1. EGYPT SETS CONDITIONS FOR POST-PULLOUT ROLE… Israel will have to end its operations and totally withdraw from Gaza — including the area known as the Philadelphi strip — before Egypt will send advisers to aid the Palestinian Authority in maintaining peace in the area, according to an Egyptian news agency. A senior Israeli official who declined to be identified, told media Wednesday morning that Israel will not make a blanket promise to end its operations in Gaza, but will “maintain the calm as long as Israel is not attacked.” Egypt also wants to see international forces controlling the seaport and airport following the Israeli pullout. The plan which Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon has presented to his people includes continued Israeli control of sea and airports. Egyptian intelligence chief ‘Umar Suleiman will travel to Jerusalem on Wednesday to press the Egyptian conditions with Israeli leaders. The Egyptian demands significantly alter the plan Sharon originally set in motion and negate conditions he used in order to sell the proposal to his government and the nation. Sharon’s office backed away from news of an intention by the Israeli military to dig a trench along the area known as the Philadelphi strip, in which numerous tunnels connect Gaza to Egypt and through which arms and terrorists are smuggled. Sharon’s office issued a clarification saying that such plans would be first discussed with Egypt. The Egyptian response is that Israel must withdraw before anything happens, so the point is moot.
2. JOINT-GOVERNMENT NEGOTIATIONS STALLED; OPPOSITION LABOR FILES NO-CONFIDENCE MOTION… Israel’s leading opposition party, Labor, has reversed its recent policy of providing a legislative “safety net” for the Sharon government by voting against no-confidence motions. The reason for the “net” was to support the Sharon plan for a unilateral withdrawal from the Gaza Strip. On Monday, Labor voted against the government on a motion concerning economic policy, resulting in a narrow 55-50 victory for Sharon. Labor has now filed its own no-confidence measure, also alleging failure in socio-economic areas. It will be heard on Monday. While it does not appear that even with Labor there are enough votes to topple the government, it clearly demonstrates a lack of willingness by the two largest parties to try to reach an accommodation that would see the formation of a joint government, and a determination by the opposition to bring down Sharon.
3. U.S. AMBASSADOR: ‘WE’RE WAITING FOR ISRAEL TO FULFILL PROMISES BASED ON THEIR COMMITMENT, NOT OUR PRESSURE’… U.S. Ambassador Dan Kurtzer said on Tuesday that the American administration is waiting for Israel to honor its commitment to submit a list of illegal outposts to be dismantled and to begin carrying out the process as it said it would. Referring to the outposts, which are the beginnings of potential new communities in post-1967 territories for which the Israeli government has not given approval, Kurtzer said of Prime Minister Sharon’s promises, “They are not as a result of any kind of pressure from our side, so this is something Israel undertook to do and therefore, sure, we expect them to be fulfilled.”
4. BI-PARTISAN, PRO-ISRAEL RESOLUTION TO BE INTRODUCED IN HOUSE TODAY… Congressmen Tom DeLay (R-Texas) and Steny Hoyer (D-Maryland) have introduced a pro-Israel resolution that will be considered by the full House of Representatives on Wednesday. The primary purpose, according to DeLay, is to reinforce the idea that Israel will not have to return to 1948 borders or accept an Arab “right of return” in a final settlement to the Israel-Palestinian conflict. In a statement, DeLay said, “Israel is fighting the same war on terror we are fighting, and we must support them in that fight.”
5. NEW CHINA-ISRAEL TRADE AGREEMENT… China and Israel have signed an agreement under which a joint committee on economic, trade and technical matters will be set up. According to Globes financial newspaper, “Under the agreement, the two sides will invite companies from the other side to take part in tenders, particularly in information technology, biotechnology, medical equipment and machinery, environmental and agricultural technologies, and semiconductors. Israel also called on Chinese companies to invest in various sectors in Israel, including telecommunications infrastructure. China called on Israeli companies to invest in rural telephone network ventures, civil engineering ventures, road and bridge construction, ports, and electricity production.”