Community Magazine November 2008

92 Community magazine Libya Makes Terror Reparations Libya deposited a “substantial amount” into an account for Ameri- can victims of Libyan terrorism, U.S. officials have announced. The account was set up to settle lawsuits brought against the regime over the last two decades and to pave the way to full normalization of rela- tions between Libya and the United States. The settlement requires the Libyans to pay $1.5 billion toward American victims of its terrorism, and the United States to pay $300 million toward Libyan victims of its raids. U.S. Sen. Frank Lautenberg (D-N.J.) has placed a hold on confirm- ing a U.S. ambassador to Tripoli until the Libyans pay settlements to victims of the 1988 bombing of Pan Am Flight 103 over Lockerbie, Scotland. Lautenberg authored the law that allows victims and victims’ families to sue state sponsors of terrorism; the law has enabled suits against Hamas and the PLO and resulted in the freezing of assets of some terror gr oups held in US banks . – CORRESPONDENT DAVE GORDON Hezbollah Reports Israeli MIA Escaped Missing Israeli Airman Ron Arad escaped from captivity in Leba- non and probably died 20 years ago while trying to make his way home through difficult terrain, Hezbollah told Israel’s government, according to a newspaper report. The Leba- nese guerrilla group submitted the report on airman Ron Arad’s fate to the Israeli government as part of a July prisoner swap, in which Israel freed five Lebanese militants for the bodies of two Israeli soldiers. Israeli security officials confirmed that the Maariv daily accurately summarized Hezbollah’s account. However, they dismissed Hezbollah’s claim, noting that the group provides no evidence that Arad died. Arad’s plane was shot down Oct. 16, 1986 by Leba- nese militiamen. The plane’s pilot was rescued by helicopter and the Is- raeli military believed that Arad, the plane’s navigator, was captured alive. Arad was initially held by Amal, a Shiite Muslim group and Hezbollah rival. Hezbollah reported that Arad escaped in May 1988 and may have later died from thirst or falling off a cliff in the remote mountain area. – CORRESPONDENT DAVE GORDON Hijacked Ship Contained Dirty Bomb for Israel An Iranian ship hijacked in late August by 40 Somali pirates, armed with AK-47s and rocket-propelled grenades, was released along with its 29-member crew on October 10, after 7 weeks of negotiations, accord- ing to Iran. Russian intelligence sources report that the ship was “an enormous floating dirty bomb, intending to detonate after exiting the Suez Canal at the eastern end of the Mediterranean and in proximity to the coastal cities of Israel.” The pirates who seized the ship reportedly discovered its contents to be packets of “a powdery fine sandy soil.” The pirates who had any exposure to the powder were struck down by illness and within days began to exhibit strange symptoms, including skin burns and hair loss. Sixteen of them died. “The entire cargo of radioactive sand,” said the Russian sources, “ [was] obtained by Iran from China and sealed in containers which, when the charges on the ship are set off after the crew took to the boats, will be blasted high into the air where prevailing winds will push the highly dangerous and radioactive cloud ashore.” The current location of the ship is unknown. – CM STAFF Your #1 cell phone company in ISRAEL. 1-866-TALKNSAVE | 1-866-825-5672 Rent a phone or SIM card Students, tourists, and permanent numbers in Israel Convenient 5 Towns location (near JFK airport) The best customer service! Your cell phone company in Israel www.talknsave.net