It’s a bit like a Hitchock thriller. Nobody knows where he is — not even the U.S. State Department — and nobody knows when he will show up in Israel. All we know is, suspense is building and it’s time to watch out for surprises.

President Barack Obama’s Middle East peace envoy Senator George Mitchell is somewhere in transit — probably – and expected in Israel and the Palestinian Territories next week –  sometime.

A State Dept. spokesman at Wednesday’s regular briefing could not say much at all about Mitchell’s movements beyond he has left Washington.  Could he be in London meeting the Syrian foreign minister? Don’t know.  Is he going to Turkey as well? We will try to find that out. When is he going to be in Israel? Can’t say exactly.

Mitchell is famous for playing his cards very close to his vest and his vest very close to his skin. He gives out very little information when he is engaged in high-stakes mediation.

There is an unmistakable aura of mystery about what is going on at this delicate stage of talks with Israel and the Palestinians to get stalled peace negotiations started again, by resolving what looks like a standoff between Obama and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu over Israel’s settlement activity in the occupied West Bank and Washington’s demand that it cease.

There is intense speculation in “diplomatic circles” over whether the coming visit by Mitchell could lead to a showdown, or pluck some brilliant compromise from the jaws of deadlock, setting the rusting wheels of the peace process back in motion at last. But so far its mostly all heat and no light, pending the arrival of Obama’s mediator.

If Mitchell is true to his Hitchcock thriller persona, this may be the moment he chooses to produce “the MacGuffin”, the twist element that’s pitched into the drama at just the right moment to rivet the attention of the audience and drive the plot forward – even if it is sometimes completely forgotten by the end of the movie.

The gunfire was not a clash between Palestinian and Israeli forces, nor a violent dispute between rival Palestinian factions. It was a Palestinian celebration of students passing their high school matriculation exam — a tradition celebrated in some Arab countries.

More than 86,000 high school students in the West Bank and Gaza Strip took the exam, an entry card into college.

In lieu of any formal graduation ceremonies, celebrants fire live ammunition into the air, shoot off fireworks and hand out candy. Music echoes in the street during outdoor parties.

On Tuesday, the local mobile telephone network was jammed as parents and students spread the news on who passed and who failed.

PHOTO:Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas (2nd R) visits a classroom during matriculation exams in the West Bank city of Ramallah June 11, 2007, in this picture released by the Palestinian Press Office (PPO).

Our TV cameramen and stills photographers prefer to shoot anywhere except in the West Bank village of Bilin. That’s where Palestinians, foreign supporters and Israeli left-wing activists hold weekly protests against the barrier Israel is building in the occupied West Bank.

Seeking to quell protests in Bilin,  Israeli security forces spray a foul-smelling substance that sticks — for a long time — to skin, clothes and cameras.  Staying their ground, protesters have been trying a counter-measure: yellow plastic suits and masks.

Our cameramen don’t have those “protection suits”. So they use another technique when the spray starts to fly — they take wing, leaving the camera running as they seek cover.

Click hear to watch the full picture.

PHOTO: Friday protest in Bil’in. July 10, 2009. REUTERS/Fadi Arouri

Another plus for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is that he was able to make history without much diplomatic risk, but by getting Israel’s fractious parliament to back the nation’s first two-year spending plan.

The new budget totals 316.5 billion shekels ($80.7 billion) for 2009, and an additional 325.3 billion shekels ($82.9 billion) earmarked for next year, 2010.

The final budget vote (it had to pass three) took an amazingly brief amount of time — just four and a half hours – about half of what was expected. The unanticipated brevity was made possible when Kadima, the largest, centrist, opposition party obliged by lifting a series of budgetary amendments from the agenda, removing the need to hold a list of additional tedious roll-call votes.

Netanyahu had to be present for the duration of the voting, as he couldn’t afford to leave the plenum before the budget passed, without risking the possible breakdown of his carefully stitched ruling coalition that passed the measure within hours of a Cinderella deadline. Under the law, Netanyahu had to get the budget passed by Thursday or his government would have fallen – according to a Parliamentary measure of a few months ago that extended the deadline for getting the state budget passed.

So wearying was the process that some votes were done by show of hand, instead of the customary electronic push of a button, just to give lawmakers some exercise, the Ynet Web site said. Netanyahu was seen whiling away the more boring moments by busying himself with a book about Napoleon, and Ahmed Tibi, an Israeli Arab lawmaker, perused a volume by the late Palestinian author, Mahmoud Darwish.

They had good reason to seek a diversion. Kadima had filed a whopping 4,000 amendments or spending proposals, and many were actually brought to a vote before the party agreed to drop the remainder. All these proposals had been destined for rejection, and some were for the smallest of sums, which begged the question, why the bother?

“Well we could just sit back and not play the game and all and just wait for the next elections,” Kadima’s spokesman Shmuel Dahan said replying to my question. “We were doing our job, and trying to demonstrate that this budget is a bad one for the country.”

