Nissan-Sivan, 5764
(March-June, 2004)
(Please keep in mind that Jewish dates begin on the evening before. This is a work in progress and will be updated as needed.)
1 Iyyar, 5764 (April 22, 2004)
2. April 22, 2004 is the 34th Earth Day. The new twist this year is what they are calling Earth Dinner (http://www.earthdinner.org). It is supposedly a "Thanksgiving Day" to the earth for everything it provides. They want to start a new tradition which seems to be a counterfeit Passover Seder meal. Earth Dinner has different food groups representing earth, air, fire and water and questions to ask the kids while celebrating this dinner. This is very, very close to what the Jews just celebrated last week with their special menus, explanations of what each food represented, questions asked of the children, etc. (check out online Haggadahs for similarities).Same time of the year, same basic structure--counterfeit.
This Earth Day Dinner goes along with their counterfeit Ark of Hope (http://www.arkofhope.org). They have made a replica of the Ark of the Covenant (although they say they've never heard of the Biblical Ark) and have put their Earth Charter along with some of their "sacred books" inside it. The Ark has panels on it representing "a season, a direction, an element [earth, air, fire, water] and a universal symbol." This Ark was presented to the UN in 2002 and will probably be gracing future UN religious ceremonies (or may even be placed in a rebuilt Temple in Israel?).
Their Earth Charter (which is an earthly constitution type treaty) (http://www.earthcharter.org) was presented to the UN not too long ago and there supposedly was a UN resolution on the table trying to get this Earth Charter adopted. Something happened and the resolution was tabled (as far as I know) but I bet we hear more about this Charter soon.
Press Release
Source: Organic Valley Family of FarmsEarth Dinner Propels Earth Day to New National Holiday: 'Invite Mother Earth To Dinner!'
Tuesday April 6, 9:03 am ETLA FARGE, Wisc., April 6 /PRNewswire/ -- Move over, Thanksgiving! Just in time for Earth Day, America is sprouting a powerful new holiday tradition called "the Earth Dinner." The paradigm-breaking feast brings family and friends together to pay tribute to the Earth and celebrate the many ways she feeds our bodies, minds and souls.
"People are hungry for meaningful rituals that emphasize community over commerce," said Theresa Marquez, Earth Dinner creator. "The Earth Dinner provides an opportunity for deeper connection, an essential need in a society where parents average only five minutes of quality time a day with their children and everyone eats on the run."
Marquez, an organic pioneer who serves as President, The Organic Center for Education and Promotion, and Public Affairs Director, Organic Valley Family of Farms, added, "Earth Dinner will help us get back in touch with where our food comes from. Our simple everyday food purchases have a huge impact on the health of the Earth and our personal health."
Create Your Own Earth Dinner Tradition
On April 22nd, the 34th anniversary of Earth Day, Earth Dinner participants will gather at dinner tables across the country to share local, sustainable and organic cuisine while participating in fun, enlightening interactions about the origins of our foods and fibers.
Dinner ideas, resources, menus and shopping guides are featured on the Earth Dinner web site (www.earthdinner.org). The site also offers dinner discussion topics divided into the categories of earth, air, fire and water. Designed for all ages, they cover the state of our environment, the impact of living on our planet, and fun facts about Mother Earth. Participants are encouraged to spread the word and send in their dinner stories to inspire more traditions each year.
America's new Earth Dinner initiative is supported by a broad- based coalition. Sponsors include: Beyond Pesticides, Children's Health Environmental Coalition, Earth Day Network, Earth Pledge, Environmental Working Group, Music Matters, Organic Valley Family of Farms, Social Venture Network, and Waterkeeper Alliance.
Earth Dinner Fun Facts: -- Only 3 percent of all the water on Earth is fresh. The rest is salty. -- Henny Penny was correct. The sky is falling! Billions of micrometeorites fall to Earth daily. -- There are three million earthworms in one acre of grassland. -- Two thirds of the world's population eats grass, primarily the seeds or cereals of rice, wheat, corn and other grasses.
One Family's Earth Dinner
Tim and Nancy agree on a plan that will fit with their busy schedule and introduce their youngsters (3, 5, and 7) to the concepts of Earth Day. They invite several nearby relatives and ask them each to bring a picture of their favorite place on Earth. They create a simple menu with four dishes of organic foods -- each representing a different element -- earth, air, fire and water.
When their guests arrive, their pictures are placed on the coffee table, and Nancy asks each of them to write the name of the place on a little card. Before sitting down to dinner, the group of adults and children talk about the pictures and try to guess which name card goes with which picture. Nancy encourages the group to talk about why each place is so special, what people, plants and animals live there, and what can be done to protect such places.
When everyone is seated for dinner, Tim offers a prayer of thanks and special recognition to Mother Earth for sharing her treasures with the family. Nancy passes four serving bowls around the table and explains the meaning she connects with each organic food: salad representing air, potatoes representing earth, roasted meat representing fire, and a fruit sauce representing water. Tim and Nancy share everything they know about the foods they serve. During the meal, the guests take turns reading from a list of Earth Dinner Table Topics. This leads to much learning and discussion.
For dessert, Nancy serves a layered cake she baked the night before. She explains that the various layers of the cake represent the habitat of diverse creatures living on, above, and below the Earth's surface. As a closing message, she says "the choices we make about the way we live, the clothes we wear, the ways we move around, and the foods we eat have everything to do with our favorite places on Earth," and she reads off the names of the places on the little cards from the picture game before dinner.
About Invite Mother Earth to Dinner
The Earth Dinner initiative was developed by Organic Valley Family of Farms (www.organicvalley.coop) to enhance the Earth Day tradition with a celebration of food and its important connection with our health and environment. For further information, please visit www.earthdinner.org.
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3. Last Update: 22/04/2004
Islamic states slam Gaza plan, urge UN presence in Mideast
By News Agencies
The Organization of the Islamic Conference (OIC) on Thursday issued a declaration denouncing Israel's plan to unilaterally withdraw from the Gaza Strip and parts of the West Bank, saying it violates the internationally-brokered road map for peace.
Meanwhile, Palestinian Prime Minister Ahmed Qureia on Thursday urged U.S. President George W. Bush to reconsider his tacit recognition of some settlements in the West Bank.
The OIC statement also demanded that the United Nations play a key role in the territories as well as Iraq, saying that security in the region was increasingly unstable. It urged the UN Security Council to deploy a peacekeeping force in Gaza and the West Bank to monitor implementation of the road map.
"The situation in the region, especially in Palestine and in Iraq, has become extremely alarming," Malaysian Prime Minister Abdullah Badawi told an emergency meeting of the 57-state organization.
"The latest developments are threatening the stability and integrity of both, as well as the peace and security of its neighboring countries," he told the conference in Malaysia's administrative capital.
Badawi also denounced Israel's recent assassinations of Hamas leaders Sheikh Ahmed Yassin and Abdel Aziz Rantisi, saying the killings meant relations between Israelis and Palestinians had "never been more precarious."
The OIC declaration, however, did not call for sanctions against Israel, or for Islamic countries that have ties with Israel such as Egypt, Jordan and Turkey, to break relations - something the Palestinian delegation had been lobbying for.
Abdullah said Israel was guilty of state terrorism and Washington was in danger of losing its role of honest broker in that conflict. But he also condemned Palestinian suicide bombings as "unnecessary sacrifices of human lives."
