Excerpts: Netanyahu's package "mutual confidence building" step.

Sat, 20 Mar 2010 19:51:36 EST

Excerpts: Netanyahu's package "mutual confidence building"
relations still abnormal.Syria supports Hizbullah,
Iran.U.S. sanctions Gaza bank, TV station.Jilted Saudi seeks 'honourable
death'. relations in discussion.Yemen claims war with rebels
over 20 March 2010

+++SOURCE: NEW YORK TIMES 19 Mar.'10:"Israeli Suggests Steps to Aid Peace
Talks"
By MARK LANDLER and ISABEL KERSHNER
SUBJECT: Netanyahu's "mutual confidence building" steps
FULL TEXT:Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu of Israel, under intense
pressure from the United States to settle a diplomatic dispute over Jewish
settlements, called Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton late
Thursday(18 Mar.) to propose what he called a package of "mutual confidence
building" steps to be taken by Israelis and Palestinians to help restart
peace negotiations.
The Obama administration will "review the prime minister's response and
continue our discussions with both sides," Philip J. Crowley, the State
Department spokesman, said in a statement.
Mr. Crowley declined to characterize the steps, saying there would be
further discussions between Israeli and American officials in Jerusalem and
Washington in the coming days.
A statement issued by the Israeli government said that Mr. Netanyahu
"suggested to Secretary of State Clinton mutual confidence-building steps,"
without disclosing what those might be. The proposal, the statement said,
had won the unanimous support of the seven members of Mr. Netanyahu's inner
cabinet, which includes representatives of right-wing parties in his
coalition.
In the past few weeks, Mr. Netanyahu has been trying to balance conservative
elements of his government, which ardently favor continued settlement
construction, with the Obama administration, which has pushed him to freeze
all settlement construction as a way to revive peace talks.
"The goal for both sides at this moment is to put this behind us and proceed
with the proximity talks, which in our view should lead to direct
negotiations as soon as possible," said Israel's ambassador to Washington,
Michael B. Oren, according to his spokesman, Jonathan Peled.
A senior administration official familiar with the conversation between Mr.
Netanyahu and Mrs. Clinton described the Israeli responses as less than
definitive. "It is fair to say they have come back to us and given us some
ideas, and some ideas to work with," the official said. "There are areas
where we have to have some clarification, and when you get something to work
with that's a good thing."
But the reluctance of both sides to talk about the specifics of the Israeli
response seemed to reflect a desire by both sides to avoid portraying
Washington and Jerusalem as engaged in a tug of war, in which the Obama
administration was trying to drag Mr. Netanyahu away from the right wing of
his coalition. The dispute began last week during a visit to Israel by Vice
President Joseph R. Biden Jr., when an Israeli government ministry announced
the construction of 1,600 housing units in the ultra-orthodox neighborhood
of Ramat Shlomo in East Jerusalem. The announcement embarrassed Mr. Biden.
American anger deepened after Mr. Biden left Israel, with Mrs. Clinton
calling Mr. Netanyahu to warn him that the episode could undermine the
United States-Israel relationship and to demand that his government take
specific steps to advance the peace process.
These included reversing the Ramat Shlomo project, freezing other building
projects in East Jerusalem and pledging to enter into substantive
negotiations with the Palestinians over fundamental issues when the United
States begins mediating indirect negotiations, which are known as proximity
talks. Israel had wanted to focus only on procedural issues.
There will be a flurry of diplomacy over the next few days, as both sides
try to extricate themselves. The administration's special envoy, George J.
Mitchell, plans to travel to the Middle East this weekend to meet with Mr.
Netanyahu and the Palestinian president, Mahmoud Abbas.
Mark Landler reported from Moscow, and Isabel Kershner from Jerusalem.

+++SOURCE:NAHARNET ( Lebanon) 19 Mar.'10:" Geagea: My Visit to Syria
Conditioned by Solving Pending Bilateral Issues"

QUOTE: " 'Lebanese-Syrian relations have not become normal yet' "

EXCERPTS: Lebanese Forces leader Samir Geagea on Thursday(18 Mar) said that
"the calls for the resignation of President Michel Suleiman are beyond those
launching them - those who don't possess the needed popular and political
weight to launch such stances.". . . . Geagea added: "The reasonable
alternative for the president's resignation -- demanded by some - is the
election of a president from the parliamentary majority."

"Suleiman and PM Saad Hariri are being targeted by campaigns because they
are considered the symbols of stability in this period," he added, wondering
"if the other group doesn't want stability in Lebanon anymore."

