USA TODAY, Mar 15, 1999
Matthew Kalman
AMMAN -- Jordanian-Israeli relations were in crisis Sunday night after Israel said it would have to cut the amount of water supplied to Jordan this year because of a severe drought in the region.
Ben Meir says the Yarmouk, which flows into the Sea of Galilee, Israel's main reservoir, was at its lowest level since 1908. Water supplies for agricultural use inside Israel already have been cut by 25%, and further reductions will be announced in the coming days.
But Jordanian officials who met Ben Meir in Jerusalem Sunday rejected the proposal. Increased water supplies are one of the few concrete benefits Jordan has seen from its 1994 peace treaty with Israel.
(...)
Monday, 15 March 1999
Arab pop star: Foes barking up wrong tree
USA TODAY, Mar 15, 1999
Matthew Kalman
JERUSALEM -- A Lebanese pop star is struggling to save her life and career after Muslim fundamentalists decreed she should be put to death for reportedly naming her pet dog after the prophet Mohammed (Jamal).
Najwa Karam, 32, a Christian from the town of Zahlée in the Bekaa Valley in Lebanon, is one of the most popular singers in the Arab world. Her CDs, tapes and videos sell by the million and Arabic satellite TV has made hers a household name.
In Jordan, a leader of the country's Islamic Party called for the singer to be killed. Sheikh Abdel Munem Abu Zanet, a former member of the Jordanian parliament and a leader of the Muslim Brotherhood, says she has defamed Islam and, if the story is true, she should be put to death.
(...)
Matthew Kalman
JERUSALEM -- A Lebanese pop star is struggling to save her life and career after Muslim fundamentalists decreed she should be put to death for reportedly naming her pet dog after the prophet Mohammed (Jamal).
Najwa Karam, 32, a Christian from the town of Zahlée in the Bekaa Valley in Lebanon, is one of the most popular singers in the Arab world. Her CDs, tapes and videos sell by the million and Arabic satellite TV has made hers a household name.
In Jordan, a leader of the country's Islamic Party called for the singer to be killed. Sheikh Abdel Munem Abu Zanet, a former member of the Jordanian parliament and a leader of the Muslim Brotherhood, says she has defamed Islam and, if the story is true, she should be put to death.
(...)
Friday, 12 March 1999
Pope is expected to visit the Holy Land next spring
Pope is expected to visit the Holy Land next spring
USA TODAY, Mar 12, 1999
Matthew Kalman
BETHLEHEM, West Bank -- Excitement is building among Israeli and Palestinian leaders that Pope John Paul II will visit the Holy Land next year.
The Vatican has not issued a formal announcement, but both Israel and the Palestinian Authority have issued invitations to the pope to visit Nazareth, Bethlehem and Jerusalem. Officials said his visit would be seen as the highlight of the millennium celebrations.
"The pope is very eager to come; it is his dream," Bethlehem Mayor Hanna Nasser said. "The Vatican is studying the ways and means (of) how to make this visit possible. The Holy See himself is very, very interested in coming."
(...)
USA TODAY, Mar 12, 1999
Matthew Kalman
BETHLEHEM, West Bank -- Excitement is building among Israeli and Palestinian leaders that Pope John Paul II will visit the Holy Land next year.
The Vatican has not issued a formal announcement, but both Israel and the Palestinian Authority have issued invitations to the pope to visit Nazareth, Bethlehem and Jerusalem. Officials said his visit would be seen as the highlight of the millennium celebrations.
"The pope is very eager to come; it is his dream," Bethlehem Mayor Hanna Nasser said. "The Vatican is studying the ways and means (of) how to make this visit possible. The Holy See himself is very, very interested in coming."
(...)
Wednesday, 10 March 1999
Arab beauty is crowned Miss Israel
LONDON EVENING STANDARD
March 10, 1999
Matthew Kalman
A 21-YEAR-OLD legal secretary from Haifa was crowned last night as Miss Israel - the first Arab to hold the title.
Rana Raslan said she was "extremely proud" to take over the title from Linor Abergil, who went on to become Miss World …
March 10, 1999
Matthew Kalman
A 21-YEAR-OLD legal secretary from Haifa was crowned last night as Miss Israel - the first Arab to hold the title.
