1. IDF SAYS DISCOVERED TWO TUNNELS IN GAZA…Israel maintains it discovered two smuggling tunnels in the Gaza Strip on Thursday. The tunnels were discovered under Rafah, the southernmost Palestinian town in the Gaza Strip. Israel says the tunnels are used to smuggle arms, counterfeit money, drugs and terrorists under the border with Egypt. The international community recently attacked Israel for an operation in Rafah aimed at destroying tunnels. It accused Israel of destroying dozens of homes in order to seek out the tunnels. Israel says it only demolished buildings when they posed a real danger to soldiers, or when tunnel entrances were discovered inside homes.
2. ISRAEL DESTROYS METAL SHOP IN GAZA…Israel’s air force targeted and destroyed a metal workshop in the Gaza Strip overnight. Israel believes Hamas was using the workshop to manufacture weapons for use against Israel. Pilots reported seeing a series of explosions after they hit the building, suggesting it was packed with explosives. There were no reports of injuries.
3. PALESTINIAN LAWMAKERS PRESSURE ARAFAT…The Palestinian Legislative Council is meeting in Ramallah for a second successive day on Thursday. Lawmakers are expected to call on Palestinian Authority Chairman Yassir Arafat to implement sweeping reforms in the organizational structure of the authority and its military forces. On Wednesday they called on him to accept the resignation of Palestinian Prime Minister Ahmad Qurei’. He tendered his resignation last weekend, but Arafat is refusing to accept.
4. U.S. ATTACKS SYRIA FOR FAILING IN WAR ON TERROR…Syria is “picking and choosing” when and where to join in the fight on terrorism, according U.S. Deputy Secretary of State Richard Armitage. His comment was published in the Kuwaiti newspaper A-Rai Al-‘Am. He says while Syria was helpful on the question of Al-Qa’ida soon after 9/11, it was encouraging Hizbullah and Hamas to launch terror attacks against Israel. Armitage also says the border between Syria and Iraq, post-Saddam, has been overly porous. He says these days the fighters entering Iraq from Syria not only want to fight against the coalition forces, but also want to strike at Iraqis.
5. COALITION TALKS HEAT UP…It is still early in the negotiating process, but it looks increasingly likely that Israel’s Labor Party will enter the Sharon-led government. Talks are now moving into the substantive stage, although both parties are denying they have begun dishing out ministerial portfolios.