February 23rd

Ayalon: Diplomats will tour Hebron ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Ynetnews by Roni Sofer - February 23, 2011 - 1:00am Deputy Foreign Minister Danny Ayalon announced Wednesday that all new Israeli ambassadors and Foreign Ministry cadets will be forced to visit "Jewish heritage sites" in the West Bank, including the Cave of Patriarchs. Ayalon's message came just a few days after Education Minister Gideon Sa'ar announced a new plan for school trips to Hebron, also including a visit to the sacred Jewish site. » Read more

Palestinian FM: Statehood by September ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Ynetnews by Felice Friedson - (Interview) February 23, 2011 - 1:00am In an interview conducted on eve of UN Security Council vote on a resolution condemning settlement construction, Dr. Riyad Al-Malki, the foreign minister of the Palestinian Authority, spoke to The Media Line about Iranian backing for Hamas, Palestinian statehood on-track for a September declaration and growing international support. The Media Line: Yasser Abed-Rabo said to me the other day that Mahmoud Abbas will not run for president. So, who will? » Read more

Obama expected to appoint Dan Shapiro Ambassador to Israel ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Haaretz by Barak Ravid - February 22, 2011 - 1:00am U.S. President Barack Obama intends to appoint his adviser Dan Shapiro to the position of U.S. Ambassador to Israel, according to the website Politico. Shapiro, considered to be the White House point person for Israel, has served as the main go-between for the U.S. government and Prime Minister Netanyahu. A White House source told Haaretz on Monday, "I cannot confirm the report, but neither can I disclaim it." » Read more

Netanyahu's new best friend and his greatest enemy ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Haaretz by Aluf Benn - (Editorial) February 23, 2011 - 1:00am When I was in the army I learned that assignment interviews with the commanders end in one of two ways. When you bend the system, they send you off with your assignment order with neither a blessing nor a hug; they just want you gone. When the system screws you the interview summary always concludes with the words, “I wished the soldier success on his chosen path.” » Read more

Sheikh Raed Salah arrested for arson ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Ynetnews by Yair Altman - February 22, 2011 - 1:00am Head of the Islamic Movement's northern branch, Sheikh Raed Salah, is in hot water once again: Salah was arrested on Tuesday for allegedly damaging and setting fire to a Eucalyptus forest in Southern Israel two weeks ago. Jerusalem police, which arrested Salah on Highway 1, suspec he took part in the arson in protest of the Jewish National Fund project's taking place in the area. Salah was released from the Ayalon Prison in Ramla last December after spending five months behind bars for attacking a policeman. » Read more

Gazans hope new Egypt regime will end blockade ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Associated Press by Ibrahim Barzak - February 22, 2011 - 1:00am A rare euphoric mood is sweeping through the Gaza Strip, where people are hoping the downfall of Hosni Mubarak will give the coastal territory a chance to get out from under an Israeli-Egyptian blockade that has stifled the economy. Throughout the Middle East, the Egyptian president's ouster Feb. 11 has been greeted as a sign of hope — mostly by pro-democracy activists trying to topple their authoritarian rulers. But in Gaza it's seen as a chance to ease the widespread unemployment and international isolation residents believe is caused by the blockade that began in 2007. » Read more

On My Mind: Population swap conundrum ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Jerusalem Post by Kenneth Bandler - (Opinion) February 22, 2011 - 1:00am Umm el-Fahm was not originally part of Israel. Jordan consented to include the strategically located community – then a town of 4,500 – on the Israeli side of the 1949 armistice line established after theWar of Independence. But some Israeli Jews want to reverse that decision of 62 years ago. Reducing the number Arab citizens, now 20 percent of the population, they believe, would benefit the country’s future. Umm el-Fahm, its largest Arab city, with a population of 43,000, is therefore a target. » Read more

Palestinian house inside cage in Jewish settlement ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Associated Press by Ben Hubbard - February 23, 2011 - 1:00am The al-Ghirayib family lives in one of the stranger manifestations of Israel's 43-year occupation of the West Bank: a Palestinian house inside a metal cage inside an Israeli settlement. The family's 10 members, four of them children, can only reach the house via a 40-yard (meter) passageway connecting them to the Arab village of Beit Ijza farther down a hill. The passageway passes over a road used by Israeli army jeeps and is lined on both sides with a 24-foot-high (8-meter) heavy-duty metal fence. » Read more

PLO official says two-state solution still possible for Israel, Palestine ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Charleston Gazette by Kathryn Gregory - February 22, 2011 - 1:00am A two-state solution between Israelis and Palestinians is still possible, but the longer it takes the governing bodies to come to an agreement, the less the solution will satisfy everyone involved, a Palestinian leader told a Charleston audience Tuesday. "Everyday that goes by without an agreement, we get further away from peace," said Ambassador Maen Rashid Areikat, chief Palestinian Liberation Organization representative to the United States. "[Chances for peace] will be better today than two years down the road." » Read more

Analysis: PA is using US veto to bolster its image ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Jerusalem Post by Khaled Abu Toameh - (Analysis) February 22, 2011 - 1:00am In an attempt to bolster its credibility among Palestinians, the Palestinian Authority has decided to take advantage of last Friday’s US veto of a UN Security Council resolution that would have condemned construction in the settlements, and depict President Mahmoud Abbas as a powerful leader who dared to say no to the US president. Since Friday, Palestinian officials in Ramallah have been briefing reporters about the details of a 50-minute phone conversation between Abbas and US President Barack Obama. » Read more