Rana Raslan said she was "extremely proud" to take over the title from Linor Abergil, who went on to become Miss World …
Tuesday, 9 March 1999
Britain 'ignoring Bethlehem appeal'
LONDON EVENING STANDARD
March 9, 1999
Matthew Kalman
BRITAIN stands accused today of ignoring a massive international fundraising drive to renovate Bethlehem in time for the millennium.
Christian countries have contributed millions towards making the town fit to receive an expected four million visitors and pilgrims, plus heads of state, for the 2,000th anniversary of Christ's birth.
But Britain, despite promises, is said to have given only moral support. The Mayor of Bethlehem spoke today of his sadness and frustration at Britain's failure to contribute a penny to the celebrations. Mayor Hanna Nasser said he was doubly baffled by British tardiness, because Tony Blair has accepted an invitation to join the international …
March 9, 1999
Matthew Kalman
BRITAIN stands accused today of ignoring a massive international fundraising drive to renovate Bethlehem in time for the millennium.
Christian countries have contributed millions towards making the town fit to receive an expected four million visitors and pilgrims, plus heads of state, for the 2,000th anniversary of Christ's birth.
But Britain, despite promises, is said to have given only moral support. The Mayor of Bethlehem spoke today of his sadness and frustration at Britain's failure to contribute a penny to the celebrations. Mayor Hanna Nasser said he was doubly baffled by British tardiness, because Tony Blair has accepted an invitation to join the international …
Tuesday, 2 March 1999
Israeli court urged to rethink ruling on teen
USA TODAY, Mar 2, 1999
Matthew Kalman
JERUSALEM -- The Israeli Ministry of Justice has asked the Israeli Supreme Court to reconsider its decision not to extradite an American Jewish teen-ager accused of a grisly murder in Maryland in 1997.
In a 3-2 decision last week, a panel of judges ruled that Samuel Sheinbein, 18, could not be extradited to stand trial in the United States because he is an Israeli citizen.
Irit Kohn, director of the international department of the Israeli Ministry of Justice, said that Sheinbein would be held without bail for 10 days while the Supreme Court considered the request for a new hearing.
(...)
Matthew Kalman
JERUSALEM -- The Israeli Ministry of Justice has asked the Israeli Supreme Court to reconsider its decision not to extradite an American Jewish teen-ager accused of a grisly murder in Maryland in 1997.
In a 3-2 decision last week, a panel of judges ruled that Samuel Sheinbein, 18, could not be extradited to stand trial in the United States because he is an Israeli citizen.
Irit Kohn, director of the international department of the Israeli Ministry of Justice, said that Sheinbein would be held without bail for 10 days while the Supreme Court considered the request for a new hearing.
(...)
Monday, 1 March 1999
Israel strikes after general slain
USA TODAY, Mar 1, 1999
Matthew Kalman
Israel launched fierce air, land and sea attacks on suspected guerrilla hideouts in southern Lebanon late Sunday hours after two bombs in the region killed an Israeli brigadier general and three others.
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu ordered the retaliatory raids against Hezbollah after the Muslim militia group claimed responsibility for the attack, one of the most serious against Israelis in southern Lebanon in years.
(...)
Matthew Kalman
Israel launched fierce air, land and sea attacks on suspected guerrilla hideouts in southern Lebanon late Sunday hours after two bombs in the region killed an Israeli brigadier general and three others.
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu ordered the retaliatory raids against Hezbollah after the Muslim militia group claimed responsibility for the attack, one of the most serious against Israelis in southern Lebanon in years.
(...)
Israelis take to bomb shelters ahead of Lebanon attacks
LONDON EVENING STANDARD
March 1, 1999
Matthew Kalman
ISRAEL is in a deepening crisis after a day of bombings and air attacks on Hezbollah guerrilla positions in southern Lebanon.
Israeli troops are moving across the border into southern Lebanon as the Israeli cabinet convened this morning to discuss plans for a major military operation against Hezbollah guerrilla positions.
Israeli residents in the north spent the night in bomb shelters and were instructed to remain there during the day. Schools and businesses stayed closed and police vehicles patrolled the streets of Kiryat Shemona near the border with Lebanon, reminding residents through loud-hailers to stay in their shelters. The commander of Israel's forces in southern …
March 1, 1999
Matthew Kalman
ISRAEL is in a deepening crisis after a day of bombings and air attacks on Hezbollah guerrilla positions in southern Lebanon.
