Shorts: Mideast

President Katsav faces new allegations

jerusalem (jps) | After his fifth interrogation session Wednesday, Sept. 13, Israeli President Moshe Katsav found himself facing a list of new allegations that included fraud, breach of trust and wiretapping.

Katsav, currently under investigation for the alleged sexual harassment of a former employee, was questioned at his Jerusalem office for over five hours, during which time police brought up the new allegations.




Warren Buffett to visit Israel

jerusalem (jta) | The American investment guru Warren Buffett is expected to arrive Sunday, Sept. 17, for a three-day trip to Israel. He will visit Iscar, an Israeli corporation in which Buffett's Berkshire Hathaway company recently acquired an 80 percent stake.

Buffett also will visit Rambam Hospital in Haifa and host a lecture in Jerusalem, and may be looking into other investment possibilities. The May investment in Iscar, an international metalworks consortium based in Tefen, was valued at $4 billion.




Gay pride conflict escalates

jerusalem (jta) | A petition submitted to Israel's Supreme Court demanded a permit for a gay pride parade on the eve of Rosh Hashanah.

Officials with Jerusalem Open House said they submitted the petition Monday, Sept. 11 in conjunction with the Association for Civil Rights in Israel after a proposed parade date was refused and police didn't respond to requests for alternate dates.

Police officials have said the initial proposed date in September was too close to the High Holy Days.




Arab lawmakers under scrutiny

jerusalem (jta) | Three Israeli Arab lawmakers could face charges for making an unauthorized trip to Syria. Interior Minister Roni Bar-On's office said Sunday, Sept. 10 that he had asked for a police investigation into Azmi Bishara, Jamal Zahalka and Wasil Taha, three members of the Knesset's Balad faction who visited Damascus last week.

In his appeal to Attorney General Menachem Mazuz, Bar-On noted that the three lawmakers had not requested his permission for the trip, as required by Israeli laws limiting contact with enemy states. Mazuz's office confirmed receiving the investigation request and said a decision was pending.

Balad is openly anti-Zionist and its members regularly clash with mainstream political factions in Israel. Syrian media quoted Bishara as saying in Damascus that he and his hosts were united in seeking to "liberate occupied Arab territory."




Christian-Jewish group pledges millions for Israel

jerusalem (jps) | The head of the Chicago-based International Fellowship of Christians and Jews pledged to contribute up to $45 million this year to the state of Israel from money donated by Christian evangelical supporters. It will be the largest-ever annual financial contribution the group has made in its 23-year history.

"Our goal is that not one resident of the state of Israel should feel despair," said group head Rabbi Yechiel Eckstein.

The organization had previously announced that it would contribute a total of $9 million to hard-hit residents of northern Israel as a result of the 34-day war with Hezbollah this summer.




Israelis rally for Lebanon war probe

jerusalem (jta) | Tens of thousands of Israelis rallied to demand an independent inquiry into how the war against Hezbollah was waged.

At least 30,000 people gathered in Tel Aviv's Rabin Square on Saturday, Sept. 9 to protest the prime minister's decision to order a limited internal government probe into the 34-day offensive in Lebanon.

The prime minister's desire for a limited inquiry has faced other setbacks. Two of the original panel members he named were disqualified by Attorney General Menachem Mazuz, who noted that both work in defense industries and might experience a conflict of interest when asked to provide a critique on Israel's armed forces.




IDF general stepping down

jerusalem (jta) | An Israeli army general who oversaw the war on Hezbollah tendered his resignation.

Maj. Gen. Udi Adam, chief of the Northern Command, announced Tuesday, Sept. 12 he was stepping down.

Questions were raised about Adam's professional performance after Hezbollah managed to kill eight soldiers and abduct two others in a July 12 border raid in his area of operations, triggering an Israeli offensive in Lebanon.

Halfway through the war, Israel's deputy chief of staff, Maj. Gen. Moshe Kaplinski, was posted to the Northern Command in what was widely viewed as a snub to Adam's authority.

Some Israelis voiced hope that Adam's resignation heralded further reckonings among the top brass.

Infrastructure Minister Benjamin Ben-Eliezer, a retired infantry commander, called for Lt. Gen. Dan Halutz, the military chief of staff, to resign as well. Ami Ayalon, a senior Labor lawmaker, proposed that party leader Amir Peretz switch his Defense portfolio for another role in the Cabinet.