Israel Cabinet Ministries allow non-Jewish citizens to pledge loyalty to a Jewish state; Israeli foreign minister tells French and Spanish ministers to fix European problems before he'll listen. These and other stories are coming up. Stay tuned.


On sunday, the Israel Cabinet Ministries adopted a decision to allow non-jewish citizens to pledge loyalty to ''the state of Israel as a Jewish democratic state.

Palestinian advisors consider this as an act of racism akin to fascism and incompatible with democratic standards. The "transfer" process is unfavorable to Palestinian citizens within the Green Line and denies refugees a right of return. Support of the anti-democratic Zionist and Likud right-wing philosophy opposes the claim of Israel as the only democratic state in the region and obstructs peaceful coexistence.


Haaretz reports that Israel's Foreign Minister Avigdor Lieberman told French and Spanish counterparts on Sunday that they should solve European problems before he would listen to complaints about Israeli policies. He charged the international community with attempts to compensate for its failures elsewhere by trying to force Israel into a peace deal with Palestinians within a year.

He said Europe should pressure the Arab League into normalizing relations with Israel and push for a comprehensive peace deal. His party believes Israel has the right to construct Jewish settlements in all the occupied territories including East Jerusalem. He opposes the legitimate rights of the Palestinian people to form a state and the right of return for Palestinian refugees.

On Monday the Israeli army kidnapped two brothers in the town of Kafel Hares and another youth in Qeera in the Salfit area of the West Bank In the Hebron area the army arrested five citizens and invaded the villages of Beit Ummar, Karza, Sa'er and Beit 'Awa.

Also near Hebron, in the town of Doura, the Israeli military arrested Sajeda al-"Awawda, wife of Ali Abu Hashem, who is in an Israeli prison. According to her husband, Sajeda is in need of medical care from a recent cesarean section and demanded her immediate release.

On Sunday the Israeli cabinet approved a bill that will require non-Jewish applicants for citizenship to take a loyalty oath to Israel as "a Jewish and democratic state.
"Palestinian-Israeli members of the Knesset spoke vehemently against the law and its fascist doctrine."No other state in the world would force its citizens or those seeking citizenship to pledge allegiance to an ideology," said member Ahmed Tibi.

On the same day, at a rally in Tel Aviv, hundreds of Israeli artists and intellectuals protested the passage of the bill. Both Jewish and Arab speakers warned that the bill smacks of racism and fascism. On Monday an Irish paper reported that the Irish Ministry of Defense is
voiding a contract to buy ammunition from Israel as a result of the use of forged Irish passports to carry out the assassination in January of a Hamas leader in Dubai .

Learning Each Other's Historical Narrative” is the name of a new textbook approved for teaching in Palestinian schools but is still banned in Israel according to the Israeli daily Haaretz. The book explains the historical narratives of the Nakba, the creation of Israel, and the Arab Israeli conflict, showing both the Palestinian and the Israeli narratives. The book project was initiated by professors from Ben Gurion and Bethlehem Universities.

Newly declassified documents reveal that Israel has considered using nuclear weapons several times in 1967, 1973, and 1991 and most recently against Iran.

That concludes our news for today. Thank you for joining us from occupied Bethlehem. You have been listening to Palestine Today, a program of the International Middle East Media Center. For more updates and details of these stories, please visit our website at www.imemc.org. This report was brought to you by Hassam Qassis and Doris Norrito.