May 3rd

For Obama, room to maneuver on Israel ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Los Angeles Times by Christi Parsons, Paul Richter - May 3, 2010 - 12:00am President Obama's altercations with the Israeli government have brought protests from U.S. groups that staunchly support Israel. But the administration retains substantial overall support among American Jewish voters, and that appears to be giving him political running room to ply his approach to the issue. Obama has criticized Israel for continuing to build Jewish housing in disputed territory, which the president says threatens efforts to restart peace talks, contributes to instability in the region and jeopardizes U.S. interests. » Read more

Censorship in Israel: 'A unique model' ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Los Angeles Times by Batsheva Sobelman - May 3, 2010 - 12:00am Privy to the nation's top secrets, she keeps private ones pretty well too. "She" is Sima Vaknin-Gil, Israel's chief censor. It's her job to keep sensitive information that could harm state security out of the media. Appointed by the defense minister, she has tremendous powers but says she uses these sparingly, balancing state security and freedom of speech. Most democratic countries balk at censorship, but a recent poll shows half of Israel's Jewish population believes that freedom of expression is too free in Israel. » Read more

Who Lives in Sheik Jarrah? ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The New York Times by Kai Bird - (Opinion) May 3, 2010 - 12:00am As a boy, I lived in Sheik Jarrah, a wealthy Arab neighborhood in East Jerusalem. Annexed by Israel in 1967 and now the subject of a conflict over property claims, my former home has come to symbolize everything that has gone wrong between the Israelis and Palestinians over the last six decades. Despite talk of a slowdown in Israeli construction in East Jerusalem, Nir Barkat, Jerusalem’s mayor, toured Washington earlier this week and told officials that the expansion into Arab neighborhoods is going ahead at full speed. » Read more