Israeli troops are moving across the border into southern Lebanon as the Israeli cabinet convened this morning to discuss plans for a major military operation against Hezbollah guerrilla positions.
Israeli residents in the north spent the night in bomb shelters and were instructed to remain there during the day. Schools and businesses stayed closed and police vehicles patrolled the streets of Kiryat Shemona near the border with Lebanon, reminding residents through loud-hailers to stay in their shelters. The commander of Israel's forces in southern …
Wednesday, 24 February 1999
Israeli commander, 2 lieutenants killed in south Lebanon
USA TODAY, Feb 24, 1999
Matthew Kalman
The commander of Israel's elite paratroop unit and two of his lieutenants were killed and five soldiers were wounded Tuesday in an ambush by Islamic guerrillas in south Lebanon.
Maj. Eitan Balahsan, 30, commander of the Sayeret Salhanim paratroopers, was one of the most senior Israeli officers killed in the 8-mile-wide buffer zone that Israel has occupied in south Lebanon since 1985.
The ambush occurred near the village of Birkit Jabbur in a no-man's-land separating the eastern sector of Israel's self-declared "security zone" from the southern Bekaa plain, which is a Hezbollah stronghold under Syrian control.
(...)
Matthew Kalman
The commander of Israel's elite paratroop unit and two of his lieutenants were killed and five soldiers were wounded Tuesday in an ambush by Islamic guerrillas in south Lebanon.
Maj. Eitan Balahsan, 30, commander of the Sayeret Salhanim paratroopers, was one of the most senior Israeli officers killed in the 8-mile-wide buffer zone that Israel has occupied in south Lebanon since 1985.
The ambush occurred near the village of Birkit Jabbur in a no-man's-land separating the eastern sector of Israel's self-declared "security zone" from the southern Bekaa plain, which is a Hezbollah stronghold under Syrian control.
(...)
Monday, 22 February 1999
Depressed? Blame your parents for divorcing
LONDON EVENING STANDARD
February 22, 1999
Matthew Kalman
CHILDREN of divorced parents are up to seven times more likely to suffer depression in adult life than people whose parents did not separate, a new study has found.
The loss of a parent through divorce is more likely to cause depression than loss through death, and separation from a mother or both parents is more likely to cause depression than separation only from a father, says a report to be published in Molecular Psychiatry.
Children who were under nine when their parents divorced were found to be seven times …
February 22, 1999
Matthew Kalman
CHILDREN of divorced parents are up to seven times more likely to suffer depression in adult life than people whose parents did not separate, a new study has found.
The loss of a parent through divorce is more likely to cause depression than loss through death, and separation from a mother or both parents is more likely to cause depression than separation only from a father, says a report to be published in Molecular Psychiatry.
Children who were under nine when their parents divorced were found to be seven times …
Wednesday, 17 February 1999
Children of divorce inclined to depression
USA TODAY, Feb 17, 1999
Matthew Kalman
Children of divorced parents are seven times more likely to suffer from depression in adult life than people of similar age and background whose parents have not divorced, says a psychiatric study on factors leading to depression.
The Israeli study, to be published in a forthcoming issue of Molecular Psychiatry, indicates that the loss of a parent through divorce is more likely to cause depression than loss through death. And separation from a mother or from both parents, whether through divorce or desertion, was more likely to cause depression than separation only from a father.
Researchers Bernard Lerer and Ofer Agid of the Biological Psychiatric Unit at Hadassah Hospital focused on children whose parents divorced before the child was 9.
(...)
Matthew Kalman
Children of divorced parents are seven times more likely to suffer from depression in adult life than people of similar age and background whose parents have not divorced, says a psychiatric study on factors leading to depression.
The Israeli study, to be published in a forthcoming issue of Molecular Psychiatry, indicates that the loss of a parent through divorce is more likely to cause depression than loss through death. And separation from a mother or from both parents, whether through divorce or desertion, was more likely to cause depression than separation only from a father.
