Tuesday, July 3, 2007

The Middle East in Focus

This week, for all the headlines cited below, please join us in proclaiming THIS DECREE:

"Behold, I have made your face strong against their faces, and your forehead strong against their foreheads. Like adamant stone, harder than flint, I have made your forehead; do not be afraid of them, nor be dismayed at their looks, though they are a rebellious house." (Ezekiel 3:8-9)

1. Poll: 70% of Israelis back 2-state pact, 63% oppose Golan pull-out - Ha'aretz

Seventy percent of the Israeli Jewish public presently supports a peace agreement with the Palestinians based on the "two states for two peoples" formula, but a clear majority believes that this is not achievable in the near future.

2. Shin Bet foils Hamas's plans to control Temple Mount - Jerusalem Post

Hamas attempts to take over control of the Temple Mount as well as spread its ideology and recruit new members in Jerusalem has been foiled by the Shin Bet (Israel Security Agency,) senior security official announced Monday.

3. PM: Israel will push forward with crackdown on PA militants - Ha'aretz

Prime Minister Ehud Olmert on Sunday said the Israel Defense Forces would push forward with the latest crackdown on Palestinian militants, despite Israel's warming ties with the new Palestinian government in the West Bank.

4. Hamas-Fatah struggle moves from street to TV - Ynet News

Palestinian infighting has moved from the streets to the TV set, as rival factions Fatah and Hamas carry out smear campaigns against each other through their local channels in the West Bank and Gaza.

5. Exclusive: Navy may deploy in Dead Sea - Jerusalem Post

While the Dead Sea is empty of living creatures except for the occasional floating bather, growing security concerns of potential terror infiltrations from Jordan have led the IDF to mull the deployment of Navy patrol ships in the salty waters.