Here and there the debate perked up some when opposition lawmakers railed against the right-wing government’s spending plan, alleging that it contained inflated sums that may mean tax rises just to muster the additional revenue.

“The emperor has no clothes,” Kadima lawmaker Nahman Shai intoned, quoting from a Hans Christian Andersen’s tale and maintaining the budget had been a rush job considering Netanyahu had taken office less than four months ago.

Netanyahu was named prime minister after an early national election held in February following a crisis that ensued when Kadima’s former leader and ex-prime minister, Ehud Olmert, resigned last year during an investigation of alleged corruption.

Finance Minister Yuval Steinitz defended the government’s spending plan as “the most social-minded budget of the last decade,” saying necessary sums had been added for welfare stipends, and he couldn’t see any reason to object.

Israel’s media, often critical of Netanyahu’s policies, seemed to think it was time to move on.

Veteran Israeli political columnist Yoel Marcus captured this mood in a piece in the Haaretz daily, which, using an old nickname for the Israeli leader, wrote in its Tuesday edition, ahead of the budget votes:

“Let’s can the small-town nonsense and let Bibi get to work.”

An order by Israel’s transportation ministry to create a “uniform” language on highway signs has been angrily received by some Israeli Arabs, who are calling it an effort to “Hebraize” or “Judaize” the names of Arab villages and towns.

Transportation minister Yisrael Katz announced a plan to change the names written in English and Arabic on highway signs to a transliteration of  their Hebrew names, as reported yesterday by the Israeli paper Yedioth Ahronoth.

Some towns, such as Jerusalem, are pronounced differently in all three languages. Jerusalem, which in Arabic is called “Al-Quds” (”The Holy City”) would become  “Yerushalayim”, a transliteration from its Hebrew name, in both the English and Arabic written on road signs.

In an article from the Palestinian paper Al-Hayat, Arab Knesset member Mas’oud Ghanaim says the plan is “A political, ideological step to erase the Arabic names from the memories of Arab and non-Arab citizens.”

The transportation ministry told Yedioth Ahronoth the decision was practically motivated. They use Caesarea as an example (which appears on signs in English as Caesarea, Qesarya, Qesariyya and Ceysaria). “The lack of uniform spelling on signs has been a problem for those speaking foreign languages, citizens and tourists alike.”

But Katz also seemed to acknowledge politics played a part in the decision when he said: “Some Palestinian maps still refer to the Israeli cities by their pre-1948 names, since they see them as settlements…I will not allow that on our signs. This government, and certainly this minister, will not allow anyone to turn Jewish Jerusalem to Palestinian al-Quds.”

Katz also told Yedioth Ahronoth that he had no problem with Area B parts of the West Bank (joint Israeli-Palestinian controlled) retaining their original Arabic names on their signs.

MK Muhamad Baraka, told Al-Hayat that Katz was trying to be “Minister of History,” instead of transportation, adding that, “whoever doesn’t want to see the original Arabic names, doesn’t want to see Arabs or Palestinians in this country.”

Some Israeli Arab MKs have argued that such changes conflicts with Israeli law, which lists both Hebrew and Arabic as its official languages. Minister of Minority Affairs, Avishay Braverman, quoted in Yedioth Ahronoth, agreed.  He added, “I would suggest the Minister Katz place much needed street signs in Arab communities before he changes road signs.”

Katz called critics a “fringe minority” persuaded by the arguments of  “anti-Israeli, anti-Zionist elments.”

Al-Hayat newspaper argues that the change Katz is undertaking is not as sudden as the current debate makes it seem. It lists a few cities with original Arabic names, like Beer Sheva (originally called “B’ir Saba’a” in Arabic) or Ako (original Arabic: ‘Aka) which are already spelled on road signs according to their Hebrew pronunciation, even in Arabic.

Ynet (Yediot’s website) has two interesting and conflicting opinion pieces on the road sign issue - this one saying the changes in the road signs reflect the ‘State’s duty to remind them (Arabs) of the government’s official position’ on issues like Jerusalem,  while this one says that, given how few non-Arab Israelis read Arabic, ‘why not give Israeli Arabs the respect their language deserves’ as one of the state’s official languages?

Several English readers of Yedioth Ahronoth online have also critqued the plan. Comments listed beneath the article reflected concerns that changes would actually make driving more confusing for Israel’s many English speaking visitors. As one commentor argued, “Having driven in Israel, I prefer that English language signs, which I follow more quickly, refer to the name I am familiar with in English! So if I am looking for the way to “Jerusalem” that’s how it should stay.”

Last week we posted about the fifth anniversary of the International Court of Justice ruling on the separation barrier Israel is building in and around the West Bank.