Foreign ministers from Pakistan, Indonesia, Malaysia and the Palestinian Authority are attending the one-day meeting. About a dozen others have sent junior ministers or other envoys.
Neither Egypt nor Jordan were at the OIC meeting.
In his letter to Bush, Qureia said recent U.S. declarations that Israel could keep some of the West Bank and would not have to absorb Palestinian refugees contradict long-standing U.S. policy.
In 1991, he wrote, the U.S. government stated that it "opposed unilateral actions that prejudge the outcome of permanent-status negotiations." Qureia said Bush is allowing Israel "to continue creating illegal facts on the ground" by expanding West Bank settlements.
Writing to Bush, Qureia also said that such conditions "can never make the Gaza evacuation a historic opportunity, but rather a prison."
But Bush on Wednesday rejected international condemnation of Prime Minister Ariel Sharon and said world leaders owed him a "thank you" for his plans for the Gaza Strip and the West Bank.
Bush blasted the Palestinian leadership as having "failed the people, year after year after year" by not preventing terror attacks against Israelis.
Bush sparked a backlash in the Arab world last week by endorsing Israel's right to hold on to some West Bank settlements on land captured in the 1967 Six-Day War.
He also said a right of return by Palestinian refugees to Israel was unrealistic, while backing a Gaza Strip pullout plan in a historic U.S. policy shift.
"Ariel Sharon came to America, and he stood up with me and he said, 'We are pulling out of Gaza and parts of the West Bank,'" Bush told a newspaper conference in Washington.
In "my judgment, the whole world should have said, 'Thank you, Ariel. Now we have a chance to begin the construction of a peaceful Palestinian state,'" Bush added.
Lamenting the response to Sharon's initiatives, Bush said: "Yes, there was kind of silence, wasn't there? Because the responsibility is hard."
Bush's support for Sharon may have gone over well with conservative and Jewish voters in the U.S. presidential election, but it inflamed the Arab world.
This week, Jordan's King Abdullah abruptly postponed a scheduled meeting with Bush at the White House because of concerns over the U.S. stance on the peace process.
Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak, in comments published on Tuesday, warned that Arabs in the Middle East hate the United States more than ever following the invasion of Iraq and Israel's assassination of Hamas leaders.
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4. Arafat forces 20 fugitives from compound
Palestinian leader said to fear Israeli army invasionThe Associated Press
Updated: 12:29 AM April22, 2004RAMALLAH, West Bank - Yasser Arafat forced 20 fugitives hiding in his West Bank headquarters to leave the premises early Thursday, fearing the Israeli army would invade the complex to grab them, one of the departing fugitives said.
The fugitives, all members of the Al Aqsa Martyrs Brigade, a militant group linked to Arafat's Fatah faction, have been hiding from the army in Arafat's headquarters for months. Israel has repeatedly demanded they be kicked out.
Last week, Israeli security officials summoned Ismail Jabber, commander of the Palestinian national forces, and told him if the fugitives were not forced out they would invade, and if necessary, pull them out of "Arafat's desk drawer," said a fugitive, who spoke on condition of anonymity.
Following that, five of the fugitives left voluntarily. Overnight, at about 3 a.m., Arafat ” under pressure from his aides to get rid of the fugitives due to signs Israel was preparing to invade the city of Ramallah ” personally told the 20 remaining men to leave, the fugitive said.
He said they had left but were angry.
ARAFAT ABANDONS HIS MEN
"Yasser Arafat has abandoned us." So says Ali Barghouti, nephew of imprisoned Tanzim terrorist leader Marwan Barghouti, after Arafat threw him and 20 other wanted Arabs out of his Mukata headquarters in Ramallah.
Arafat has been holed up in the Mukata for over two years, and together with him for the past several months - until early this morning - was a group of terrorists wanted by Israel. The terrorists took refuge with Arafat, in the fairly certain knowledge that Israel would not bomb Arafat's headquarters. This morning at 3 AM, however, Arafat suddenly called them all in to his office and told them to get out immediately. Arafat said that he had received word that the Israelis were about to target them, and that they must therefore leave. They begged to have the decree pushed off for several hours, but Arafat held firm: They must leave at once. Ali Barghouti told the French Press Agency this morning that Arafat had "abandoned" them to their fate.
Arutz Sheva News Service
http://www.IsraelNationalNews.com
Thursday, Apr. 22, 2004 / Rosh Chodesh Iyar 5764-----------------------
5. U.S., Israel in conjunction like binary stars
While many national flags sport stars, none has more than America's Stars and Stripes. The Israeli flag features the Shield of David, an emblem of two triangles. This looks like a blue star too.
The two national flags remind me of binary stars up in the sky.
Binary stars revolve around a common center of gravity, each affected by the gravitational pull of the other. Two stars in the constellation Perseus, known as Algol, offer a famous example. Exceptionally keeping to themselves in the vast universe, they seem to be isolated from other celestial bodies.
The United States and Israel seem to stand out in the international community for their heavy reliance on military force to get things done, the former starting the war in Iraq and the latter mounting concentrated attacks on the radical Palestinian groups.
In Iraq, the U.S.-led ``coalition of the willing'' has started to crumble, with Spain and Honduras set to withdraw their troops. And Israeli forces killed the top leader of an Islamic militant group even after Prime Minister Ariel Sharon conferred with U.S. President George W. Bush. I wonder what the two leaders discussed.
The magnitude of Algol changes. The constellation they belong to is thought to resemble a perceived scene in Greek mythology-the hero Perseus holding the severed head of Medusa, a monster with snakes for hair.
The binary stars are located in the forehead of the monster. The name Algol is derived from Arabic. Variable stars were uncanny to Arabians. (All this according to ``Seiza Daizen,'' an encyclopedia of constellations published by Sakuhinsha.)
The magnitude changes much the same way as a solar or lunar eclipse, growing dim when another star moves in between the bright star of the pair and Earth.
I wonder if the massive fighting in Iraq may be similarly tempering the shock of Israel's frenzied recourse to military action. But for the war in Iraq, Israel's behavior would have stood out in sharper relief.
I hope that the United States and Israel, isolated like binary stars, will dissolve such an alliance, correct their orbits and start moving in the direction of light with surrounding stars.
--The Asahi Shimbun, April 21(IHT/Asahi: April 22,2004) (04/22)
http://www.asahi.com/english/vox/TKY200404220137.html
2 Iyyar, 5764 (April 23, 2004)
2. 1 Kings 6:1 And it came to pass in the four hundred and eightieth year after the children of Israel were come out of the land of Egypt, in the fourth year of Solomon's reign over Israel, in the month Zif, which is the second month, that he began to build the house of the LORD.------------------
3. U.S. asks Spain to help in Mideast peace search
www.reuters.com/locales/newsArticle.jsp;:40887dc5:1a65bba19f1fc1e0?type=wo rl dNews&locale=en_IN&storyID=4916421
MADRID (Reuters 23 April 2004) - Spain's new foreign minister said on Thursday the United States had asked him for help in promoting peace between Israelis and Palestinians.
U.S. Secretary of State Colin Powell and National Security Adviser Condoleezza Rice asked Miguel Angel Moratinos to mediate in the Israeli-Palestinian conflict during a meeting in Washington on Wednesday, a Foreign Ministry spokesman said. But Moratinos, who spent seven years as the European Union's special envoy to the Middle East, was cautious about the word "mediation" when questioned at a news conference later.
