Dear Readers
Here is the digest for October 12th, 2004

1- Three Days Ultimatum for Palestinian Olive Growers to finish
2- 10-year-old Girl wounded while in class in Khan Younis School
3- Sharon Defeated, This Time in the Knesset



1- Three Days Ultimatum for Palestinian Olive Growers to finish
George Rishmawi-IMEMC & Agencies, October 12, 2004

Israeli Authorities warned Palestinian olive growers in the Nablus
area in the West Bank to finish picking the olives in three days,
claiming that the olive picking season threatened lives of Israeli
settlers.

This step comes one day after settlers from Yetzhar settlement
assaulted some farmers in Asseirah Al-Qibliyyeh resulted in critically
injuring one of the farmers in the neck.

An eyewitness reported that the farmer was shot by a soldier.

Justifying the three days ultimatum, the army claims that they can not
provide protection for the farmers for more than three days. Some
farmers spend a month picking their olives.

Over 30 villages will be affected by this decision. The new military
regulations will prevent the farmers to enter their olive groves after
the three days end.

Walid Jaber from Yanoun village southeast of Nablus, said that no
Palestinian farmer will finish the picking even if we have hundreds of
workers if these military orders are implemented.
Palestinian Shot in the Neck During Olive Picking
October 11, 2004

A local source in Nablus, said that settler attacked tens of villagers
in the village of Aseera Al-Qibleyya, south of Nablus as they were
picking olives in their fields.

The source added that the settlers from the settlement of Yitzhar
attacked the villagers and a scuffled with them.

Hani Shihadeh, 26, was shot in the neck by a soldier after the troops
arrived at the orchard to break up a fist fight between Jewish
settlers and the Palestinians picking olives, said Munir Darwish, a
Palestinian who was picking with Shadeh.

Darwish reported that a soldier knelt on his knees and took aim at
Shihadeh from about 300 meters distance and shot him. However, the
army claimed that a Jewish settler shot Shihadah.

Shihadeh was admitted to surgery and medics described his condition as
critical.

Local Palestinians say Jewish settlers cut down about 1,000 olive
trees in the Nablus area during the harvest season last year as part
of an effort to drive the Palestinians off their farmland.

Few days ago, settlers attacked a group of Palestinian farmers while
picking olives in the village of Yanoun near Nablus and assaulted one
of them with the but of their guns.

One of the settlers also shot at a farmer but missed his feet. When
the troops arrived to the scene, after a group of internationals from,
"Human Rights Watch" organization contacted the commander of the area,
they arrested the assaulted farmer together with another one.

Settlers have been harassing Palestinian farmers and trying to
obstruct their olive picking seasons since a very long time, locals
claimed.

The International Solidarity Movement constantly organize an Olive
Picking Campaign to enable the Palestinians to pick their olives away
from the settlers harassments.

Several Internationals have been assaulted by settlers in the past few
years, among them a 74 year old American Activist from Wisconsin, and
68 Beverly Hills, California activists, in November 2002.


2- 10-year-old Girl wounded while in class in Khan Younis school
Saed Bannoura -IMEMC & Agencies, October 12 2004

A medical source in Khan Younis, in the south of the Gaza Strip, said
that soldiers shot wounded Ghadeer Mkheimar, 10-year-old girl, while
she was at her school seat in Khan Younis Primary School, which
belongs to the UNRWA, in Al-Sad Al-Aaly area in West Khan Younis
refugee camp, in the south of the Gaza Strip.

A local source said that soldiers centered near Naveh Dkalim
settlement fired at the school critically shot wounded the girl ato
her chest.

A medical source at Nasser Hospital in Kahn Younis said that the
bullet directly penetrating the chest of the girl causing critical
wounds.

A Teacher at the school said that there was no shooting or clashes in
the area, and that army fired at the school without any reason while
the students were at their classroom.

Students, after the girl was wounded, rushed crying and screaming out
of their classrooms fearing additional shelling and shooting.

It is worth mentioning that soldiers shot dead another girl called
Raghda Al-Attar, 11 years old, at the same school, on September .

Al-Attar died of critical wounds on September 22, 2004, two weeks
after she was announced clinically dead, as a result to critical
wounds sustained to her head while she was at her school seat.

As the military operations continue in the Gaza Strip, more residents,
including children, suffer from the military raids and shelling
conducted in the cities and refugee camps.

It is worth mentioning that since the beginning of the vast military
raid in the Gaza Strip, on September 30, 2004, soldiers killed 123
residents and wound hundreds in addition to tens of homes destroyed
and demolished in the shelling and bulldozing conducted by the army in
the area.



3- Sharon Defeated, This Time in the Knesset
IMEMC & Agencies, October 12, 2004

Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon angrily left the Knesset Monday
night after an unusual vote against the approval of his traditional
state of the nation speech at the opening of the Knesset winter
session.

The vote, essentially symbolic with no immediate political
consequences, indicated that the Knesset approval of the disengagement
plan, so far seen as guaranteed, might face serious hardships.

At least a quarter of Sharon's 40-member Likud refused to approve his
speech, seemingly in protest to his intention to press ahead with the
disengagement plan.

Following the party head Shimon Peres' warning that Labor might not
vote in favor of the disengagement plan, labor joined Shass, National
Union, United Torah Judaism, Yahad and the Arab parties in voting
against the approval of Sharon's state of the nation speech.
Therefore, Sharon's proposal was defeated by 53 to 44 votes.

In his speech, prior to the voting, Sharon praised the road map,
expressed sympathy to settlers, and insisted that the Knesset has the
authority to approve the disengagement plan without a referendum. He
promised to bring the plan to the Knesset on October 25.

Likud MKs rebels are planning to join the national religious party
(NRP) work to force Sharon to call for a national referendum.

Labor Party leader Shimon Peres attacked Sharon's speech, even as he
praised disengagement and promised to provide a safety net to insure
its approval in the Knesset.

After Sharon angrily departed, few MKs talked on the need for a new
"unity" coalition that includes Labor.

It was reported that Israeli Defense Minister Shaul Mofaz has slated a
meeting with Shas leader Rabbi Ovadia Yosef to try to convince the
spiritual leader of the Sephardi-Haredi party to change his mind and
support the disengagement plan.

As the results of the vote were announced, Sharon left in the middle
of cries for him to resign.