We mentioned how, despite it being one of the Palestinians’ most hated symbols of Israeli occupation, some people had worked the barrier into their daily lives, using it as a backdrop for movie screenings, restaurant menus and all manner of protest - artistic and otherwise.

Now Cellcom, an Israeli mobile phone company has used a portion of the separation barrier as the backdrop for one of its TV commercials - causing something of a stir in the blogosphere and on social networks like Facebook (login required) and YouTube.

Its not an original idea. As you will have seen in the video in last week’s post - the wall has already been used as a tennis net by activists protesting its existence and, in the video below, to promote an extraordinary idea that an Israeli-Palestinian joint bid for a World Cup soccer tournament might be a catalyst for peace.

Interesting to note that in neither video do you see what’s happening on the other side of the wall as the ball sails over - which is what’s got the bloggers up in arms.

The Promised Land blog notes: “The voice over at the end (of the Cellcom commerical) goes ‘What do we all want? Some fun, that’s all’ And what’s more fun than not seeing the Palestinians around anymore, thanks to the 10 meters high wall?”

More from Half and Half, where the question asked is: “But who is it on the other side? Are they from another planet? Do they mean us no harm? Let us communicate with them via foot and ball and see if their intentions are sincere.”

Many of those posting comments on the Haaretz website reject the idea that the ad is somehow racist, as suggested by some angry bloggers, with some comments even offering that the ad sends an uplifting message of peace.

The East Jerusalem resident speaking in our video story below echoes that sentiment - although he is in no doubt who is responsible for the lack of peace.

For the full story on this, including comments from Cellcom on their ad, click here.

Is the ad just a harmless kick-about? Or is there something troubling about it?

This week marks the fifth anniversary of the International Court of Justice’s ruling against Israel’s controversial separation barrier, which  is still under construction in and around the West Bank. According to a report from the UN High Commission for Human Rights, about 60 percent of the barrier has been constructed.

Israel says the barrier is aimed at preventing Palestinian terrorism, and says that since the wall has been built there has been a significant drop in attacks. However, the ICJ condemned Israel’s construction of the barrier on land within the West Bank-land Palestinians want for a future state-instead of on the Israeli side of the green line (the 1949 armistice line).

The separation barrier leaves some 80 percent of Jewish settlements on the Israeli side, leading the the ICJ to conclude that “the construction of the wall and its associated regime create a ‘fait accompli’ on the ground that could well become permanent, in which case, . . . [the construction of the wall] would be tantamount to de facto annexation” of Palestinian lands. (Read the entire text of that decision here).

In response to the ICJ’s ruling, the Israeli Ministry of Foreign Affairs issued this statement, where it argued that the ICJ’s ruling on the barrier was the result of a “politically motivated maneuver.” It denies the permanence of the barrier: “The fence is reversible, whereas the lives taken by terrorism are not. Moreover, the fence works. It is a temporary, non-violent security measure and it saves lives.”

Mark Regev, a spokesman for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, told Reuters this week that thanks to the barrier there’s been a “90% plus” reduction in suicide attacks by Palestinians in Israel.

Many Palestinians reject that idea and say the reduction in suicide attacks has nothing to do with the barrier which, after all, they say, is not yet complete and the border between the West Bank and Israel is still porous in many places.

Human rights organizations such as the Israeli human rights group B’Tselem and the UN Office for the Cordination of Human Affairs (OCHA) complain of the hardships the wall causes for Palestinians (see their new report on the barrier for 2009 here). They cite the difficulties created by the barrier for Palestinians to access health care, education, farming lands and, in some cases, family members. The OCHA says that the barrier will surround some 125,000 Palestinians on three sides, and another 26,000 on all four sides with a tunnel or road leading out to the West Bank.

The separation barrier has become a focal point for all manner of protests. Check out our video here on the ICJ’s 5th anniversary ruling against the separation barrier–which includes clips of a visit from Roger Waters, former bassist and songwriter of the English rock band Pink Floyd, footage of some of the famous pieces done by the infamous graffitti artist Banksy, and other protest murals. There’s also clips from UN, Israeli, and PA spokesmen, and shots of the latest anti-barrier demonstration in Bilin.

If you’re looking for more information on the barrier and the ICJ ruling, you can also check out our blog from last year on the ICJ’s separation barrier ruling.

A top adviser to Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu used an odd turn of phrase to explain what some see as a puzzling demand put to Palestinians by the right-wing leader as a condition for any any Israeli agreement to establishing a state in the occupied West Bank.

Netanyahu wants Palestinians to recognise Israel explicitly as a Jewish state, in addition to their having recognised Israeli sovereignty as part of an interim peace deal in 1993. He feels this would symbolise an historic end of conflict, his aides have explained.

At a briefing summing up Netanyahu's first 100 days in office, advisor Uzi Arad and several other officials rejected criticism from centrist Kadima party leaders who accused the Israeli leader of achieving little on the diplomatic front since his government was sworn in late in March.

