1 APRIL 2002

India, Civil Affairs

The government banned two Kashmir militant groups, Jamait-ul-Mujahideen and Al-Badr (Reuters).

Israel, West Bank

The army said it had arrested 700 people in Ramallah (Reuters).

2 APRIL 2002

Angola

The government approved a law granting amnesty to members of the UNITA rebel group for crimes committed since taking up arms (Reuters).

Israel, West Bank

Israeli forces entered Tulkarm and Bethlehem (Reuters).

Jordan

In Amman, about 6,000 protesters demanded that dipomatic relations with Israel be severed (Reuters).

3 APRIL 2002

Israel, West Bank

Israeli forces entered Nablus. There was some resistance from Palestinian militants (Reuters).

4 APRIL 2002

Angola

The government and the UNITA rebels signed a formal cease-fire. Armed forces chief General Armando da Cruz Neto and UNITA chief-of-staff General Abreu Muengo Ukwachitembo "Kamorteiro" signed the accord in a ceremony at the National Assembly in Luanda, with President Jose Eduardo dos Santos and UNITA interim leader Paulo Lukamba "Gato" present. The accord provides for some 50,000 UNITA troops to assemble in 27 locations around the country before either demobilizing or joining the country's armed forces. Gato said that "UNITA will be legalized as a political party and we shall operate as an opposition party." Gato had maintained that UNITA's decision to cease the armed struggle against the government was made during the previous December, before Jonas Savimbi's death in February (Reuters).

Israel, West Bank

All large towns and cities under PA rule had been reoccupied by Israeli forces except Jericho. Some of the heaviest fighting was in Jenin and Nablus (Reuters).

6 APRIL 2002

Sudan, Foreign Policy

The government called on Sudanese to receive military training at government-run camps and join the armed struggle against Israel (Reuters).

Bahrain

Thousands demonstrated against the US near its embassy in Manama. Some of them entered the compound and damaged embassy property (Reuters).

7 APRIL 2002

Israel, West Bank

According to the army, since 28 March it had killed 200 Palestinians, most of them militants, and arrested over 1,400, including 361 on its wanted list (Reuters).

Costa Rica, Politics

The runoff for the presidential election was held (the first round was held on 3 February). Abel Pacheco of the Social Christian Unity Party (PUSC) defeated Rolando Araya of the National Liberation Party with 58% of the popular vote to Araya's 42% (IFES).

Colombia

A car bomb killed 12 people in Villavicencio (Reuters).

France

There were pro-Israel demonstrations in Paris and elsewhere. Police estimated there were 53,000 demonstrators in Paris (Reuters).

7 & 21 APRIL 2002

Hungary, Politics

Elections for the 386-seat National Assembly were held. The alliance of the Socialist Party (MSZP) and the Free Democrats won 197 seats. That total included 178 seats for the Socialists, up from 134. The alliance of Prime Minister Victor Orban's Hungarian Civic Party (FIDESZ) and the Hungarian Democratic Forum (MDF) won 188 seats, up from 165 but not enough for victory. The Socialists promised to guide Hungary toward EU membership, end the capital gains tax and sell off state assets (IFES, Reuters).

8 APRIL 2002

Iraq, Foreign Policy

President Saddam Hussein announced a halt to all oil exports "for a period of 30 days when we will further decide policy, or until the Zionist entity's armed forces have unconditionally withdrawn from the Palestinian territories." The decision halted two million bpd, or about four percent of world oil supplies (Reuters).

8-10 APRIL 2002

Venezuela

The Venezuela Worker's Confederation (CTV) and the Fedecamaras business association called a general strike on the 8th to protest President Hugo Chavez' economic and social initiatives. They later extended it to the 9th. On the 10th they called an indefinate extension (Reuters).

9 APRIL 2002

Yugoslavia

The parliaments of Serbia and Montenegro approved an outline plan to abolish the current federal government of Yugoslavia and replace it with a looser union called Serbia and Montenegro. The two republics would supposedly have broad autonomy within one internationally recognized state. The agreement obliges Montenegro to shelve plans for a referendum on independence. The Serbian parliament approved it 146-29. Montenegro's parliament approved it 58-11 (Reuters).

Israel, West Bank

Israeli forces pulled out of Qalqilya and Tulkarm (Reuters).

10 APRIL 2002

Israel

Hamas suicide-bombed a bus near Haifa, killing eight people (Reuters).

11 APRIL 2002

Diplomatic Affairs

The number of states that had ratified the treaty for an International Criminal Court rose to 66 -- six more than needed to bring the treaty into force on 1 July. The new tribunal would be independent of the UN but would replace the temporary tribunals that the UN Security Council has established in recent years such as those for Bosnia and Rwanda. The court would have jurisdiction for serious attrocities such as genocide, crimes against humanity and war crimes committed after 1 July 2002 in any of the ratifying states, regardless of the nationality of the suspect, provided that the suspect's government is unable or unwilling to prosecute. The US, Russia, China and most Arab states have not ratified the treaty. The US is concerned about its military personnel overseas. All EU members except Greece have ratified (Reuters).