"The word 'mediation' is a word with a lot of diplomatic content. Mediations are when you have the mandate of the parties (or) a clear mandate of the international community," he said after talks with visiting French Foreign Minister Michel Barnier. "What our American friends have asked me -- given my experience -- is that I should help them, that Spain should contribute within the European Union to create this new dynamic that has begun with the (Israeli) initiative to withdraw from Gaza. No more and no less," he said.
Similar efforts were being made by Barnier and EU foreign policy chief Javier Solana, said Moratinos, a member of Spain's new Socialist government which took office last weekend.
"I agreed to contribute my grain of sand to get out of this dilemma, (something) which is fundamental for the stability of the whole region," he said.
In Washington, a state department official said there was no question of a mediating role.
"In the meeting it was agreed they would help on the subject of the withdrawal from Gaza and reform in the Greater Middle East Initiative. They agreed to help us present these things as moments of opportunity," the official, who asked not to be named, said.
Barnier stressed Moratinos' knowledge of the people and the sensitivities of the Middle East.
"We need that experience (in the EU) to help the road map progress," he said, referring to a peace plan endorsed by the United States, the EU, the United Nations and Russia.
The EU tried to defuse tension with Washington over the Middle East last Saturday, saying Israel's planned withdrawal from the Gaza Strip could be a "significant step" on the road to peace.
U.S.-Spanish relations have come under strain because of the new Spanish government's decision to withdraw the country's 1,400 troops from Iraq as soon as possible.
Spain's Socialist party ousted a strongly pro-American party in elections on March 14, three days after the Madrid train bombings that killed 191 people.
IMRA - Independent Media Review and Analysis
Website: www.imra.org.il----------------------------
4. PA officials estimate prime minister's position to be abolished next week
Decision reached calls for transfer of premier's powers to Arafat. Palestinian Legislative Council to vote on its approval. Marwan Atamna
The leadership of the Palestinian Authority (PA) has decided to abolish the position of prime minister and transfer all its powers to Chairman Yasser Arafat, PA officials said on Thursday. They said that the decision was reached after a meeting held tonight at Arafat's office in the Mukata in Ramallah.
According to the sources, the Palestinian Legislative Council is to vote on the decision next week. It is highly likely the council will endorse the change. The sources added that the move is aimed at exerting pressure on the US following President Bush's endorsement of Prime Minister Ariel Sharon's disengagement plan.
Palestinian Prime Minister Ahmed Queria (Abu Ala) said on Wednesday that the entire Palestinian cabinet is considering resigning in protest of Washington's pro-Israeli policy.
(2004-04-22 21:26:07.0)
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5. Fri, Apr 23, 2004
Sharon: No Longer Bound by Pledge Not to Harm Arafat
JERUSALEM (Reuters) - Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon said on Friday he was no longer bound by a pledge he gave President Bush not to harm Palestinian President Yasser Arafat. "I said during in our first meeting about three years ago that I accepted his request not to harm Arafat physically," Sharon told Israel's Channel 2. "But I am released from this commitment. I release myself from this commitment regarding Arafat."
Sharon said he told this to Bush last week during a meeting with him at the White House, where he received U.S. approval for his plan to unilaterally evacuate all settlements from the Gaza Strip and some in the West Bank.
Sharon gave no indication that any move against Arafat was imminent. Although the United States does not acknowledge the Palestinian leader, Washington is opposed to Israel killing him.
Shortly after Sharon's comments, the State Department said it stood by its opposition to the assassination of Arafat.
"Nothing has changed in the U.S. position and I will look at the statement and see what we have to say," State Department spokesman Richard Boucher told reporters.
An advisor for Arafat, Nabil Abu Rdainah, said Sharon's statement would lead to increased tensions in the region.
"We reject Sharon's statement and demand clarification from Mr. Bush on such a statement and hold Sharon responsible for such a dangerous statement," he said. "This is an escalation and will lead to increased tensions."
Sharon's tough talk could go down well among members of his right-wing Likud party who will vote on his Gaza withdrawal plan on May 2.
Sharon's televised comments expanded on similar remarks he made in a newspaper interview several weeks ago.
3 Iyyar, 5764 (April 24, 2004)
ID card trials to start next weekTrials of identity cards are to be launched next week, the BBC has learnt.
The pilot will involve 10,000 volunteers and be run from the Passport Office in London and three other centres around Britain.
The government hopes the pilot scheme will pave the way for compulsory identity cards for everyone within the next decade.
Ministers are due to set out details of plans for a nationwide identity database on Monday.
Biometric options
They will publish draft legislation and Home Secretary David Blunkett says he wants a Bill paving the way for the scheme to be passed before the next general election.
Carrying false identity papers is also to be made a specific offence for the first time under the plans, with offenders facing up to 10 years in jail, say government sources.
The new ID cards will hold biometric details - facial dimensions, an iris scan or fingerprints.
The pilot scheme will try to assess which of the three options works best.
HAVE YOUR SAYNeil Fisher, from QinetiQ - one of the companies developing the new technology, said the public would want to be able to prove their identity to show they were not a risk.
I don't mind carrying a card, I just don't want to pay for something that benefits the government and not me Ray, Southampton, UKHe told the BBC's 10 O'Clock News: "You will want this to be part of your life.
"You will want, in what's fast becoming a digital society, to be able to authenticate your identity almost for any transaction that you do, be it going to the bank, going to the shops, going to the airport."
News of the pilot follows an opinion poll suggesting 80% of people backed a national ID card scheme.
But most of the 1,000 people questioned by MORI expressed doubts the cards could be introduced without problems.
Nothing to fear?
Almost half those surveyed said they would not want to pay for the cards. A £35 fee has been proposed.
From 2007-08 all new passports and driving licences will include biometric data and there will be separate identity cards for those who do not drive or have passports.
By 2012, it is estimated that 80% of workers will have the card or a combined driving licence or passport.
The Home Office hopes the scheme will be compulsory by 2014.
The plans are designed to tackle identity fraud, which costs Britain an estimated £1.3bn each year.
A new government website giving the public advice on how to avoid identity theft is also expected to be set up this summer.
On Thursday, Mr Blunkett said the ID cards would probably be free for young people and there would be concessions for the elderly and those on low incomes.
He said the biometric system proposed would end multiple identities and give a boost to the fight against terrorism and organised crime.
"What has anybody to worry about having their true identity known?" he said.
ID PLANS"They have got everything to fear from someone stealing and misusing it."
2008: 80% of economically active population will carry some form of biometric identity document Estimated cost of £3.1bn Consortium of companies in UKPS trials led by SchlumbergerSema include NEC, Identix, Iridian Source: Home OfficeThe government has said it sees ID cards as a weapon against terrorism.
But civil liberties groups are opposed to the plans, claiming that having a number of means of identification, such as a passport, driving licence or benefit card, was still the safest option.
They also predict the cards could worsen race discrimination, particularly as foreign nationals will have to carry the cards before Britons do.
Story from BBC NEWS:
http://news.bbc.co.uk/go/pr/fr/-/1/hi/uk_politics/3654621.stmPublished: 2004/04/24 07:11:54 GMT
4 Iyyar, 5764 (April 25, 2004)
5 Iyyar, 5764 (April 26, 2004)
a. Israel was declared a state on 5th Iyar, 5708 - May 14, 1948In Israel, Yom Ha'atzma'ut is: A national holiday.
