Ariel Sharon and Ehud Barak

---

Two Israelis were killed today in different terrorist attacks. On the Jerusalem-Hebron road this evening 42 year old Hadassah Hospital doctor and father of 5 Dr. Shmuel Gillis, a Jewish resident from the village of Carmei Tsur in the Hebron mountains was shot and killed when Palestinians ambushed his car. Three women passengers were lightly injured when the car overturned.

Near Jenin, on the border with the PA, an Afula resident – Lior Atiya, 23 years old-was shot this morning by Palestinians. The Israeli civilian came to the Sabakh el-Hir neighborhood to service his car, accompanied by an Israeli Arab. After he was shot and severely injured, he was taken to a hospital in Jenin, and was then transferred to the Afula hospital for surgery. He was severely injured in the chest and abdomen, and died of his wounds in the hospital. According to the IDF investigation, the murder was committed in an area under Israeli military control.

Another fatal attack took place this week in the vicinity of the Atarot industrial zone north of Jerusalem, close to the city’s airport. The victim was a Jerusalem resident Arieh Hershkowitz who worked at the Atarot industrial zone. The industrial zone, has recently become dangerous for Jewish business owners and workers employed at the plants and workshops in the area. This week’s victims bring the number of Jews murdered since the outbreak of violence to 53. The Atarot airport was recently shut down for security reasons.

Tonight PM Barak announced that as a result of the latest murders, he was ending efforts of UN Secretary General, Kofi Anan, and EU leaders to bring about a summit with Yasser Arafat before Israel’s elections on Tuesday. The intention was to hold a summit on Sunday at Sharm e-Sheikh under the auspices of the Egyptian President, Hosni Mubarak.

Tonight is the final date on which the prime-ministerial candidate can be replaced. Ehud Barak stated this morning that he has no intention of stepping down and making room for Shimon Peres despite the wide gap in the polls in favor of the Likud candidate Ariel Sharon. According to the polls, Peres has a better chance of beating Sharon than Barak.

Within the Labor Party, Peres’ aides have been accused of undermining Barak and state that only after his candidacy has finally been removed can Barak’s chances be expected to improve.

The Israeli Foreign Ministry and Jewish organizations in the US are organizing an information blitz for the day after the elections, unrelated to the outcome, in order to present world public opinion with the facts relating to the Palestinian attacks and Arafat’s intransigence in the peace process.

The son of the late Arieh Hershkowitz at his father’s funeral

After their visit to Russia and the Ukraine, President Moshe Katsav paid a first official state visit to Georgia at the end of last week. Georgian President Eduard Shevernadze welcomed President Katsav and said: "Since the destruction of the First Temple, Georgia has been a home for Jews as much as for Georgians. I am pleased that I was able to help the Jews in Georgia make aliyah as early on as the end of the Soviet period, and now they can live freely in Georgia as well as in Israel. For hundreds of years there has been a special relationship between the Jewish and Georgian peoples, and I view this friendship as a national priority in Georgia". In his speech President Katsav said: "I come from a country to which my ancestors were exiled 2500 years ago to Iran. I now represent a country to which Jews from the Diaspora have returned and rebuilt with hard work as a democratic and developed country. From the holy city of Jerusalem, 3000 years old, the eternal capital of the Jewish people and the State of Israel, I bring a message of goodwill and fraternity. Israel greatly appreciates Georgia and is willing to support it and help it in all walks of life".

The presidents agreed to intensify cooperation between the two countries. President Shevernadze thanked President Katsav for the humanitarian assistance provided by Israel during the recent drought and expressed the hope that Israeli investments in Georgia would grow. The Georgian president expressed regrets on the subject of the state of the Middle East peace process and stated his willingness to participate in any political initiative which would contribute to achieving stability in the area. The presidents condemned all forms of international terror and stressed the need for cooperation to contain the problem. Taking into account the unique aspects of the friendship between the two peoples, the presidents expressed the desire to establish a Jewish cultural center in Georgia and a Georgian cultural center in Israel.

