Government forces have been bombing Jaffna, Sri Lanka's fourth largest city, and other targets in Tamil areas. Over 50 people are so far reported wounded with at least 12 dead. A further 60 people died in the previous three days of fighting during which ground forces failed to take Jaffna from Tamil rebels who had held it for over a ycal.
Then two planes bombed the city centre, hitting the hospital among other buildings, while helicopters strafed the area. But ground forces still made no headway and came under heavy attack. Bombing had been suspended in March when the government was accused of attempted genocide. Peace talks are still in progress. The new military offensive is one of the heaviest yet.
China Leading Chinese Communist Party cadres have partially rehabilitated Trotsky and attacked Stalin in recent writings. Li Xianrong's book, A critical biography of Trotsky, has not yet reached the West. in the journal Shijie Lisha (World History) by Zhu Tingguan, has now appeared in the West and is printed in the journal International Viewpoint with a commentary by Ernest Mandel.
Both writers say Trotsky was one of the chief leaders of the Russian Revolution and the creator of the Red Army, and condemn Stalin's expulsion and assassination of Trotsky. But they maintain that after 1928 Trotsky became antiWest Germany Over 20,000 people have protested at Wackersdorf, the country's first and only nuclear reprocessing plant. They clashed violently with police. Up to 700 suffered severe eye injuries from CS gas and 200 needed medical treatment. Meanwhile, the Green Party in Hesse, where it is in a coalcon will une socialses, las threatened to puil out unless the state government agrees to close down all its nuclear reactors.
France's new prime minister Jacques Chirac has given unqualified support to Star Wars, reversing previous French government policy. It would be irresponsible, he said, for France, which is the world's third nation in space technology, to be 'left by the side of the road'. But a review of this work THATCHER'S TRIP to the Israeli state is the first ever by a British prime minister. That is ironic as it was a statement by Britain, the 'Balfour declaration' of 1917, that first gave away the Palestinian Arab's land to the Zionist state. But for a long time Britain had its own axe to grind in the Middle East which meant maintaining a certain diplomatic distance from the Israeli government. That included, notably maintaining British oil interests and propping client regimes such as that in Jordan and, until the 1958 revolution, Iraq.
The reasons why Thatcher now prepared to risk a more open 1dentification with the Israeli state are twofold.
First within the United States the most openly fanatical pro-Israeli lobby has gained the upper hand over lic last vcal the 1970s, following the oil price increases in 1973, the US found it necessary to adopt at least a more con• ciliatory public position to the Arab states. But with a fall in the price of oil, and Egypt safely neutralised by the Camp David Agree ment, the US has seen progressively more more openly in the Middle East.
The American attack on Libya was itself a warning to all progressive Arab Us interests in the area.
interests in the area. The US Congress has blocked arms sales to even such moderate Arab regime during the last month.
The United States also launched in April a camof terrorism from bar "terrorism' from Libya Israeli government Syria WELC deliberately whipped up during April and early May. But these ran up against the problem that Syria much tougher nut to attack than Libya First Syria's armed forces number over 400,000 — increased from 245,000 since the Israeli state's of Lebanon in 1982. Syria has combat aircraft and 3,800 tanks including more than 1,000 advanced Soviet T-72s. It is also pro. tected by a military agree. ment with the Soviet For these reasons the Israeli leadership appears cone about a military clash with Svria during the course of Reagan's 'terrorism' camDalell It is not that the Israeli state would not win war with Syria Rolling into Syria? would But would be a bloody affair. After the debacle of the invasion of in 1982 the enforced withdrawal that followed it, the Israeli government does not want a second major war rapidly afterwards.
The Israeli state's diplomacy today therefore trying to seek an agreement with King Hus sein of Jordan along the lines of the camo Davi agreement with Egypt. To achieve this Hussein spent ting involve berator Organisation (PLO) in the But necoladoos. LIC Israeli government has no intention of offering the PLO anything, and these talks broke down.
The aim of the Zionist state today is to try to draw Hussein into talks by himself use his alliance with responsible that is non-PLO, Palestinian representatives on the West Bank to give a veneer of respectability to such a deal. Britain, which traito al client links with the Jordanian monarchy, is an ideal intermediary put pressure on Hussein to involve himself in this proIf Jordan were LEDD 'neutralised' une! stae would be more able to carrv through a later wai on Syria.
The 'negotiations' promised to Hussein, therefore just the other side of the coin of the new US hard line in the They aim to isolate Arab governments opposed state. Ever prepared to do bidding, Thatcher therefore set off to visit the state of Israel Whether it is supplying airbases to attack Libya or serving as a messenger to pressure Jordan, every step British imperialism takes in the Middle East spells trouble for Palestinians Arab peoples who are under at tack by Britain's 'allies' -Israeli United States terrorist regimes