Independence Day in Israel is preceded by Yom Hazikaron, a national day of remembrance for the fallen in its defense and by the hands of terrorists, that is marked by national ceremonies and periods of silence. Surprisingly, Israelis are still searching for a traditional way to celebrate Independence Day. In recent years the emphasis on military parades has been withdrawn, and during this national holiday, Israelis tend to go on family picnics, visit the battle sites, and fill the streets with festivities. Some religious Jews offer special prayers of thanks and the opportunity is also taken to hold the International Bible Quiz on Yom Ha'atzma'ut. (Answers to Yom Ha'atzma'ut Quiz)b. Like all Jewish holidays the festivities begin on the evening of what Westerners would call the day before. (the Jewish day begins at sundown) Public buildings are edged with colored lights (like Christmas lights in America). Of course, there are flags and Star-of-David banners hanging from buildings and lampposts and even flying from cars. Bands play patriotic songs, some old traditional Jewish melodies, some new Israeli compositions.
Street vendors sell tiras (corn on the cob) and plastic squeaky hammers (huh?!) This is beyond doubt the oddest custom to typify this holiday in Israel: the custom of bopping total strangers over the head with a toy hammer which emits a high pitched squeaking noise when it hits! Why? Why not? It seems to be just one of those things that somebody started one year and it caught on and became a tradition.
Spraying people with "silly string" string is another custom in the same vein.
Of course, there are fireworks, too, and a joy to watch over the flood-lit walls of the Old City. The following day there are speeches, parades and barbecues. (Yom Ha-Atzma'ut)
6 Iyyar, 5764 (April 27, 2004)
4/27/04Florida town to use blanket of surveillance cameras
MANALAPAN, Fla. (AP) — One of the nation's wealthiest towns will soon have cameras and computers running background checks on every car and driver that passes through.
Police Chief Clay Walker said cameras will take infrared photos recording a car's tag number, then software will automatically run the numbers through law enforcement databases. A 911 dispatcher is alerted if the car is stolen or is the subject of a "be on the lookout" warning.
Next to the tag number, police will have a picture of the driver, taken with another set of cameras — upgraded versions of the standard surveillance cameras already in place.
If there is a robbery, police will be able to comb records to determine who drove through town on a given afternoon or evening.
"Courts have ruled that in a public area, you have no expectation of privacy," said Walker, one of 11 sworn officers who protects Manalapan's 321 residents. Still, Walker says Manalapan's data will be destroyed every three months.
Manalapan's town council authorized $60,000 in security upgrades last week after three burglaries this winter robbed residents of $400,000 in jewelry. The town averages two or three burglaries per year and residents demanded swift response, Town Manager Gregory Dunham said.
The 2000 Census listed Manalapan, about 15 miles south of West Palm Beach, among the nation's richest cities, with two out of every three homes worth more than $500,000.
Contributing: Information from: The Miami Herald.
7 Iyyar, 5764 (April 28, 2004)
8 Iyyar, 5764 (April 29, 2004)
9 Iyyar, 5764 (April 30, 2004)
10 Iyyar, 5764 (May 1, 2004)
11 Iyyar, 5764 (May 2, 2004)
12 Iyyar, 5764 (May 3, 2004)
13 Iyyar, 5764 (May 4, 2004)
4. Secretary-General's opening statement at "Quartet" press conference - New York, 4 May 2004
www.un.org/News/dh/infocus/middle_east/sg-open-stat-4may04.htmGood afternoon, Ladies and Gentlemen. Thank you for waiting. Let me now read you what the Quartet has agreed:
We reaffirm our commitment to our shared vision of two states living side by side in peace and security. One of those states will be Israel and the other a viable, democratic, sovereign and contiguous Palestine.
We call on both parties to take steps to fulfil their obligations under the roadmap, as called for in Security Council resolution 1515 and in our previous statements, and to meet the commitments they made at the Red Sea Summits in Aqaba and Sharm el Sheikh.
In that context, we welcome the Israeli government's recent reaffirmation of its readiness to implement certain obligations under the roadmap, including progress towards a freeze on settlement activity. We urge the Israeli government to implement these commitments, and to fully meet its roadmap obligations.
We view the present situation in the Middle East with great concern. We condemn the continuing terror attacks on Israel, and call on the Palestinian Authority to take immediate action against terrorist groups and individuals who plan and execute such attacks.
While recognizing Israel's legitimate right to self-defence in the face of terrorist attacks against its citizens, within the parameters of international humanitarian law, we call on the Government of Israel to exert maximum efforts to avoid civilian casualties.
We also call on the Government of Israel to take all possible steps now, consistent with Israel's legitimate security needs, to ease the humanitarian and economic plight of the Palestinian people, including increasing freedom of movement for people and goods both within and from the West Bank and Gaza, removing checkpoints, and other steps to respect the dignity of the Palestinian people and improve their quality of life.
The Government of Israel should take no actions undermining trust such as deportation, attacks on civilians, confiscation and/or demolition of Palestinian homes and property, and other measures specified in the Tenet work plan. The Quartet calls for renewed efforts to reach a comprehensive ceasefire as a step towards dismantlement of terrorist capabilities and infrastructure, and renewed progress towards peace through implementation of the roadmap.
We note the Government of Israel's pledge that the barrier is a security rather than a political barrier and should be temporary rather than permanent. We continue to note with great concern the actual and proposed route of the barrier, particularly as it results in the confiscation of Palestinian land, cuts off the movement of people and goods, and undermines Palestinians' trust in the roadmap process by appearing to prejudge the final borders of a future Palestinian state.
We took positive note of Prime Minister Sharon's announced intention to withdraw from all Gaza settlements and parts of the West Bank. This should provide a rare moment of opportunity in the search for peace in the Middle East. This initiative, which must lead to a full Israeli withdrawal and complete end of occupation in Gaza, can be a step towards achieving the two-state vision; and could restart progress on the roadmap.
We further note that any unilateral initiatives by the Government of Israel should be undertaken in a manner consistent with the roadmap, and with the two-state vision that underlies the roadmap. We reaffirm President Bush's June 24, 2002 call for an end to the Israeli occupation that began in 1967, through a settlement negotiated between the parties.
We also note that no party should take unilateral actions that seek to predetermine issues that can only be resolved through negotiation and agreement between the two parties.
Any final settlement on issues such as borders and refugees must be mutually agreed to by Israelis and Palestinians, based on Security Council resolutions 242, 338, 1397 and 1515, the terms of reference of the Madrid peace process, previous agreements, and the initiative of Saudi Crown Prince Abdullah endorsed by the Beirut Arab League Summit. It must also be consistent with the roadmap.
We have agreed to undertake the following steps, with appropriate mechanisms established to monitor progress and performance by all sides:
We will act on an urgent basis, in conjunction with the World Bank, the UN Special Coordinator (UNSCO) and the Ad-hoc Liaison Committee (AHLC), on the basis of a World Bank/UNSCO rapid-assessment study, to ensure that Palestinian humanitarian needs are met, Palestinian infrastructure is restored and developed, and economic activity is reinvigorated. We are prepared to engage with a responsible and accountable Palestinian leadership, committed to reform and security performance. The Quartet members will undertake to oversee and monitor progress on these fronts.
