December 14th

Amid tensions with allies abroad, Netanyahu shoring up power at home ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Jewish Telegraphic Agency (JTA) by Matthew Wagner - December 13, 2011 - 1:00am JERUSALEM (JTA) -- He may be a lightning rod for criticism abroad, but Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is consolidating power at home. On Dec. 5, Netanyahu announced that elections for leadership of his Likud Party would be held Jan. 31. The decision came as something of a surprise; primaries in Israel were expected to be held closer to the next general elections, which are set for October 2013. » Read more

Erdan, PA agree: Increase water cooperation ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Jerusalem Post by Sharon Udasin - December 14, 2011 - 1:00am While clashing on most issues fundamental to the Israeli-Palestinian water crisis, Environmental Protection Minister Gilad Erdan and Palestinian Water Minister Dr. Shaddad Attili agreed that today’s operations must change and that cooperation between the two entities must grow stronger, at a conference in Ashdod on Tuesday. Since the Oslo Interim Agreement of 1995, the Joint Water Committee has served as the body responsible for allocating water to the Palestinians and managing the treatment of West Bank sewage. » Read more

'Record number of Palestinians being displaced' ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Jerusalem Post by Ben Hartman - December 14, 2011 - 1:00am An all-time high number of Palestinians have been displaced from their homes as a result of house demolitions east of the Green Line, a consortium of left-wing groups said on Tuesday. “Israeli authorities have stepped up unlawful demolitions in the West Bank including east Jerusalem over the past year, displacing a record number of Palestinian families from their homes,” the statement released by over 20 groups, including Amnesty International, Human Rights Watch and Oxfam International said. » Read more

Barak: Israel must treat Jewish extremists like a terror group ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Haaretz by Tomer Zarchin - December 14, 2011 - 1:00am Israel needs to see if the actions of right-wing extremist could be legally defined as terror, Defense Minister Ehud Barak said on Wednesday, as Justice Minister Yaakov Ne'eman weighed emergency measures in the wake of recent price tag attacks and assaults on IDF troops. » Read more

Israel right-wing activists clash with Jerusalem police following price tag attack ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Haaretz by Oz Rosenberg - December 14, 2011 - 1:00am Dozens of right-wing activists clashed with police officers in Jerusalem on Wednesday, amid attempts to arrest suspects linked to recent so-called price tag attacks. The rioters, some of whom reside in the capital's Kiryat Moshe neighborhood after being forced to leave the West Bank settlement of Yitzhar, slashed the tires and smashed the windows of several police cars. Six rioters were arrested and taken under custody. » Read more

Hamas' Gaza anniversary draws tens of thousands ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Associated Press by Ibrahim Barzak - December 14, 2011 - 1:00am GAZA CITY, Gaza Strip — Tens of thousands of Gazans turned out Wednesday for an anniversary rally of the ruling Hamas, a demonstration of strength for the Islamic militant movement ahead of Palestinian general elections tentatively set for the spring. The annual rally has become an increasingly elaborate exercise in stagecraft since Hamas seized control of the Gaza Strip in 2007 following internal fighting with forces loyal to Western-backed Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas. » Read more

Israel razing more Palestinian homes, wells-monitors ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Reuters by Allyn Fisher-Ilan - December 13, 2011 - 1:00am JERUSALEM, Dec 13 (Reuters) - Israel has stepped up its demolitions of Palestinian property in occupied land this year, razing double the number of homes and water wells from 2010, human rights groups said on Tuesday. The statement endorsed by 20 organisations including Amnesty International and Human Rights Watch further said Jewish settler violence against Palestinians had risen in 2011 and that Israel had sped up its expansion of settler enclaves. » Read more

Zahhar: No elections in May ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Ma'an News Agency December 14, 2011 - 1:00am GAZA CITY (Ma'an) -- Senior Hamas leader Mahmoud Zahhar said Tuesday it was unlikely that elections would be held in May as scheduled. In an interview with Egyptian media, Zahhar said a unity government and security committee needed to be formed to ensure a transparent vote, Cairo-based Al-Ahram reported. He questioned on what basis elections could be held as neither of these prerequisites had been met, according to the newspaper report citing the Middle East News Agency. » Read more

Second phase of prisoner swap underway ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Ma'an News Agency December 14, 2011 - 1:00am BETHLEHEM (Ma’an) – The Palestinian Prisoners' Society said Wednesday that the Israeli prison service has notified the detainees who will be released in the second phase of the prisoner swap deal. The society has released a list naming detainees it says will be freed. Israel released 477 prisoners on Oct. 18 and agreed to free an additional 550 detainees within two months in a captive exchange deal with Hamas to secure the release of Israeli soldier Gilad Shalit. » Read more

Israeli leadership outraged at Jewish extremists' raid on army site ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Los Angeles Times by Batsheva Sobelman - December 13, 2011 - 1:00am REPORTING FROM JERUSALEM -- Throwing rocks, burning tires and carrying out other assaults on the Israeli military are not unheard of in the West Bank. But the incident Monday night registered loudly with Israeli authorities: The attackers were Jewish extremists. Dozens of right-wing militants who support the settlement movement infiltrated an army regional division headquarters in the West Bank, set tires on fire, vandalized vehicles and scattered nails on the road. Senior officers also were attacked with rocks. » Read more