Obama aide at Independence Day event: 2-state solution in Israel's interest ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Ynetnews by Yitzhak Benhorin - April 15, 2010 - 12:00am During a ceremony held at the Israeli Embassy Wednesday night to mark the Jewish state's 62nd Independence Day, a senior advisor to Barack Obama said the US president is committed to the alliance between the two countries. David Axelrod said that despite the disagreements, the bond between Israel and the US is unshakable, adding that Washington remains committed to Israel's security and to preventing Iran from developing nuclear weapons. » Read more

'Obama taking reins on policy towards Mideast conflict' ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Ynetnews by Yitzhak Benhorin - April 15, 2010 - 12:00am US President Obama has taken control over US policy towards the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, particularly since Israel announced the construction of 1,600 new housing units in Jerusalem's Ramat Shlomo neighborhood during Vice President Joe Biden's visit, according to an opinion piece published in the New York Times on Thursday. » Read more

No-one saw, no-one heard: 300 Palestinian olive trees uprooted ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Haaretz by Avi Issacharoff - April 15, 2010 - 12:00am Some 300 olive trees belonging to Palestinians were uprooted on the night between Monday and Tuesday in groves near the village of Mihmas, close to the illegal outpost of Migron. Mihmas residents blamed settlers for the attack and said this was the third time the settlers had uprooted trees in the area. » Read more

Obama to Sarkozy: I'll keep up pressure on Israel, Palestinians ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Haaretz by Barak Ravid - April 15, 2010 - 12:00am U.S. President Barack Obama has told French President Nicolas Sarkozy that he is determined to keep the pressure on Israel and the Palestinians to renew peace talks and implement confidence-building measures. Obama made his comments despite potential political damage at home ahead of the mid-term congressional elections in November. » Read more

World Jewish leader to Obama: Is U.S. committed to Israel's security? ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Haaretz by Barak Ravid - April 15, 2010 - 12:00am World Jewish Congress President Ronald Lauder has publically questioned U.S. President Barack Obama's commitment to Israel's security, in a letter he reportedly drafted with the approval of his close friend Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. "Our great country and the tiny State of Israel have long shared the core values of freedom and democracy," wrote Lauder, in a letter published Thursday as an advertisement in The Washington Post and The Wall Street Journal. » Read more

Israel ponders construction, demolition in disputed Jerusalem areas ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Reuters by Dave Bender, Qi Xianghui - April 15, 2010 - 12:00am The Jerusalem municipality has taken an administrative step towards building some 200 apartments, a synagogue and a school in a disputed area in East Jerusalem, Israeli media reported. It is unclear when the building would begin. Yossi Gottesman, deputy spokesperson for the municipality, told Xinhua on Wednesday that the municipality has "transferred legal ownership of several dunams of land" in the neighborhood of Gilo. But he did not specify if the property would be used for housing, the synagogue or the school. » Read more

Hamas executes two Palestinians in Gaza ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Reuters by Nidal Al-Mughrabi - April 15, 2010 - 12:00am Hamas said on Thursday it executed by firing squad two Palestinians convicted by a Gaza military court in 2009 of collaborating with Israel. It was the first time that Islamist group has carried out formal executions since the it seized control of the Gaza Strip three years ago from the rival Fatah party of President Mahmoud Abbas, which governs in the occupied West Bank. A Hamas government official confirmed the executions after the bodies of two men arrived at a Gaza hospital. The group's interior ministry said they were carried out by firing squad. » Read more

Egypt suddenly reopens Rafah crossing ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Ma'an News Agency April 15, 2010 - 12:00am Within hours of announcing the terminal's "indefinite closure," Egyptian authorities said on Wednesday that Cairo had reopened the Rafah crossing into Gaza. Egyptian security sources told Ma'an the crossing's reopening came "without mentioning any reasons," and that it would remain open for Palestinian patients who have completed treatment in Egyptian hospitals to return until Thursday, in accordance with its weekly schedule. » Read more

De facto gov't denies shutting down Rafah tunnels ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Ma'an News Agency April 15, 2010 - 12:00am The Ministry of the Interior in the Gaza Strip has denied reports that the Hamas-run government shut down smuggling tunnels along the Egyptian border. Interior Ministry spokesman Ihab Al-Ghussein said in a statement posted on Hamas-affiliated Web sites Wednesday that "the Palestinian government in Gaza did not issue any order to shut down tunnels along the border." The reports are rumors and nothing more, Al-Ghussein stressed. » Read more

Obama Speech Signals a U.S. Shift on Middle East ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The New York Times by Helene Cooper, Mark Landler - April 14, 2010 - 12:00am It was just a phrase at the end of President Obama’s news conference on Tuesday, but it was a stark reminder of a far-reaching shift in how the United States views the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, and how aggressively it might push for a peace agreement. When Mr. Obama declared that resolving the long-running Middle East dispute was a “vital national security interest of the United States,” he was highlighting a change that has resulted from a lengthy debate among his top officials over how best to balance support for Israel against other American interests. » Read more