By: Haviv Rettig – The Jerusalem Post

For Prof. Yoram Shachar, Independence Day 5767 will be different than those that came before. Twenty-five years of research and painstaking labor have borne fruit, yielding an archive of original documents, many rescued from oblivion, related to Israel’s Declaration of Independence.

The digital archive includes scans of first drafts, mostly written by the Yishuv leadership in the month preceding the May 14, 1948, signing of the Declaration.

“My first goal was scientific,” Shachar told The Jerusalem Post on Sunday, “to create a document archive that will allow future researchers to know about the phrasing of the Declaration.” But his second goal, he added with some urgency, “is to convince many people who may not even know that they are in possession of additional drafts to help me find these documents. Every passing year lowers the chances of finding them.”

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By: Yehuda Avner – The Jerusalem Post

As the Sabbath noon of May 15, 1948 turned to afternoon, and afternoon into evening, the mood in downtown Jerusalem grew from excitement to tumult. Despite the siege and the threat of shelling, people roamed the streets rejoicing. Revelers from an inglorious bucket brigade of trench diggers and hackers, I among them, frolicked down Jaffa Road to Ben Yehuda Street, whose upper section had been blasted by truck bombs.

A bonfire was ablaze in a giant crater, and youngsters were spinning around it in a feisty hora folk dance. One young man in red shorts, overwhelmed by the thrill of the hour, cartwheeled over to where some of us were standing, and hugged each in turn.

In Zion Square an old man with a trombone and a girl with a guitar were playing a spirited “Hava Nagilla” and, spying the violin case of one of our crowd called Leopold Mahler – a professional violinist and Holocaust survivor who never ever wanted to play again – persuaded him to unpack his instrument and join in. Picking up the rhythm, Mahler began reworking it into wildly spiraling variations, his notes fluttering this way and that, improvisation upon improvisation, as if man and instrument were rediscovering each other in shared delight after a long separation.

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* Independence 1948 As the Sabbath noon of May 15, 1948 turned to afternoon, and afternoon into evening, the mood in downtown Jerusalem grew from excitement to tumult.

* Gay marriage evil, abortion terrorism: Vatican The Vatican’s second-highest ranking doctrinal official on Monday forcefully branded homosexual marriage an evil and denounced abortion and euthanasia as forms of “terrorism with a human face.”

* Probing the Declaration of Independence’s preparation For Prof. Yoram Shachar, Independence Day 5767 will be different than those that came before. Twenty-five years of research and painstaking labor have borne fruit, yielding an archive of original documents.

* Ahmadinejad offers to have direct talks with Bush President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad on Monday proposed holding talks with U.S. President George W. Bush.

* Independence Day marked at Homesh The first group of activists arrived at the ruins of the former settlement of Homesh early Tuesday morning.

* US gives Sudan Darfur ‘ultimatum’ The US has said it expects Sudan to prove its commitment to allowing a strengthened UN peacekeeping force into Darfur within a matter of weeks.

* The Independence Day that changed all others Of all the Independence Days in the 59 years of the State of Israel, the 19th Yom Ha’atzma’ut is seen by many as one of the most significant.

* US increases pressure on Syria The United States has imposed sanctions on 14 foreign people, companies and government agencies, including the Syrian navy and air force.

* IDF: Hamas attempt to kidnap soldiers foiled IDF sources stated on Tuesday that they had prevented an attempt by Hamas to kidnap an Israeli soldier.

* Tributes flow for flamboyant Yeltsin Former Russian president Boris Yeltsin has been remembered for his success as the man who dismantled the Soviet Union as well as for his failings in office.

* Israel remembers its fallen fighters A minute-long siren sounded across the nation at 8 p.m. Sunday, marking the beginning of Israel’s 59th Remembrance Day for Fallen Soldiers and Victims of Terrorism.

* France opts for left-right battle Centre-right candidate Nicolas Sarkozy will face Socialist Segolene Royal in the run-off of France’s presidential election on 6 May.

* Hamas calls for new attacks on Israel Hamas on Sunday called for new attacks on Israel after nine Palestinians were killed in a surge of fighting over the weekend.

* 59 years, 7,150,000 residents in Israel As Israel’s 59th Independence Day approaches, the country’s population stands at 7,150,000 residents, almost nine times its population of 806,000 at the time of the state’s creation in 1948.

