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Friday January 29, 1999

Mideast Report

JERUSALEM (JTA) -- Israeli lawmakers gave preliminary approval to a bill aimed at annexing Jewish settlements in the West Bank and Gaza Strip.

The 10-4 vote prompted Israeli lawmakers from across the political spectrum to blast their ultranationalist colleagues for holding the ballot when most Knesset members were absent.

The Knesset also passed a law requiring a national referendum and a special parliamentary majority to approve any Israeli withdrawal from land under its sovereignty. The bill, approved by a vote of 53-30, applies to the Golan Heights, eastern Jerusalem and all areas under Israeli rule.

Israel rejects Iraq bid to sell cheap crude oil

JERUSALEM (JTA) -- Israeli security officials have rejected an Iraqi offer to sell Israel crude oil at 50 percent below the market price, reports the Israeli daily Ha'aretz.

The paper said the proposal was conveyed to former Labor Energy Minister Moshe Shahal by a Palestinian businessman acting as an intermediary for Iraq. Shahal said an Iraqi official was willing to meet with him in Tel Aviv to discuss selling the oil within the framework of U.N. sanctions, which allow Iraq to sell oil in order to buy food and other humanitarian supplies for its people.

Fervently religious join Israeli army unit

JERUSALEM (JTA) -- Thirty fervently religious men have recently joined the Israeli army.

It was the first such group to enlist after the Supreme Court ruled last month that a decades-old arrangement exempting yeshiva students from serving in the army is illegal.

The 30 recruits will be part of a unit that will combine Torah study with army service.

Palestinians release Islamic Jihad leader

JERUSALEM (JTA) -- The Palestinians have released Abdallah Shami, the leader of Islamic Jihad, after jailing him for five weeks for threatening President Clinton.

For more JTA stories, go to http://www.jta.org

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