Dan Baron

Israeli Web site Debka.com at center of New York ‘dirty bomb’ tip

Published on August 16, 2007

An Israeli couple who blog about terrorism have achieved international fame -- and a bit of notoriety -- by setting off a "dirty bomb" scare in New York City.

Katsav cops plea in sex charges

Published on June 28, 2007

His reputation in shambles from a sex scandal that broke a year ago and swelled in subsequent months, Israel's outgoing president, Moshe Katsav, put an end to the sordid chapter by agreeing to a plea bargain after months of insisting he was innocent.

Arab lawmaker quits Knesset as probe begins

Published on April 26, 2007

Israeli Arab lawmaker Azmi Bishara has abruptly ended a parliamentary career built on denouncing the Jewish state from enemy capitals and then dodging charges of sedition at home.

Arab’s nomination to Israel’s Cabinet stirs up simmering controversy

Published on January 18, 2007

Prime Minister Ehud Olmert praised Majadele's nomination. But its ratification, which was expected to take place at Sunday's Cabinet meeting, was postponed for a week.

Israel grows impatient with terror-filled Gaza

Published on October 26, 2006

Israel's patience with the growing menace from the Gaza Strip appears to be wearing thin.

Olmert Sworn in as Israel’s New PM

Published on May 11, 2006

Exactly four months after assuming Israel's top office amid tragedy, Ehud Olmert has been confirmed as prime minister

Challenges Loom for New Olmert Regime

Published on May 4, 2006

Just in time for Israel's 58th Independence Day, Ehud Olmert has clinched his new coalition government.

Will Europe Back Hamas Sans Conditions?

Published on February 16, 2006

Fending off a hailstorm of Israeli criticism -- as well as a possible showdown with Washington -- Russia insisted it only wanted to help tame Hamas.

Israeli Government Gets on With It

Published on January 12, 2006

As the prime minister lay in a post-operative coma Sunday, his temporary replacement, acting Prime Minister Ehud Olmert, chaired the weekly Cabinet meeting.

"We hope that the prime minister will recover, gain strength and with God's help will return to run the government of Israel and lead the State of Israel," Olmert said.

Will Violence Again Flare Up in 2006?

Published on January 5, 2006

According to last week's Shin Bet report, arms smuggling into Gaza has skyrocketed sixfold since Israel left during the summer. In the West Bank, terrorists have already test fired a rocket in a bid to emulate the tactics of their Gazan comrades.

Bomber Hits Israeli Shopping Mall

Published on December 8, 2005

An Islamic Jihad terrorist blew himself up Monday outside the Sharon Mall in Netanya, which has seen several such attacks due to its proximity to the West Bank. At least five people were killed and more than 50 wounded. The bomber was identified as a 21-year-old man from the West Bank.

In Political Tsunami, Sharon Bolts Likud

Published on November 24, 2005

Prime Minister Ariel Sharon quit the Likud Party this week to form a new centrist party to compete in early elections expected to take place in March.

Sharon's new party, to be called the National Responsibility Party, is expected to capitalize on mainstream support for his decision to withdraw Israeli soldiers and settlers from the Gaza Strip last August.

Sharon Feels Heat From Home, Abroad

Published on November 17, 2005

The diplomatic reprieve that followed Israel's withdrawal from the Gaza Strip appears to be over, with Ariel Sharon feeling political pressure both at home and from abroad.

Iranian President’s Call Helps Israel

Published on November 3, 2005

Jerusalem officials admitted that a U.N ouster of Iran was unlikely, given that it would require a Security Council recommendation and two-thirds majority vote in the General Assembly -- traditionally a bastion of anti-Israel sentiment.

Israeli Wins Nobel for Game Theory

Published on October 20, 2005

An Israeli who has educated the world on conflict resolution was named last week as the co-winner of the 2005 Nobel Prize in economics.

