March 18th

Netanyahu slams Palestinian unity efforts
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Ma'an News Agency
March 18, 2011 - 12:00am

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has slammed Palestinian unity efforts, saying national Palestinian reconciliation would be the end of the peace process with Israel. In a CNN interview broadcast Thursday, Netanyahu compared Hamas to Al-Qaeda, and said the Palestinian Authority could not be "for peace with Israel and peace with Hamas that calls for our destruction." In the midst of mass youth protests demanding national unity in the West Bank and Gaza, President Mahmoud Abbas said Wednesday he would accept an invitation from Hamas leaders to go to Gaza and hold talks.

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Gaza: Police Detain Protester and 2 Cameramen
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Associated Press
March 17, 2011 - 12:00am

The Hamas police in Gaza detained a Palestinian protester and two Palestinian cameramen on Thursday while breaking up a rally calling for political reconciliation. About 40 activists had gathered in front of a United Nations school, waving flags and chanting slogans for unity between the rival Hamas and Fatah factions.


March 17th

West Bank settlements are Israel's nuclear meltdown
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Haaretz
by Ari Shavit - (Opinion) March 17, 2011 - 12:00am

On quite a few occasions this week, my mobile phone vibrated with text messages from the settlers' lobby, Yesha. Once it was a quote from Minister Gideon Sa'ar (we must resume construction in Judea and Samaria ). Another time it was a quote from Minister Gilad Erdan (stop holding up the construction tenders in Judea and Samaria ). The third time it was a quote from MK Zeev Elkin (it's time to build cities in Judea and Samaria ). The fourth time it was a quote from MK Yariv Levin (I demand the cabinet and Minister Barak approve construction in Judea and Samaria cities at once! ).

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Palestinian leaders agree to meet in Gaza, and independent figures prepare to receive Pres. Abbas. Egypt resumes natural gas exports to Israel. Daoud Kuttab says the murder of settlers is unacceptable and that it remains to be seen if popular protests for Palestinian unity will have any lasting impact. A Palestinian man is attacked inside a settlement. The Israeli military renews orders to forcibly keep Gazans away from the border. Jordan says settlements threaten peace. Gaza NGOs call on Hamas to investigate attacks on peaceful national unity rallies, in which at least one person was killed. Ari Shavit says settlements are Israel's nuclear meltdown. Some residents of occupied East Jerusalem will no longer pay local taxes. A new initiative seeks to use Israeli flight attendants for public diplomacy. D. Bloomfield says PM Netanyahu is presiding over terrible PR. Larry Derfner says to prevent future atrocities, Palestinians must loose their victim mentality. Settlers vow to never leave the occupied territories. Sec. Clinton says Egypt will maintain its peace treaty with Israel. JJ Goldberg says the murder of the settler family shows the urgency, not the futility, of Israel working with the Palestinians. George Hishmeh says Israel may need a change of leadership.

Rattling the Cage: The Palestinian victim mentality
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Jerusalem Post
by Larry Derfner - (Opinion) March 16, 2011 - 12:00am

The topic of the day-long conference was torture, and Palestinians were describing the horrific methods the Shin Bet (Israel Security Agency) used in prison to get information out of them. Photos and illustrations of these practices were shown on a screen. Human rights activists, Palestinian and Israeli, spoke at length and in detail about the routine use of torture against Palestinian prisoners.

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Washington Watch: Two can play the incitement game
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Jerusalem Post
by D. Bloomfield - (Opinion) March 16, 2011 - 12:00am

You’ve got to hand it to Binyamin Netanyahu, who somehow managed to turn international outrage over the brutal massacre of a young Jewish family as they slept in their beds on Shabbat into widespread criticism of his aggressive settlement policy. The most frequent question I get in speaking to Jewish groups around the country is “why doesn’t Israel get better PR advice.” The answer is simple: The problem isn’t PR, it’s policy and the way it’s announced to the world.

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Demonstrators, Security Forces Face Off in Gaza, Leaving One Dead
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Media Line
by Omar Ghraieb - March 16, 2011 - 12:00am

In a move reminiscent of early days of revolution in Cairo and Tunis, Hamas unleashed its security forces over the last two days to disperse thousands of protesters gathered to urge unity between Hamas and Fatah and ensure they don’t launch new demonstrations. At least one person, Baha Al-Ejleh, was reported beaten to death on Wednesday and another 30 were injured in clashes at Gaza Strip’s Al-Azhar University.

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West bank settlers: 'We're here to stay'
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Guardian
by Harriet Sherwood - (Blog) March 17, 2011 - 12:00am

On a windswept hilltop deep inside the West Bank, Noa Alvily contemplates her family's future with remarkable equanimity, unfazed by political decisions taken less than an hour's drive away in Jerusalem.

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Israeli flight attendants turn diplomats
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Ynetnews
by Ronen Medzini - March 16, 2011 - 12:00am

A new joint initiative between the Foreign Ministry and El Al will place flight attendants at the forefront of Israeli diplomacy. They flight attendants will undertake PR assignments which will, among other places, include university campuses around the world. As part of the project, dozens of attendants will undergo a series of interviews and training program in Public Diplomacy ahead of their participation in the project, which will see them taking advantage of their stay abroad for PR missions.

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Clinton: Egypt will keep the peace with Israel
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Jewish Telegraphic Agency (JTA)
March 16, 2011 - 12:00am

Egypt's foreign policy will change, but it has an interest in sustaining its peace accords with Israel, Hillary Rodham Clinton said. "I think there will be different decisions" on foreign policy, the U.S. secretary of state told NPR on Wednesdaty after she toured Egypt. It was Clinton's first visit there since the revolution that ousted longtime dictator Hosni Mubarak, who had maintained the Camp David accords with Israel.

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