"Lebanese-Syrian relations have not become normal yet, and the president and
the premier are exerting major efforts in this direction. Therefore, my
visit to Syria is conditioned by solving the pending issues between the two
countries and establishing normal and balanced relations," Geagea said in
response to a question.

He identified the pending issues as "the presence of Lebanese detainees in
Syrian prisons and of (Syrian-backed) Palestinian military bases outside
(refugee) camps . that breach the legitimacy and sovereignty of the Lebanese
State, in addition to procrastination in (Lebanese-Syrian) border
demarcation.". . .

+++SOURCE: SAUDI GAZETTE 19 Mar.'10:"Syria's honeymoon with US ending",By
Khaled Yacoub Oweis

QUOTE: " 'You have to hand it to the Syrians. One day the host Nasrallah
(Hizbullah) and (Iran's) Ahmadinejad and the next day they talk about their
readiness for peace with Israel' "

EXCERPTS:Emboldened by its strong ties with Iran and Turkey, Syria is
ignoring US demands that it stop backing Hezbollah, despite the risk that
this will spoil its rapprochement with Washington and raise regional
tensions.
Syria's support for the armed Lebanese Shiite movement is at odds with its
stated aims of improving relations with the United States and resuming peace
negotiations with Hezbollah's arch-foe Israel, diplomats and political
analysts said.
Damascus has also sought to reinforce its alliance with Iran and expand
links with Turkey, which hosted indirect peace talks between Syria and
Israel until they broke down in 2008.
A stronger Hezbollah and increased regional clout could bolster Syria's hand
in any resumed negotiations with Israel, several analysts said.
President Bashar Al-Assad told the Swedish daily Svenska Dagbladet last
month that peace with Israel could be signed within six months "if things
moved in the right direction".
Yet a few days earlier, the 44-year-old leader had welcomed Hezbollah leader
Hassan Nasrallah and Iran's President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad to Damascus and
proposed that Turkey, Syria and Iran form an Islamic bloc to counter Israeli
and US influence.
"You have to hand it to the Syrians. One day they host Nasrallah and
Ahmadinejad and the next day they talk about their readiness for peace with
Israel," one diplomat in the Syrian capital said.
"They cannot, however, sustain this indefinitely. The United States may
decide to end the rapprochement and the hype about a regional war could turn
into a reality," the diplomat added.

Shadow of 2006 war
Syria says it lends Hezbollah only political support and denies US and
Israeli accusations that it has helped the group re-arm since its 2006 war
with Israel in Lebanon.
Damascus says Hezbollah cannot be expected to disarm as long as Israel
continues to occupy Shebaa Farms, a well-watered slice of land that is
Lebanese territory.
Syrian commentator Ayman Abdel Nour said Israel's failure to defeat
Hezbollah in 2006 had made Syria more immune to Israeli threats, and that
Syria would not sacrifice the guerrilla movement for the sake of better ties
with the United States.
. . .Washington has said its rapprochement with Damascus is not open-ended
and that it wants to see real Syrian policy changes.. . Robert Ford, the
U.S.ambassador-designate (o Syria}, told the Senate Foreign Relations
committee at his confirmation hearing on March 16 that a regional war could
erupt if Syria did not stop what he termed its supply of long-range weapons
to Hezbollah.
"If Hezbollah has rockets that can hit farther into Israel, it complicates
every one's calculations and raises the risk of a miscalculation and the
risk of conflict," Ford said.
"We do not see how it is in Syria's interest for new fighting to break out
in Lebanon. Fighting that could escalate and even drag in Syria itself," he
added.
Ford said US sanctions would not be lifted as long as Syria backed
Hezbollah, but acknowledged that Damascus had helped cut the flow of foreign
fighters across its territory into Iraq, a major US demand for the last five
years.
Another diplomat in Damascus said US officials had made it clear during
their meetings with their Syrian counterparts that the issue of Hezbollah's
weapons was "a ticking bomb".
"The Israelis did not want to broaden the war in 2006," he said. "Their
calculations now may be different with Hezbollah possibly strong enough to
hit Tel Aviv."

