting for the wrong people, and has spent most of his two terms more or less ignoring Palestine. On this last front, however, he now has an opportunity for redemption. If all goes to plan, Mr Bush will preside on November 27th over a peace meeting in Annapolis, Maryland. Expectations of this one-day event are at rock bottom....

Egypt, Jordan, Palestinians try to win over skeptics before U.S. conference SHARM EL-SHEIK, Egypt - Egypt, Jordan and the Palestinians sought Thursday to persuade skeptical Arab nations to attend a U.S.-sponsored Middle East peace conference, insisting it could open the door to a Palestinian state in the next year. Saudi Arabia and Syria remain the most important holdouts. Egypt’s President Hosni Mubarak held a mini-summit with the leaders of Jordan and the Palestinians in this Red Sea resort, bringing together the strongest Arab supporters of next week’s conference in Annapolis, Md. Their meeting came ahead of a key gathering of...

JERUSALEM, Israel (AP) -- The Israeli Cabinet on Monday approved the release of 441 Palestinian prisoners in a gesture to Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas, but stopped short of U.S. demands to halt West Bank settlement construction before a crucial Mideast conference. The Cabinet vote took place ahead of a meeting between Prime Minister Ehud Olmert and Abbas later in the day. The two men were trying to break a deadlock in preparations for the U.S.-hosted peace summit, which is expected to take place in Annapolis, Md., next week. Israel sees the conference primarily as a ceremonial launching pad for new...

The IDF is in a heightened state of alert ahead of the Annapolis summit next week, out of fear that Hamas and Islamic Jihad will try to perpetrate a large-scale terror attack to derail the Israeli-Palestinian peace talks, defense officials said Sunday. The officials said there were currently 10 specific warnings concerning Palestinian plans to launch a terror attack before the summit. The officials said that while there was no concrete intelligence that the warnings were connected to the peace summit, which is scheduled to be held at the Annapolis Naval Academy next Monday, the assumption was that terror groups...

(IsraelNN.com) The Bush administration is putting pressure on the Prime Minister Ehud Olmert's government to go beyond freeing 500 Arab terrorists and prisoners and halting building permits in Judea and Samaria. It now wants Israel to freeze all building, including units under construction in areas covered by previous understandings to be included as part of Israel after final borders are decided for the proposed new Arab state. American Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice has put her reputation on the line by planning a conference on the Middle East to be held in Annapolis, Maryland. However, most Arab nations still have...

GAZA CITY, Gaza Strip - Hamas security forces opened fire Monday at a rally by the rival Fatah movement commemorating Palestinian leader Yasser Arafat. Six people were killed in the bloodiest day of intra-Palestinian fighting since Hamas seized control of the Gaza Strip in June. Some 250,000 Fatah supporters joined Monday's rally in a major square of Gaza City, carrying pictures of Arafat, yellow Fatah flags and wearing trademark black-and-white Arab headdresses. It was the biggest outpouring of support for Fatah since Hamas' violent takeover of the territory. The crowd scattered as masked Hamas security men ran through the city...