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When President Bush visited the Auschwitz death camp yesterday, he called it "a monument to the darkest impulses of man. A place where evil found its willing servants and its innocent victims." After touring the gas chambers and crematoria, he said: "The sites are a sobering reminder of the power of evil and the need for people to resist evil." Bush was shown tiny shoes that had belonged to Jewish babies, hair shorn from Jewish women, suitcases of Jews brought to the camps. "So sad," he remarked. His wife Laura solemnly laid a long-stemmed rose on an iron gurney used...

A mission of Israeli and French Muslims and Jews visited the sites of German Nazi concentration camps in Poland this week, on a tour designed to promote a deeper understanding of Jewish pain regarding the Holocaust and improving relations between the two groups. Father Emile Shufani, 47, an Arab Catholic priest from Nazareth, created the program "From Remembrance to Peace," comprised of Israeli-Arab intellectuals and educators and Jewish Israelis led by Ruth Bat Shalom. The group seeks to educate Arabs on the Holocaust in order to open paths for renewed Jewish-Moslem dialogue and understanding. In parallel to his efforts in...

Palestinian PM Mahmoud Abbas (Abu Mazen) will tell PM Ariel Sharon tonight that the Palestinians will take on security control of areas in the Gaza Strip and West Bank after an IDF withdrawal, Yediot Aharonot reported today. Abu Mazen told the newspaper that he expects to reach an agreement with Hamas next week for a complete halt of terror attacks against Israelis inside the Green Line and the territories. Click here for full story">

It's springtime, and throughout the land of Israel, people are planning vacations. We live in a small country, only 10 miles wide in the areas where most of our population lives, so it's a vital necessity to escape from the pressure cooker of our existence here from time to time. But even as we think of ourselves, and our families, we should not overlook the less fortunate among us. Pity poor Yasser Arafat, stuck in his Ramallah headquarters now for this past year. Mind you, Ramallah is one of the nicer Arab towns in Samaria, with a nice fresh breeze...

In an exceptional move, armed Palestinian guards accompanying Palestinian Prime Minister Abu Mazen were allowed into the office of Prime Minister Ariel Sharon when the two leaders met in Jerusalem on Saturday night, ynet reported exclusively today. Politicians called for the head of the Shin Bet security service to resign as a result, but others said this was a necessary step to build trust between the sides. According to the strict security measures that the General Security Service (GSS - Shin Bet) enforced after the assassination of Prime Minister Yitzhak Rabin, the Prime Minister's Office is considered a "sterile area"...

A security guard was killed and his partner, Hadar Gitlin, 20, was seriously injured when they prevented a female suicide bomber from entering a shopping mall in Afula. Two other Israelis were killed in the attack and nearly 70 people were wounded, many of them seriously. Two of the victims of the Afula terror attack were identified on Tuesday: Avi Zrihan, 36, of Beit Shean. Hassan Ben Ismail Tawatha, 41, of Jisr a-Zarqa. Knesset member Matan Vilnai (Labor) today proposed legislation that would grant security guards killed or maimed by terrorist attacks the same rights as soldiers killed or wounded,...

Security officials are "frustrated" due to their limited means of effectively fighting the latest wave of terror attacks, Israel Radio reported today. Police and security forces are on high alert throughout the country but do not have specific intelligence information on impending attacks. The army has employed most of its military options already, officials said. Government ministers renewed calls to expel Yasser Arafat. In the coming days, the government will discuss a proposal to expel the Palestinian Authority chairman to Europe, Army Radio reported. The initiative is being presented by Foreign Minister Silvan Shalom, the report noted. "As long as...

Although security officials believe that Yasser Arafat is directly involved in the recent wave of terror attacks, the cabinet decided not to exile him from his Ramallah headquarters or take other drastic actions that could undermine the leadership of Palestinian Prime Minister Abu Mazen. The army imposed a full closure on the territories and Israeli leaders will boycott foreign diplomats who meet with Arafat. "At this stage it would be wrong to expel Arafat, because the world would view this as though Israel were causing the [peace] process to fail, and as though Abu Mazen were collaborating with Israel," Defense...

Israel's first and most powerful man of espionage, Isser Harel, who founded the Shin Bet and was head of the Mossad in its early years, died yesterday at the age of 91. Harel is best known for orchestrating the daring capture of Nazi Adolf Eichmann, establishing the Israeli intelligence infrastructure as one of the most feared and respected in the world. Born in Vitebsk Russia in 1912 as Isser Halperin, Harel was active in local Zionist youth movements and immigrated to Palestine in 1930, settling on Kibbutz Shefayim in the Herzliya area. Harel joined the Haganah and rose through the...

Large contingents of Givati troops, backed up by at least forty Israeli tanks and helicopters, staged a raid into the Shajaiyeh neighborhood in Gaza City and destroyed four metal workshops used for the manufacture of illegal weapons. Eleven Palestinians were killed and at least twenty people were injured in the operation; there were no Israeli casualties. A Palestinian bakery worker, 32, was reportedly shot and killed and another man wounded as Israeli troops conducted searches and exchanged fire with Palestinian gunmen in Nablus Wednesday morning. Eight wanted Palestinians were arrested and soldiers found an assault rifle and a pistol, Israel...