Iranian Leader Nixes Israel Ties

Published on June 30, 2005

Few people in Israel expected a positive turnaround in Iran, but the election of hard-liner Mahmoud Ahmadinejad as president of the Islamic republic has raised eyebrows among even the more pessimistic pundits.

Even before giving his first media conference, the fundamentalist mayor of Tehran made clear there would be no new tack toward Israel.

"I will strive to expand relations with everyone, with the exception of Israel," he told the Saudi newspaper, Okaz, Sunday.

That was no surprise in itself, as political leaders in Iran must parrot the policies of the religious clerics.

First Lady Jostled in Jerusalem

Published on May 26, 2005

"What an emotional place this is, as we go from each one of these very, very holy spots to the next," Laura Bush said. "We're reminded again of what we all want, what every one of us prays for," adding, "What we all want is peace."

Ex-Israel President Weizman Dies at 80

Published on April 28, 2005

He was the ultimate Israeli high-flier, literally as well as metaphorically, shepherding and shaping the Jewish state through war and peace with a singular, sometimes mordant charm.
And although Ezer Weizman, who died Sunday at 80, ended his public career tainted by scandal, to many Israelis he typified a national ideal.

High Court Recognizes ‘Leaping Converts’

Published on April 7, 2005

After 22 years of living as an Israeli, Justina Hilaria Chipana can finally consider herself a full-fledged member of the Jewish state.

The 50-year-old native of Peru was one of 17 petitioners who won High Court of Justice recognition of their non-Orthodox conversions to Judaism on Thursday, in what the Conservative and Reform movements hailed as a breakthrough for efforts to introduce more religious pluralism to Israel.

Jewish Groups Join Quake Relief Efforts

Published on December 30, 2004

For thousands of young Israelis, the sun-drenched archipelagos of Southeast Asia were the perfect destination to forget the rigors of military service.

But this week, that post-Zionist nirvana became a nightmare. The tsunami that swept India, Thailand, Sri Lanka and the Andaman Islands on Sunday plunged hundreds of Israeli families into a frenzy of worry over relatives feared lost while touring.

Abbas Gaining in Bid to Succeed Arafat

Published on December 2, 2004

With a patient realpolitik, not to mention the tacit approval of Israel and the United States, Mahmoud Abbas is inching toward the Palestinian leadership.

A poll of West Bank and Gaza Strip residents released Sunday found that a plurality of Palestinians, 41 percent, support Abbas' bid to succeed Yasser Arafat as Palestinian Authority president -- a coup, considering the dour, 69-year-old PLO veteran's single-digit showing in the polls until recently. The presidential election is scheduled Jan. 9.

Where Are Arafat’s Millions?

Published on November 18, 2004

With Yasser Arafat's burial, he took with him one of the enduring secrets of the Palestinian regime -- the whereabouts of a missing fortune in ill-gotten public funds.

Idea of Israeli-Syrian Tie in Killing Grows

Published on September 30, 2004

The notion of an Israeli-Syrian alliance against terror may strike some as ludicrous, but after the killing of a Hamas mastermind this week in Damascus, that idea is gaining traction.

Some Gaza Settlers Weigh Kibbutz Move

Published on September 23, 2004

For the settlers of the Gaza Strip, the left-leaning kibbutzim just over the border with Israel proper are, politically speaking, a world apart.

Israel, Russia Sign Memo on Terrorism

Published on September 9, 2004

It was not clear what form the new Israeli-Russian cooperation would take.

Windsurfer Wins Israel’s First Gold Medal

Published on August 26, 2004

Gal Fridman of Israel celebrates winning his gold medal in the men's windsurfer mistral finals race during the Athens 2004 Summer Olympic Games.

Bombing Adds Insult to Ruling on Fence

Published on July 15, 2004

The International Court of Justice may have ruled it illegal, but Israel's West Bank security barrier has at least one new supporter.

For Sammy Masrawa, it was more baptism by fire than conversion, after Masrawa witnessed a bombing that killed an Israeli woman and wounded at least 20 others in Tel Aviv on Sunday.

