With friends like these, who needs enemies? ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Arab News by Uri Avnery - (Opinion) December 18, 2011 - 1:00am My God, what a bizarre lot these Republican aspirants for the US presidency are! What a sorry bunch of ignoramuses and downright crazies. Or, at best, what a bunch of cheats and cynics! (With the possible exception of the good doctor Ron Paul). » Read more

Gingrich's words show his ignorance ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Gulf News by Adel Safty - (Opinion) December 19, 2011 - 1:00am When the Republican presidential hopeful and former US House Speaker Newt Gingrich recently affirmed that the Palestinian people were an invention, he had one thing in mind: scoring cheap points against his rivals. The truth of the matter did not interest him; nor did he show any regard for the impact of such a fantastic proclamation on the suspended peace process, or indeed on his own country’s longstanding policy on the conflict. » Read more

The man Israel didn't release from prison: Marwan Barghouti ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Christian Science Monitor by Rebecca Collard - December 18, 2011 - 1:00am There were rumors and Palestinians hopes that the Gilad Shalit prisoner swap this fall would result in the release of Marwan Barghouti, the man who many see as a possible successor to Palestinian leader Mahmoud Abbas. Related stories Under the Shalit deal, more than 1,000 Palestinians were to be released over several months in exchange for the Israeli soldier kidnapped by Hamas in 2006. But as Israel announced the names of the remaining 550 prisoners to be released today, Mr. Barghouti was not among them. » Read more

Coy euphemisms, tragic implications ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Jerusalem Post by Jeff Barak - (Opinion) December 19, 2011 - 1:00am Even I thought Hillary Clinton was overstepping the mark earlier this month when the US secretary of state said the treatment of women in Israel was reminiscent of the situation in Iran. That was until my health fund, Kupat Holim Meuhedet, sent a booklet round to my house. » Read more

Only words ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Jerusalem Post by Susan Hattis Rolef - (Opinion) December 18, 2011 - 1:00am Last Wednesday, as part of my Knesset in the Democratic Regime of Israel course, I told my students about some of the ceremonial aspects of the Knesset’s work, placing an emphasis on a section from the Declaration of Independence that is read alout at the ceremonial Knesset session when a new government is sworn in. » Read more

Israel plans for more than 1,000 new housing units on disputed land ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Los Angeles Times by Edmund Sanders - December 18, 2011 - 1:00am Israel's Housing Ministry announced Sunday that it would construct more than 1,000 housing units in the West Bank and Jerusalem area on land it seized during the 1967 Mideast war. The expansion includes 500 units in Har Homa, 348 in Beitar Ilit and 180 in Givat Zeev. “Some countries around the world may not be happy about this but they shouldn’t be surprised,” Housing Minister Ariel Atia told the Israeli news site Ynet. He said the move would lower home prices and increase supply, assisting young Israeli couples looking for affordable housing. » Read more

Israel can be Jewish without being racist ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Haaretz by Akiva Eldar - (Opinion) December 19, 2011 - 1:00am What's easier for a secular person to hate than an ultra-Orthodox Jew who sets fire to an Israeli flag on the holiday of Lag Ba'omer? The answer is a religious West Bank Jewish settler who torches a mosque on any old day. The shared revulsion of those thugs who have acquired the nickname "hilltop youth" and whose hate crimes have euphemistically come to be called "price tag" attacks assuages the consciences of those who consider themselves secular liberals. » Read more

Why we're celebrating hope this Christmas ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Ma'an News Agency by Victor Batarseh - (Opinion) December 18, 2011 - 1:00am It all started in Bethlehem. From here, the Christmas message was revealed to mankind; a message of joy, love and peace. And here we are today, after more than 2,000 years, reviving this eternal remembrance in faith and love, happily cheering and singing songs of joy and triumph. "Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace, good will toward men." This verse spreads joy in our hearts and proves for us that nothing is impossible for God, not even realizing peace. » Read more

Israel Frees Palestinians in 2nd Stage of Exchange ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The New York Times by Ethan Bronner - December 18, 2011 - 1:00am Israel released about 550 Palestinian prisoners on Sunday night in the second half of a swap that freed one of its soldiers, Gilad Shalit, who had been held by Hamas in Gaza for more than five years. The prisoners left Ofer Prison in Israel by bus shortly after 10 p.m., with a dozen buses going to the West Bank and one to Gaza. Some prisoners were also going to East Jerusalem and Jordan. » Read more

What ‘pro-Israel’ should mean ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Washington Post by Jeremy Benami - (Opinion) December 16, 2011 - 1:00am Jeremy Ben-Ami is president of J Street, a Washington-based nonprofit that advocates a diplomatic resolution to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, and the author of “A New Voice for Israel.” Advocates of strong U.S.-Israel relations have aimed for decades to keep Israel from being a divisive issue in American politics. Yet Israel is one of very few foreign policy issues already rating attention in the 2012 presidential election. » Read more