• Official PA Radio: PBC "Voice of Palestine" Dec. 1 - Official Claim that Israel Dispatched Dogs to the Temple Mount
• Official PA radio: "Voice of Palestine" PBC radio November 30

Despite Israeli press reports about encouraging signs of a meeting soon between Yasser Arafat and Ehud Barak, VOP broadcast an Arafat denial about any such meeting. VOP also quoted Arafat to the effect that he would refuse any meeting with Israel until it withdraws its tanks, and he further said the PA would not discuss any partial or gradual Israeli withdrawal plans. Instead, the PA would insist on a total Israeli pullback.

Friday a.m. headlines

• "Continuation of Israeli aggression against our people: three more martyrs yesterday and tens of wounded, some in dangerous condition;
• The martyrs are Ismail Abu-Rous, 20 years old…kileld in the Mintaar transit point in Gaza….the young lady, Warid Ahmad Badan, 17 years old from the village of Teqoah in the Bethlehem prefecture who was buried yesterday, and the child Shadi Ahmad Zughul, 14, from the village of Husan in Bethlehem prefecture who was run over by a hateful settler as he was trying to run away, and who was brought to rest yesterday;
• Security officials refuted Israeli claims of withdrawals from the City Inn and other locations along roads throughout the (West) Bank;
• Dr. Saeb Erikat, Minister for Local Rule, said that the steps announced by Israel for executing for the purpose of building confidence were just public relations stunts;
• Occupation forces continued their acts to cause destitution in Bani Naim village in the Hebron prefecture, by expanding the colony of Bani Sir (sic) on the lands of the (Palestinian) citizens. And the occupation forces occupied a house in Dir al-Balah, displacing four citizens, including one child;
• Occupation authorities continued the closure of occupied Jerusalem to prevent citizens from aropund the West Bank reaching prayers at the Al Aqsa Mosque on the first Friday of the blessed month of Ramadan;
• Engineer Faiz Zaydan, the head of the aviation authority, announced the return of service at Gaza airport starting at nine o'clock today through three thirty in the afternoon every day in a partial lifting of the Israeli blockade that was started several weeks ago;
• His Excellency President Yasser Arafat denied readiness to hold a summit conference with Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Barak, stressing the need for Israel first to carry out its obligations under previous agreements, especially the Sharm al-Sheikh understandings, if it wants peace, tranquility and stability in the region;
• And the Palestinian Authority refused the Israeli proposal of another 10-percent (ten percent) Israeli withdrawal in an elongated interim agreement;
• Ahmad Qureia-Abu Ala-the head of the legislature said that the American administration's continued support for Israeli positions will not buttress the peace process.
• Colonel Jibril Rajoub, head of security apparatus in the West Bank, said that the agent Alan Bani Odeh who is responsible for murdering the martyr Ibrahim Bani Odeh admitted to him that when he killed Ibrahim Bani Odeh he was carrying out orders of the Israeli security service (i.e. the Shin Bet or Shabak known as the G.S.S.)."

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The main morning news interview featured PA Information Minister Yasser Abd Rabbo, detailing PA efforts to achieve international condemnation of Israel: not only international condemnation of specific Israeli actions, but broad-based condemnation for all Israeli policies as well as the dispatch of an international protection force. VOP features these diplomatic efforts as "ways to stop Israeli aggression."

Interview with PA Information Minister Yasser Abd Rabbo: "My visit to New York centered first around a meeting with the international investigation commission headed by the former American senator George Mitchell, and the former Turkish president and the Norwegian foreign minister and his excellency the European (Community) representative Salana. This meeting dealt directly with the duties of the commission in our region…Naturally, the commission has been delayed, and we clearly criticized this delay, and it is also clear that this delay was caused by pressures and tactics taken by Israel to prevent the commission from dealing immediately with its task….

It was assumed that the commission would begin its duties after the Sharm al-Sheikh summit….We therefore believed it should reach the region immediately and that the center of its activities should be here and not outside the region-but here meeting all the parties. Its importance is linked to the Security Council decision condemning Israeli aggression and condemning Israeli violence and calling for an investigation of the crimes committed against the Palestinian people.

Also, we expressed our belief …that the commission mandate was… also on the basis of the Fourth Geneva Convention which has clear provisions protecting a civilian population against acts of war under occupation. That dovetails with the Palestinian situation….And therefore the commission should investigate all Israeli violations -all the aggression and the killing on a daily basis against the Palestinian people-as well as all the forms of the economic blockade practiced three million Palestinians …."

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