Middle East Post

Netanyahu, left, and Mubarak discussed issues including a prisoner exchange deal [EPA]
Israeli and Egyptian leaders have met in Cairo to discuss US-backed efforts to relaunch peace talks between Israel and the Palestinians.

Neither Binyamin Netanyahu, Israel’s prime minister, nor Hosni Mubarak, Egypt’s president, spoke to journalists after the meeting on Tuesday, though the Israeli PM’s office said “talks were in-depth and friendly”. Read more…

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By Haaretz Service
In an unusual step, the state announced on Tuesday its plan to promote planning and construction in the northern West Bank settlement of Kiryat Netafim, Army Radio reported Wednesday.

Left wing human rights group Peace Now petitioned the High Court of Justice recently against the construction of 14 structures that were illegally Read more…

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By Richard Silverstein
Israeli soldier Gilad Shalit has been held by Hamas since June 2006 [GALLO/GETTY]
One never knows what to say about the on again, off again negotiations to free Gilad Shalit, an abducted Israeli soldier, and the seemingly unending media stories announcing an imminent deal.
But there are now enough serious signals that a deal is close, that it is worthwhile considering what could happen and its possible impact on Israeli-Palestinian relations. Read more…

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Harvested organs were alleged to have been used by the military and in public hospitals [File: AFP]
Israel has admitted that it harvested organs from the dead bodies of Palestinians and Israelis in the 1990s, without permission from their families.
The admission follows the release of an interview with Jehuda Hiss, the former head of Israel’s forensic institute, in which he said that workers at the institute had harvested skin, corneas, heart valves and bones from Israelis, Palestinians and foreign workers. Read more…

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By Barak Ravid and Jack Khoury, Haaretz Correspondents
Senior Israeli cabinet ministers convened Monday morning for the fourth time for discussions on a proposed prisoner exchange deal with Hamas, which would see abducted Israeli soldier Gilad Shalit freed after more than three years in captivity.

The “forum of seven” ministers deals with sensitive security affairs, and is made up of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu (Likud), Defense Read more…

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By Jack Khoury, Haaretz Correspondent Fatah strongman Marwan Barghouti has said that Hamas and Israel are on the verge of reaching a deal for the release of abducted Israeli soldier Gilad Shalit, in an interview with the pan-Arab daily Al-Quds al-Arabi published on Wednesday. As part of a prisoner exchange for Shalit, the Islamist militant group is reportedly demanding that Israel release Barghouti, who is serving five consecutive life sentences in an Israeli prison for his role in terror attacks. Read more…

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By Natasha Mozgovaya and Barak Ravid, Haaretz Correspondents and Haaretz Service
Shortly after European Union Ministers announced their support for the division of Jerusalem between Israel and a future Palestinian state on Tuesday, the U.S. State Department issued a statement saying that the fate of Jerusalem should only be determined by Israel and the Palestinians in talks. Read more…

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The European Union said it had ‘never recognised the annexation of East Jerusalem’ [AFP]
European Union foreign ministers have agreed that Jerusalem should be the capital of both Israel and a future Palestinian state following two days of talks in Brussels.
The ministers dropped an earlier proposal by the Swedish EU presidency to explicitly support the idea of East Jerusalem as the eventual capital of Palestine. Read more…

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Sunday December 06, 2009 08:52 by Saed Bannoura – IMEMC & Agencies
The Al Hayat newspaper, based in London, reported that four French physicians examined the captured prisoner of war, Gilad Shalit, in the Gaza Strip last week marking the first time foreign delegates manage to visit him.
The BBC – Arabic and Al Hayat Newspaper reported that the physicians entered the Gaza Strip with the German mediator, Ernst Uhrlau. Read more…

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Sunday December 06, 2009 11:08 by Saed Bannoura – IMEMC & Agencies

MK Arie Bibi – Still from BBC videoIsraeli member of Knesset (MK) Arie Bibi of the Kadima party headed by Tzipi Livni, intends to file a proposal to the Knesset to vote on preventing the mosques in Israel from using speakers while calling for dawn prayers.

The proposal intend to prevent the call for prayers in Al Arab areas, including in East Jerusalem. Read more…

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By Akiva Eldar
Who would have thought that the son of Benzion Netanyahu would utter the words “two states for two peoples”? Who would have believed that Benjamin Netanyahu would get the settler minister Avigdor Lieberman to agree to a settlement freeze? Ever since Netanyahu replaced Ehud Olmert as prime minister, there has been a significant decrease in the number of roadblocks in the West Bank. Peace Now reports that Housing and Construction Ministry tenders for housing beyond the Green Line are at a low. Read more…

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Al-Hashemi wanted the laws to be amended in order to give Sunnis greater representation [EPA]
Iraqi politicians have reached an agreement on a new version of a stalled electoral law, paving the way for elections early next year, Khalid al-Attiya, the deputy speaker of parliament, has said.
The agreement came late on Sunday evening after a marathon emergency session of parliament. Read more…

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By Amos Harel and Avi Issacharoff, Haaretz Correspondents and Haaretz Service Fatah strongman, expected to win Palestinian election if freed in Shalit deal, declares intention to run. Fatah strongman Marwan Barghouti said in an interview on Wednesday that he intends to run in the next Palestinian presidential election, and remarked that the capture of Israel Defense Forces soldier Gilad Shalit by Gaza militants achieved what no negotiations could ever achieve. Shalit was kidnapped in a cross border raid in 2006, and has been held prisoner by Hamas for over three years. Read more…

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