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Jordan Valley may be hurdle in peace talks
Howard Schneider | The Washington Post 2 November 2009 The backhoes are busy on housing plots for this new Israeli settlement in the Jordan Valley, and young families, under army guard and toting M-16s, have begun cultivating dozens of acres of land with dates, olives and other crops. To the south, a water pipeline from Jerusalem has let veteran farmers double the land irrigated for date trees to 9,000 acres, with a second pipeline and more…
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Jews take over Jerusalem house from Palestinians
Douglas Hamilton | Reuters 3 November 2009 Jews took over another house in Arab East Jerusalem on Tuesday in what Palestinians say is a systematic campaign to drive them out and strengthen Israel’s hold on all of Jerusalem. The house, built 10 years ago by the al-Kurd family, is the seventh this year to be awarded to Jewish settlers following legal battles in the Israeli courts, where the Palestinians say a fair hearing is impossible to…
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EU court: No customs breaks for Israeli goods from settlements
Ora Coren | Haaretz 3 November 2009 Israeli goods produced in West Bank settlements are not eligible for customs benefits in the European Union, stated an advocate general of the European Court of Justice last week. Israel and the EU have a free-trade agreement that gives Israeli exports substantial customs breaks. The advocate general’s non-binding opinion, if followed, could mean that goods produced in the territories may be saddled with full customs duties. The opinion, submitted…
