June 7th

Palestinian court hands late leader Arafat's fugitive moneyman 15 years for corruption ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Associated Press June 7, 2012 - 12:00am A Palestinian anti-corruption court has sentenced the shadowy moneyman of the late Palestinian leader Yasser Arafat to 15 years in prison. Mohammed Rashid, whose whereabouts are unknown, was convicted of siphoning off millions of dollars in public funds. He was also fined $15 million and his properties were ordered confiscated. He was sentenced Thursday in absentia in a court in the West Bank city of Ramallah. » Read more

Settlement harvests in need of a new label ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The National by Hugh Naylor - June 7, 2012 - 12:00am Supporters of economic boycotts against Israel scored victories last month when South Africa and Denmark said they would ban the use of a "Made in Israel" label on products from Jewish settlements. Pro-Palestinian groups hailed the moves as a potential watershed in efforts to persuade the international community to penalise Tel Aviv for its settlements in the West Bank and east Jerusalem, territories occupied by Israel. » Read more

Palestinian Banks Reach 'The Red Line' ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Calcalist by Danny Rubenstein - June 5, 2012 - 12:00am The Palestine Monetary Authority Governor, Dr Jihad Al Wazir, warns against escalation of the financial crisis plaguing the Palestinian Authority. In an interview with the Israeli daily business newspaper Calcalist, Al Wazir says that the regional and global situation portends further deterioration. He cautions that "the financial crisis the Palestinian government is experiencing may worsen even further if Arab States fail to transfer the promised [aid] funds. » Read more

Jerusalem: Haredim attack elderly Arab ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Ynetnews by Gili Elkabetz - June 7, 2012 - 12:00am A number of ultra-Orthodox attacked an elederly Arab and an Arab family following a violent demonstration in Jerusalem against the desecration of the Sabbath, Ynet reported. An eyewitness said the attack, which took place Saturday evening near the ultra-Orthodox neighborhood of Mea Shearim, was "shocking." » Read more

Israel releases Palestinian prisoner Thaer Halahleh ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Los Angeles Times by Maher Abukhater - June 6, 2012 - 12:00am Israel has released a Palestinian prisoner who had been on a long hunger strike amid growing international criticism of its administrative detention policy. Thaer Halahleh, 33, started a hunger strike in February to protest consecutive terms of administrative detention during which he was held without being charged or going on trial. » Read more

Doctor: Al-Sarsak at immediate risk of death ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Ma'an News Agency June 7, 2012 - 12:00am After 80 days on hunger strike, Mahmoud al-Sarsak is at immediate risk of death and must be hospitalized immediately, an independent doctor said Wednesday. Until Wednesday, Israel's prison service had refused to allow independent doctors to visit al-Sarsak, who is being held at Ramle prison clinic. Physicians for Human Rights - Israel were able to send a doctor to visit al-Sarsak on Wednesday after petitioning an Israeli court for access. » Read more

U.S. denies comments attributed to Obama against Abbas: Erekat ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Xinhua June 7, 2012 - 12:00am The United States on Wednesday denied statements attributed to President Barack Obama against Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas, a senior Palestinian official said. "The White House has officially presented clarifications to the Palestinian leadership on Obama's statements related to Abbas commitment to the Middle East peace process," said chief Palestinian negotiator Saeb Erekat. Earlier reports had said that Obama made statements that Abbas does not have good intentions to achieve peace with Israel and he is not committed to the peace process. » Read more

Fatah, Hamas agree on unity government lineup ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Xinhua June 7, 2012 - 12:00am Palestinian rival factions Fatah and Hamas agreed here on the ministerial lineup of the national consensus government, official news agency MENA reported on Wednesday. The talks between Fatah and Hamas was held in the headquarters of Egypt's general intelligence. Fatah central committee member Azzam Al-Ahmad, who was leading the Fatah delegation, expressed his satisfaction with the results of the meeting, noting that "all matters are going smoothly in line with what was previously agreed upon." » Read more

US denounces Israeli PM plans for new settler homes ATFP World Press Roundup Article from NOW Lebanon June 7, 2012 - 12:00am The United States Wednesday denounced Israeli plans to expand a West Bank settlement by 300 homes, saying it posed a hurdle toward kickstarting moribund peace talks with the Palestinians. "We're very clear that continued Israeli settlement activity in the West Bank undermines peace efforts and contradicts Israeli commitments and obligations," said a State Department spokesperson, Mark Toner. "You know, our position on settlements remains unchanged. We do not accept the legitimacy of continued Israeli settlement activity." » Read more

Israel plans to legalize 13 contentious West Bank outposts ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Haaretz by Jonathan Lis - June 7, 2012 - 12:00am The government has announced that it plans to legalize 13 of the 18 settlement outposts against which petitions to the High Court of Justice have been filed. Because the 13 outposts are not built on privately-owned Palestinian land, the legalization process could presumably make the petitions against them moot. The remaining five outposts cannot be legalized, because they are located on privately-owned Palestinian land, and so are slated for evacuation. » Read more