Israel Resource Review 24th July, 2006

Contents:

Intelligence Assessment: HIZBULLAH TARGETS ISRAELI STRATEGIC FACILITIES
Middle East News Line


Hizbullah has targeted Israeli strategic facilities.

Israeli security officials said Hizbullah has fired Iranian-origin rockets toward strategic facilities in the northern city of Haifa. Haifa contains a petrochemical plant, oil refinery and naval base.

On Sunday, two rockets fell into a strategic facility complex near the Haifa port. Officials would not identify the facility but said damage was caused.

"It could have been a lot worse, but we've been expecting this attack for at least a week," a government source said.

At the same time, Israel has been bracing for longer-range Hizbullah rocket attacks that could reach the Tel Aviv area. On Sunday, the military sounded sirens of an imminent rocket strike in the towns of Binyamina and Zichron Yaakov about 75 kilometers from the Lebanese border.

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New Congressional Legislation Pending to Recognize a Palestinian Arab Independent State
David Bedein


At a when most people are paying attention to other middle east developments, the Israeli and American governments were encouraging passage of HR 4681, coined the "PA amti-terrorism legislation"

Indeed, 3500 membrs of a new organization, known as CUNI, "Christians United for Israel", led by Pasor John Hagee appeared pm Julu 19th, 2006 on Capital Hill to lobby for HR 4681.

However, most people may not have read the text of this legislation, which repesents formal US congressional recognition of an indepndent Palestinian Arab state based on the road map. The first paragraph states that its purpose is to create "a two-state solution to end the conflict between Israel and the Palestinians in accordance with the Performance-Based Roadmap to a Permanent Two-State Solution to the Israeli-Palestinian Conflict (commonly referred to as the `Roadmap')"

This legislation would therefore have the US Congress bind the US government to recognize an independent government for Palestinian Arabs in Judea, Samaria and Gaza. It is doubtful whether CUNI members or leaders understood this.

After witnessing how Palestinian Arabs have used previous Israeli withdrawals in Lebanon and Gaza to use these respective areas as launch pads to attack the rest of Israel, it is not hard to imagine that any area ceded by Israel for an independent PA in Judea and Samaria would soon be used as a new launching pad for Palestinian Arab attacks against the heart of Israel.

B'vracha

David Bedein Bureau Chief Israel Resource News Agency Beit Agron Int'l Press Center Jerusalem 94581 Israel www.israelVisit.co.il/BehindTheNews

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