* Iraqi PM criticises Baghdad wall Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri Maliki has asked for construction to end on a concrete wall around a Sunni enclave in the capital, Baghdad.

* No IDF monument in West Bank After her son, St.-Sgt. Uri Biton, 21, was killed in Lebanon in 1997, his mother found a worn, folded-up note in his wallet with a scribbled motto which read: “Give your utmost for the nation.”

* EU agrees Iran nuclear sanctions EU foreign ministers have agreed to implement sanctions against Iran after its refusal to halt uranium enrichment.

* US urges Iran to join Iraq talks Condoleezza Rice is urging Iran to join her at a high-level conference on the future of Iraq next week.

* Fresh Somali clashes ‘kill many’ At least 47 people have been killed in Mogadishu in fresh fighting between Ethiopian-backed Somali forces and Islamists, a human rights group says.

* IDF bans settlers’ march to Homesh The IDF officially announced on Sunday that authorization for a march to the evacuated settlement of Homesh this Independence Day would not be granted.

* Al-Qaeda seeks to expand its operations Al-Qaeda is reaching out from its base in Pakistan to turn militant Islamist groups in the Middle East and Africa into franchises charged with intensifying attacks on western targets, according to European officials and terrorism specialists.

* Musharaf wants to mediate ME peace Pakistan took initiative Saturday to bring about stability to the Middle East – by first attempting to make peace between Israel and the Palestinians.

* Taleban uses boy to behead ‘spy’ The Taleban in Afghanistan have used a boy of around 12 to behead a man they accused of spying for the US.

* Settlers: We’ll return to Homesh on Independence Day Thousands of right-wing followers plan to return to evacuated settlement; organizers say, ‘Independence Day is not just about barbeques, it’s about Zionism, values and settling the land’

* Iran invites West to build nuke plants Tehran on Friday invited Western nations to participate in the construction of nuclear power plants across Iran.

* Deadly Somalia clashes continue Heavy fighting between Ethiopian troops and Islamist militiamen has continued for a fourth day in Mogadishu, Somalia.

* Pentagon Invites Kremlin to Link Missile Systems The Bush administration is offering Russia a new package of incentives to drop its strong opposition to American missile defense sites in Poland and the Czech Republic.

* US eyes potential bomb sale to Israel Pentagon notifies Congress of miltary sales deal of up to $65 million, for bombs, spares, repair parts and US technical assistance

* Hezbollah slams UN over report of arms smuggling from Syria Hezbollah lashed out at the United Nations Security Council, saying reports of illegal arms smuggling from Syria to Lebanon were “inaccurate.”

* EU agrees breakthrough hate-crime law After six years of political wrangling, the European Union has agreed to make incitement to racism and xenophobia a crime across the 27-nation bloc, setting a jail sentence of at least one to three years.

* Gates placates Israel on Saudi arms sale US Defense Secretary Robert Gates on Thursday tried to ease Israeli concerns about a planned American weapons sale to Arab allies in the Gulf.

* Sudan responds defiantly to threat of new sanctions Sudan has dismissed as unjustifiable the threat of slapping new sanctions because of the Darfur conflict, vowing to do everything it can to protect what it sees as its national security.

* Abdullah: Unilateralism is failed policy Jordan’s King Abdullah presented the Arab peace initiative to Acting President and Knesset Speaker Dalia Itzik.

* Moscow foreign students told to stay in as racist attacks rise over Hitler’s birthday Russia’s most prestigious medical institute has told its foreign students to stay indoors for three days because of fears they may be attacked by skinheads celebrating Adolf Hitler’s birthday.

* U.S. boosts security in Germany The US Embassy in Germany said on Friday it was increasing security at its facilities in the country in response to a heightened threat situation.

* Strong Quake Strikes Japan; No Tsunamis Detected A series of strong earthquakes rattled southwestern Japan on Friday, prompting the government to warn of a possible tsunami that ultimately never came.

* E.U. Ministers Agree on Rules Against Hate Crimes, Racism European Union officials agreed Thursday to new regulations for combating hate crimes and racism at a time when xenophobia and concern over immigration have been increasing across the 27-country bloc.

* Iran, EU to meet on nuclear stand-off Iran’s top negotiator Ali Larijani and EU foreign policy chief Javier Solana will meet on Wednesday for talks on Tehran’s disputed nuclear activity.

