Teachers Call Off Strike for Pay Raise

Palestinian teachers ended a nearly three-week strike for higher wages without achieving any of their demands. Palestinian Authority President Yasser Arafat released strike organizers from jail, and schools reopened in most West Bank cities. The strike was the first large-scale organized protest since Arafat took the helm of the authority three years ago, as well as the first such action by authority employees, and it indicated the growing frustration with Arafat’s policies among educated Palestinians. Dozens of teachers were jailed during the walkout, which protested salaries of about $400 a month that they said are not enough to cover their basic needs.