Jewish Agency Treasurer Chaim Chesler, accompanied President Katsav on his visit to Georgia and showed him Jewish Agency activities in the area. Meir Tal, head of the JAFI delegation to the Central Asian Republics, reported that within the framework of the packed time schedule of official visits, President Katsav also devoted time to the Jewish community. A warm reception was held for the president at the main synagogue in Tbilisi attended by leaders of local Jewish communities, Jewish Agency and JDC representatives and hundreds of Jews in the city.

According to Jewish Agency estimates, there are currently some 8,000 Jews in Georgia. Since the gates of the FSU were opened, 20,500 Jews have made aliyah from Georgia, 900 during the year 2000 .

The first group of 40 Jewish youngsters from Latin America arrived in Israel this week, as part of the Selah program (students before parents), run by the Jewish Agency, which allows Jewish 17 and 18 year olds to be absorbed in Israel on an academic study track.

Kito Hasson, head of the JAFI delegation in Latin America, reports that this is the first time that the program has been offered outside the borders of the FSU. Hasson said that the process of finding teenagers in South America for the program began two months ago. 80 youngsters from Argentina, Chile and Uruguay underwent a selection process, and 60 of them will now be arriving in Israel.

Some 5,000 youngsters from the FSU have come to Israel since the Selah program was initiated five years ago, and the parallel Chalom (vocational training) program began. Chalom provides youngsters with the opportunity of being absorbed through a vocational training program.

The Selah students will live at the Jewish Agency’s Kfar Saba absorption center, and will attend a pre-academic course. The five-month university training program includes the study of Hebrew, Math, English computers and preparation for the psychometric exam. Following the training program, the youngsters will be absorbed in institutes of higher education all over Israel.

In mid-January, ten juniors and seniors from the Cabri School, and eleven members of the Hanoar Hazioni youth movement in Great Britain arrived in the Confrontation Line communities of Shlomi and Maale Yosef for ten weeks of community volunteer service.

A three-day orientation included a cooking class and a discussion on kashrut to prepare participants for independent living and a day-long TEFL (Teaching English as a Foreign Language) seminar to provide basic training for teaching in local schools. After the class, the teenagers made a group shopping excursion to the local supermarket, and koshered the kitchens in the flats in which they are residing. But they enjoyed their first evening meal with their host families!

The Cabri students spend four mornings a week teaching in local schools: at the Ben Zvi and Rav Maimon primary schools and the Western Galilee Regional High School in Shlomi, as well as at the primary school established for children of the South Lebanese Army refugees in Nahariya, and the high school for young Lebanese near Akko. The Hanoar Hazioni members volunteer in Ma’ale Yosef schools: the Western Galilee Regional High School, the Kerner Primary School in Meona, the Shalom Aleichem Primary School in Bezet, and the Netiv Meir Primary School in Ma’a lot.

The youngsters spend their afternoons volunteering in clubs for schoolchildren and programs teenage girls from disadvantaged homes, tutoring in the Learning Center at the community center, and helping refugee Lebanese children.

One day a week the volunteers have an enrichment program on Jewish themes and on the Confrontation Line region, and they study Hebrew in ulpan one afternoon each week .

A group of volunteers from North America who arrived at the Jewish Agency’s Ibim Student Village in the Negev just three weeks ago, have begun teaching English to staff members as well as students at the village.

The teenagers are participants in Young Judea’s Year Course in Israel -- a 10-month study and volunteer program for recent high school graduates from North America. The program consists of formal academic studies, field trips throughout Israel, and volunteer / living experiences in various community settings. During their three-month stint at Ibim, the bulk of their time will be spent doing volunteer work in the nearby development town of Sderot, where they help in kindergartens, assisting in schools, and work at clubs for the mentally handicapped. They are also studying Hebrew at a nearby junior college.