* Christians in Turkey fear more attacks The slayings of three Christians in this eastern town highlight Turkey’s uneasy relationship with its minorities, and Christians expressed fear Thursday that growing nationalism and intolerance could lead to more violence against them.

* Nuclear terror: How likely is it? How likely is it that terrorists will some day be successful at detonating a nuclear device in a major American city?

By: Ed Crooks in London – The Financial Times Limited

Iraq could hold almost twice as much oil in its reserves as had been thought, according to the most comprehensive independent study of its resources since the US-led invasion in 2003.

The potential presence of a further 100bn barrels in the western desert highlights the opportunity for Iraq to be one of the world’s biggest oil suppliers, and its attractions for international oil companies – if the conflict in the country can be resolved.

If confirmed, it would raise Iraq from the world’s third largest source of oil reserves with 116bn barrels to second place, behind Saudi Arabia and overtaking Iran.

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* Egypt, Jordan to push Saudi peace plan Israel is still waiting for a formal approach from the Arab League after a meeting of 12 Arab foreign ministers in Cairo.

* Nationalism suspected in 3 deaths in Turkey Three people were found with their throats slit in a publishing house in eastern Turkey that had printed Bibles and other Christian literature.

* Former Mossad chief: Kill Ahmadinejad Western countries must unite in an effort to assassinate Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, former head of the Mossad Meir Amit said.

* Serbia warns Europe over Kosovo independence Serbian President Boris Tadic said on Wednesday granting independence to Kosovo against Belgrade’s wishes would bring instability to the Balkan region and the European continent.

* Iran warns would-be attackers Iran’s army will “cut off the hand” of any attacker and is at the ready to fulfil its defensive duties, Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad said.

* EU aims to criminalise Holocaust denial Laws that make denying or trivialising the Holocaust a criminal offence punishable by jail sentences will be introduced across the European Union.

* Netanyahu Going Into Action to Topple Olmert Likud Chairman and head of the Opposition Binyamin Netanyahu has decided to abandon his wait-and-see strategy and to launch a public campaign for toppling Prime Minister Ehud Olmert’s government.

* Gates calms Israel on US’s planned arms sale to Saudis US Defense Secretary Robert Gates on Thursday tried to ease Israeli concerns about a planned American weapons sale to Arab allies in the Gulf.

* Microsoft aims to double PC base Microsoft software will sell for just $3 (£1.50) in some parts of the world in an attempt to double the number of global PC users.

* Iraq may hold twice as much oil Iraq could hold almost twice as much oil in its reserves as had been thought.

* Abdullah urges Gates to back Arab plan Jordan’s King Abdullah II sought to rally support for the Arab peace plan in talks Tuesday.

* Iraq’s Shiite political fissures widen Monday’s departure of six government cabinet ministers from the Iraqi government will indeed erode support for American-backed Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki.

* Olmert says Israel has no intention of attacking Syria Prime Minister Ehud Olmert said Wednesday that Israel had no intention of attacking Syria, and that he did not believe Syria was preparing to wage war on Israel.

* Gathafi belittles Saudi Mideast plan Libyan leader Muammar Gathafi said a Saudi proposal to end the Israeli-Palestinian conflict was doomed to failure because the Arab leaders behind it were “half-wits”.

* Rice, PA finance minister meet in D.C. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice met Tuesday with Palestinian Authority Finance Minister Salam Fayyad on economic distress in the West Bank and Gaza.

* At least 160 killed in Baghdad blasts Four large bombs exploded in mostly Shiite areas of Baghdad on Wednesday, killing at least 160 people.

* Sudan: UN stalling on Darfur mission funding Sudan on Wednesday called on the UN to hasten financing for the latest phase of a Darfur peacekeeping mission.

* 22 Jewish Leaders Arrested Calling for Removal of Iran at UN Twenty-one rabbis, and a Jewish community layperson were arrested at the United Nations Tuesday, demanding that Iran be removed from the international body.

* Hamas MPs to Parliament: Adopt Decision to Kidnap Soldiers Hamas MPs called on the Palestinian parliament to adopt a formal decision, which would encourage Palestinian groups to kidnap more “Zionist soldiers”.

* Syria Threatens War, Olmert Dismissive Syrian President Bashar Assad said Wednesday that Syria is ready for a war with Israel.