Palestinian FM urges UN to ease Jerusalem tension
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Agence France Presse (AFP)
October 9, 2009 - 12:00am

Palestinian foreign minister Riyad al-Malki called on UN chief Ban Ki-moon Thursday to intervene to prevent further escalation in Jerusalem. He said he asked for Ban's "immediate intervention to prevent Israel from escalating the situation in Jerusalem." Also Thursday, the High Court of Justice rejected a petition filed by the Temple Mount Human Rights group, headed by Yehuda Glick, who demanded that Jews receive access to the holy site on Friday and Saturday. IThe judge said police were responsible for making the decision and that the court could not become involved.

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Arab from the North? You can't enter Jerusalem
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Jerusalem Post
October 9, 2009 - 12:00am

The heavy security around Jerusalem in the wake of the recent Arab riots appeared to get a little bit out of hand on Thursday when Al-Jazeera's bureau chief in Israel, Walid al-Omari, and two of his crew members were initially denied entrance to Jerusalem, because "Arabs from the North aren't allowed into the capital."

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Only gall and nothing more
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Haaretz
by Gideon Levy - (Opinion) October 8, 2009 - 12:00am

Is the discourse we are conducting - if indeed we are conducting any discourse among ourselves and with our interlocutor - legitimate at all? Ever since the territories were occupied a public debate has been going on here about their future and what is being done there. The questions have come and gone, all of them in the same cursed vein: To give? To concede? Under what conditions? In exchange for what?

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Israel tightens Jerusalem 'siege'
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Ma'an News Agency
October 7, 2009 - 12:00am

Palestinians in Jerusalem’s Old City are describing it as a community “under siege” as Israeli forces continue to operate in large numbers fearing renewed demonstrations. Restrictions in the city were so severe Wednesday that children were prevented from reaching schools in the Old City. Israeli forces also prevented Islamic Endowment (Waqf) personnel from reaching the Al-Aqsa Mosque, which has been the site of rolling demonstrations and clashes with Israeli forces over the past four days.

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U.S. to Israel and PA: Calm Jerusalem tensions
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Haaretz
by Barak Ravid - October 7, 2009 - 12:00am

In its first response to recent clashes in Jerusalem, the U.S. administration of President Barack Obama on Tuesday called on Israel and the Palestinian Authority to take steps to calm the tensions in the capital. Israeli police mobilized reinforcements from across the country to secure the volatile Jerusalem on Tuesday, deploying thousands of officers on city streets for fear that two days of low-grade clashes with Palestinian protesters would escalate.

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Israel fears violence following arrest of Islamic Movement head
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Haaretz
by Barak Ravid - October 7, 2009 - 12:00am

Security forces fear an outbreak of further violence following the arrest of the leader of the Islamic Movement's northern branch, Sheikh Ra'ad Salah on Tuesday. Salah was arrested, and later released, after Police Commissioner David Cohen, State Prosecutor Moshe Lador and Jerusalem police chief Aharon Franco decided that Salah would be interrogated about recent statements.

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Minister Braverman: Jewish extremists also at fault for riots
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Ynetnews
by Sharon Roffe-ofir - October 7, 2009 - 12:00am

Minorities Minister Avishay Braverman (Labor) said Wednesday that Jewish extremists were also to blame for the recent violence in Jerusalem. Speaking to Ynet, Braverman warned that outlawing the Islamic Movement would only bolster it and hurt Israel's status. "Ministers and MKs' calls to have the movement banned only serve the Islamic Movement's political interests. Outlawing the group would only embolden extremist elements and strengthen the movement itself," he told Ynet.

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Solana calls for restraint in Jerusalem
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Jerusalem Post
by Elana Kirsh - October 7, 2009 - 12:00am

European Union foreign policy chief Javier Solana expressed concern Wednesday over "recent clashes in east Jerusalem." In a statement, he called for restraint, saying, "I have been closely following the situation around the Al Aksa mosque in recent days. I would like to urge all parties to refrain from provocative actions that could further inflame tensions or lead to violence." "Everyone must take action to avoid escalation," he added.

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Jerusalem's troublesome sheikh
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Guardian
by Mick Dumper - October 7, 2009 - 12:00am

A subtle shift in power has recently taken place on the street in Jerusalem. The confrontations during the past week between Palestinians and the Israeli police over perceived Israeli threats to the Dome of the Rock and al-Aqsa mosque bring home the growing role of the Israeli Islamic movement in the politics of the city. As a result of the ineffectiveness of the secular and traditional Palestinian leadership, below the radar, Palestinians in the city are being mobilised by the northern branch of the Islamic Movement in Israel, led by the charismatic Sheikh Ra'ed Salah.

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Mosque rumour sparks clashes
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Independent
October 7, 2009 - 12:00am

Israeli police mobilised reinforcements from across the country to secure the streets of Jerusalem yesterday, deploying thousands of officers amid fears that violence would escalate after two days of clashes with Palestinian protesters. Rumours that Israeli extremists planned to march on the most sacred Muslim and Jewish shrine in the Holy Land apparently fuelled the unrest. No such march has taken place.

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