ISRAEL RETREATS FROM JERUSALEM RULING

Israel suspended its controversial decision to confiscate Arab land in East Jerusalem after five Arab legislators -- all crucial allies in parliament -- threatened a no-confidence vote that would have toppled the government.Last month's plan to seize 140 acres of mostly-Arab landto build homes for Jews threw the Arab world into an uproar. It especially strained relations with the Palestine Liberation Organization, whose constituents want East Jerusalem as a future capital. (Israel has claimed sovereignty since it captured the area from Jordan in the 1967 Mideast war.)TIME Jerusalem bureau chief Lisa Beyersays Israel also succumbed to "threats to kill warming ties" by Jordan, Egypt, Morocco and other brand-new allies among moderate, pro-American Arab states. Worse, Arab countries have been planning a summit specifically to condemn the land confiscation. Says Beyer: "It was building into a much bigger headache."