By CJN
Peres criticizes Syria, Iran
Israeli President Shimon Peres criticized Syria and Iran during a visit to Paris. At a meeting April 12 with Prime Minister Francois Fillon, Peres said that ?Syria continues its doublespeak. On
the one hand it speaks about peace, and on the other hand it passes sophisticated Scud missiles to Hezbollah that threaten Israel. The transfer of arms from Syria to Hezbollah and Syria's support
of terrorist organizations does not square with its declarations of seeking peace.? On Iran, Peres said that ?As Jews who experienced the Holocaust, the people of Israel cannot remain indifferent
to Iran's desire to develop nuclear weapons. Nuclear weapons in the hands of a fascist government like Iran present a tangible threat to global peace. If Hitler had nuclear weapons, we would not
sit here today.? Peres and Paris Mayor Bertrand Delanoe inaugurated a new square near the Seine River, in the central part of the French capital, named the Ben-Gurion Esplanade.
Hezbollah coy on missiles
A Hezbollah government minister said April 16 that whether or not they have acquired scud missiles is none of Israel's business. Hussein Haj Hassan said the group was always arming and
preparing itself, but he refused to confirm or deny Israeli allegations that the militant Lebanese group has acquired Scud missiles. Earlier last week, Israeli president Shimon Peres accused
Damascus of providing the scud missiles, a charge Syria denied. The U.S. State Department responded April 14 by saying that if the allegations were true, they ?would put Lebanon at a significant
risk.?
Olmert, now Lupolianski too
Former Israeli prime minister Ehud Olmert has denied that he was involved in a massive real estate scandal that has also led to the arrest of former Jerusalem mayor Uri Lupolianski. In a news
conference last week, Olmert called police suspicion that he took a bribe, in what is being described as one of the worst corruption scandals in Israeli history, ?a character assassination
attempt that is unprecedented in its scope and might.? Olmert was identified by police as the chief suspect in the Holyland project scandal. He's currently on trial in relation to other
corruption charges. Lupolianski was arrested the same day in connection with the Holyland scandal. He's suspected of accepting $750,000 in bribes during the project's construction.
Hamas executes alleged spies
Hamas reportedly executed two Palestinians in Gaza convicted of collaborating with Israel. The men, convicted by a Gaza military court of treason for passing information to Israel, were executed
April 15 by a firing squad. Reportedly, they are the first executions in Gaza since 2005, when Hamas took over the Strip, according to the Palestinian Ma'an news agency. Under Palestinian law,
executions can only be carried out by authorization of the president. The executions, which were not approved by Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas, are a Hamas challenge to Abbas'
authority, Reuters reported. Palestinian human rights groups in Gaza and the West Bank had appealed to Hamas not to carry out the executions.
Israeli allowed to visit Beirut
Israel's Supreme Court has given an Israeli-Arab writer permission to visit Beirut to attend an Arab writers' conference. Ala Halihal from the northern Israeli city of Akko appealed to Israel's
Supreme Court after Interior Minister Eli Yishai refused to allow the trip. Asked by the court to respond to the petition, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said he also opposed the visit. It's
illegal for Israeli citizens to visit Lebanon, which is considered an enemy state.