We will seek to ensure that arrangements are put in place to ensure security for Palestinians and Israelis, as well as freedom of movement, and greater mobility and access, for Palestinians. We underscore the need for agreed, transparent arrangements with all sides on access, mobility and safety for international organizations, and for bilateral donors and their personnel. As Israel withdraws, custody of Israeli-built infrastructure and land evacuated by Israel should be transferred, through an appropriate mechanism, to a reorganized Palestinian Authority, which - in coordination with representatives of Palestinian civil society, the Quartet, and other representatives of the international community - will as quickly as possible determine equitable and transparent arrangements for the ultimate disposition of these areas.
Effective security arrangements continue to be critical to any possibility of progress. Palestinian security services should be restructured and retrained, consistent with the roadmap, to provide law and order and security to the Palestinians, and to end terror attacks against Israel.
Finally, we reaffirm our commitment to a just, comprehensive, and lasting settlement to the Arab-Israeli conflict, based on Resolutions 242 and 338. We remind all parties of the need to take into account the long-term consequences of their actions, and of their obligation to make rapid progress toward resumption of a political dialogue.
An appropriate coordinating and oversight mechanism will be established, under the Quartet's authority.
We call on all states in the region to exert every effort to promote peace and to combat terrorism. Thank you very much. We will now take your questions.
IMRA - Independent Media Review and Analysis
Website: www.imra.org.il
14 Iyyar, 5764 (May 5, 2004)
2a.KJV Numbers 9:9 And the LORD spake unto Moses, saying, 10 Speak unto the children of Israel, saying, If any man of you or of your posterity shall be unclean by reason of a dead body, or be in a journey afar off, yet he shall keep the passover unto the LORD. 11 The fourteenth day of the second month at even they shall keep it, and eat it with unleavened bread and bitter herbs. 12 They shall leave none of it unto the morning, nor break any bone of it: according to all the ordinances of the passover they shall keep it. 13 But the man that is clean, and is not in a journey, and forbeareth to keep the passover, even the same soul shall be cut off from among his people: because he brought not the offering of the LORD in his appointed season, that man shall bear his sin. 14 And if a stranger shall sojourn among you, and will keep the passover unto the LORD; according to the ordinance of the passover, and according to the manner thereof, so shall he do: ye shall have one ordinance, both for the stranger, and for him that was born in the land.b. Second Passover celebrated after a 30 day grace period.
c. If we follow the "rules" of the first Passover we should subtract four days from the 14th and come to the day that the Passover lambs were picked, 10 Iyyar, which is the day that the ark began to be loaded; certain people and animals were chosen to be brought aboard.
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3. Papal envoy breaks ranks on gay couples
Ben Sills in Madrid, and Stephen Bates
Wednesday May 5, 2004
The GuardianThe Pope's ambassador to one of Europe's leading Catholic countries has hinted that the church should "acknowledge" gay partnerships - a significant crack in the Vatican's resolute opposition to "evil and deviant" gay relationships.
Monsignor Manuel Monteiro de Castro told a conference of Spanish bishops at the weekend: "The new political situation in which we are living in Spain sets new challenges in the spreading of the gospel and we must meet those challenges in an appropriate manner."
Departing from his prepared speech, the papal nuncio added that although the law in Spain, and many other countries, defines marriage as the union of a man and a woman, "there are other forms of cohabitation and it is good that they be recognised".
The uncommonly outspoken remarks, reported in the Spanish press, will cause extreme annoyance within a papal circle desperate to stop the encroachment of what it sees as decadent sexual morality.
Although he insisted that same-sex unions could not be regarded as marriages, the envoy implied that they were at least worthy of compassion.
"They are not the same as marriage," he said. "We will leave the term marriage for that which it has always referred to, and other arrangements should be given other names."
The nuncio said gay couples should be given access to certain civil rights, including those within the social security system. He added: "The church can also help them in their spiritual life."
The remarks were in sharp contrast to last year's Vatican guidelines which called on Catholics to campaign against the legalisation of gay relationships, calling them evil, deviant and a grave threat to society.
The document said: "We must refrain from any formal cooperation with the promulgation or application of such seriously unjust laws and, as far as is possible, from any material cooperation in their application."
It added: "There are absolutely no grounds for considering homosexual unions to be in any way similar or even remotely analogous to God's plan for marriage and family. Marriage is holy while homosexual acts go against the natural moral law.
"Legal recognition of homosexual unions or placing them on the same level as marriage would mean not only the approval of deviant behaviour ... but would also obscure basic values which belong to the common inheritance of humanity."
The debate mirrors the crisis in the worldwide Anglican communion, threatened with splits over the church's attitude to homosexuals, particularly those who are ordained. A commission is wrestling with new structures that would enable the Anglican church to hold together despite breaches over the issue.
In November the US Episcopal church consecrated its first openly gay bishop and the Anglican church in Canada is poised next month to approve blessing services for same-sex couples. In Britain the gay cleric Canon Jeffrey John, denied promotion to a bishopric last year, has been appointed cathedral dean of St Albans.
The Catholic church is far from such considerations - though studies have suggested a high proportion of priests in training in the west for the priesthood are gay.
Although some Catholic bishops in England might be privately relatively sympathetic to the nuncio's views, they have publicly criticised the government's proposed civil partnerships legislation.
But there has been a growing sense within the Spanish church that it should acknowledge and accept different lifestyles. A meeting in the Gerona diocese last week also defended gay relationships.
But the Archbishop of Madrid, Cardinal Antonio María Rouco Varela, told the conference: "Marriage, as an institution, contributes to the growth and stability of society as a structure for bringing up children. For that, we owe it the recognition and legal support of the state.
"Homosexual cohabitation, which can never fulfil that role, cannot be credited with the same social function as marriage and the family."
He added: "This is not about denying anyone their rights, on the contrary it's about defending the rights of the family in a coherent fashion, and that is an issue of vital importance for the present and future of Spanish society."
The cardinal said acceptance of homosexuality as equivalent to marriage was a "sad truth" about the declining importance of religious values in Spanish society.
Guardian Unlimited © Guardian Newspapers Limited 2004
http://www.guardian.co.uk/print/0,3858,4916544-111157,00.html
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4. Israel Strikes Black Gold
May 05, '04 / 14 Iyar 5764Israel may have struck gold - black gold, that is. A deposit containing close to a billion barrels may have been discovered at a site east of Kfar Saba, according to the fuel exploration company Givot Olam. The company announced yesterday that latest estimates of the Meged-4 oil well have exceeded original predictions, and that it contains an extremely valuable deposit of oil. The company's stock jumped 55% following the report.
Arutz-7's Ezra HaLevi reports that only about 20% of the reserve is extractable from its location some 4.5 kilometers below ground. The value of the oil at today's prices is approximately $46 billion, and could serve to supply Israel's oil needs for two years.
