Israel could one day become a "pariah state" like apartheid-era South Africa. It also looks set to collide with a European Union that is growing in power and influence. These are some of the possible outcomes if the Israeli-Palestinian conflict is not resolved, reports a confidential, but leaked to the media, 25-page ten-year forecast written by the Israeli Foreign Ministry's Center for Public Research. The report, which contains no recommendations and was written in August of 2004, says it's important to improve relations with Europe since a European Union growing in power and influence would mean that Israel's main political partner, the United States, would probably diminish in international stature.

Ramadan
For the next month, from sunrise to sunset each day, Safiyyah Osman will not have one bite of food or one sip of water. Like Muslims across the world, she will observe the holy month of Ramadan by fasting every day. Yet Safiyyah is only 11 years old. "It does get a bit hard, but I just ignore it and get through it," said Safiyyah, who lives in Willingboro. "When I get hungry, I just go into a different room and say something to myself. I say a little prayer." Ramadan is an Islamic celebration marking the time that God revealed the Muslim holy book, the Quran, to the prophet Muhammad. The month-long holiday begins with the sighting of the crescent moon and is expected to start today. During Ramadan, Muslims fast to reflect on their lives and their relationship to God. Children are not expected to observe the fast until they reach puberty, yet many start younger, beginning with just a few days of fasting to practice and eventually abstaining the entire month.