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The Media Line Daily News Focus

Reported from Jerusalem

1. ISRAELI MISSILE STRIKE MISSES TARGET… An attempt by Israeli forces to destroy a vehicle in which several Hamas terrorists were riding failed Tuesday evening. A man driving a donkey cart nearby was killed and twenty bystanders were injured when a helicopter fired three missiles at a car in which Khaled Massoud and at least two other Hamas members were believed to be traveling in the Gaza Strip. Massoud is known to be a manufacturer of Qassam rockets that are regularly fired from Gaza into Israeli communities. In another incident, Israeli troops entered a Nablus hospital and apprehended two members of Yassir Arafat’s Tanzim faction that were recovering from wounds received in a shoot-out with Israeli Border Police on Friday. The pair, wanted for a series of attacks on Israeli targets, was transferred to an Israeli hospital under the supervision of the Shin Bet intelligence service.

2. TERRORISTS USED DISGUISES TO AVOID TARGETED ASSASSINATIONS… Leaflets posted on the doors of mosques by the Hamas terrorist organization warn its members to take precautions to avoid being targeted for assassination by Israel. Suggestions include using disguises, wearing different clothing and traveling alone rather than in groups. Israeli forces have been poised for entry into Palestinian areas since the resumption of full-scale terror attacks following the end of the Hudna – or temporary and unilateral cease-fire. While the ground operation has been placed on standby, the policy of striking against wanted terrorists has continued and is apparently succeeding in unnerving those accused by Israel of being part of terrorist infrastructures.

3. ARAFAT APPOINTMENT OF RAJOUB LATEST SHOT AT ‘ABBAS… In what the White House terms another attempt to undermine the authority of Mahmoud ‘Abbas, Yassir Arafat has appointed Jibril Rajoub to be the National Security Adviser in a National Security Council which Arafat himself would head. The move is the latest in a series of moves by Arafat to neutralize ‘Abbas, who was appointed prime minister under heavy international pressure. Arafat was also reported to have named Palestinian Legislative Council speaker Ahmad Qurei’ as his heir-apparent and 17 members of the PLC have begun efforts to recall ‘Abbas. Arafat is also appointing a new interior minister to serve parallel to ‘Abbas loyalist Muhammad Dahlan.

4. OPTIMISM OVER POSSIBLE ISRAEL-HIZBULLAH PRISONER EXCHANGE… Following the first breakthrough in negotiations between Israel and the Lebanon-based Hizbullah terrorist organization to win the release of four Israelis being held, officials expressed cautious optimism that a deal can be struck. After Israel returned the bodies of two Hizbullah members killed in attacks on Israel, Hizbullah allowed a German intermediary to visit Israeli businessman Elhanan Tennenbaum, who has been held captive for two years and who is in poor health. A report in a Lebanese newspaper that Israel has abandoned efforts to include information on missing airman Ron Arad in the deal has caused anger in Israel. Arad was the navigator of a plane shot down in 1986, whose return has been an important issue among Israelis since that time. Information concerning the fate of three soldiers also missing since the 1980s is also apparently not part of the negotiations, which if completed, will result in the release by Israel of two Hizbullah leaders, Sheikh Abd al Karim Obeid who has been held for 14 years and Mustafa Dirani who has been held for 9 years.

5. WORK BEGUN ON JERUSALEM SECTION OF FENCE… Israel broke ground on Friday for the Jerusalem portion of the controversial security fence. The project has been roundly criticized by both the Palestinian Authority and the Bush Administration, which is reported to be considering penalizing Israel by offsetting the cost of the fence against loan guarantees recently approved. Israel claims that the purpose of the fence is purely a defensive measure to prevent terrorists from crossing into Israel, but Washington believes that the fence constitutes a de facto and unilateral creation of a border between Israel and the Palestinian areas. The Americans also agree with the Palestinian Authority’s charge that construction of the fence usurps its land and creates hardships for its people. Upon completion, the barrier will extend 370 miles from north to south.

6. CASINO PROPOSAL: BUILD ADJACENT TO ANCIENT SPA… The four kibbutzim (collective communities) that own the ancient Hamat Gader hot springs at the base of the Golan Heights, have applied to build a casino adjacent to the spa that dates back to the Roman period, according to Globes financial newspaper. Hamat Gader is located where Israel, Jordan and Syria converge, and talks have already been held with Jordan’s King Abdullah II concerning the opening of a crossing point that would allow Jordanians to come to the new gambling facility. Globes reports that diplomatic considerations have prevented talks from continuing. There are currently no casinos in Israel, but interest in creating several of them has been increasing in recent months.