Givot Olam has reported striking oil in the past, but has not yet succeeded in producing it in commercial amounts. The company has been drilling in the area for some ten years, and feels confident that this time, it will be successful. So far, commercial oil fields have been found in Israel only in the Dead Sea region.
http://www.israelnationalnews.com/news.php3?id=61864
15 Iyyar, 5764 (May 6, 2004)
2. In Iyar appeared the merit of the lesser Passover and of the manna which was given to Israel on the fifteenth of this month. (Midrash Rabbah - Esther VII:11)-----------------
3.Fifty-eighth session
Agenda item 38[ Text: ods-dds-ny.un.org/doc/UNDOC/GEN/N04/341/28/PDF/N0434128.pdf?OpenElement
Vote: www.un.org/News/Press/docs/2004/ga10240.doc.htm ]Question of Palestine
Algeria, Bahrain, Bangladesh, Brunei Darussalam, Comoros, Cuba, Djibouti, Egypt, Indonesia, Jordan, Kuwait, Lebanon, Libyan Arab Jamahiriya, Malaysia, Mauritania, Morocco, Namibia, Oman, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Senegal, Somalia, South Africa, Sudan, Syrian Arab Republic, Tunisia, United Arab Emirates, Yemen and Palestine: revised draft resolutionStatus of the Occupied Palestinian Territory, including East Jerusalem
The General Assembly,
Recalling its resolutions 3237 (XXIX) of 22 November 1974, 43/177 of 15 December 1988 and 52/250 of 7 July 1998,Recalling also Security Council resolutions 242 (1967) of 22 November 1967, 338 (1973) of 22 October 1973, 1397 (2002) of 12 March 2002 and 1515 (2003) of 19 November 2003,
Recalling further the relevant provisions of international law as well as relevant United Nations resolutions with regard to Israeli settlements and to Occupied East Jerusalem,
Reaffirming the principle of the inadmissibility of the acquisition of territory by force,
Noting that Palestine, in its capacity as observer and pending its attainment of full membership in the United Nations, does not present credentials to the General Assembly,
Affirming the need to enable the Palestinian people to exercise sovereignty and to achieve independence in their State, Palestine,
1. Affirms that the status of the Palestinian territory occupied since 1967, including East Jerusalem, remains one of military occupation, and affirms, in accordance with the rules and principles of international law and relevant resolutions of the United Nations, including Security Council resolutions, that the Palestinian people have the right to self-determination and to sovereignty over their territory and that Israel, the occupying Power, has only the duties and obligations of an occupying Power under the Fourth Geneva Convention1 and the Regulations annexed to the Hague Convention Respecting the Laws and Customs of War of 1907;2
[emphasis mine]2. Expresses its determination to contribute to the achievement of the inalienable rights of the Palestinian people and the attainment of a just and comprehensive negotiated peace settlement in the Middle East resulting in two viable, sovereign and independent States, Israel and Palestine, based on the pre-1967 borders and living side by side in peace and security. __________________ 1 United Nations, Treaty Series, vol. 75, No. 973. 2 See Carnegie Endowment for International Peace, The Hague Conventions and Declarations of 1899 and 1907 (New York, Oxford University Press, 1915).
Vote on Question of Palestine
The status of the occupied Palestinian territory, including East Jerusalem (document A/58//L.61) was adopted by a recorded vote of 140 in favour to 6 against, with 11 abstentions, as follows:
In favour: Algeria, Andorra, Antigua and Barbuda, Argentina, Armenia, Austria, Azerbaijan, Bahrain, Bangladesh, Barbados, Belarus, Belgium, Belize, Bolivia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Botswana, Brazil, Brunei Darussalam, Bulgaria, Burkina Faso, Burundi, Cambodia, Canada, Central African Republic, Chile, China, Colombia, Comoros, Congo, Croatia, Cuba, Cyprus, Czech Republic, Democratic People's Republic of Korea, Denmark, Djibouti, Dominica, Ecuador, Egypt, Eritrea, Estonia, Ethiopia, Finland, France, Gabon, Gambia, Georgia, Germany, Ghana, Greece, Grenada, Guinea, Guinea-Bissau, Guyana, Haiti, Hungary, Iceland, India, Indonesia, Iran, Ireland, Italy, Jamaica, Japan, Jordan, Kazakhstan, Kenya, Kuwait, Lao People's Democratic Republic, Latvia, Lebanon, Lesotho, Libya, Liechtenstein, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Malaysia, Maldives, Mali, Malta, Mauritius, Mexico, Monaco, Mongolia, Morocco, Mozambique, Myanmar, Namibia, Nepal, Netherlands, New Zealand, Niger, Nigeria, Norway, Oman, Pakistan, Paraguay, Philippines, Poland, Portugal, Qatar, Republic of Korea, Republic of Moldova, Romania, Russian Federation, Saint Lucia, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, San Marino, Saudi Arabia, Senegal, Sierra Leone, Singapore, Slovakia, Slovenia, Somalia, South Africa, Spain, Sri Lanka, Sudan, Sweden, Switzerland, Syria, Tajikistan, Thailand, The former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia, Timor-Leste, Togo, Trinidad and Tobago, Tunisia, Turkey, Uganda, Ukraine, United Arab Emirates, United Kingdom, United Republic of Tanzania, Uruguay, Venezuela, Viet Nam, Yemen, Zambia.
Against: Federated States of Micronesia, Israel, Marshall Islands, Nauru, Palau, United States.
Abstain: Australia, Costa Rica, Dominican Republic, Guatemala, Honduras, Nicaragua, Peru, Serbia and Montenegro, Solomon Islands, Tonga, Tuvalu.
Absent: Albania, Angola, Bahamas, Bhutan, Cameroon, Côte d'Ivoire, Democratic Republic of the Congo, El Salvador, Equatorial Guinea, Fiji, Kiribati, Kyrgyzstan, Madagascar, Panama, Papua New Guinea, Rwanda, Saint Kitts and Nevis, Samoa, Sao Tome and Principe, Seychelles, Swaziland, Turkmenistan, Uzbekistan, Vanuatu, Zimbabwe
IMRA - Independent Media Review and Analysis
Website: www.imra.org.il---------------
4. Statement by Ambassador Dan Gillerman
Permanent Representative of Israel to the United NationsUnited Nations,
New York 6 May 2004Mr. President,
Let me take you back, just four days ago, to show you the real face of the people who are staging this charade here today. Last Sunday a pregnant Israeli mother and her four children - aged 2 to 11 -- were gunned down at point blank range. After shooting the mother, eight months pregnant with a baby boy, the terrorists approached the vehicle and shot each of her four little girls in the head, just to ensure that they were dead.
Members of Yasser Arafat's own Fatah Al-Aqsa Martyrs' Brigade and the Islamic Jihad proudly claimed responsibility for the "heroic" attack. There are reports of a rally planned in the streets controlled by the Palestinian Authority to "celebrate" it. Like the hundreds of terrorist attacks before it, not a single measure was taken by the Palestinian leadership to prevent this attack or bring its perpetrators to justice.
To any fair-minded observer it should be obvious that the steadfast refusal of the Palestinian leadership to comply with its specific Roadmap obligations to fight terrorism and prevent "all acts of violence against Israelis anywhere" is killing the peace process. The Palestinian rejection of its obligations to take key reform measures, to end corruption and the near religious commitment to missing opportunities that could revitalize the peace process is by now notorious. Indeed, as is well known, the Palestinian side has still not taken on any of its primary, first phase obligations within the Roadmap framework.
And yet, we convene today not to address the massacre perpetrated against the Hatuel family, or to condemn the Palestinian leadership for its involvement in these atrocities, but to consider the latest attempt by the Palestinian side to have the Assembly adopt yet another resolution that advances its partisan, distorted agenda.
