Reported from Jerusalem
1. IRAN ROLE IN TENNENBAUM KIDNAPPING REVEALED… A day after Israel’s High Court of Justice ordered details of the kidnapping of Israeli Elhanan Tennenbaum, security officials revealed their belief that Iran played a role in the abduction. The Iranians are believed to have provided both the plane that took Tennenbaum from Abu Dhabi to Lebanon, and a safe house in which to hide the victim. Information released by media indicated that Tennenbaum became involved in a drug deal in order to pay off gambling debts. He has been in captivity for three years and has become the focal point of an imminent prisoner swap between Israel and the Hizbullah terrorist organization. In return for hundreds of prisoners – including Palestinians who have aided in terror attacks – Israel will secure the return of Tennenbaum and the bodies of three soldiers who were kidnapped and killed three years ago. Israelis are livid with Prime Minister Sharon for abandoning missing airman Ron Arad, who has for 17 years been the subject of prayers and hopes for a generation of Israelis. Many Israelis are asking why Tennenbaum is so important that Sharon would use all of his bargaining chips to free him while turning his back on Arad.
2. TWO PALESTINIANS EXECUTED BY ARAFAT’S AL-AQ’SA BRIGADES… Videotaped confessions by Samer Ufi and
Muhammad Faraj admitting that they collaborated with Israel were distributed in Tul Karem on Wednesday. On Thursday, masked gunmen belonging to Yassir Arafat’s Al-Aq’sa Martyrs Brigades shot and killed them in front of a crowd of people. The two were abducted by the group a week ago. In another incident, three Palestinians were killed when a car exploded in the Balata refugee camp in Nablus. Both Palestinian and Israeli officials said that the explosion was a “work accident” — a premature detonation of explosives being transported.
3. U.S TO BACK RUSSIAN RESOLUTION; ISRAEL UNHAPPY… No opposition is expected when Russia proposes a Security Council resolution that would officially acknowledge the “Quartet” – U.S., U.N., E.U., and Russia – as the “mediator” in the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. The United States will back the resolution in an apparent payback for Russian support of the American resolutions on Iraq, even though the Israelis are not happy about it. They do not want an internationalization of the conflict and view the appointment of the Europeans and United Nations, both of which support Yassir Arafat as head of the Palestinian Authority, as a step backwards in their efforts to banish Arafat from the political scene. Nevertheless, Prime Minister Sharon is not expected to make waves where the United States expresses its interest.
4. U.N. REPORT BLAMES DEATHS ON “MISMANAGEMENT AND INCOMPETENCE”… An independent report ordered by U.N. Secretary General Kofi Annan says that the death toll in the August suicide bombing at U.N. headquarters in Baghdad was added to because the security system is “dysfunctional.” The report, accusing the organization of mismanagement and incompetence, said that, “U.N. management did not interpret the information in this way and did not take adequate increased measures to protect its staff.” Specific staff members responsible were not named.
5. ISRAEL GENERAL STRIKE SET FOR NOVEMBER 3RD… Israel’s massive labor federation, the Histadrut, announced a general strike for November 3rd. The action was set with time allowed for further negotiations with the Finance Ministry after the most recent round ended in failure. At issue is a reorganization of the government labor force that will result in hundreds of layoffs. Israel has instituted an emergency stringency budget that has necessitated severe cuts in virtually every sector of society.