IDF kills Two

Aufgrund der bislang vollkommen erfolglosen Strategie der Ressourcen-Blokade des Gazastreifens geht die IDF schrittweise zu einer partiellen Besetzung des Gazastreifens über. Nachdem über die letzten Monate das Grenzgebiet planiert wurde sucht man die Aktivitäten der Qassam-Einheiten in den Gazastreifen zu schieben und sie gleichzeitig dabei zu penetrieren. Luftangriffe im Hinterland sollen den Druck erhöhen. Technisch gesehen wäre nach dem Bush-Besuch in Jerusalem auch eine größere Operation denkbar. Ein Indiz hierfür ist das man aus den Golan-Höhen keinerlei Berichte über Truppenübungen erhält. Vor einer größeren Aktion müßten dort Truppen abgezogen werden. Vor zwei stunden tötet ein Luftangriff ein PRC-Mitglied und verletzt drei weitere. Zuvor war ein Hamas-Mitglied vor Beit-Hanoun bei einem Feuergefecht getötet worden und drei weitere verletzt worden.

Vor dem Bush-Besuch wird noch eilig Barak ans Schienbein getreten: Israel and the Palestinians will negotiate the core issues of their conflict in a special committee to be headed by Foreign Minister Tzipi Livni and former Palestinian prime minister Ahmed Qureia. Negotiations over the core issues - refugees, Jerusalem and borders - will begin after U.S. President George W. Bush's visit to the region this week, while the remaining issues will be discussed in other committees. The agreement being finalized between Livni and Qureia changes the format of negotiations over the core issues which, until talks stopped in 2001, were discussed in three different committees. A senior political source said Saturday that the special committee will allow the two sides to engage in a real dialogue. "This way it will be possible to carry out negotiations without pressure - neither political nor through leaks - and we will be able to make more progress," the source added. Übliche Zeitschinderei. Zudem wird Barak auch hier vollständig ausgebootet, womit auch die Nablus-Aktion ein neues, poltisches Gewicht bekommt: However, Haaretz has learned that Livni and Qureia have achieved significant progress during a number of meetings that did not receive media attention. For example, during a meeting last Wednesday the two agreed in principle that the negotiations would be held on three levels. At the top level, Prime Minister Ehud Olmert and Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas would continue to meet every two weeks and focus on monitoring the progress in the negotiations, while they serve to break deadlocks in the negotiating committees. Livni briefed Olmert and Defense Minister Ehud Barak on this agreement. The second level would include the main committee, in which Livni and Qureia will coordinate negotiations on the core issues. The two sides have not yet agreed on which of the issues will be discussed first. The meetings will be between Livni and Qureia, and possibly some aides will be included. The third tier will include subcommittees, which will be created to negotiate every other issue. [Übrigends: Wer das einen "signifikanten Erfolg"" von Livni nennt kann auch nicht recht bei Trost sein. Erstens fand das Treffen nicht am Mittwoch, sondern am Donnerstag statt. Zweitens wurden die Bereitschaft der Palästinenser bis zum Bush-Besuch nicht auf die Barrikaden zu gehen [Har Homa, Siedlungsbau] nicht mit einer Formalstruktur erkauft, sondern mit gepanzerten Truppentransportern und schönen Bezeugungen keine Siedlungen mehr errichten zu wollen. Drittens: "We want to change the direction of the negotiations," an official in Jerusalem said. "The first two meetings of the negotiating teams failed and we would want to see positive progress." Worin auch immer dieser nun bestehen mag weiß ich nicht. Was ich jedoch weiß ist Viertens und Wichtigstens, das die als am Donnerstag vereinbarte Struktur bereits am Donnerstag "geübt" wurde. Also komm. Wer war das? Ein Volontär? Barak Ravid. Am Donnerstag durchführen, Donnerstag vereinbaren und 10 Tage später als positive Nachricht verkaufen. Der Gute hat auch schon den ersten Text verfaßt. Wohl der Leibschreiber von Livni, was?

Gewese um einen Foto-Termin fürs Album. Der hier aber ist göttlich: "will work with Middle East allies to develop a security plan to counter Iran" Das Bush auf die "Wachstumsbranche" Waffenschmieden setzt ist nun wirklich nicht neu und bedarf keines "Plans". Die Araberstaaten sollen mit Waffen vollgestopft werden. Altbackener Imperialistenquatsch.

Eher ernst zu nehmen ist dieses hier: British Prime Minister Gordon Brown is interested in convening an additional international conference in London in March order to promote the peace process between Israel and the Palestinians. Brown, who formerly served as the U.K. finance minister, wants the conference to focus on economic issues. He spoke by telephone with Prime Minister Ehud Olmert some 10 days ago, and raised the idea. Olmert did not express any opposition to the conference. Political sources in Jerusalem stressed that the objectives and the format of the conference remain unclear, but added that the U.K., which opposes Russian plans to hold the next conference in Moscow, is interested in moving the location to London. In September 2007, the British government published a report ordered by Brown that formulated a "road map" for the Palestinian Authority's economic rehabilitation. The British premier would like the London conference to examine ways to implement that report.

A vast majority - 81 percent - of Israelis support increasing the targeted killings of Palestinian militants, according to a poll administered by Tel Aviv University's "Peace Index" survey. ... 77 percent of those polled did not accept Egypt's claim that it is doing all it can to stop the weapon smuggling into Gaza. 81 percent feel Foreign Minister Tzipi Livni's public criticism on the matter was justified, despite Egypt's harsh response.

Adi Schwartz, "All I wanted was justice": Albert Metzger never left his hotel. Although he owned another six hotels in Alexandria, and was actually in charge of the entire hotel industry in northern Egypt, for him the seaside Cecil Hotel was the jewel in the crown. From the time he built it in 1929 Metzger lived there, in a private apartment on the first floor, supervising every movement and every employee closely. Within a few years the hotel in the heart of Alexandria Bay had become famous, and turned into one of the most famous meeting places in the Levant. British author Lawrence Durrell, who lived in the city for a few years, commemorated it in his "The Alexandria Quartet."