Mr. President,
Just two days ago, the Quartet convened in this very building and issued an important statement on the Middle East peace process. Today, the General Assembly has been asked to adopt a text that undermines that very statement.
The statement issued by the Quartet, which includes the UN itself, as well as the European Union, the United States and the Russian Federation, reaffirmed the basic principle that no party should take "unilateral actions that seek to predetermine issues that can only be resolved through negotiation and agreement".
This principle is fundamental to the peace process and has been part of every peace agreement signed between the parties, as well as Security Council resolutions 242 (1967) and 338 (1973). The Roadmap too, as the Quartet affirmed just 48 hours ago, specifically determines that permanent status issues are reserved for the final phase of negotiations between the parties.
This principle was also recently reaffirmed by Israel in the context of the planned withdrawal from Gaza and parts of the West Bank. The Quartet in its statement on Tuesday took positive note of that plan and regarded it as "a rare moment of opportunity", recognizing that it has the potential to restart the Roadmap process towards a mutually agreed two State solution - to which Israel remains committed. As Israel has demonstrated, even without a genuine partner in peace, we continue to seek ways to improve the situation and comply with our obligations, while protecting the security and basic right to life of our citizens.
For those who have taken the care to read the details of the plan, it is clear that it is completely consistent with Security Council resolutions 242 and 338, with the Roadmap and indeed with previous peace proposals. In the context of this plan, Israel reiterated its commitment to a negotiated solution to all permanent status issues within the context of the Roadmap, and we do so again today. We recognize the principle that no permanent settlement can be imposed - it must be agreed by direct negotiations between the parties.
Mr. President,
The obligation not to prejudge negotiations is borne of the recognition that a lasting agreement benefiting both peoples can only come through mutual recognition and mutual compromise. No matter how many attempts are made by the Palestinian side to present this conflict as if it were black and white, with rights for Palestinians and responsibilities for Israelis, the truth remains that only a solution that takes the legitimate rights and obligations of both sides into account has a chance of success.
It is worth reminding delegates that Security Council resolutions 242 and 338 and the terms of reference of the peace process were deliberately drafted to reflect this principle. Alternative proposals suggesting preordained answers or endorsing maximalist territorial or legal claims were expressly rejected. The need for secure and defensible borders arrived at by negotiation was clearly recognized. Statements by the original drafters of resolutions 242 and 338, the Security Council's own record, as well as the plain text of signed agreements clearly attest to this fact.
Indeed, the very agreement of the parties to resolve permanent status issues - such as borders and settlements - by negotiation is testimony to the obligation to reach an agreed compromise. Compromise does not mean, as the Palestinian side occasionally proclaims, the agreement no longer to seek Israel's destruction. Compromise cannot be created by denying the historic and indigenous ties of the Jewish people to their ancient homeland, any more than it can be reached by ignoring the legitimate claims of the Palestinian people. The history is complex. The legal positions are contested. This is the story of two peoples, not of one.
As in other peace negotiations throughout the world, and throughout history, demographic, strategic, political, humanitarian and security realities must also be taken into account to reach a fair and permanent settlement. This is a matter for more negotiations not more resolutions. No amount of rhetoric or automatically generated General Assembly resolutions can alter the agreed terms of the peace process.
Mr. President,
Despite these clear principles, the PLO is once again seeking to involve the General Assembly in final status issues. Just a few weeks ago the Palestinian Observer addressed the Security Council espousing the "principle of achieving a peaceful settlement through negotiations between the two parties and without prejudgment or preemption of final status issues." Today, the Palestinian side returns to a more familiar pattern. As it has done for decades it seeks once again to push a one-sided resolution through the United Nations that attempts to influence the negotiating process.
The resolution presented today presumes to have the Assembly, a political body, "determine" the disputed legal status of the West Bank and Gaza Strip and the legitimacy of conflicting claims, to the benefit of one party to the conflict, and outside the agreed negotiating process. Like the other drafts before it, the resolution shares the same substantive intent of predetermining issues expressly reserved for negotiations. Once again, the Palestinian side seeks to approach the General Assembly to embrace its maximalist position, rather than negotiate with its neighbor on the basis of a commitment to end the terrorism and renew genuine dialogue.
It is simply not possible to support the principles that were affirmed by the Quartet while at the same time countenancing repeated Palestinian initiatives at the UN that cut across those very principles. The contradiction is obvious. The hypocrisy cries out. And the detriment to the legitimacy and influence of the General Assembly on this issue is unfortunately equally clear.
For the more than 80 states involved in territorial conflicts or with contested borders, the damaging precedent created by these kinds of resolutions is also clear. Using the organs of the UN to circumvent an agreed negotiating process or to advance the positions of one side of a conflict is harmful both to the prospects of peace and to the credibility of the UN States supporting this approach do so to the detriment of both these key interests.
Mr. President,
Already a clearly disproportionate amount of UN time and resources is devoted each annual session to partisan Palestinian initiatives and resolutions that consistently seek to bypass the negotiating process. These texts have done nothing to advance peace, but they have done a great deal to harm the reputation of the UN, and to undermine efforts to re-energize the negotiating process.
We believe it is past time for a different approach. The Assembly should start looking for constructive ways to encourage the parties to move towards Roadmap implementation. And it should stop endorsing even more divisive and controversial texts, under whatever guise, that seek to influence the outcome of a territorial dispute that the parties themselves have agreed to resolve by negotiation.
The resolution presented today offers us no way forward. It contains none of the key elements raised in the Quartet statement, and it undermines a central tenet of the peace process itself reaffirmed by the Quartet. It pretends that law and justice are within the monopoly of one side to the conflict. It misrepresents the true legal status of the 1949 armistices lines and contradicts the terms of reference of the peace process. It is ill-timed, counterproductive and sends precisely the wrong message. It offers the Palestinian side an incentive to avoid negotiations and compliance with their obligations. After all, why bother with these difficult responsibilities, why fight terrorism, when the General Assembly is offering to embrace attempts to circumvent the negotiations, and is determined to withhold any form of admonition for ongoing Palestinian violations that continue to take innocent lives on both sides.
Mr. President,
The Palestinian Observer will no doubt, for lack of solid logic and moral grounding, accuse me again here today of low-level language. So it is important to remember that beyond the diplomatic language that we all use lies a simple truth. It is time to tell the Palestinians - enough is enough! Stop the killings. Stop the terror. Do what you have to do to clean house, and stop abusing our time and the UN's limited resources on resolutions that ignore the genuine suffering on both sides and instead promote initiatives of trivial pursuit.
We urge member States that care about a lasting peace, and that support the Quartet Statement issued just two days ago, to firmly oppose this counterproductive draft resolution.
Thank you, Mr. President.
www.israel-un.org/gen_assembly/gillerman6may04.htm
16 Iyyar, 5764 (May 7, 2004)
Arafat fortifies compoundFrom correspondents in Ramallah
May 7, 2004
FEARING Israel will snatch him, Yasser Arafat fortified his West Bank headquarters with hundreds of cement-filled barrels and wrecked cars today, saying he's determined to go down fighting.
Israel, which has repeatedly threatened the Palestinian leader, said it has no immediate plan to seize Arafat. One senior Israeli official said Arafat and his aides are being "hysterical" - though Prime Minister Ariel Sharon warned only last month he is no longer bound by a promise to the United States not to harm Arafat.