The initiative to teach English has been very well received at Ibim. "Some of the participants in the classes wanted help with texts, some wanted conversational English," says Debi Manor of the Ibim staff. "Some of the people knew English, but they were afraid to open their mouths. This gave them the self-confidence they needed."

39-year old Gabyenesh Molokan, a blind olah from Ethiopia, whose sight was restored following surgery in Israel, will volunteer for the Civil Guard. Gabyenesh is one of 25 Ethiopian olim living at the Jewish Agency’s Sapir absorption center in Kiryat Yam, who yesterday completed a special training course in preparation for serving in the Civil Guard.

390 olim who came from Ethiopia at the end of 1999 live at the Sapir absorption center. The center’s absorption process, which includes learning Hebrew and becoming acquainted with Israeli society, is designed to help the olim prepare themselves for living independently. Naamah Malhi, director of the center, said that the Civil Guard volunteer project, which has been introduced in Kiryat Yam for the first time, aims to help the olim integrate within the wider community.

The training program lasts three months and was organized at the initiative of the Jewish Agency together with the Israeli police force. It includes lectures, tours and practical exercises. During the course the olim are exposed to police and Civil Guard activity, they acquire tools to help them identify unusual incidents and learn how to deal with them, learn how to use weapons, and toured the police learning centers. The olim took part in city patrols, volunteered to protect large-scale events and helped guard the elderly when they receive their allowances from the National Insurance Institute.

The graduation ceremony was attended by Daliah Zarfati - director of the Absorption and Community Department at the Jewish Agency’s northern office, Commander David Sisso - commander of the Zevulun Station, Kiryat Yam mayor Benny Stalkol, and commander of the Coastal District Brigadier General Dov Shechter.

A ceremony awarding stipends to outstanding students took place at the Tel Hai College in the Eastern Galilee. The stipends were awarded by the Jewish Agency and UJA Canada in Israel, within the context of a project to promote higher education in the Eastern Galilee.

The stipends, amounting to $60,000 in all, were awarded to 32 outstanding students from the Faculty of Bio-technology and Environmental Studies, the Faculty of Education and multi-disciplinary studies, the Faculty of Economics and Management, the schools of Computer Science, Social Work and multi-disciplinary studies.

Nissim Lagziel, director of the JAFI project to promote higher education, said that those receiving the stipends represent the student population in the Eastern Galilee, who come from all over the country and all sectors of the population. According to Lagziel, in addition to the stipends for outstanding students, the Jewish Agency also provides grants for students on a socio-economic basis.

The ceremony was attended by Zvi Kahana, director of the Jewish Agency’s northern office, Dr. Amnon Shinar - Director General of UJA Canada in Israel, and Prof. Motti Shechter, president of the Tel Hai college.

Armed Fatah Tanzim

This is stated in the "flyer of loyalty to the martyrs, Jerusalem and the right of return" published by the armed militias of the Fatah.

Despite all the political scheming which is influenced by the Americans, we - the "Fatah" swear to God, to our land, our martyrs and our entire people, to remain as soldiers defending Jerusalem, independence and our return, we swear to our leader (Arafat) to continue the intifada and the struggle to obtain our independence and return to our land.

We reiterate that all Israeli soldiers and settlers will be a target for our bullets. All the plots and attempts to ignore our rights will be thwarted by the Fatah Tanzim, who pull the trigger at the historical moment when the intifada is victorious and the oppressive enemy withdraws in the face of the will of our people, our bullets and painful attacks and the firm stand taken by our leaders are embodied in Arafat’s determination and his challenge to all political pressures.

We have decided to establish "special action forces", who will have the ability to act more accurately in order to support the position of our political leadership.

We confirm our support for our leader Yasser Arafat and we will unite around his historic decisions, which adhere to the national principles of our people, particularly the right of return as being a "red line", and Jerusalem as the eternal Palestinian capital.

We call upon our brother and leader Abu Amar to reinforce the delegation which is involved in the negotiations with new members and establish a government of national unity in order to face the challenges of this stage (of our struggle) in order to bring us to safe waters.