Researchers Bernard Lerer and Ofer Agid of the Biological Psychiatric Unit at Hadassah Hospital focused on children whose parents divorced before the child was 9.
(...)
Monday, 15 February 1999
Court ruling divides Israelis
Ultra-Orthodox, secular Jews demonstrate in power struggle
USA TODAY, Feb 15, 1999
Matthew Kalman
JERUSALEM -- More than a quarter million Israelis paralyzed the major arteries of Jerusalem Sunday in two massive demonstrations over the political power of ultra-Orthodox Jews in the country.
The largest gathering was of more than 200,000 Orthodox Jews, who came to the main entrance of the city to recite Psalms and prayers led by the country's senior Orthodox rabbis. Dressed mainly in black, with men and women separated, the demonstrators spilled over a large area, blocking off the highway into the city.
They were protesting recent decisions of the Supreme Court on matters affecting the role of religion in Israel that allowed a greater role for non-Orthodox Jews on religious councils and in matters of conversion.
(...)
USA TODAY, Feb 15, 1999
Matthew Kalman
JERUSALEM -- More than a quarter million Israelis paralyzed the major arteries of Jerusalem Sunday in two massive demonstrations over the political power of ultra-Orthodox Jews in the country.
The largest gathering was of more than 200,000 Orthodox Jews, who came to the main entrance of the city to recite Psalms and prayers led by the country's senior Orthodox rabbis. Dressed mainly in black, with men and women separated, the demonstrators spilled over a large area, blocking off the highway into the city.
They were protesting recent decisions of the Supreme Court on matters affecting the role of religion in Israel that allowed a greater role for non-Orthodox Jews on religious councils and in matters of conversion.
(...)
Wednesday, 10 February 1999
Syrian leader tries to build up Jordan ties
USA TODAY, Feb 10, 1999
Matthew Kalman
JERUSALEM -- Syrian President Hafez Assad's unexpected arrival in Amman for talks with King Abdullah and President Clinton have thrust him once more to the forefront of Arab diplomacy.
Assad's uncharacteristic decision to travel to King Hussein's funeral has prompted speculation that he hopes to divert the foreign policy of the newly named king away from peace with Israel.
Tuesday, Syria's government-controlled Tishrin newspaper hinted at such pressure, denouncing "Israel's repeated bids to fish in troubled waters in order to destroy Arab ties on the basis of divide and rule . . . nothing threatens Jordan but Israel and its greedy expansionism."
(...)
Matthew Kalman
JERUSALEM -- Syrian President Hafez Assad's unexpected arrival in Amman for talks with King Abdullah and President Clinton have thrust him once more to the forefront of Arab diplomacy.
Assad's uncharacteristic decision to travel to King Hussein's funeral has prompted speculation that he hopes to divert the foreign policy of the newly named king away from peace with Israel.
Tuesday, Syria's government-controlled Tishrin newspaper hinted at such pressure, denouncing "Israel's repeated bids to fish in troubled waters in order to destroy Arab ties on the basis of divide and rule . . . nothing threatens Jordan but Israel and its greedy expansionism."
(...)
Monday, 8 February 1999
HUSSEIN IS LAID TO REST AS THE WORLD MOURNS
LONDON EVENING STANDARD
February 8, 1999
Matthew Kalman
KING HUSSEIN of Jordan was buried today alongside his father and grandfather at the Hashemite burial ground in Amman after a 10-mile procession through the streets of the Jordanian capital.
Heads of state from all over the world flew in to Amman to pay their respects to the king who ruled Jordan for nearly half a century, transforming the desert kingdom of Bedouin tribes and uprooted Palestinians into a unified, stabilising force in the Middle East.
Tony Blair and Prince Charles led the British delegation, while President Clinton was accompanied by three former presidents George Bush, Jimmy Carter and Gerald Ford. Boris Yeltsin, who is being treated in a Moscow sanatorium for …
February 8, 1999
Matthew Kalman
KING HUSSEIN of Jordan was buried today alongside his father and grandfather at the Hashemite burial ground in Amman after a 10-mile procession through the streets of the Jordanian capital.
Heads of state from all over the world flew in to Amman to pay their respects to the king who ruled Jordan for nearly half a century, transforming the desert kingdom of Bedouin tribes and uprooted Palestinians into a unified, stabilising force in the Middle East.