Netanyahu had clearly laid out the terms for any future peace deal, they said.  Arad emphasised what he saw as the importance of seeking further Palestinian acceptance of Israel's existence, before Israel would agree to Palestinians achieving statehood in territory Israel captured in a 1967 war.

"Palestinian recognition of Israel as the state of the Jewish people, which they have so far refused to do, is not a matter of a kiss on the forehead, but a declaration of intent," Arad said.

"If they don't do it, they will have a serious problem, something everyone understands," Arad added, alluding to what would be Israel's refusal to reach the two-state deal the United  States and Europe have been seeking, unless the condition were met.

Palestinians dismiss Netanyahu's condition as inconsistent with international law and say it isn't up to any nation to define the nationality of another.

Another official in Netanyahu's office said he doubted the Palestinians would ever accept the demand, averring, "because they're not interested in making peace."

"If you think that someone stole your house, then you're never going to make peace," the official said.

Israeli-Palestinian peace talks are stalled anyway over the issue of Jewish settlement building in the West Bank. Palestinians insist on a building freeze before any return to the negotiating table, while Netanyahu is negotiating with Washington for a partial continuation of the construction.

To read more blogs from Israel and the Palestinian territories, check out AxisMundi Jerusalem.

Yesterday Reuters reported US President Barack Obama emphatically stating that Joe Biden’s comments this week on ABC were not a “green light” to Israel to bomb Iran’s nuclear facilities. Yet he did reiterrate Biden’s argument that Washington cannot “dictate to other countries what their security interests are.”

If Israel were to decide to try to destroy Iran’s nuclear facilities, how might it do that? It sounds almost like something from a spy novel, but Reuters’ Dan Williams reports that Israel may use “cyber warfare” to accomplish that goal.

“… malware — a commonly used abbreviation for “malicious software” — could be inserted to corrupt, commandeer or crash the controls of sensitive sites like uranium enrichment plants.

Such attacks could be immediate, [Scott Borg, director of the U.S. Cyber Consequences Unit] said. Or they might be latent, with the malware loitering unseen and awaiting an external trigger, or pre-set to strike automatically when the infected facility reaches a more critical level of activity.

As Iran’s nuclear assets would probably be isolated from outside computers, hackers would be unable to access them directly, Borg said. Israeli agents would have to conceal the malware in software used by the Iranians or discreetly plant it on portable hardware brought in, unknowingly, by technicians. “A contaminated USB key would be enough,” he said.”

(To get the whole story, click here.)

Mind you, click here and here for a reminder, again from Dan, that Israel also possesses, it is assumed, more traditional weapons of mass destruction. Dan told us Israel has just sent one of its nuclear-armed submarines through the Suez Canal to the Red Sea in what officials called a deliberate signal to Iran.

Meanwhile, as Obama calls for engagement and diplomacy, top US military advisers argue he needs to hurry up.

“There’s a great deal that certainly depends on the dialogue and the engagement,” [said Admiral Mike Mullen, chairman of the U.S. Joint Chiefs of Staff] . “I’m hopeful that that dialogue is productive. I worry about it a great deal if it’s not.” Mullen noted that some forecasters believe Iran could be as little as a year away from developing a nuclear bomb, adding: “The clock has continued to tick.”

(See the entire story here).

Every week our photographers and cameramen cover any number of demonstrations organised by activists protesting against the barrier Israel is building in and around the West Bank. Palestinians say the barrier is an Israeli land-grab that stifles freedom of movement and economic growth. Israeli authorities say the barrier prevents would-be attackers from reaching Israel.

You can read more about the controversy over the barrier here.

Covering the demonstrations has become a kind of routine. Most demonstrations happen on Fridays in the early afternoon. Protesters usually arrive along the same route. The Israeli army or Border Police are usually positioned in the same places. Protests start fairly quietly with chanting and flag-waving but almost invariably degenerate into skirmishes where demonstrators throw rocks at the Israeli forces who fire tear gas or rubber coated bullets to disperse the crowd.

Occasionally serious injuries and even deaths have occurred at these demonstrations. Israeli security force personnel have also been wounded during these events.
 
Our journalists also follow a routine, but their work can be tricky. They try to pick a position where they can film or photograph the demonstrations, while staying out of harm’s way. Sometimes that’s easier to plan, than implement. When covering these demonstrations, our staff wear helmets, body armour, and gas masks. They’ve been trained to operate as safely as they can in these types of environments.

Last Friday, July 3, our cameraman Saed Hawari covered one of the regular demonstrations outside the village of Bilin on the West Bank. The demonstration was not unusual, but our camerman ended up a little too close for comfort. As you can see in the video below, some tear gas grenades bounced up and nearly struck him. Fortunately, he was not hit, and was not injured.

Check out the video below - especially the first few shots.