We warn those who spread rumors and attempt to encourage a civil war among the united Palestinian people, and state the need for caution and cooperation in order to expose the collaborators and traitors.

• $ 13,000 – Jewish Agency allocation for the year 2000 to Bahlachin Institute for the Culture of Ethiopian Jewry for project to Fight against Stereotypes and Prejudices – within the framework of projects that foster "Unity, Tolerance and Mutual Respect."

• $ 23,000 – Jewish Agency allocation for the year 2000 to The Institute for the Advancement of Education in Jaffa for an Integrated Violence Prevention Project within the framework of support of "Special Needs Populations."

• $ 16,000 – Jewish Agency allocations for the year 2000 to Beit Lochamei Haghettaot for a project for Pluralism, Tolerance and Democracy through Value Dilemmas within the framework of allocations "Enhancing Jewish Identity for Israelis."

• 3,560 Olim arrived in Israel since the beginning of 2001. 2,649 are from the FSU.

• 783 new immigrants arrived in Israel this week. 620 from the FSU and Eastern Europe; 91 from Ethiopia and the rest from France, Argentina, England, South Africa, Australia, the USA and Canada.

400 students from all over the FSU will, in 10 days time, join their colleagues from all over the world who have come to Israel for an educational visit through the "Birthright" program, run jointly by the Jewish Agency, the Israeli government, Jewish philanthropists and communities world wide. The group arriving from Russia will include guitarist Dimitri Shepelev and clarinet player Michael Hatutsky, who won third place in the Ofra Haza Hebrew song festival, held last week in Moscow and organized by the Jewish Agency. The two young musicians captivated the Moscow audience last week, by performing Ofra Haza’s song "Someone always goes with me" ("Mishehu tamid holech iti") in Hebrew. Now they will attempt to captivate the Israeli audience.

The Jewish Agency will also be bringing over 16-year old Yuliana Sachsonova from Bryansk, near Moscow. Yuliana won second prize at the song festival with Haza’s song "Warm Home" ("Bayit Ham"). She also performed this song in front of President Moshe Katsav during his visit to Moscow last week. In Israel she will participate in TV’s Channel One "Taverna" program, which will be entirely dedicated to the work and memory of Ofra Haza. As planned, the four members of Moscow’s Israel Center band "Tsivei Hakeshset" (Colors of the Rainbow), who won first prize at the festival with Haza’s song "Help Me" ("Azor Li"), will receive airlines tickets to Israel whenever they choose to come.

The "Birthright" program is based on the principle that every Jew has an inherent right to become acquainted with Israel and feel part of the Jewish people. Candidates for the program are young Jews, aged 17-26 (university students, or those who have completed high school), who have never visited Israel on a program financed by the Jewish Agency or any other organization.

In January dozens of educational summer activities were held in the southern part of Latin America, attended by thousands of members of Zionist youth movements. Zvi Hasson, head of the JAFI delegation in Latin America, who visited the camps reports that they included scouts’ camps, adult seminars, and courses for youth leaders and prospective leaders.

A camp for graduates of the " Hanoar Hatzioni" youth movement took place 200 km. outside Uruguay’s capital. The camp lasted two weeks and participants came from Argentina, Uruguay, Paraguay, Peru, Ecuador, Brazil, Panama and Cost Rica.

Hundreds of members of the "Habonim Dror" and "Hechalutz Lamerchav" youth movements participated in scout camps in Argentina. Betar from Uruguay and Argentina convened its older members for summer activities which focussed on the study of the first five decades of the State of Israel. Hasson notes that the activities took place in a youthful atmosphere, with Israeli songs and dances.

GSS reveals: One of the most dangerous terrorist cells which had been operating against Israel has been exposed by the GSS (General Security Services - commonly known as the Shabak). In recent months the cell has committed numerous attacks, killing 7 Israelis, including 2 soldiers. Members of the cell belonged to the Fatah’s "Force 17", and some are now under arrest in Israel.

