May 16th

A tale of two Zionists: Ze'ev Jabotinsky, David Ben Gurion and the dramatic origins of Israel ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Independent by Donald MacIntyre - (Opinion) May 16, 2012 - 12:00am Two charismatic men born in Eastern Europe meet in 1934, first in a London hotel room and then in a Golders Green flat, to resolve their political differences in the shadow of the rise of Nazism. Within 15 years, one of them, who more than once interrupts the argument by reciting his own Hebrew translation of Edgar Allen Poe's darkly mysterious poem The Raven, will have died in exile. » Read more

J Street's Ben-Ami: 'U.S. Congressmen live in fear of pro-Israeli intimidation' ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Haaretz by Chemi Shalev - (Opinion) May 16, 2012 - 12:00am Many American senators and congressmen “keep quiet” and refrain from criticizing Israeli policies because they “live in fear” and are “intimidated” by pro-Israeli groups such as the Emergency Committee for Israel (ECI), according to J Street founder and President Jeremy Ben-Ami. » Read more

Annexing Israel ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Haaretz by Zvi Barel - (Opinion) May 16, 2012 - 12:00am You could, of course, be horrified at the bill to annex the West Bank settlements to the State of Israel, sponsored by MK Miri Regev (Likud ). But it's not mandatory. You could also welcome the miracle - the finger of God Himself - that caused Justice Minister Yaakov Neeman to come to his senses at the very last moment and oppose it (by abstaining only ), but that too is superfluous. Even the chilling thought of what would have happened had the bill been passed, what kind of world war it would have brought upon Israel, is of no consequence now. » Read more

The Palestinian struggle persists ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Daily Star by Rami Khouri - (Opinion) May 16, 2012 - 12:00am Yesterday marked the 64th anniversary of the Palestinian Nakba of May 1948, when Israel was established and Palestinians experienced the combination of exile and occupation that still defines them today. » Read more

Palestinian hunger strikes: the power of peaceful protest ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Christian Science Monitor by Benedetta Berti - (Opinion) May 15, 2012 - 12:00am It may not have received much international attention, but Palestinian hunger strikes, which ended on May 14, have the potential to shake the status quo of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. That potential lies in the nonviolent nature of the strikes, which were carried out by Palestinians in Israeli detention, backed by grass-roots organizers, and concluded with Israel agreeing to improve prison conditions. » Read more

Prisoners of Process ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Daily Beast by Hanan Ashrawi - (Opinion) May 15, 2012 - 12:00am Two days ago the news of an agreement between Israel and the Palestinian prisoners to end the hunger-strike broke. The prisoners, most of whom have been without food for a month, won the right to have Gazan family visit them in prison (such visits have been denied for the past seven years) and the release of roughly 20 prisoners from solitary confinement into the general prison population (one prisoner has been in solitary confinement for almost a decade). » Read more

Thank you, Russian immigrant to Israel, for Nakba Day ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Haaretz by Bradley Burston - (Opinion) May 15, 2012 - 12:00am It is customary for our people to honor fast days, memorial days and festivals by studying commentaries on their origins, the symbols and rituals of their observance, and the ways in which they connect to our own lives. » Read more

'The Palestinians Can Wait' ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Al-Monitor by Alex Fishman - (Opinion) May 7, 2012 - 12:00am The coordinator of government activities in the Palestinian territories, Brigadier-General Eitan Dangot, has asked that the government approve an additional 5,000 permits for Palestinian laborers to enter Israel. That’s good for everyone. Politically, it’s good for Israel. Economically, it’s good for the Palestinian Authority. From a security perspective, it’s not a problem. » Read more

UCLA’s “one state or two” debate ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Jewish Journal by Jonah Lowenfeld - May 15, 2012 - 12:00am For anyone who missed the debate on May 15 at UCLA between Reza Aslan and Hussein Ibish over whether the Israeli-Palestinian conflict should be resolved by creating a Palestinian state alongside the Jewish one or by creating a single bi-national state, here’s the basic report of what went down. » Read more

Ailing Palestinian Hospital Awaits Cash Infusion ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Media Line by Arieh O'Sullivan - May 16, 2012 - 12:00am Husni Samara is a gynecologist and endoscopic surgeon at Al-Makassed hospital on Jerusalem’s Mount of Olives. Even though he has a family to support and hasn’t been paid in months, he won’t consider lucrative offers from abroad. » Read more