Tony Blair and Prince Charles led the British delegation, while President Clinton was accompanied by three former presidents George Bush, Jimmy Carter and Gerald Ford. Boris Yeltsin, who is being treated in a Moscow sanatorium for …
Monday, 25 January 1999
Sacked minister: I'll oust Netanyahu
LONDON EVENING STANDARD
January 25, 1999
Matthew Kalman
ISRAELI defence minister Yitzhak Mordechai, dismissed from the cabinet at the weekend by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, has emerged as the new leader of a fledgling centre party.
Mr Mordechai pledged to "leave no stone unturned" in his determination to remove Mr Netanyahu from power. He will join former military chief of staff Amnon Lipkin-Shahak, former finance minister Dan Meridor and former Interior Minister Roni Milo at a Press conference today to formally announce the founding of the party, which does not yet have a name. Israelis …
January 25, 1999
Matthew Kalman
ISRAELI defence minister Yitzhak Mordechai, dismissed from the cabinet at the weekend by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, has emerged as the new leader of a fledgling centre party.
Mr Mordechai pledged to "leave no stone unturned" in his determination to remove Mr Netanyahu from power. He will join former military chief of staff Amnon Lipkin-Shahak, former finance minister Dan Meridor and former Interior Minister Roni Milo at a Press conference today to formally announce the founding of the party, which does not yet have a name. Israelis …
Monday, 18 January 1999
Midnight at the Oasis
LONDON EVENING STANDARD
January 18, 1999
MATTHEW KALMAN samples the Holy Land's most incongruous new attraction: the Oasis casino, Jericho's answer to Sun City
GAMBLING is not an activity traditionally associated with a trip to the Holy Land. The pursuit is illegal in Israel and throughout much of the Muslim Middle East.
Not so in Jericho, now governed by the Palestinian Authority under Yasser Arafat. Thousands of years after the biblical prostitute Rahab helped Joshua tear down the walls of the most ancient city on earth, the streets of Jeri-cho are ringing with the cries of religious leaders warning against lewd behaviour and whoring.
The object of their concern is the Oasis, a $50 million complex which opened …
January 18, 1999
MATTHEW KALMAN samples the Holy Land's most incongruous new attraction: the Oasis casino, Jericho's answer to Sun City
GAMBLING is not an activity traditionally associated with a trip to the Holy Land. The pursuit is illegal in Israel and throughout much of the Muslim Middle East.
Not so in Jericho, now governed by the Palestinian Authority under Yasser Arafat. Thousands of years after the biblical prostitute Rahab helped Joshua tear down the walls of the most ancient city on earth, the streets of Jeri-cho are ringing with the cries of religious leaders warning against lewd behaviour and whoring.
The object of their concern is the Oasis, a $50 million complex which opened …
Thursday, 14 January 1999
Man charged over Miss World 'rape, torture and murder bid'
LONDON EVENING STANDARD
January 14, 1999
Matthew Kalman; Theodore Levite
A MAN has been arrested and charged with the rape and attempted murder of Miss World, Linor Abergil.
The alleged attack took place in Italy before Miss Abergil, 19, was crowned and while she was on a modelling assignment in Milan.
Shaul Nur, a Jewish convert from Islam who has joint Egyptian- Israeli citizenship and lives in Israel, was arrested on Sunday as he flew into Tel Aviv to visit his family. Nur, 43, claims to be a former agent for the Shin Bet Israeli secret service. He now runs a travel business in Milan. A reporting ban on the case was lifted today at Miss Abergil's request by judge Uri Goren, president of the Tel Aviv District Court, allowing the details to be …
January 14, 1999
Matthew Kalman; Theodore Levite
A MAN has been arrested and charged with the rape and attempted murder of Miss World, Linor Abergil.
The alleged attack took place in Italy before Miss Abergil, 19, was crowned and while she was on a modelling assignment in Milan.
