October 19th

Scholars say Jewish shift to GOP a long way off
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Associated Press
by Rachel Zoll - October 18, 2012 - 12:00am

NEW YORK —Like Chicago Cubs fans in spring, Jewish Republicans start every presidential election season hoping this will be their year: American Jews, who have voted overwhelmingly Democratic for decades, will start a significant shift to the political right. But scholars who study Jewish voting patterns say not this year. Or anytime soon, for that matter. Although recent studies have found potential for some movement toward the GOP, analysts say any revolution in the U.S. Jewish vote is a long way off.

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TV show 'Homeland' irks Lebanese, Israelis
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Associated Press
by Bassem Mroue - October 18, 2012 - 12:00am

BEIRUT —Militants carrying assault weapons clear the area around a street, shouting in Arabic for people to get out of the way. A jeep pulls up: The world's No. 1 jihadi has arrived for a meeting with top Hezbollah commanders. On rooftops, U.S. snipers crouch unseen, the kingpin in their crosshairs at last. The scene, from a recent episode of the hit U.S. Showtime series "Homeland," is supposed to be Beirut. But it is really in Israel, a country similar enough in some areas to stand in for Lebanon, yet a world away in most other respects.

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Morsi’s office confirms warm letter to Peres is authentic
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Times of Israel
October 18, 2012 - 12:00am

A spokesman for Egyptian President Mohammed Morsi confirmed on Thursday that the president had sent a letter to Israeli counterpart Shimon Peres calling him a good friend. The letter, presented to Peres by incoming ambassador Atef Salem on Wednesday, sparked an outcry in Egypt for marking a new level of normalization, with one Muslim Brotherhood official calling it a “fabrication.”

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More than 1,000 women running in Palestinian elections
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from CNN
by Samuel Burke, Claire Calzonetti - October 18, 2012 - 12:00am

This Saturday, Palestinians in the West Bank will hold elections for the first time in six years, voting for municipal leaders. It takes place against a backdrop of a deep sense of frustration with the split between Palestinian factions Hamas and Fatah, the stalled economy, and the stalemate with Israel over final statehood. What's so unusual about this election is the number of women running.  Maysoun Qawasmi is leading the first all-female independent ticket, their slogan: 'by participating, we can'.

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Palestinians, heading to the polls, complain about lack of competition
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Washington Post
by Karin Brulliard, Sufian Taha - October 19, 2012 - 12:00am

HEBRON, West Bank — When local elections open on Saturday, Palestinians across the West Bank will exercise their right to vote for the first time in six years. Here in this city, the poll will carry even more significance: A long 37 years have passed since residents last cast ballots for their municipal council.

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Palestinian local elections kick off in West Bank among concerns
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Xinhua
October 18, 2012 - 12:00am

RAMALLAH, Oct. 18 (Xinhua) -- Palestinian municipal elections started in the West Bank Thursday for the first time since 2005 among concerns of excluding the Gaza Strip and East Jerusalem. The voting on Thursday was allocated for policemen and security staff, and the polling stations will be open for more than 518,000 eligible voters Saturday, Palestinian officials said.

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Israel approves more expansion of settlement near Jerusalem
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Reuters
by Ori Lewis - October 18, 2012 - 12:00am

JERUSALEM, Oct 18 (Reuters) - Israel on Thursday issued a detailed plan for the building of some 800 new homes on annexed land in the West Bank that is certain to attract further international condemnation of its settlement policies. A planning committee issued a call for bids from contractors to start building 797 housing units on the western slopes of the urban settlement of Gilo, an area that Israel seized in the 1967 Middle East war and later declared part of Jerusalem. The annexation has never been recognised internationally.

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October 18th

NEWS: US troops arrive in Israel for a joint defense drill. Palestinians are reportedly urged by Britain to delay renewing their efforts to secure more recognition at the UN. Shas welcomes back a disgraced former official as co-head of the organization. Israeli officials claim missiles from the war in Libya are making their way to Gaza, and add that war will not solve the problems regarding the territory. The State Department says Palestinian students in the occupied West Bank will be able to take SAT exams that were being withheld by Israeli customs. Egypt's new ambassador to Israel takes up residence in that country. Israeli media misinterpret Facebook comments by Pres. Abbas. A street in occupied East Jerusalem will be named after the late Egyptian singer Umm Kulthoum. Hamas leader Mishaal will reportedly finally visit Gaza again. Hamas says it opposes teaching Holocaust studies in UN schools for Palestinians. In Israel, fascination with former Hamas prisoner Shalit continues. Israel's attorney general reiterates his opposition to the Levy Report and recognition of settlement outposts. Palestinians in the occupied West Bank are going ahead with municipal elections despite a Hamas boycott. COMMENTARY: Adam Gonn says most Israeli experts think the center-left can't unseat PM Netanyahu in upcoming elections. Carlo Strenger says he attaches no hopes to the election. Yossi Verter says it offers the last hope for former PM Olmert to successfully return to Israeli politics. Michael Jansen says a Netanyahu victory would be a disaster for peace. Stuart Reigeluth says the EU needs to do much more to promote Israeli-Palestinian peace. Gil Troy says Pres. Obama is neither anti-Israel nor its best friend. Simran Sachdev looks at the all-women's slate running in Hebron in upcoming Palestinian municipal elections. Douglas Bloomfield says Palestinians are aiming for a "victory" at the UN that could prove more costly than beneficial.

A UN victory could be costly for Palestinians
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Jerusalem Post
by Douglas Bloomfield - (Opinion) October 17, 2012 - 12:00am

Can the Palestinians afford the UN recognition they seek? That is the question their leadership must ask itself as it presses for a vote next month on its application to upgrade its status from observer to non-member state. The issue is being couched by Palestinian Authority chairman Mahmoud Abbas in terms of prestige and improved bargaining position for possible peace talks with Israel, but that conflicts with reality. The Palestinians already have diplomatic recognition by some 120 countries and that has put them no closer to statehood.

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Hebron's Independent Women, Part I
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Daily Beast
by Simran Sachdev - (Editorial) October 17, 2012 - 12:00am

This Saturday, the West Bank city of Hebron will hold its first municipal elections in over three and a half decades. While this is critical for Hebron’s people, what makes these elections remarkable is the first all-women list to ever run in Palestinian politics.

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