Democratic Republic of Congo

At talks between the government and rebel groups being held in Sun City, South Africa, the parties agreed to join their military forces under an integrated command structure. The parties were still in the process of negotiating a plan for sharing political power and eventually holding elections for a new government (Reuters).

Israel, West Bank

The last serious resistance to Israeli forces in Jenin was ended. A standoff continued in Bethlehem between the Israelis and dozens of militants, plus a much larger number of civilians, in the Church of the Nativity (Reuters).

On the same day, US Secretary of State Colin Powell arrived in Israel to attempt to bring about a cease-fire. The US had been urging Israel to call off its raids in the West Bank, apparently believing they were making it difficult to, as Powell said the next day, "get back to a track that will lead to a political settlement" (Reuters). The problem is the Palestinian Authority's (PA) inability or unwillingness to act against terrorist groups, which obliges the Israelis to act. It can be argued, however, that the Israeli operations are too indescriminate for counter-terrorism and are playing into the terrorists' hands.

Colombia

FARC rebels abducted 12 provincial lawmakers in a raid on the legislative assembly in Cali. Wearing bomb squad uniforms, they entered the chamber and tricked the legislators onto buses by saying there was a bomb threat (Reuters).

11-14 APRIL 2002

Venezuela

A military coup ousted President Hugo Chavez from power. Then, in a dramatic turnaround, Chavez returned to power, apparently because of the support of certain sectors of the public and military.

On the 11th about a half-million people demonstrated against Chavez in Caracas in a protest march organized by CTV and Fedecamaras. As tens of thousands of marchers approached the presidential palace, they were fired upon by unidentified gunmen and rooftop snipers. Seventeen people were killed. Later, National Guard General Alberto Camacho Kairuz announced on local television that the "government has abandoned its functions" and that the country was under the control of the armed forces.

Apparently Chavez was not arrested by soldiers until before dawn on the 12th, then taken into military custody on Isla Orchila. Armed forces chief Gen. Lucas Rincon announced that Chavez had resigned. However, Chavez had not resigned. Rincon later claimed that he had recommended to Chavez that he (Chavez) resign to avoid bloodshed, and that Chavez had voiced agreement with the idea. Rincon said he announced the resignation not knowing that Chavez had changed his mind.

On the evening of the 12th, Fedecamaras leader Pedro Carmona was sworn in as interim president. Carmona later claimed he had agreed to a request by the military to form a transitional government, believing that Chavez had resigned. He immediately abolished the National Assembly and the Supreme Court, both of which were dominated by Chavez supporters. Carmona said that congressional elections would be held in December and presidential elections would be held within a year, and that he would not be a candidate.

On the 13th word began to get out that Chavez had not, in fact, resigned. Thousands of Chavez supporters protested against his removal. There was widespread looting and clashes with security forces in which dozens were killed. Many key military units around the country mutinied against the senior officers who had ousted Chavez. Meanwhile, Chavez supporters claimed that the President had never resigned. Carmona resigned, and loyalist troops took over the presidential palace. Vice President Diosdado Cabello was sworn in as interim president pending Chavez's return the next day. Carmona was placed under house arrest, and he and six senior military officers involved in the coup were later charged with rebellion and mutiny. Rincon remained armed forces chief (Reuters).

There was, and continues to be, widespread discontent with Chavez's socialist-oriented policies and authoritarian leadership style. However, a coup was perhaps an extreme response to the deaths or potential deaths of the anti-Chavez protesters on the 11th. Also, the military seems neither totally against nor totally for Chavez, and senior officers may have misjudged the prospects for a successful coup. One Venezuelan pointed out that Carmona, by trying to abolish constitutional institutions, may have undermined his legitimacy, though he did reinstate the National Assembly just hours before his resignation.

Under current constitutional rules, Chavez's opponents could try to call a referendum on his rule in 2003. The next general elections are scheduled for 2006 (Reuters).

12 APRIL 2002

Middle East and North Africa

Thirty thousand people demonstrated against the US and Israel in the Gaza Strip. There were similar demonstrations in the thousands in Lebanon, Bahrain and Yemen (Reuters).

14 APRIL 2002

East Timor

In the first presidential election, Xanana Gusmao defeated Francisco Xavier do Amaral 82.7% to 17.3% (IFES).