Twelve Israelis were arrested recently on suspicion of providing intelligence information to Hizbullah agents in exchange for drugs, the Israel Security Agency (Shin Bet) and Israel Police said on Monday. Charges were filed yesterday against nine of the suspects - three Jews from Kiryat Shemona and six Arab residents of the divided village of Ghajar, which is located half in Israel and half in Lebanon. Members of the ring, arrested about a month ago, are believed to have provided Hizbullah with intelligence regarding IDF deployment along Israel's northern border, the location of bases and military installations, and maps of the...

Six senior Hamas members were killed Sunday afternoon in Gaza City as they were preparing an unmanned drone for use on an intelligence gathering or terror mission. Hamas blamed Israel for targeting members of its organization. Israeli officials vowed to continue acting against Hamas. The head of Hamas's military wing was killed in an arrest attempt Monday. Riyad Abu-Zaid was shot and killed by IDF forces attempting to arrest him near the al-Bureij refugee camp in central Gaza. Another Hamas member was killed in the operation as well. Haaretz reported that Abu-Zaid was considered to be the replacement for Hamas...

Defense Minister Shaul Mofaz reversed an earlier decision to ease conditions for Palestinians in the West Bank after intelligence indicated over 50 focused warnings of imminent terror attacks, some described as "mega-attacks." The number and intensity of the threatened attacks is described by military officials as "unprecedented." Palestinians will not be allowed to enter Israel until at least Friday. An official statement issued by the IDF Spokesperson said: "Following numerous intelligence warnings that terrorist organizations plan on carrying out terrorist attacks, it was decided to cancel the lifting of the restrictions and to impose a total closure on the West...

In an official memorial ceremony yesterday at the Lod Air Force base near Ben-Gurion International Airport, friends, family, and Israeli political and military officials came to bid farewell to Israel's first astronaut, Col. Ilan Ramon, 48. Ramon, who lost his life when the space shuttle Columbia exploded upon re-entry into the earth's atmosphere on February 1, will be buried today in a private military ceremony in Nahalal. Ilan's widow Rona, their four children and Ilan's father Eliezer Wolferman, returned from Houston, Texas to attend the ceremony. Rona, and her eldest son Assaf, read an excerpt from an e-mail they received...

President Moshe Katsav officially invited Prime Minister Ariel Sharon to form Israel's next government at a short ceremony in Jerusalem Sunday afternoon. Both Katsav and Sharon called for a national unity government. Sharon declared, "Whoever says no to unity - rejects the will of the Israeli public." But Labor Party officials said they would not even show up for coalition talks with Likud. Katsav extended the official invitation to Sharon after factions comprising 87 Knesset members expressed their support for the prime minister. Katsav said Sharon's public status, his vast experience, and the broad endorsement he received from the electorate...

The U.S. State Department issued a statement over the weekend calling on all non-essential U.S. embassy employees in Israel, Jordan, Syria and Lebanon to evacuate the region, due to growing tensions between the United States and Iraq. American citizens are being urged to avoid travel in the Middle East, but Israel's embassy in Tel Aviv will continue to operate on a regular schedule. An official travel warning issued on Friday stated: "The Department of State has authorized the departure of dependents and non-emergency personnel from the U.S. Embassy in Tel Aviv and the U.S. Consulate General in Jerusalem on a...

The European Union's anti-fraud office announced yesterday it was investigating the alleged misuse of EU funds donated to the Palestinian Authority. The announcement came one day after members of the European Parliament said they had gathered enough signatures to require the establishment of a special committee of inquiry into reports that EU funds were being used to finance terrorist organizations. Following an evaluation of information it had received over recent months, the European Anti-Fraud Office (OLAF) "opened an external investigation in relation to allegations of misuse of funds donated by the European Union in the context of EU budgetary support...

In a joint military exercise conducted in Israel's Negev desert, Israeli and American troops this morning fired a number of Patriot missiles at simulated incoming Scud missiles. An IDF spokesman claimed the exercise was planned two years ago as a routine test of Israel's air defenses. Military analysts believe the firing of the Patriot missiles, which concluded the joint Israeli-American military maneuvers, is linked to Israel's heightened state of preparedness in the face of an Iraqi Scud missile threat. The maneuvers began two weeks ago and followed Israel's successful multiple launch of four Arrow missile interceptors at the beginning of...

In a surprise move, Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak called Prime Minister Ariel Sharon and congratulated him on his election victory. A year ago, Mubarak declared he could not work with Sharon; the two have not met since Sharon took office. Sharon told U.S. President George W. Bush that he would continue to work towards implementing their joint diplomatic plan, but rebuffed an offer for talks with Palestinian Authority Chairman Yasser Arafat. According to the Prime Minister's Office, Mubarak called Sharon Wednesday morning and invited him for talks as soon as he established a new government. The two "discussed the need...

Prime Minister Ariel Sharon scored a "historic victory" as the Likud Party under his leadership captured 37 mandates in the 16th Knesset. The party nearly doubled its strength and finished far ahead of the opposition Labor Party, which won only 19 Knesset seats. The surprise winner in the elections was Tommy Lapid's Shinui Party, which took 15 seats. Meretz chairman Yossi Sarid announced his resignation. "Today is not the time for celebrations - no celebrations," Sharon declared in his victory speech. "This is a time for soul-searching, for coming together in unity, for fusing all forces in order to bring...