June 8, 2006

Nation-World Briefs

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U.N. Asks Israel to Stop Making Nukes
A U.N. commission recommended that Israel refrain from manufacturing any more nuclear weapons as a step to a nuclear-free Middle East. The United Nation's Weapons of Mass Destruction Commission, chaired by weapons inspector Hans Blix, released its 60 recommendations on Monday. Regarding the Middle East, Blix recommended that most nations commit to not possessing any nuclear weapons. However, with Israel he recommended only that it commit to not manufacturing any more weapons. Israel is highly unlikely to agree to dismantle the 200 warheads it is believed to possess as the region's sole nuclear power. Israel's agreement would be a start, Blix said.

State Dept. Blasts Israel for Human Trafficking
Israel is on a U.S. State Department watch list of nations that fail to effectively prevent human trafficking. Israel was classified as being on the Tier Two watch list in the report released Monday. Tier Three is the worst classification, reserved for countries that fail to comply with minimum U.S. standards. Israeli law enforcement has made strides in cracking down on sex trafficking, the report said, but the same was not true of labor trafficking and "the estimated thousands of victims of forced labor were not provided with protection." It described fees demanded of laborers ranging from $1,000 to $10,000, "a practice that often leads to debt bondage and makes these workers highly vulnerable to forced labor once in Israel," it said.

FDA Approves Israeli Parkinson's Drug
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration recently approved an Israeli drug that treats Parkinson's, a chronic disease characterized by uncontrolled shaking and muscle stiffness. Marketed under the name Azilect, this is the first once-daily oral treatment for Parkinson's to be distributed in the United States; it was developed by Technion professors Moussa Youdim and John Finberg and is being manufactured by Tel Aviv-based generic pharmaceutical giant Teva. The drug is expected to become available by prescription in the United States by July or August.

While not a cure, the drug slows the progression of the disease. Azilect works by blocking the breakdown of dopamine, which tells the body how and when to move.

Parkinson's currently affects 1 million people in the United States.

"This is a welcome development for the more than 50,000 Americans who are each year diagnosed with Parkinson's disease, " said Dr. Steven Galson, director of the Center for Drug Evaluation and Research. "Parkinson's is a relentless disease with limited treatment options, and each new therapy is an important addition to the physicians' treatment options."

However, the FDA is warning that the drug could carry an increased risk of hypertensive crisis -- a precursor to a stroke -- if taken with tyramine-rich foods (cheese, chocolate, red wine), dietary supplements or cough/cold medicines. -- Adam Wills, Associate Editor

Nazi Papers Declassified
The U.S. government declassified more than 8 million pages of files related to Nazi war crimes. The material including documents relating to the CIA's employment of suspected Nazi war criminals after World War II. The members of the government's Interagency Working Group said at a news conference Tuesday that the revelations pointed to the dangers of working with war criminals, as the United States did after World War II. Among other revelations, the papers show that former Nazis employed by the United States were more susceptible to recruitment as double agents by the Soviet Union. Additionally, the papers show that the United States had a strong lead on the whereabouts of Adolf Eichmann in 1958, but did not pursue it because of fears that his capture would expose the Nazi past of high-ranking officials in the West German government, which was allied with the United States.

Trump Fires Jewish Contestant
An observant Jew failed in his bid to become Donald Trump's next apprentice. Lee Bienstock was fired Monday on the season finale of "The Apprentice." Bienstock and another Jewish contestant, New Jersey's Dan Brody, observed Rosh Hashanah together early in the season missing the third episode's task but only Bienstock, who grew up in the New York area, stayed in the show long enough to observe Yom Kippur, missing another task.

Briefs courtesy Jewish Telegraphic Agency.