Hamas flexes muscle after period of 'calm' ATFP World Press Roundup Article from BBC World News by Jon Donnison - June 21, 2012 - 12:00am In and around Gaza is where it is played out. There are signs that following three days of fighting, the latest escalation in violence is subsiding after Egyptian efforts to mediate a ceasefire. In the long run, apart from for those directly involved, this flare-up will likely barely register on the timeline of this decades-long conflict. But it is a reminder that the conflict has not gone away. As is usually the case, in terms of casualties, it is the Palestinians who have paid a heavier price. Israeli air strikes have killed at least eight people in Gaza. » Read more

Brigades: 2 Hamas militants die inspecting bombed tunnel ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Ma'an News Agency June 22, 2012 - 12:00am Two Hamas militants died Thursday after inhaling gas in a tunnel bombed by Israel two days earlier, the Al-Qassam Brigades said. Thaer al-Bik, 30, and Muhammad al-Khalidi, 26, on Thursday went to inspect a tunnel in northern Gaza that was damaged Tuesday by an Israeli airstrike, the brigades said in a statement. Members al-Bik and al-Khalidi inhaled an unidentified gas in the tunnel and died from suffocation, the group said. » Read more

Veteran Israeli soldiers speak out about service ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Ma'an News Agency June 22, 2012 - 12:00am A group of veteran Israeli soldiers who served in the West Bank and Gaza Strip have spoken out on camera about their experiences in the army. The Israeli organization Breaking the Silence has collected testimonies from 800 veteran Israeli soldiers who served in the West Bank and Gaza. In a new campaign, it has released video testimonies of six former soldiers describing their experiences. » Read more

Ex-U.S. official: American dominance over Mideast peace process is ending ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Haaretz by Allison Kaplan Sommer - (Opinion) June 21, 2012 - 12:00am The era of U.S. dominance over the Middle East peace process is coming to an end, a former top American official said at the fourth Israeli Presidential Conference in Jerusalem on Thursday, adding that what happens in the Middle East won’t influence the upcoming U.S. presidential elections. » Read more

Israeli synagogue vandalized with Arabic graffiti days after West Bank mosque torched ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Associated Press June 22, 2012 - 12:00am Israeli police say they are investigating hate graffiti scrawled in Arabic on a synagogue in northern Israel. Police spokesman Micky Rosenfeld says the phrase “there is no God but Allah” was sprayed on the outside of the synagogue in Moshav Maor. The graffiti was discovered on Friday morning. He says police are searching for suspects. The vandalism comes days after a mosque in the West Bank was torched and vandalized with Hebrew-language graffiti protesting the Israeli government’s upcoming evacuation of a Jewish outpost in the area. » Read more

IDF chief of staff-turned-vice premier: 'We are not bluffing' ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Haaretz by Ari Shavit - (Interview) June 14, 2012 - 12:00am Exactly seven years ago, I interviewed the chief of staff. On the eve of his retirement from the Israel Defense Forces, Moshe “Bogie” Ya’alon spoke with an expressionless face against the Gaza disengagement, against a Palestinian state and against giving terrorism a “tailwind.” He predicted that Hamas would seize control of the Gaza Strip and that rockets would rain down on Israeli cities. » Read more

Foreign powers inciting clashes in Lebanon camps ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Daily Star by Wassim Mroueh - June 22, 2012 - 12:00am Regional powers are exploiting the hardship of Palestinian refugees in the country in order to spark violence in refugee camps and push their agendas in Lebanon, a top Palestinian official said Thursday. “[Some regional powers] exploited the sufferings of the people of Nahr al-Bared and the fact that they are outraged by the unfinished construction of the camp and strict security measures imposed by the Army,” Azzam al-Ahmad told The Daily Star. » Read more

Israel should wait with peace deal until Mideast unrest ends, former envoy says ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Haaretz by Amos Harel - (Opinion) June 22, 2012 - 12:00am For decades Prof. Itamar Rabinovich has studied the Middle East, analyzing Israel's complex status in the region and documenting its attempts to achieve peace with its neighbors. For four years (1993-1996) he himself took an active part in the diplomatic efforts as Israel's ambassador to the United States and head of the Israeli delegation to negotiations with Syria, as Yitzhak Rabin's envoy. (After Rabin's assassination, Rabinovich continued as ambassador under Shimon Peres but not as head of the delegation.) » Read more

Palestinians not to turn their issue into Lebanese dispute ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Xinhua June 22, 2012 - 12:00am Visiting Palestinian Fatah Central Committee member Azzam Ahmad said Thursday that the Palestinians refuse to turn their issue into an internal Lebanese dispute, the National News Agency reported. Ahmad, in charge of the issue of Palestinian refugees in Lebanon, had met with Lebanese Army Commander General Jean Qahaji and House Speaker Nabih Berri since arrival on Thursday. » Read more

Peres: Israel, Palestine must forget bitter past to achieve Mideast peace ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Xinhua June 22, 2012 - 12:00am Israeli President Shimon Peres Thursday urged Israel and its foes to put behind a bitter past and look to the future if they desire to achieve peace. "The past is dead. You can't correct it. Focus on the future. You have to take risks," Peres said during a panel discussion at the fourth Israel Presidential Conference in Jerusalem on Thursday. » Read more