Shaul Nur, a Jewish convert from Islam who has joint Egyptian- Israeli citizenship and lives in Israel, was arrested on Sunday as he flew into Tel Aviv to visit his family. Nur, 43, claims to be a former agent for the Shin Bet Israeli secret service. He now runs a travel business in Milan. A reporting ban on the case was lifted today at Miss Abergil's request by judge Uri Goren, president of the Tel Aviv District Court, allowing the details to be …
Tuesday, 12 January 1999
Mideast 'Wonder Boy' has leaders' ears
USA TODAY, Jan 12, 1999
Matthew Kalman
JERUSALEM -- On the final day of the Middle East peace talks in October outside Washington, a teen-ager from Jericho received an urgent call on his mobile phone.
"He was calling to tell me my prophecy had come true. The Israelis and Americans were at loggerheads, and Netanyahu was threatening to walk out." Prophecy? Meet Moussa el-Moghrabi, fortuneteller, faith healer and unofficial spiritual adviser to Palestinian leaders.
"Moussa is a phenomenon. I don't hesitate to consult him whenever I can," the minister says. He consulted with Moussa regularly before the peace talks in Washington, and the faith healer gave him a good-luck charm.
(...)
Matthew Kalman
JERUSALEM -- On the final day of the Middle East peace talks in October outside Washington, a teen-ager from Jericho received an urgent call on his mobile phone.
"He was calling to tell me my prophecy had come true. The Israelis and Americans were at loggerheads, and Netanyahu was threatening to walk out." Prophecy? Meet Moussa el-Moghrabi, fortuneteller, faith healer and unofficial spiritual adviser to Palestinian leaders.
"Moussa is a phenomenon. I don't hesitate to consult him whenever I can," the minister says. He consulted with Moussa regularly before the peace talks in Washington, and the faith healer gave him a good-luck charm.
(...)
Friday, 8 January 1999
Novices enticed to seek office in Israeli election
USA TODAY, Jan 8, 1999
Matthew Kalman
JERUSALEM -- Widespread voter disenchantment with the main parties on the left and right is drawing novice politicians into the electoral arena and driving many veterans toward the center before the May 17 Israeli election.
This was underscored this week when Amnon Lipkin-Shahak, a popular general with no political experience and no party organization, announced he will run for prime minister
At the same time, Dan Meridor, widely regarded as the spiritual heir to Israel's first right-wing prime minister, Menachem Begin, announced last month he was quitting Likud, the governing party of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, to form a new centrist party and run for the top job.
(...)
Matthew Kalman
JERUSALEM -- Widespread voter disenchantment with the main parties on the left and right is drawing novice politicians into the electoral arena and driving many veterans toward the center before the May 17 Israeli election.
This was underscored this week when Amnon Lipkin-Shahak, a popular general with no political experience and no party organization, announced he will run for prime minister
At the same time, Dan Meridor, widely regarded as the spiritual heir to Israel's first right-wing prime minister, Menachem Begin, announced last month he was quitting Likud, the governing party of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, to form a new centrist party and run for the top job.
(...)
Tuesday, 5 January 1999
Israeli task force tries to avert millennial madness
USA TODAY, Jan 5, 1999
Matthew Kalman
JERUSALEM -- The month-long surveillance and arrest of members of a Denver-based Christian cult was the first public operation of an Israeli task force set up to deal with the expected influx of extreme Christian groups for the turn of the millennium.
Israeli officials fear that extreme Christian groups, like the Concerned Christians who were arrested Sunday, will perform acts that they believe will hasten the second coming of Jesus as the year 2000 approaches.
"Better late than never, the security and intelligence authorities have woken up and dealt with this group," said Rabbi David Rosen, director of the Jerusalem office of the Anti-Defamation League (ADL) and an expert on Jewish-Christian relations. "Had there been good intelligence, they would never have got into the country in the first place."
(...)
Matthew Kalman
JERUSALEM -- The month-long surveillance and arrest of members of a Denver-based Christian cult was the first public operation of an Israeli task force set up to deal with the expected influx of extreme Christian groups for the turn of the millennium.
Israeli officials fear that extreme Christian groups, like the Concerned Christians who were arrested Sunday, will perform acts that they believe will hasten the second coming of Jesus as the year 2000 approaches.
"Better late than never, the security and intelligence authorities have woken up and dealt with this group," said Rabbi David Rosen, director of the Jerusalem office of the Anti-Defamation League (ADL) and an expert on Jewish-Christian relations. "Had there been good intelligence, they would never have got into the country in the first place."
(...)
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