16 APRIL 2002

Netherlands, Politics

PM Wim Kok's ruling coalition resigned over the 1995 Dutch peacekeeping failure in Srebrenica, Bosnia. An official report had just been released that claimed government policies had contributed to the disaster (Reuters).

Italy

Unions called a general strike to protest proposed labor market reforms. About 13 million people stayed away from work (Reuters).

18 APRIL 2002

Afghanistan

Ex-king Mohammad Zahir Shah returned and took residence in Kabul (Reuters).

19 APRIL 2002

Bosnia

High Representative Wolfgang Petritsch proclaimed changes to the constitutions of the Muslim/Croat federation and the Serb Republic designed to promote fair representation for all three ethnic groups in both autonomous regions. The two parliaments had done much of the work on the changes but had not approved them (Reuters).

20 APRIL 2002

Israel, West Bank

The army said it withdrew from Jenin. Much of the Palestinian refugee camp there was left destroyed. The Israelis estimated they killed 48 people in Jenin, mostly militants, while losing 23 soldiers killed in action. Peter Hansen, head of the UN agency for Palestinian refugees, later said 800 dwellings had been destroyed and many more damaged in the camp, leaving 4,000-5,000 people homeless. There was strong international criticism of the destruction (Reuters). Perhaps more relevant to the people of the region was the propaganda benefit that terrorist groups may have derived from Jenin. Israel has a right to self-defense, but the tactics in this case were questionable.

21 APRIL 2002

France, Politics

The first round of a presidential election was held. Jacques Chirac of the Rally for the Republic party received 19.9% of the vote. The National Front's Jean-Marie Le Pen did suprisingly well, getting 16.9%. The Socialist Party's Lionel Jospin, expected to finish second, was third with 16.2%. There were several other candidates, none of whom received more than 7%. The runoff between Chirac and Le Pen was scheduled for 5 May (IFES, Reuters).

There were some anti-Le Pen demonstrations in Paris and elsewhere (Reuters).

Philippines

Two bombs killed 14 people in General Santos on the southern island of Mindanao. It appeared that the Abu Sayyaf terrorist group was responsible (Reuters).

Israel, West Bank

Israeli forces withdrew from most of Ramallah but continued to surround PA president Arafat in his headquarters. The Israelis had by this time withdrawn from Nablus (Reuters).

21-25 APRIL 2002

France

There were daily demonstrations against Jean-Marie Le Pen around the country. On the 25th about 150,000 demonstrated in Paris alone. Le Pen has said he would halt plans to enlarge the EU and ensure that Turkey could never join. He has called for abolishing the Schengen pact on free movement of people across national boundaries within the EU and proposed "transit camps" for illegal immigrants before their deportation (Reuters).

22 APRIL 2002

Colombia

Antioquia Governor Guillermo Gaviria and others were abducted by FARC rebels as they participated in a peace march near Caicedo (Reuters).

23 APRIL 2002

Argentina, Economic Affairs

Economy minister Remes Lenicov quit. He was replaced by Roberto Lavagna, a relatively unknown pro-free market economist. It appeared that President Eduardo Duhalde intended to continue policies aimed at spending cuts and restoring investor confidence. Unemployment is at 20% and there is a severe cash shortage as deposits have been frozen in an effort to save the banking sector (Reuters).

25 APRIL 2002

Diplomatic Affairs

Saudi Arabia's Crown Prince Abdullah met US President Bush and other top officials at Bush's Texas ranch. They discussed the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. Abdullah apparently warned Bush that America's relations with the Arab world would suffer if Bush did not reduce support for Israel's policies in the West Bank and Gaza. Abdullah assured Bush that Saudi Arabia would not support the Iraqi oil embargo (Reuters).

It is possible that US prestige in the Middle East has been, through association, damaged by Israel's heavy-handed raids in the West Bank (see 20 April). If this is what the Saudis were referring to, then their warning was certainly valid. Nevertheless, the Saudi warning is troubling for those interested in Israel's security because Israel has acted within her rights, and while her tactics have been excessive, they probably cannot be moderated enough to satisfy the anger that seems to have developed toward her in the Arab world.

For example, the Palestinian uprising is being driven by terrorist activity by groups opposed to a political settlement with Israel such as Islamic Jihad, Hamas, and the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine (PFLP). The Israelis have sought to kill or capture members of these groups, particularly the leaders. These targeted killings are legitimate means, and perhaps the only effective means, for the Israelis to fight the terrorists. Yet they have drawn almost as much, if not as much, international criticism as the raids have.

27 APRIL 2002

France

Hundreds of thousands of people across the country demonstrated against Jean-Marie Le Pen, including about 50,000 in Paris (Reuters).

28 APRIL 2002

Venezuela, Politics

President Hugo Chavez replaced Vice President Diosdado Cabello with Defense Minister Jose Vicente Rangel (Reuters).