Semaine 12 / 2008

      Yemeni Foreign Minister Abubakr al-Qirbi said Saturday that there had been a breakthrough in reconciliation talks between Hamas and Fatah negotiators in Yemen's capital Sanaa. Al-Qirbi told reporters following a meeting between the sides that a draft agreement on an agenda and a timetable for the proposed dialogue had been agreed on by the two factions, but had yet to be approved by Hamas top leaders. "A final formula was reached and Fatah agreed to it ... Our brothers in the Hamas movement asked for an... [Lire la suite]

      U.S. Vice President Dick Cheney arrived in Israel on Saturday for a meeting with Prime Minister Ehud Olmert, and vowed the U.S. would never pressure Israel to take steps that threaten its security. "America's commitment to Israel's security is enduring and unshakable, as is Israel's right to protect itself always against terrorism, rocket attacks and other attacks from forces dedicated to Israel's destruction," Cheney told a joint news conference with Olmert. "The United States will never... [Lire la suite]

         Israel has agreed to let Russia deliver 25 armored vehicles to Palestinian security forces in the West Bank, a Defense Ministry spokesman said Friday - a move meant to bolster Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas in his struggle with Hamas. Russia had proposed shipping the armored vehicles to Palestinian security forces two years ago, but Israel initially balked, fearing the cars would fall into Hamas's hands. Later, the deal was bogged down by Palestinian plans to mount the vehicles... [Lire la suite]

         Israel has agreed to allow Russia to supply the Palestinian Authority security services in the West Bank with Russian-made armored vehicles, Haaretz has learned. Late last year, a political brouhaha erupted over reports of a deal in principle between Israel and Russia whereby Jerusalem agreed to the transfer of armored vehicles to the Palestinian Authority. Right-wing lawmakers bitterly criticized Olmert for the decision. The deal was also held up due to Israel's objections to Palestinian... [Lire la suite]

      Defense officials say Israel will begin outfitting some of its passenger aircraft with missile defense systems within weeks. The plans have been in the works since 2002, when an Arkia passenger jet was targeted after takeoff by militants firing missiles in Mombasa, Kenya. The missiles missed, but the attack spurred Israel to consider equipping passenger aircraft with defense systems similar to those already used by the air force. The officials say the system fires flares that disrupt an incoming missile's... [Lire la suite]

      Foreign Minister Tzipi Livni and her Russian counterpart Sergei Lavrov on Thursday signed an agreement allowing Israel access to sensitive information from the old soviet archives. The two foreign ministers held a joint press conference at a Tel Aviv hotel and announced that Israel would now have access to documents from the Soviet archives dating back to the period between 1953 to 1967. The archived information dates back to a troubled era in Israeli-Russian relations. During the Sinai Campaign of 1956, as... [Lire la suite]

      President Shimon Peres on Thursday told visiting Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov that "talk of peace from Syria arouses distrust within Israel," after Russian officials announced that Moscow would try to relaunch Israel-Syria peace talks at an upcoming Mideast summit, to be held in Moscow this year. According to Peres, Syria is continuing to massively smuggle weapons to the Lebanon based guerilla group Hezbollah, which has threatened to destroy Israel. Lavrov said that peace in the Middle... [Lire la suite]

       Israeli and Egyptian representatives agreed in principle Wednesday to a deal that would have Egypt replace Israel as the Gaza Strip's sole electricity provider. Under the deal, Egypt would set up a new power line from the Sinai Peninsula town of Arish to the nearby Gaza Strip. The 150-megawatt line would cost $35 million to set up, and would be operational within two years. Security sources say the agreement will effectively free Israel from supplying Gaza with electricity, even though it does not... [Lire la suite]

       Retaining his tough stance against Iran, US Vice President Dick Cheney said Wednesday that Teheran may have restarted the nuclear weaponization program that a US intelligence report said was halted in 2003.Speaking in Oman, a US-allied Arab monarchy and neighbor of Iran's, Cheney told ABC News, "The important thing to keep in mind is the objective that we share with many of our friends in the region, and that is that a nuclear-armed Iran would be very destabilizing for the entire area." In December... [Lire la suite]

      The US is transferring $150 million in aid to the Palestinian government in the coming days, Palestinian Authority Prime Minister Salaam Fayad announced Wednesday.The payment is part of a total of $550 million the US pledged to pay to the Palestinians over three years, part of a total of $7.7 billion in pledges from international donors made at a conference in Paris in December. Fayad said the US money would go directly to the national treasury, to be used for running the cash-strapped government. Donors... [Lire la suite]