Violence erupted in Hebron late Friday afternoon, just as the local Jewish community began celebrating the Jewish New Year. Rocks and fire-bombs were hurled at Israeli security forces guarding the borders between PA and Israeli-controlled neighborhoods and burning tires were rolled into Jewish neighborhoods in the city.
The outbreak of Israeli-Palestinian clashes has been particularly intense around Joseph’s Tomb in Nablus, a site of fierce fighting in the “tunnel riots” of 1996, with one Israeli soldier shot dead over the weekend inside the synagogue.
The Clinton Administration announced today that Israeli and Palestinian leaders have agreed to attend soon a US-mediated session in the region aimed at rooting out the cause of the violence. The clashes are Clinton’s worst nightmare, as he desperately wanted to avoid a Mideast flare-up just as his term in office winds up and US voters go to the polls to elect his successor.
The demonstrations quickly spread on Friday and Saturday to Judea/Samaria and Gaza, where IDF outposts and Israeli civilians came under attack from stone-throwing youths, as well as gunfire from armed Fatah activists (the “Tanzim”) and even PA security forces. With casualties climbing, the two sides seemed close to a cease-fire on Saturday, until a tragic incident ignited the flames further.
The growing conflict started last Thursday morning, when Sharon ascended the Temple Mount on the eve of the Jewish New Year holiday to exercise his right to visit Judaism’s holiest site like anyone else. Sharon announced his plans days earlier, giving Palestinian and Israeli Arab leaders plenty of time to gather a hostile welcoming committee.
Israel’s security Cabinet has decided to step up the targeted killings of Palestinian terrorists in an attempt to thwart attacks, despite US opposition to the policy.
Prime Minister Ariel Sharon and President George W. Bush expressed sharply differing views yesterday during a photo opportunity at their meeting at the White House. The brief exchange with reporters highlighted a disagreement over how to proceed with the peace process amid continuing violence.
With CIA chief George Tenet threatening to pack his bags and leave, Palestinian leader Yasser Arafat gave reluctant approval to the US cease-fire plan in a late-night meeting.
Israeli officials are anticipating the arrival today of a draft copy of the Mitchell Commission of Inquiry Report. A copy was delivered to the White House in Washington on Thursday. T
I am in the Israeli coastal town of Ashkelon tonight, where I have been listening for several hours to the sound of Israeli fire striking at Yasser Arafat’s “Force 17” security headquarters in the nearby Gaza Strip. Other Palestinian sites in Ramallah, north of Jerusalem, have also been hit by Israeli fire this evening.
The Philippines military has theorized that the Muslim extremist group Abu Sayyaf, which is holding American missionary couple Martin and Gracia Burnham of Kansas City, has opened its communication lines with officials of the White House in the United States to negotiate for the safe release of the Burnhams.
MEXICO CITY (Compass) — Twenty-five evangelical families in a Chiapan village won’t be expelled from their homes now that agreements have been reached between Presbyterians, political party leaders and a group of men accused of encouraging violence against evangelicals.
To know Menno Simons was dangerous; to befriend him, deadly. For sheltering Menno, Tjard Reynders was broken on the wheel. A ferryman was executed for bearing Menno down the Meuse River. Surely Menno Simons must have been a desperate criminal for mere accomplices to receive such stiff sentences!
WASHINGTON (BP)–President Clinton vetoed legislation to remedy the penalty for married couples in the federal tax code, and Republican leaders in Congress promised to work to overcome his action.
WASHINGTON (BP)–President George W. Bush called for reduction of the tax penalty for married couples and elimination of the estate tax in his first address to a joint session of Congress Feb. 27.
GREENSBORO, NC (AgapePress) – It was a smaller than expected crowd, with only about half of the 2,400 tickets having been sold. So the evangelicals stood out all the more. Not because of their angry signs, but because of their own numbers and their gentle witness.
BAMAKO, Mali (Compass) — For some time, Muslim city authorities in Magnambougou planned for a beautiful new mosque in this new suburb of Bamako, the Malian capital. They acquired land in the middle of the urban dwellings and began to build a mosque that would dominate the area and accommodate more than 2,000 Muslims for prayers, much to the distress and dismay of local Christians.
In the Balkans, fear and tension fill the hearts of those who see a flare-up of the ongoing conflict between ethnic Albanians and the other peoples of the region. Rebels making almost daily mortar attacks and shootings surround Macedonia’s second largest city. Foreign workers have fled the tension-filled areas. The local population is scared and unsure of what the future holds. Yet a light is burning bright in the lives of many!
“I do not expect the tide of evil and immorality in America to ebb. We are cycling, as cultures and civilizations have always cycled, and are now on the down side of glory. Our once great and godly nation, having crested the hill of God’s grace, has begun a slow descent into the abyss of self destruction.”
Worried that his own regime may be at stake, Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak has warned that it is “now or never” for a landmark Mideast peace deal over the explosive issue of Jerusalem and placed the onus on Israel to make concessions to the Palestinians.