+++SOURCE:CNN via Egypt Daily News 19 Mar.'10:"Gaza bank,TV station see U.S.
sanctions"
FULL TEXT:
STORY HIGHLIGHTS
U.S. Treasury targets Islamic National Bank and Al-Aqsa Television
Treasury: Hamas moved $1.5 million into the bank in May 2009 to pay salaries
U.S. officials consider Hamas a terrorist organization
Militant group has ruled Gaza since 2007
CNN) -- The U.S. Treasury put a bank and a television station -- both from
Gaza -- on its terrorist-financing list, saying they were controlled by
Hamas, the Palestinian Islamist movement.
Islamic National Bank provides banking to Hamas members who also finance and
control Al-Aqsa Television, U.S. officials said.
"Treasury will not distinguish between a business financed and controlled by
a terrorist group, such as Al-Aqsa Television, and the terrorist group
itself," said Stuart Levey, under secretary for terrorism and financial
intelligence.
The designation allows the Treasury to prohibit firms from doing business
with the companies and freeze their assets in places under U.S.
jurisdiction.
U.S. officials consider Hamas, which runs the Palestinian territory of Gaza,
a terrorist organization.
The statement accused the bank of not operating under Palestinian authority
regulations and providing Hamas with a means to receive and store smuggled
cash.
In May 2009, the Hamas finance office moved about $1.5 million into the bank
to pay salaries of Hamas military wing members who had accounts there,
according to the Treasury.
"Consistent with our commitment to a well-regulated and transparent
financial system in the Palestinian territories, Treasury will continue to
expose Hamas's efforts to create institutions with the trappings of
legitimacy that are in fact controlled by and used to support a terrorist
organization," Levey said.
The militant group has ruled Gaza since 2007. Hamas officials did not
immediately respond to the accusations.

+++JORDAN TIMES 19 Mar '10 Jilted Saudi seeks 'honourable death'
MARJAYOUN (AFP) - A heartbroken Saudi student has been arrested in south
Lebanon along the border with Israel where he was seeking an "honourable
death", Lebanese security officials said on Thursday. Lebanese security
forces nabbed Mohammad Jawad Al Fahad Al Issa, 26, at the border town of
Kfar Kila as he apparently tried to draw the attention of nearby Israeli
troops, said one official, on condition of anonymity. "He told police that
he thought if he cursed and insulted the Israelis, they would open fire and
kill him, and that way he would at least die an honourable death," the
official told AFP. "He did this for sentimental reasons." Another security
official said that Issa, a student at a technical university in Jordan, told
police his Jordanian girlfriend had left him for another man and moved to
the Palestinian territories

+++SOURCE: NAHARNET (Lebanon) 20 Mar.'10:"Jumblat to Abandon Majority after
Visiting Syria, Berri: Jumblat Trip Puts Us before New Political Scene"

FULL TEXT:Progressive Socialist Party leader MP Walid Jumblat will abandon
the parliamentary majority following his anticipated visit to Damascus --
after he had already abandoned the March 14 Alliance," well-informed sources
announced.
"Available information indicate he will stay on good terms with PM Saad
Hariri, based on the solid relation he had with martyr PM Rafik Hariri, and
as a result of the special relation between him and Saudi Arabia," the
sources added.

The same sources told Ad-Diyar Lebanese daily that "Hizbullah
Secretary-General's Political Assistant Hussein Khalil visited Damascus for
a second time to discuss the issue of Jumblat's anticipated visit as
information indicate that Hizbullah is working on concluding the issue in a
short time, considering that as beneficial for the internal situation and
for everyone."

"Jumblat will stay overnight in Syria and he will have his word on the
essential issues, whether in terms of Lebanese-Syrian special relations or
in terms of the resistance topic. He decided to voice these stances directly
before President (Bashar) al-Assad to stress his new choices," the sources
added.

On the other hand, Speaker Nabih Berri's visitors quoted him as saying that
"Jumblat's visit to Damascus will put us before a new political scene on the
internal level, whether in terms of the resistance decision or in terms of
special relations between the two countries."

"This thing will represent the safety valve in maintaining Lebanese
stability," Berri was quoted as saying.

+++SOURCE: SAUDI GAZETTE 20 Mar.'10:"War with rebels over, says Yemen",
Agence
France Presse

FULL TEXT:DUBAI - Yemeni President Ali Abdullah Saleh said in an interview
to be aired that six years of war with rebels that drove 250,000 people from
their homes in the northern mountains are now over.

Saleh told Dubai-based satellite channel Al-Arabiya that the successful
implementation of a Feb. 12 ceasefire with the rebels was a "sign that the
war has ended and that this is not just a passing truce."

After the rebels, known as Houthis, first launched their uprising in 2004,
there were five lulls in the fighting before the government launched a major
offensive in August that ended with last month's truce.

In the interview, extracts of which were posted on the channel's website,
Saleh also spoke about disturbances in recent months in the formerly
independent south, where separatist protesters have sparked clashes with the
security forces. Saleh said he stood ready to "hold a dialogue with southern
leaders but only within a political framework."

The veteran president also vowed to stand down in 2013 as the constitution
requires. - AFP
/> Sue Lerner - Associate, IMRA

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Excerpts: Netanyahu's package "mutual confidence building" step.