Mideast Report Yitzhak Shamir quits Likud, joins Herut

400,000 Israelis strike over wages

JERUSALEM (JTA) -- About 400,000 public-sector workers went on strike Wednesday in Israel after union talks between Histadrut and the Finance Ministry broke down in a wage dispute.

The strike closed post offices and ports, halted train service and suspended activity at Ben-Gurion Airport for several hours.

11,000 Lebanese barred from leaving

JERUSALEM (JTA) -- Israel barred the 11,000 residents of a town in the southern Lebanon security zone from leaving the region, according to a report Tuesday from Lebanon.

The move was the latest part of a clampdown in the security zone after four Israelis, including a general, were killed last month by a roadside bomb.

On Sunday, Israeli officials arrested a member of the Israel-backed South Lebanon Army who was accused of helping a high-ranking member of the SLA defect to the Lebanese government. And last Friday, Israel arrested seven Lebanese civilians accused of helping Hezbollah.

Meanwhile, Israeli jets continued to target suspected Hezbollah targets in southern Lebanon. Wednesday's raid was the ninth such attack in a week.

Pope John Paul II to visit Israel in 2000

JERUSALEM (JPS) -- Pope John Paul II will visit Israel next March, the Israeli Tourism Ministry announced Monday.

The pope has long expressed a desire to make a pilgrimage to Israel for the millennium, but Catholic leaders have stressed that political concerns regarding the Israeli-Palestinian peace proces could cause him to delay his visit.

Mossad agent gets five years in prison

JERUSALEM (JTA) -- An Israeli court sentenced a former Mossad official on Wednesday to five years in prison after he was found guilty earlier this month of fabricating reports about Syrian military plans.

Yehuda Gil, 64, could have received a maximum of 15 years. After he was arrested in 1997, the Israeli daily Ha'aretz reported that the false information he provided may have helped bring Israel to the brink of war with Syria in September 1996.

3 Palestinian youths injured in IDF area

JERUSALEM (JPS) -- Three Palestinian children were seriously injured last Friday when an explosive device went off in a military training area near the West Bank village of Rantis.

The three -- Walid Wahadan, 12; his brother Fathi Wahadan, 11; and a cousin, Ali Wahadan, 11 -- were taken to nearby hospitals.

Walid lost a hand in the blast, while his brother Fathi was treated for multiple shrapnel wounds. Ali underwent surgery.

The Israel Defense Force spokesman said there are warning signs posted at the entrance to the training area forbidding entry. After troops conducted an exercise there six weeks ago, a search was made for any remaining explosives.

A week ago, the body of a 16-year-old boy from Ma'aleh Adumim was discovered in a military firing area at nearby Mishor Adumim. The youth had strayed into a military firing area and died from an explosive blast caused by the remains of IDF ammunition.

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