Missile protection : At the beginning of the month, Israel and the US will begin a joint military exercise which includes defending attacks by ballistic missiles on Israel. For the purpose of the exercise, the US will be transferring 400 soldiers from Germany and Patriot missile batteries.

Deal with Egypt: The Board of Directors of the Israel Electric Corporation (IEC) has authorized a massive purchase from Egypt - 56% of the natural gas which Israel will require during the coming decade will be purchased from Egypt. The value of the gas during the contract period is $3 billion. The IEC’s decision took many by surprise, in view of the Ministry of Infrastructure’s notices to Israel’s gas suppliers that over the last year substantial quantities of gas had been found which would be sufficient for many years.

World development : The global company Intel has chosen Israel as the location for developing all the chips its requires for building the next generation of portable computers. Intel’s management said that the chips would be based on new solutions, which would provide consumers with low battery consumption without affecting the processor’s performance. The chips which will be developed in Israel will be supplied by the end of next year.

Aid for victims: One of the largest aid missions ever sent by Israel has arrived in the area of the earthquake which hit India. 6 aircraft - 4 Hercules and 2 Boeing jets, transferred 170 team members and 65 tons of equipment to the area of the disaster.

Mortality rate among premature births: A survey comparing the mortality rate among premature births in Israel with those in the US and Canada has revealed a difficult picture. It would appear that 71% of premature babies born with a weight of 500-749 grams in Israel die, compared with 44% in the US and 38% in Canada, within the same birth-weight group.

The film "Quara Jews - The Last Journey", which was produced by the Jewish Agency’s Marketing and Communication Group together with the United Jewish Communities in North America, won the world bronze medal in the category of PR and fundraising films, at the prestigious New York Festival.

The international festival, which has been held for 42 years, included 16,000 entries from 64 countries, competing in 48 categories within the various spheres of media. "Quara Jews - The Last Journey" won third place among the 17 films which reached the final stage.

The short film (just 4 minutes) tracks the story of the arrival of the Jews of Quara in Israel in 1999. It was filmed in Ethiopia and Israel by Dan Carmi. Avinoam Bar Yosef of the Jewish Agency was responsible for the script and editing, together with Dan Carmi. The film documents the rescue operations for a community in distress. The film was produced in New York by Nadine Fattelay and Fran Sommers, of the Marketing Group of the UJC in North America led by Ms. Carole Solomon, National UJC Campaign Pillar Chair and Gail Hyman UJC VP for Marketing.

A considerable number of the Jews from Ethiopia’s Quara province remained behind during operations to bring Ethiopian Jews to Israel, as they were unable to reach the departure points and due to the rainy season in the area.

In the spring of 1999, Jewish Agency Chairman Sallai Meridor initiated a request to the Israeli Government and the Jews worldwide, to fulfill their moral obligation to the Jews of Quara and work together to rescue them immediately.

Carmi accompanied the Jewish Agency’s rescue teams who were operating in Ethiopia and documented their first meetings with the Jews of Quara. Since then, the Jewish Agency has brought some 1650 Jews to Israel from Quara.

Ingredients

250 gm. dried pitted dates
1 tspn. baking soda
2 1/2 cups self-raising flour
3/4 cup boiling milk
200 gm. butter
1 cup sugar
6 eggs
1/2 tspn. salt
1 Tspn. cinnamon
200 gm. chopped walnuts

Preparation: (for 20 pieces)

• Chop the dates coarsely and place in a bowl. Add the baking soda and sprinkle with 3-4 tablespoons of flour. Cover with boiling milk and set the mixture aside to cool, stirring occasionally.

• Mix the butter and sugar well, beat the eggs and add slowly. Then gradually stir in the rest of the flour together with the salt. Add the cinnamon, date and milk mixture and the eggs.

• Transfer to a floured pan - 23 cm. diameter - or two smaller baking trays, and bake for an hour in a pre-heated oven - 190⁰ (375⁰ F.). When using smaller baking trays, bake for 45 minutes.