Mideast Envoy George Mitchell wraps up his trip to the region by reiterating U.S. support for the Arab Peace Initiative (1) (7). The Jewish Daily Forward examines the controversy over Israeli-operated West Bank quarries (2). A report issued by Human Rights Watch accuses Hamas of killing at least 32 Palestinian political rivals during the Gaza War (4). Analysts warn of a potential increase in West Bank violence (9). The United States reportedly rejects Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu’s demand that the Palestinians recognize Israel as the state of the Jewish people (11). A World Bank report published today finds that, in the West Bank, Israeli settlers get four times more water than Palestinians (13). ATFP Senior Fellow Hussein Ibish condemns anti-Semitic rhetoric in the Khaleej Times (16) and from a speaker at a California University (5).

Recent UCR speaker accused of anti-Semitism
Media Mention of Hussein Ibish In The Press Enterprise - April 18, 2009 - 12:00am

The director of an Inland-based hate-monitoring group is calling on UC Riverside Chancellor Timothy White to denounce a recent campus speaker whom the organization accuses of anti-Semitism. White said through a spokeswoman he will not comment on past statements made by Abdel Malik Ali, who appeared April 11-12 at the Muslim Students' Association western regional conference at UCR.

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Human Rights Watch accuses Hamas of Gaza killings
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Reuters
April 20, 2009 - 12:00am

Human Rights Watch accuses Hamas of Gaza killings Report issued by human rights group says Gaza security forces killed at least 32 Palestinian political rivals, suspected collaborators with Israel during and after Operation Cast Lead. Hamas spokesman denies accusations, says launched investigation into reports of political killings Reuters Hamas security forces killed at least 32 Palestinian political rivals and suspected collaborators with Israel during and after the Israeli offensive in the Gaza Strip, Human Rights Watch said in a new report.

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Obama, Netanyahu, and Zionists Against Occupation
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Haaretz
by Bradley Burston - (Analysis) April 20, 2009 - 12:00am

It occurred to me while leaving St. Peter in Chains. I decided to do the very last thing the Jewish People needs: start a new Jewish organization. The inspiration was the unassuming but sublime church of San Pietro in Vincoli [St. Peter in Chains]. Tucked into a back corner of the city, it is home to Michelangelo's monumentally wistful marble of Moses.

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The Emanuel-Netanyahu Smackdown
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from CQ Politics
by Craig Crawford - (Blog) April 20, 2009 - 12:00am

Imagine Rahm Emanuel and Benjamin Netanyahu in Monday Night Raw, WWE's weekly wrestler smackdown. Emanuel is laying down the law for Israel, making it clear that President Barack Obama wants West Bank territory returned to the Palestinians in exchange for U.S. help in dealing with Iran. Israeli tough guy Netanyahu pushed back. The White House responded by announcing that the President will be out of town for the Prime Minister's trip to Washington next month.

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Reckoning nears for the US and Israel
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Daily Star
by Rami Khouri - April 18, 2009 - 12:00am

The moment of reckoning in US-Israeli relations is approaching much more quickly than could have been anticipated months ago, due to two related developments: the hard-line position of the new Israeli government headed by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and the obvious, but undeclared, linkages between progress in US-Iranian relations and progress in Arab-Israeli peace-making.

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World Bank: Israelis get four times more water than Palestinians
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Haaretz
by Avi Issacharoff - (Analysis) April 20, 2009 - 12:00am

The water-supply regime used by Israel and the Palestinians must be changed, according to a World Bank report that is to be published today. The report notes that an average Israeli gets four times as much water as the average Palestinian, and warns that the Palestinian Authority water system is "nearing catastrophe." It concludes by recommending that the current water-distribution arrangement, mandated as part of the Oslo II accords, be changed to improve the Palestinian system.

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West Bank violence set to escalate
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The National
by Vita Bekker - April 20, 2009 - 12:00am

A wave of violence in the West Bank last weekend, in which three Palestinians were killed, has prompted some activists and analysts to warn of increased clashes in the Israeli-occupied territory amid a stalled peace process and the rise of a new hardline government in Israel.

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Israel's discriminatory policy out in the open
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Gulf News
by Adel Safty - (Opinion) April 19, 2009 - 12:00am

First, there was the openly racist anti-Arab campaign platform of Avigdor Lieberman, who called for stripping Palestinian Israelis of their citizenship and requiring them to take an oath of allegiance. The strong showing of Yisrael Beiteinu (Israel Our Home} in the recent Israeli election validated for many Israelis, Lieberman’s racist views and led some Israeli commentators to wistfully observe that racism was now an acceptable Jewish value in Israel.

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Why I carry a little red light
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Arab News
by Uri Avnery - (Analysis) April 20, 2009 - 12:00am

Perhaps Avigdor Lieberman is only a passing episode in the annals of the State of Israel. Perhaps the fire he is trying to ignite will flicker briefly and go out by itself. Or perhaps the police investigations into the grave corruption affair of which he is suspected will lead to his removal from the public sphere. But the opposite is also possible. Last week he promised his acolytes that the next elections would bring him to power.

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