July 21st

Arab who posed as a Jew jailed for rape 'by deception'
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Independent
by Catrina Stewart - July 21, 2010 - 12:00am

A Palestinian man who masqueraded as a Jew to have sex with a Jewish woman has been convicted of rape "by deception" and sentenced to 18 months in prison. The unusual case underscores the racial tensions between Israel's Jewish and Arab communities, where intimate relations between the two are often regarded as taboo.

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On and off, with nothing to show for
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Jordan Times
(Editorial) July 21, 2010 - 12:00am

US President Barack Obama has been issuing contradictory statements about the prospect for peace between Palestinians and Israelis. Once the US president assures Palestinian leader Mahmoud Abbas that he is committed to the creation of an independent Palestinian state, then, after talks with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, he says the prospects for peace in the region appear slim. Some time before that, Obama had acknowledged that the search for peace in the Middle East is tantamount to walking among land-mines.

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PA urges Israel to hand over oxygen machines
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Ma'an News Agency
July 21, 2010 - 12:00am

The Palestinian Authority Ministry of Health appealed Wednesday to Israel to deliver seven oxygen machines donated by a Norwegian development agency that were seized by Israeli officials en route to hospitals in the West Bank and Gaza. Heath Minister Fathi Abu Moghli delivered a second letter of appeal to donor countries and organizations, calling for "urgent intervention" for the medical supplies to be delivered to hospitals in the occupied Palestinian territories.

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Ghanem: Work permits retain refugee status for Palestinians
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Daily Star
July 21, 2010 - 12:00am

ead of the Administration and Justice parliamentary committee, MP Robert Ghanem, said work permits will preserve the refugee status of Palestinians in Lebanon. The West Bekaa MP spoke to reporters on Monday after chairing a meeting for the committee at the Parliament. Ghanem said the committee amended article 59 of the Labor Law by which Palestinians registered in the Interior Ministry and the Political Affairs and Refugees Directory would have to file for a work permit in order to gain access to various professions.

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Israel's Iron Dome missile defense system not a silver bullet
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Christian Science Monitor
by Joshua Mitnick - July 20, 2010 - 12:00am

Four years after Hezbollah exposed Israel's vulnerability to short- and medium-range rockets, Israeli defense officials finished testing on Monday what is supposed to be the answer. Israel's Iron Dome missile defense system is designed to intercept salvos of primitive rockets from Gaza and Lebanon, drastically reducing the ability of Hamas and Hezbollah to hit Israeli population centers. It's also a blow to Iran, which supports both militant groups, and could use them as proxies in a broader conflict against Israel.

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Young Israelis and Palestinians Commit to Peace
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Americans For Peace Now
by Ori Nir - (Opinion) July 21, 2010 - 12:00am

I just came back from an inspiring event on Capitol Hill, in which young Israeli and Palestinian peace activists told their stories and urged Americans to get involved to make Middle East peace a reality. It was the first annual congressional forum of the Middle East program of New Story Leadership, a Washington-based organization that brings young adults to Washington for internships and leadership training. Participants eventually return to Israel, the West Bank or Gaza, and, hopefully, continue taking action toward peace and reconciliation.

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IDF destroys West Bank village after declaring it military zone
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Haaretz
by Amira Hass - July 21, 2010 - 12:00am

The IDF's Civil Administration destroyed a Palestinian village Monday morning that had earlier been cleared out when its water supply was cut off. The IDF demolished about 55 structures in the West Bank village of Farasiya, including tents, tin shacks, plastic and straw huts, clay ovens, sheep pens and bathrooms. These structures served the 120 farmers, hired workers and their families who lived in the Jordan Valley village. The Civil Administration said they had declared the area a live fire zone and posted eviction orders for 10 families in tents on June 27.

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July 20th

An Israeli group gives young Palestinians from the West Bank trips to the beach. Israel is pressuring Egypt to help start direct talks, and analysts say the next two weeks are decisive. The EU's foreign policy chief calls for the opening of Gaza borders and is asked by Palestinians to send observers to Jerusalem. An Israeli soldier convicted of shooting a British protester is granted early release. Israel is set to deploy a new anti-rocket system. Israel arrests Hamas members accused of shooting a police officer. Israel denies presenting Egypt with the map of a potential Palestinian state. Residents of the Silwan neighborhood of occupied East Jerusalem say their children live in fear. Gershon Baskin says settlement building is suicidal for Israel. David Newman says Israel needs to revise its security approach. The first internationally-funded development project for Gaza since the Hamas takeover is launched. Carlo Strenger says existential anxiety is why Israel keeps moving to the right. The David Project hires a veteran pro-Israel activist.

With hiring of AJC veteran, David Project consolidates its mainstream status
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Jewish Telegraphic Agency (JTA)
by Ron Kampeas - July 20, 2010 - 12:00am

WASHINGTON (JTA) -- In a continuing bid to transition from campus rabble rousers to more mainstream educators, The David Project has hired a Jewish establishment veteran to guide the pro-Israel campus organization. In recent years The David Project has expanded from its original mission -- confronting what it identified as radically anti-Israel groups on campus -- to educating Jewish students on Israel. Now the hiring of David Bernstein, 43, a 13-year veteran of the American Jewish Committee, as executive director signals a major growing-up for the organization.

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Why Israel keeps moving to the right
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Guardian
by Carlo Strenger - July 20, 2010 - 12:00am

Israel has been sliding into ever greater isolation in the few last years and this process has accelerated since Binyamin Netanyahu came to power in 2009. The international community is put off by his tactics: whenever the question of Israel's settlement policy comes up, he diverts attention to the Iranian nuclear threat. He argues that the world is facing a situation similar to 1938, and that its reaction is that of Neville Chamberlain, trying to appease Adolf Hitler.

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