Naomi Shemer, Israeli Folk Musician, Dies at 74

Published on July 1, 2004

It was a sign of folk singer Naomi Shemer's importance to Israel's national psyche that her death relegated the Israeli-Palestinian conflict to the inside pages of the nation's newspapers.

Is Gaza Becoming the Next Lebanon?

Published on May 13, 2004

It was a loss that brought back the darkest days of Israel's war on Palestinian terrorism and the Israeli occupation of southern Lebanon -- and the next day it got even worse.

Six elite soldiers of the Givati Brigade, on their way home from a mission to destroy arms factories in Gaza City, died in a huge fireball Tuesday when their ordnance-laden armored personnel carrier went over a land mine.

On Wednesday, at least five more Israeli soldiers were killed in an attempt to retrieve the remains of the previous days' dead when their armored personnel carrier was hit by an anti-tank missile.

Vanunu: Hero or Traitor?

Published on April 22, 2004

With his face turned away, the white-bearded vendor shuffles haplessly around his Beersheba market stall. Then something in him snaps and, cursing, he shoves the cameraman, who backs off.

Israel Swaps With Hezbollah

Published on January 29, 2004

Free at last, but at what price? That was the question on some Israelis' minds over the weekend after a German mediator helped seal the deal on a long-awaited prisoner swap between Israel and Hezbollah, the Lebanese militia group.

Hamas Returns to Terror in Gaza

Published on January 15, 2004

In dying, Reem al-Reyashi dealt a double blow: to Israelis who hoped Hamas had decided to show restraint and to fellow Palestinians quietly earning a living in one of the few places where Israeli-Palestinian cooperation still thrives.

Controversy Erupts in Shooting at Fence

Published on January 1, 2004

Talk about trading places. Last month, Gil Na'amati finished his three-year stint of compulsory military service after serving in Israel's artillery corps and spending time operating in the West Bank. Now the 22-year-old kibbutznik is the poster boy for Palestinian grievances against Israel.

During a demonstration last week by Palestinians and Israeli left-wingers against Israel's West Bank security barrier, Na'amati was shot by soldiers, who until recently might have stood shoulder to shoulder with him at a checkpoint. An American activist also was lightly hurt in the clash.

Capture Stirs Mixed Mideast Reactions

Published on December 18, 2003

After surviving the Holocaust and five Middle East wars, Ze'ev is a hard man to impress. But news of Saddam Hussein's capture Sunday managed to move the Israeli retiree to tears.

"It is good to see Israel a little bit safer," Ze'ev said in his hometown of Ramat Gan, as footage of the Iraqi tyrant-turned-prisoner played on television screens at roadside snack stands. Ramat Gan, where Iraqi Jewish emigres settled en masse in the 1950s, ironically was a main target of Saddam's Scud missiles in the 1991 Persian Gulf War.

Israeli Airstrikes Up Ante in Gaza

Published on October 23, 2003

A picture may be worth a thousand words -- but not, it seems, when it comes to settling rival accounts of Middle East bloodshed.

Gaza Terrorists Target Americans

Published on October 16, 2003

Any doubts about the close link between the war on terrorism and the Israeli-Palestinian conflict have gone the way of a U.S. jeep loaded with diplomats on a dusty Gaza highway.

Attack Forces Israel to Strike at Syria

Published on October 9, 2003

This week's Israeli airstrike on an Islamic Jihad training camp near Damascus, which followed the group's deadly suicide bombing in Haifa on Saturday, was a sign to the Arab world that Israel will not be constrained by borders when it comes to the war on terrorism.

The attack came hours before the 30th anniversary of the Yom Kippur War, when Israel was blindsided by Syria and Egypt.

Bombings Damage Peace Plan Further

Published on September 11, 2003

Two suicide bombings struck the Jewish State Tuesday, killing at least 15 victims and wounding dozens. The two attacks left the U.S.-backed "road map" peace plan in tatters and marked a new surge of deadly violence in the nearly 3-year-old intifada.