HAARETZ 1. AT LEAST 13 PALESTINIANS KILLED IN IDF STRIKE AT HAMAS CENTER IN GAZA. Action – response to double suicide attack in Beer Sheva. 2. OFEK 6 FAILURE TO HARM ISRAELS WARNING ABILITY AGAINST MISSILES. 3. NEW FENCE ROUTE, WITHOUT MOST SETTLEMENTS – TO POLITICAL TEST IN GOVERNMENT. HATZOFEH 1. Failed attempt to launch Ofek 6 photographic satellite into space. FAILED LAUNCH. Mishap in third stage of Shavit rocket caused Ofek 6 satellite to fall into sea. $50 million failure is severe blow to security establishment, which sought to use satellite to strengthen Israels defenses and receive information on Iranian missile program. 2. RUSSIAN GOVERNMENT ANNOUNCES: WE LIED TO CITIZENS. Sharon met yesterday with Russian FM Lavrov, who called for bilateral cooperation. (
). 3. APPARENT POLITICAL DEAL BETWEEN UNITED TORAH JUDAISM AND SHARON. MAARIV 1. Bank of Israel decides to fight overdrafts. PARTY IS OVER. (
). 2. Painful failure for launch of Israeli spy satellite into space. OFEK CRASHES INTO SEA. Ofek 6 satellite, which was due to send real time intelligence information on Iranian missiles, failed to reach its target. NIS 360 million worth of equipment sank into the depths. DM Mofaz promises: We will learn lessons. 3. ASSAD: READY TO RESUME PEACE TALKS. YEDIOT AHRONOT 1. Failure: Israeli spy satellite falls into sea after launch. NEW SATELLITE ONLY IN TWO YEARS. Great hope of clearly seeing Iranian reactor and Syrian General Staffs courtyard – shelved yesterday. $100 million and three years work lost due to technical failure. Senior IAI official: Failure hurts but we will start on new Ofek tomorrow. 2. IDF ATTACKS HAMAS CELL IN GAZA STRIP. Palestinians: At least 10 killed in combined helicopter and tank attack after midnight. ______________________________
SUMMARY OF EDITORIALS FROM THE HEBREW PRESS Hatzofeh asserts that, Gush Katif does not constitute an obstacle to peace, and adds that, Sharon knows this. The editors declare that, The opinion of the heads of the security establishment is that the evacuation of Gush Katif will not bring peace closer, and question both why Prime Minister Ariel Sharon is pressuring his ministers and why the latter, are ignoring the repeated cries of Israeli children
that It isnt fair to expel us from here. Yediot Ahronot believes that the recent spate of terrorist attacks around the world has been characterized by exceptional brutality and suggests that, The world – how awful – has become a smaller, narrower, scarier and more threatening place. Yediot Ahronot, in its second editorial, refers to a recent incident in which former MK Geula Cohen threatened an Israel Radio broadcaster that she would have her fired because she asked her son, Minister Tzahi Hanegbi, questions that Cohen felt were too aggressive. Yediot Ahronot, in its third editorial, wishes former US President Bill Clinton a speedy recovery from his recent heart bypass surgery.
