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Tuesday, October 10, 2006
Some headlines and summaries from JTA
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Soros mulls AIPAC alternative
Billionaire George Soros is considering funding a dovish, pro-Israel alternative to AIPAC, JTA has learned.
Representatives of Soros met in late September with leaders of dovish pro-Israel groups in Washington and discussed setting up an alternative to the American Israel Public Affairs Committee.
A meeting for potential funders is set for Oct. 26 in New York City.
Rice to address Palestinian gala
Condoleezza Rice will address a gala evening honoring Palestinian Americans.
On Wednesday night, Rice will “highlight administration efforts to achieve progress toward President Bush’s vision of a two-state solution in the context of her recent trip to the region,” a statement from the American Task Force on Palestine said.
The dinner is the first gala for the task force, a think tank that advocates a two-state solution to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. Also attending will be Sen. John Sununu (R-N.H.), an Arab American, and Sen. Carl Levin (D-Mich.), a Jewish American.
Envoy welcomes U.N. appointment
The next United Nations secretary-general can be expected to be friendly to Israel, Israel’s U.N. envoy said.
South Korean Foreign Minister Ban Ki-Moon was named this week to succeed U.N. Secretary-General Kofi Annan at the end of the year.
Dan Gillerman, Israel’s ambassador to the United Nations, welcomed the appointment Tuesday.
“I received a very positive impression of him,” Gillerman said in an interview with Ma’ariv’s Web site NRG. “With respect to Israel, he has a great deal of understanding and sympathy for the Israeli positions. I believe that he will be a very thoughtful, professional man, with a clear vision of the arena. People who are serious are good for us, by definition.”
Gillerman has frequently spoken out against Annan’s stands on Israel, especially during the recent Lebanon war.
Israeli barrier displayed in S. Africa
A replica of Israel’s security fence was displayed at a South African university.
The fence went up at the University of Cape Town, effectively dividing the central student gathering place in two, and was constructed under the auspices of Amnesty International UCT, the university’s History and Current Affairs Society and its Young Communists League.
Later, graffiti denigrating Israel such as “This s--- is just like apartheid — dividing people against their will should not be tolerated,” shared space with equally passionate comments defending the Jewish state.
Sony backs Israeli environment
Sony Pictures Entertainment donated $50,000 to help the environment in northern Israel recover from this summer’s war.
The money was given to the Jewish National Fund-Keren Kayemeth LeIsrael for the group’s environmental efforts in northern Israel. Sony Pictures also donated $25,000 to the Red Cross in Lebanon
Peres happy with Israel’s nuclear policy
Shimon Peres said he sees no reason for Israel to go public with its nuclear capabilities.
The Israeli vice premier, who helped found the Dimona reactor a half-century ago, said Monday that the Jewish state’s policy of “strategic ambiguity” over whether it has an atomic arsenal is a success.
“Look, we have not conducted nuclear tests. We never said we have nuclear weaponry. We made do with the suspicions that were directed at us, as a deterrent power. I think that this was the right decision. I think such calculations are still relevant,” he told Army Radio.
Peres confirmed before an American Jewish audience in 2003 that Israel has nuclear weapons, but the admission was not considered official because Peres was not in government at the time.
With Iran seen as trying to developing nuclear weapons, some experts have speculated that Israel could go public with its own strategic capabilities to maintain deterrence.
http://www.jta.org/
posted by Somebody @ 10:58 PM Permanent Link
 
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