Tuesday, June 12, 2007
EU foreign policy chief Javier Solana expressed his concern over the security situation in Lebanon and said dialogue should resume among all parties. In a letter published by the Italian news agency AKI on Monday, Solana said: "The impasse that is facing the Lebanese institutions cannot continue. It is crucial for all parties to work in the interests of the Lebanese people and to find a way to return to a culture of dialogue, unity and diplomacy." Solana added that "the continuing clashes at Nahr al-Bared and now also in other Palestinian camps are very troubling. We should also be clear that this is not a battle between the Palestinian and Lebanese peoples." http://www.dailystar.com.lb Solana expressed his support for Premier Fouad Siniora and the establishment of the international court to try suspects in the assassination of former Premier Rafik Hariri. "Now that the [tribunal] controversy can be put behind us, the political players can move on to … other pressing matters that require their immediate attention and consensus," he said.
12 Junio 2007
By Avi Issacharoff, Haaretz Correspondent and News Agencies
Rival Palestinian gunmen exchanged fire at two Gaza hospitals, and Cabinet ministers fled their weekly meeting after the government headquarters was hit in crossfire Monday, in the latest round in an increasingly brutal power struggle between Hamas and Fatah. In all, 17 Palestinians were killed Monday and early Tuesday, including three shot dead in Beit Hanoun Hospital in northern Gaza. At Gaza's largest hospital, Shifa in Gaza City, combatants fired mortars, grenades and assault rifles. In spite of a Fatah announcement of a unilateral cease-fire, Naim al-Dahdouh, a senior member of the Hamas military wing, was killed late Monday and the exchanges of fire continued.
After sundown, gunmen, apparently from Hamas, laid siege to the house of Jamal Abu al-Jediyan, the senior Fatah official in northern Gaza, then dragged him outside and killed him, security officials said. Medics said he was hit by 45 bullets. Al-Jedian was the Secretary General of the Fatah movement in the northern Gaza Strip and a co-founder of the Al Aqsa Martyrs' Brigade. He was also a close associate of Mohammed Dahlan, a Fatah strongman and Palestinian Authority Chairman Mahmoud Abbas' security adviser. In the past, Abu-Jedian had been the target of several Hamas assassination attempts. Palestinian sources said Al-Jedian had been executed outside his home. Medics said 45 bullets had been used in his assassination.
Fatah spokesman Maher Mikdad harshly denounced the killing. "What is this, if not a war," he said, pledging revenge. In a message, Fatah called on its members to target all Hamas political and military leaders. Two others were killed in battles late Monday in northern Gaza, Palestinian security and hospital officials said. Later, Hamas said one of its men, who was kidnapped earlier, was found dead in a Gaza street. Early Tuesday, three women and a child were killed when Hamas militants attacked the home of a senior Fatah security official with mortars and grenades, Palestinian security officials said. The gunmen seized Hassan Abu Rabie and killed his 14-year-old son and three other women in the house, hospital officials said. Also, Fatah gunmen stormed the house of a Hamas lawmaker and burned it to the ground. Earlier Monday, Hamas gunmen killed Fatah intelligence officer Yasser Bakar, and his 16-year old brother.
The incident prompted members of his family to launch a revenge shooting spree. Two members of Hamas, barricaded inside Gaza's biggest hospital, Shifa, were killed during the melee. Hospital officials reported that Bakar gunmen began firing mortars and rocket-propelled grenades at Shifa Hospital, drawing Hamas fire from inside the building. During the Shifa fighting, top Hamas militant Mazen Ajur was killed. Another member of the Bakar clan was also killed. In separate fighting at a hospital in Beit Hanun, three people were killed and at least 10 were wounded. The dead were identified as 'Id al-Masri and his two sons, Farej and Ibrahim, of the al-Masri clan, which has ties to the Fatah movement. Mohammed Odeh, a volunteer for the Red Crescent rescue service, said one of the dead had been shot at close range. Hospital officials reported that the three victims were at the hospital being treated for injuries. In another incident in Beit Lahia, Hamas member Bassel al-Caparna was also killed. Hospital authorities announced that they were suspending their work in view of the clashes inside the hospital. The clashes had reignited after the cease-fire had been put in place with a gun battle outside the parliament building in Gaza City, while the Palestinian cabinet was meeting. The cease-fire was implemented after gunmen carried out a pre-dawn attack on the home of Palestinian Prime Minister Ismail Haniyeh of Hamas, and also targeted the offices of the Hamas-run Culture Ministry.
Culture Minister Bassem Naim was inside the building at the time at the attack, said his sister Huda. There were no injuries, she said, accusing Fatah of trying to kill her brother. "It was the Fatah gangs. There was no justification. We were at work, and the ministry came under fire," a ministry official, identified only as Ahmed, told Hamas' Al-Aqsa radio station. Fatah spokesman Maher Mekdad said the gunfire at the Culture Ministry erupted after Hamas snipers on the roof fired at a security convoy. "The security men returned fire," he said. The attacks came after two militants, ¬ first one from Fatah and later a Hamas member, ¬ were dragged onto the roofs of Gaza high-rises and thrown to their deaths. There were no reports of casualties in the attack on Haniyeh's house in the Shati refugee camp, adjacent to Gaza City.
His office wouldn't say whether he was inside, but his family said that his wife, children and grandchildren had been at home. It was the first time in a month of infighting that Haniyeh was an apparent target. The two sides have been locked in a violent power struggle since Hamas defeated Fatah in January 2006 legislative elections, ending four decades of Fatah rule. Sides call for calm Shortly after the attack on Haniyeh's home, Fatah and Hamas leaders called for calm, in large part to allow thousands of high school seniors to take their matriculation exams in peace. "This is shameful for our people," Abbas said during a trip to a school in the West Bank. "I call on everyone to stop this immediately, not only because of the examinations, but also for our people to live a normal life." About 24,000 high-school seniors in Gaza were beginning two weeks of final exams yesterday, along with more than 40,000 other pupils in the West Bank.
12 Junio 2007
Russian Ambassador in Damascus Affirms Strength of Relations 
Monday, June 11, 2007 - 05:30 PM
Damascus, (SANA) – Russia's Ambassador in Syria Sergei Kirpichenko affirmed Monday the deep and strong relations between Syria and Russia, and that these relations will always remain an important factor in international relations.
In a statement to SANA on the occasion of his country's national day, Kirpichenko said that political relations have entered a new phase since the first summit between Syrian President Bashar al-Assad and Russian President Vladimir Putin in 2005 and the second summit in 2006,
Russian Ambassador assured his country's support to Arab causes and to Syria's right to restore the occupied Golan.
He also praised the development and reform process in Syria, which proceeds despite the circumstances and obstacles resulting from the current regional situation.
Kirpichenko expressed his relief regarding the growth of economic cooperation and commercial exchange between the two countries, pointing out that his country is focusing on important projects like petroleum, gas and energy projects.
He also stated that his country's national day is an opportunity to evaluate development in Russia and its international relations.
He concluded by expressing his appreciation of the Syrian media's attention to developing bilateral relations between the two countries.
12 Junio 2007
