NEWS: Israel bombs Gaza, killing one Palestinian militant. Former PM Olmert says he's not interested in rejoining political life. Palestinian officials say they're still deciding what to do about the late Pres. Arafat's body, and Arafat's nephew says he believes he was poisoned with polonium by Israel. Israel deploys its latest rocket interceptor. The US House of Representatives holds a hearing on corruption in the PA. Pres. Abbas will reportedly meet Pres. Morsy next week. Israel protests what it says is UNESCO support for a Hamas-affiliated university implicated in violence. Israel's blockade is taking a toll on mental health in Gaza. New advertisements in New York commuter train stations depict growing Israeli control over Palestinian lands. Palestinian authorities continue their crackdown against journalists. Israel's growing naval profile might antagonize Turkey. The PA says it has received only $466 million out of $1.2 billion pledged by donors. COMMENTARY: Trudy Rubin says Israel should be wary of the recommendations. Jonathan Rosen says there is no chance PM Netanyahu will endorse the recommendations of the Levy Committee. Barak Ravid asks if Olmert is going to return to Israeli politics. Ely Karmon says Al Jazeera's conspiracy theory about polonium poisoning of Arafat seems more aimed at the current PA leadership than Israel. Douglas Bloomfield says Mitt Romney's positions on Israel and the Palestinians seem to be available to the highest bidder. Michael Herzog proposes a transition process for Syria. Sophia Jones says Palestinian women are trying to find new business opportunities. Raphael Magarik contrasts Israel's Levy and Sasson reports.

Palestinians in cash crunch, say donors came through with $466 million of $1.2 billion pledged
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Associated Press
July 11, 2012 - 12:00am

The Palestinian finance minister says his self-rule government is facing its worst financial crisis in years because donor countries have paid only $466 million of $1.2 billion promised this year. The Palestinian Authority, which administers 38 percent of the Israeli-occupied West Bank, depends on foreign funding, in part because of Israeli restrictions and a bloated public payroll.

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Growing Israeli Naval Presence Likely to Upset Turkey Even More
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Milliyet
July 11, 2012 - 12:00am

Israel is preparing to increase its military presence in the eastern Mediterranean to protect its natural gas exploration activities, which have been a source of tension between Israel and Turkey. According to a plan approved by Israeli Defense Minister Ehud Barak and the chief of staff, Gen. Benny Gantz, Israel will buy four new combat vessels for its navy, assign more troops [to the area] and deploy unmanned aerial vehicles for patrols in the region.

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A Tale of Two Reports
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Daily Beast
by Raphael Magarik - (Analysis) July 11, 2012 - 12:00am

I’ll say this for the Levy report: It filled my inbox. After the Israeli blue-ribbon commission, headed by former Israeli Supreme Court Justice Edmund Levy, concluded that “Israelis have the legal right to settle in Judea and Samaria,” the usual suspects leapt into action. J Street wants me to “Urge US Opposition to Israeli Settlement Report,” Americans for Peace Now wonders whether it is “1984” in Israel.

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Palestinian women battle to break into business
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Arab News
by Sophia Jones - (Opinion) July 12, 2012 - 12:00am

However, the deeply traditional, male-dominated society that is prevalent across much of the Arab world, coupled with bureaucratic restraints unique to the Israeli-occupied West Bank, pose particular challenges for women seeking to get ahead. “Many women in the West Bank want to do things, but they can’t. Our culture is generally more of a man’s culture. Women are trying to do things, but in small steps,” said Shyrine Ziadeh, a 24-year-old Birzeit University graduate.

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Palestinian Authority Escalates Crackdown on Journalists
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Al-Monitor
by Lena Odgaard - July 11, 2012 - 12:00am

Earlier this month, Palestinian police beat several journalists as they covered a non-violent protest in Ramallah, according to news reports. This incident is just the latest in a series of cases over the past six months where Palestinian journalists have experienced a significant crackdown on attempts to criticize Mahmoud Abbas’ Palestinian Authority. The judiciary is reinterpreting laws dating back to the 1960s that criminalized defamation of officials as the basis for arrests, intimidation of journalists and blocking web sites.

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How to Advance Transition to a Post-Assad Future
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Washington Institute for Near East Policy
by Michael Herzog - (Opinion) July 10, 2012 - 12:00am

In this paper, the former chief of staff to Israel's minister of defense argues that, in addition to the moral imperative to help the Syrian people, there are also strong strategic reasons for the West and various regional states to be more proactive in bringing about the end of the Assad regime. Speeding up the process of the regime’s collapse would avert the destabilising consequences of a lengthy civil war, as well as dealing a blow to the radical, Iran-led alliance in the region.

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Shrinking Palestinian Land Depicted in N.Y. Ad
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Jewish Telegraphic Agency (JTA)
July 12, 2012 - 12:00am

Anti-Israel billboards showing a series of four maps to bolster claims that Israel has systematically confiscated land from the Palestinians have appeared at some New York train stations. The ads that went on display this week at Metro North train stations in Westchester County show a succession of shrinking Palestinian territories in four maps and contain a headline stating that 4.7 million Palestinians are classified as refugees by the United Nations. The billboards were posted under the auspices of The Committee for Peace in Israel and Palestine

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Israeli blockade takes its toll on mental health in Gaza
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Guardian
by Angela Robson - July 11, 2012 - 12:00am

For as long as Farah can remember, her father has never worked. Nor, in recent years, has she particularly wanted to spend time with him. She and her three younger siblings love Abu Shawareb, insists their mother, Naima, but they have grown wary of him, particularly of his mood swings and violent outbursts. "It was like a part of me had gone for ever," says Shawareb, recalling the day five years ago when he suddenly lost his job. "I kept thinking, how am I going to feed my family? How will we live?"

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Worldview: Israel should be wary of Netanyahu panel's West Bank recommendations
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Inquirer Digital
by Trudy Rubin - (Analysis) July 12, 2012 - 12:00am

This week a committee formed by Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu made recommendations that could have dire consequences for Israel. They could also end the Mideast peace process once and for all. The so-called Levy committee put forth a justification for annexation of most of the West Bank and for permanent Israeli rule over millions of Palestinians who live there. Such a move would force Israel to choose between granting these Palestinians full Israeli citizenship or keeping them disenfranchised and confined to territorial cantons.

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