Should the Palestinians Recognize Israel as a Jewish State?
In Print by Hussein Ibish - Foreign Policy (Opinion) - May 25, 2011 - 12:00am

Most observers expected Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to target his harshest criticisms of the Palestinians during his U.S. trip on the Hamas-Fatah agreement. Surprisingly, his most important talking point turned out to be his demand for Palestinian recognition of Israel as a "Jewish state." To be sure, Netanyahu took every opportunity to denounce the Palestinian unity deal, compare Hamas to al Qaeda, and point out that some of its leaders had praised Osama bin Laden.

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Netanyahu: Next year in a more built up Jerusalem
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Associated Press
June 1, 2011 - 12:00am

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu reiterated his uncompromising stance on a united Jerusalem Tuesday night, saying he plans to authorize more building in the capital, in a speech at Mercaz Harav Yeshiva in Jerusalem. The prime minister spoke on the eve of Jerusalem Day that commemorates Israel's liberation of east Jerusalem in the 1967 Six Day War. Mercaz Harav, an orthodox Yeshiva located in the Kiryat Moshe neighborhood of Jerusalem was the site of a terror attack in 2008 in which a Palestinian gunman killed eight students.

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Tensions emerge as the Gaza-Egypt border is opened. PM Fayyad says donor aid has not been delivered, and that the PA is running at a $1 billion deficit. An Israeli human rights group says Palestinians face violence from occupation forces in East Jerusalem. Hamas opens a memorial to flotilla activists, and prevents a youth conference in Gaza. Carlo Strenger says Israelis rely on myths. PM Netanyahu says Israel will expand its hold on Jerusalem. Palestinians are subjected to stone-throwing in East Jerusalem. Kenneth Bandler says Palestinians raising refugee rights "takes some gall." Avi Perry says Netanyahu was right to rebuff Obama. Nahum Barnea warns Netanyahu against arrogance. Jill Jacobs says Jews must recognize discrimination against Palestinians in Jerusalem. Bilal Hassen says Arabs and Israelis are approaching a new state of war. Christopher Hill says the peace process must be revived.

Policemen stoned in east Jerusalem
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Ynetnews
by Yair Altman - May 31, 2011 - 12:00am

Five police officers and a civilian sustained mild injuries Tuesday, after protesters rioted in the east Jerusalem neighborhood of A-Tur and stoned them. Molotov cocktails were also hurled at the officers, who responded by using crowd-control measures. Five rioters were arrested. The officers and civilian were taken to a Jerusalem hospital for treatment. Earlier Tuesday, the Association for Civil Rights in Israel published a report that noted an increase in Arab-security forces skirmishes in east Jerusalem over the past 18 months.

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Making the refugees priority No. 1
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Jerusalem Post
by Kenneth Bandler - (Opinion) May 31, 2011 - 12:00am

Abbas has perfected the art of complaining, yet has not presented a vision for solving the refugee dilemma, one that would address legitimate Palestinian needs and Israeli concerns. Two days before President Barack Obama delivered his Middle East policy address, Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas revealed on The New York Times op-ed page that his core issue was not Israeli settlements. No, most vital for the Palestinian leader is fulfilling what he asserts is a Palestinian right to return to the homes and lands vacated during the first Arab-Israeli war.

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Was Netanyahu right to rebuff Obama?
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Jerusalem Post
by Avi Perry - (Opinion) June 1, 2011 - 12:00am

The humiliation of 1948 and the call to redeem lost honor is more exigent for the Palestinians than the call for a peace offensive. In this context, the PM had no choice but to dispel illusions in his speech to Congress. In his latest speech to the American Congress, Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu claimed that the conflict between Israel and the Palestinians has never been about the establishment of a Palestinian state. It has always been about the existence of the Jewish state.

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On victory and arrogance
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Ynetnews
by Nahum Barnea - (Opinion) May 30, 2011 - 12:00am

The Congress press gallery is situated above the podium. One cannot see the speaker’s face, only his or her head. Yet the faces of the listeners, that is, members of Congress, can certainly be seen. Their enthusiasm over Netanyahu’s speech was genuine and sweeping.

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Op-Ed: We must talk about the two Jerusalems
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Jewish Telegraphic Agency (JTA)
by Jill Jacobs - (Opinion) May 31, 2011 - 12:00am

NEW YORK (JTA) -- After my first visit to Israel, at age 6, I proudly toted my photo album to Hebrew school for show-and-tell. As the class crowded around a picture of the Kotel, my teacher marveled, “Look how blue the sky is!” I squinted at the picture: The sky didn’t look any bluer than the sky in Framingham, Mass., where I grew up. But I believed her. Of course, the Jerusalem sky would be bluer than anywhere else in the world.

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The Israeli right's refusal to accept other versions of Zionism
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Haaretz
by Carlo Strenger - (Opinion) May 31, 2011 - 12:00am

There is an old saying that when an orator hits a weak point, he generally tries to shout. Noise is always an attempt to cover up the weakness of one's position. Israel’s right-wing has lately been stepping up its attempts to cover up the fact that it has no vision for Israel's future - that all it has in store for its citizens is further isolation and misery.

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A Proclaimed State of War
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Asharq Alawsat
by Bilal Hassen - (Opinion) June 1, 2011 - 12:00am

If the popular marches towards the Palestinian border have brought the struggle against Israel to a new historical starting point, then Obama and Netanyahu's speeches in Washington, as well as before the American-Zionist AIPAC organization, have brought the entire region into an atmosphere of war.

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