April 4th

Just like Iran, Israel has a supreme leader: Netanyahu
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Haaretz
by Zvi Barel - (Opinion) April 4, 2012 - 12:00am

The horizon has a familiar optical quality. The closer you think you're getting, the more it recedes. To avoid disappointments, the best thing is to stay where you are so that the horizon always seems at arm's length, or at least not further away. For decades now, the term "political horizon" has been an inseparable part of the Palestinian dictionary. Without a political horizon, they will start an intifada, without a political and economic horizon, they will remain our enemies.

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Giving up Jerusalem would mean end of Zionism
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Haaretz
by Ronen Shoval - (Opinion) April 4, 2012 - 12:00am

Former prime minister Ehud Olmert said a few days ago: "It breaks my heart to initiate relinquishing sovereignty over the Temple Mount but there is no other choice." However, conceding the Temple Mount means opting for a one-way road that leads straight to the annihilation of Zionism. And the heart that will be broken will not be that of Olmert but rather that of the Jewish people. There is only one meaning to giving up the Temple Mount: the end of the State of Israel.

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Israelis Divided Over Changing Anthem
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Jewish Daily Forward
by Nathan Jeffay - (Opinion) April 3, 2012 - 12:00am

TEL AVIV — When an Arab Supreme Court justice stood silent instead of singing the national anthem at a public ceremony in late February, it sparked a furor on Israel’s nationalist right. Some lawmakers said that the judge, Salim Joubran, should be dismissed, and Yisrael Beiteinu’s David Rotem went so far as to claim that he “spat in the face of the State of Israel.”

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The infernal U.S.-Iran-Israel triangle
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Daily Star
by Rami Khouri - (Opinion) April 4, 2012 - 12:00am

Why does most of the world continue to lose respect for the United States and its conduct of foreign policy? Two developments in the past week shed some light on this, and – not surprisingly – they both relate to Washington’s relations with Iran and Israel, an arena in which American rationality, fairness, consistency and integrity go out the window, and hysteria takes over the controls.

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Crisis in Zion Square: Can Peter Beinart Shake Up American Zionism?
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Atlantic
by Daniel Levy - (Opinion) April 3, 2012 - 12:00am

Israel, settlements, and boycotts, have been attracting something of a wave of attention recently. A small co-op in Brooklyn's Park Slope has voted against implementing a ban on stocking any Israeli products. The ban would have had miniscule economic significance, but it hit the national mainstream press nonetheless. Meanwhile, Peter Beinart called for a boycott on any good produced in Israeli settlements, to be matched by re-investing in "Israel proper." His column stirred up an even more intense debate, some of it quite vitriolic.

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Netanyahu Wants Deal to Prevent ‘Binational State’
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Associated Press
by Dan Perry - April 3, 2012 - 12:00am

JERUSALEM (AP) — Israel's prime minister said Tuesday that he still hopes to reach a peace deal with the Palestinians, because the alternative would be absorbing them into Israel and destroying the Jewish character of the state. "I want to solve the conflict with the Palestinians because I don't want a binational state," Netanyahu told a rare news conference. "For as long as it depends on me, we will ensure the Jewish and democratic character of Israel."

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April 3rd

Safer Side by Side: Why Israel Needs Palestine
In Print by Hussein Ibish - The Daily Beast (Opinion) - April 2, 2012 - 12:00am

Benny Begin, a member of Prime Minister Netanuyahu's inner cabinet, recently dismissed the idea of the creation of a viable Palestinian state, claiming it would be an unbearable security threat to Israel. He added that Netanuyahu's 2009 Bar-Ilan speech, which seemingly endorsed the two-state goal, was aimed exclusively at foreign audiences but that Palestinian statehood "was not brought up for discussion in the government, nor will it be discussed." "This is not the government's position," he stated bluntly. All the evidence suggests he's correct.

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NEWS: Palestinian and Israeli officials have met secretly to explore the possibility of more talks. Pres. Abbas says he may file a complaint against Israeli policies, especially on settlements, with international agencies. PM Netanyahu delays the eviction of settlers from a house they seized in occupied Hebron. Occupation authorities are reportedly planning yet another settlement in occupied East Jerusalem. Hamas complains that the PA detained 79 of its members in March. Three Palestinian children are killed in a fire started by a candle, and Hamas says Israel is to blame because of the fuel crisis. A Palestinian family loses a court battle over ownership of a historic home in occupied East Jerusalem that was declared "absentee property." The International Red Cross is delivering fuel supplies to Gaza hospitals. An Israeli "reality TV" show is the scene of a controversy about the occupation. Israel's military predicts it would suffer less than 300 casualties in a conflict with Iran. Poems by Mahmoud Darwish will be taught in Arab schools in Israel. COMMENTARY: Alana Newhouse reviews Peter Beinart's new book on Zionism. Moshe Arens says the victory of Shaul Mofaz as new Kadima leader means the era of land-for-peace is dead. Yitzhak Laor says Israel is addicted to settlement activity at its own peril. The Jerusalem Post says Palestinians are being hypocritical on press freedoms. Alick Isaacs says religious communities are crucial for peace. The National says hunger-striking prisoners are winning moral victories against Israel. Bernard Avishai recalls the hostile reaction to his 1985 book, "The Tragedy of Zionism." Aviad Kleinberg says it's surprising that FM Lieberman is so clearly against any attack on Iran. Hussein Ibish says Israeli security can only be ensured through the establishment of a Palestinian state.

Safer Side by Side: Why Israel Needs Palestine
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Daily Beast
by Hussein Ibish - (Opinion) April 2, 2012 - 12:00am

Benny Begin, a member of Prime Minister Netanuyahu's inner cabinet, recently dismissed the idea of the creation of a viable Palestinian state, claiming it would be an unbearable security threat to Israel. He added that Netanuyahu's 2009 Bar-Ilan speech, which seemingly endorsed the two-state goal, was aimed exclusively at foreign audiences but that Palestinian statehood "was not brought up for discussion in the government, nor will it be discussed." "This is not the government's position," he stated bluntly. All the evidence suggests he's correct.

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Israel's Most Unlikely Dove
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Yedioth Ahronoth
by Aviad Kleinberg - (Opinion) March 20, 2012 - 12:00am

"If, God forbid, a war with Iran breaks out, it will be a nightmare. And we will all be in it, including the Persian Gulf countries and Saudi Arabia. No one will remain unscathed. We have to do everything we can to urge the international community to assume responsibility and take action to stop the Iranians … The State of Israel keeps all options open.

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