October 29th

Remembering Rabin, Some See His Legacy Fading
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The New York Times
by Ethan Bronner - October 28, 2010 - 12:00am

In the 15 years since Prime Minister Yitzhak Rabin was assassinated by a Jewish militant after a peace rally here, blood seeping onto a song sheet in his breast pocket as he lost consciousness, his legacy in Israel has seemed clear — warrior turned peacemaker, symbol of a tough nation with an outstretched hand.

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October 28th

Lawrence Korb says convicted Israeli spy Jonathan Pollard should be freed. Egyptian officials will meet Pres. Abbas in Ramallah, and may urge resumption of talks. Arab leaders call for a strike in Umm Al Fahm. A Palestinian citizen of Israel is convicted of working with Hezbollah. Gaza¹s loss of citrus crops hits the economy. The UK pledges $55 million to the PA. Hamas leaders call for dialogue with the West. The PA will rededicate refurbished schools in occupied East Jerusalem. Israel finally appoints a new UN ambassador. PM Fayyad says Palestinians will have a state in 2011. Some Israelis are sabotaging, others helping, the Palestinian olive harvest. A website against campus divestment activism is launched by a pro-Israel group. The Israeli right is hoping for a big GOP win in the US midterms. George Hishmeh says few options remain for Palestinians. Daoud Kuttab looks at the tensions between the Jewish and Israeli identities. Jesse Rosenfeld says the epicenter of the Palestinian struggle has shifted into Israel itself.

Minister Erdan set to be appointed UN ambassador
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Ynetnews
by Atilla Somfalvi - October 27, 2010 - 12:00am

Environmental Protection Minister Gilad Erdan is expected to be appointed by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu as Israel's ambassador to the United Nations, senior Likud officials said on Wednesday. Foreign Minister Avigdor Liberman supported the decision, which ended a months-long dispute between him an Netanyahu over the appointment.

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Fayyad: PA will declare independent state in August 2011
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Jerusalem Post
October 28, 2010 - 12:00am

Palestinian Authority Prime Minister Salam Fayyad said the PA will declare an independent Palestinian state in 2011, while picking olives with a reporter from Italian daily Corriere Della Sera, according to an interview published on Thursday. "The deadline is next summer, when the Israeli occupation of the West Bank must end," Fayyad said. "In 2011, we will celebrate 66 years of the United Nations and the United Nations will celebrate the birth of our nation."

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Rightists furious over Palestinian plans for new East Jerusalem schools
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Haaretz
by Nir Hasson - October 28, 2010 - 12:00am

The Legal Forum for the Land of Israel yesterday asked Public Security Minister Yitzhak Aharonovitch to prevent a planned visit next week to East Jerusalem by Palestinian Prime Minister Salam Fayyad, to rededicate two schools. The organization's website says it is "committed to protecting human rights in Israel, ensuring sound government, and preserving the national integrity of the State of Israel and the Jewish people."

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The olive groves where peaceful solidarity grows
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Guardian
by Seth Freedman - October 28, 2010 - 12:00am

With the olive harvest in full swing across the West Bank, reports are flooding in of settler attacks on Palestinian farmers trying to gather their crops. Acts of arson, sabotage and theft all make for great copy, and rightly so: the atrocities committed by Israeli extremists in the name of nationalism and religion must be condemned.

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'Egypt trying to convince Abbas to resume peace talks with Israel'
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Haaretz
October 28, 2010 - 12:00am

Egypt's top diplomat and the head of its intelligence branch were in Ramallah on Thursday in an effort to persuade Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas to resume direct negotiations with Israel. The Palestinian Authority has refused to continue its direct peace negotiations with Israel, launched recently in Washington, until Israel agrees to halt settlement construction. Israel enforced a 10-month moratorium on West Bank construction, but that freeze ended in late September.

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Pro-Israel website resource for students is launching
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Jewish Telegraphic Agency (JTA)
October 27, 2010 - 12:00am

A pro-Israel group is launching a website to help students counter anti-Israel activism on campus. StandWithUs is starting the password-protected site this week at www.standwithus.com/divestment. It will provide tools for students looking to counter boycott and divestment campaigns at their schools. Students who fought divestment resolutions in the past academic year at the University of California campuses in Berkeley and San Diego helped develop the site. Similar resolutions were introduced at a number of colleges and universities during the past academic year.

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Some Israelis Hoping for A GOP Win, But Will History Repeat Itself?
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Jewish Daily Forward
by Nathan Guttman - October 27, 2010 - 12:00am

As predictions of a Republican tidal wave in the coming congressional elections became more certain, some Israelis were experiencing goose bumps of anticipation. Many on the right in Israel believe a shift of one or both houses of Congress to a Republican majority could limit the Obama administration’s ability to pressure Jerusalem — even more than it is already limited with the Democrats — in its quest for a peace deal between Israel and the Palestinians.

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Few options left for Palestinians
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Gulf News
by George S. Hishmeh - (Opinion) October 28, 2010 - 12:00am

Over 70 years ago, agitating European Zionist leaders were offered by Britain, who then ruled Palestine, about 20 per cent of the Arab country to establish a state there, a partition they accepted in principle but then demanded more land. This offer was made behind Palestinians backs. Ten years later, the UN approved the partition plan which gave Palestinian Jews 55 per cent of the country, although they hardly owned five per cent of the land, while the Palestinian Arabs would retain 45 per cent. The Palestinians, backed by the Arab states, rejected the plan and resolved to win it back.

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