Palestinian officials said the obstacles in the courtyard are meant to slow tanks and prevent helicopters from landing nearby, but he acknowledged that heaps of scrap metal would not hold back the Middle East's mightiest army for long.
Israel has confined Arafat to his Ramallah offices for more than two years. Last September, Israel's Cabinet decided Arafat should be "removed" and has repeatedly threatened him since then, but never taken any action.
Arafat's aides would not say what has suddenly spooked the Palestinian leader.
However, he has become increasingly jittery since Israel assassinated Hamas leader Sheik Ahmed Yassin in March. Yassin had widely been considered immune, with Palestinians assuming Israel would be held back by concern about a bloody backlash. After Israel crossed the Yassin threshold - and Hamas failed to carry out a major revenge attack - Arafat increasingly feared he might be next, his aides said.
Israeli jeeps drive close to Arafat's compound from time to time, and sometimes park outside for hours.
Recent visitors to Arafat's compound said he asked them on arrival whether they had seen Israeli jeeps in the vicinity. "They usually come after midnight. Today, they came early," Arafat was quoted as saying.
Arafat said he wouldn't go down without a fight. "I am going to enter this battle with my gun by my side," a visitor quoted Arafat as saying, over a supper of cooked vegetables and salads yesterday. "I will resist until I become a martyr."
Israel has contingency plans for seizing and expelling Arafat, and troops have practiced taking over his compound. However, it is believed Israel would not take action without provocation, such as a major attack by Palestinian militants.
Sharon adviser Raanan Gissin said there is no immediate plan to raid Arafat's compound. "We are not going to carry out any operation, but they are hysterical," Gissin said of Arafat and his aides.
Sharon said last month he is no longer bound by a promise to US President George W Bush not to harm Arafat. Although the United States rebuked Sharon for the comments, the veiled threat raised speculation that Israel might target Arafat, whom it accuses of backing Palestinian militants.
Earlier this week, Israeli troops briefly surrounded Arafat's compound during an overnight raid. The army said Arafat was not the target, but Palestinian officials said the veteran leader fears for his life.
"We have a real concern that they (Israeli troops) may come here," said Palestinian Cabinet minister Saeb Erekat.
Today, cement mixers filled hundreds of blue barrels that were then scattered across the main courtyard outside Arafat's compound. Bulldozers also spread dozens of wrecked cars - remnants of previous Israeli raids of the compound - across the courtyard.
Security officials said they also set up a new system to alert Arafat's guards if Israelis approach the compound, but gave no details.
More
http://dailytelegraph.news.com.au/story.jsp?sectionid=1274&storyid=1303740
17 Iyyar, 5764 (May 8, 2004)
2. a. KJV, Genesis 7:1 And the LORD said unto Noah, Come thou and all thy house into the ark; for thee have I seen righteous before me in this generation. 2 Of every clean beast thou shalt take to thee by sevens, the male and his female: and of beasts that are not clean by two, the male and his female. 3 Of fowls also of the air by sevens, the male and the female; to keep seed alive upon the face of all the earth. 4 For yet seven days, and I will cause it to rain upon the earth forty days and forty nights; and every living substance that I have made will I destroy from off the face of the earth. 5 And Noah did according unto all that the LORD commanded him. 6 And Noah was six hundred years old when the flood of waters was upon the earth. 7 And Noah went in, and his sons, and his wife, and his sons' wives with him, into the ark, because of the waters of the flood. 8 Of clean beasts, and of beasts that are not clean, and of fowls, and of every thing that creepeth upon the earth, 9 There went in two and two unto Noah into the ark, the male and the female, as God had commanded Noah. 10 And it came to pass after seven days, that the waters of the flood were upon the earth. 11 In the six hundredth year of Noah's life, in the second month, the seventeenth day of the month, the same day were all the fountains of the great deep broken up, and the windows of heaven were opened.b. ‘In the sixth hundredth year of Noah's life, in the second month, on the seventeenth day of the month. (Gen 7:11) R. Joshua said: That day was the seventeenth day of Iyar, when the constellation of Pleiades sets at daybreak and the fountains begin to dry up, and because they [mankind] perverted their ways, the Holy One, blessed be He, changed for them the work of creation and made the constellation of Pleiades rise at daybreak and took two stars from the Pleiades and brought a flood on the world. R. Eliezer said: That day was the seventeenth of Marheshvan.. (Talmud - Mas. Rosh HaShana 11b) (some think this relates to the second month of the sacred year which starts in Nissan (spring) and others think this relates to the second month of the civil year which starts in Tishri (fall))
"...there is a cluster of stars known as the Pleiades. This word, which means the congregation of the judge or ruler, comes to us through the Greek Septuagint as the translation of the Hebrew kimah, which means the heap or accumulation..."It consists of a number of stars (in the neck of Taurus) which appear to be near together. The brightest of them...has come down to us with an Arabic name--Al Cyone, which means the centre, and has given the idea to some astronomers that it is the centre of the whole universe. The Syriac name for the Pleiades is Succoth, which means booths." (The Witness of the Stars, E. W. Bullinger)
The Pleiades are also called the 7 sisters. Two of the 7 sisters/congregation were removed and the flood began.
18 Iyyar, 5764 (May 9, 2004)
2. a. Lag B'Omer (acronym for the number 33 in Hebrew) - 33rd day of the counting of the Omer From the second night of Passover/Pesach, every night for seven weeks, the Jews count the days that have passed until Pentecost/Feast of Weeks. This process is called "the counting of the Omer." This period is usually one of semi-mourning with many things being prohibited during these 7 weeks--with one exception--on the 33rd day, Lag B'Omer. On this day a great plague is said to have ceased and therefore the ban on weddings, getting haircuts, etc. is lifted.b. "Some Jews will not marry during the 33-day period until Lag B'Omer, so scores of weddings are held that day...the Jewish wedding season traditionally begins on Lag Ba'Omer..." (http://www.uahc.org/va/bnai_shalom/lagbomer_shavuot.html)
19 Iyyar, 5764 (May 10, 2004)
2. "The Council of Nicea was convened on Iyyar 19, 4085 (May 20, 325 CE). This council officially changed the date of the observance of Passover in the Church from Nisan 14 (the biblical date) to the first Sunday after the first full moon after the first day of Spring. This was done so that the Church would have 'nothing in common' with the Jewish people." (The Voice of the Lord, David J. Rudolph)
20 Iyyar, 5764 (May 11, 2004)
Numbers 10:11,12 And it came to pass on the twentieth day of the second month, in the second year, that the cloud was taken up from off the tabernacle of the testimony. And the children of Israel took their journeys out of the wilderness of Sinai
21 Iyyar, 5764 (May 12, 2004)
22 Iyyar, 5764 (May 13, 2004)
23 Iyyar, 5764 (May 14, 2004)
24 Iyyar, 5764 (May 15, 2004)
25 Iyyar, 5764 (May 16, 2004)
26 Iyyar, 5764 (May 17, 2004)
27 Iyyar, 5764 (May 18, 2004)
2. Genesis 8:14 And in the second month, on the seven and twentieth day of the month, was the earth dried.
28 Iyyar, 5764 (May 19, 2004)
29 Iyyar, 5764 (May 20, 2004)
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