July 2nd

Deadline extended for Israel settler homes removal ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Reuters by Ori Lewis - July 1, 2012 - 12:00am Israel's Supreme Court on Sunday granted the state a four-month extension to remove five apartment blocks built illegally on Palestinian-owned land in a Jewish settlement on the occupied West Bank. The court had ruled the homes, in the Ulpana neighbourhood of the Beit El settlement, must be torn down by July 1. The 30 families who lived in the buildings moved out last week to nearby temporary accommodation under a deal with the government to go quietly after Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu pledged to construct 851 new settler homes in the West Bank. » Read more

Divest in Israel: Presbyterians should support Palestinian aspirations ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Pittsburgh Post-Gazette by Roger Waters - (Opinion) July 2, 2012 - 12:00am On Wednesday, I will be visiting Pittsburgh to perform my Pink Floyd hit "The Wall" at Consol Energy Center. By coincidence, the General Assembly of the Presbyterian Church (USA) has gathered this week in Pittsburgh. One issue the Presbyterians will be debating is whether to take action in support of Palestinians living under Israeli occupation in the West Bank, under siege in Gaza and as second-class citizens in Israel under the rule of the apartheid government there. » Read more

Hamas suspends Gaza voter registration ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Associated Press by Nidal al-Mughrabi - July 2, 2012 - 12:00am Hamas suspended voter registration in the Gaza Strip on Monday in a setback to Palestinian plans for parliamentary and presidential elections and to forging unity with President Mahmoud Abbas's Fatah movement. Hamas, the Islamist group that seized the enclave from Fatah forces in 2007, cited the continued arrest of its members in the West Bank by security forces of the Palestinian Authority, which is led by Abbas. » Read more

Mideast Peace Will Come From Strong Economic Relationships ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Ma'ariv by Israel Ziv - (Opinion) June 26, 2012 - 12:00am Now that Gaza has been set aflame once again, Israel's southern towns and villages are one more time under fire, the Sinai Peninsula is turning into a replica of Lebanon and the future of Egypt is still unclear — now is the time to consider a totally new approach — an approach that would provide an effective response to the escalating problems plaguing us and possibly even quell the extremist passions that trigger the barrages of Grads launched from Gaza, the burning of Israeli flags at Tahrir Square and [protest] flotillas like the Marmara. » Read more

PA envoy: Holocaust was ‘greatest crime in history' ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Jerusalem Post by Herb Keinon - July 1, 2012 - 12:00am Sitting in this city, where the echoes of the Holocaust are everywhere, Palestinian Authority envoy Salah Abdel Shafi told a group of Israeli journalists last week that in his mind “the Holocaust is the biggest crime in human history.” “This was a human tragedy that hit humanity,” said Abdel Shafi, who has headed the PA mission in Germany for the past two years. » Read more

Palestinians: UN heritage nod is political victory ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Associated Press by Karin Laub - June 29, 2012 - 12:00am The Palestinians on Friday persuaded the U.N. cultural agency to list the Church of the Nativity — the place where Christians believe Jesus was born — as an endangered World Heritage site despite misgivings by churches in charge of the basilica. The Palestinians hailed the nod by UNESCO as a step forward in their quest for global recognition of an independent Palestine in the West Bank, Gaza and east Jerusalem, captured by Israel in 1967. » Read more

Hamas leader gets royal welcome from Jordan's king ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Haaretz by Amos Harel, Avi Issacharoff - (Analysis) July 2, 2012 - 12:00am Last week's visit to Jordan by Hamas politburo chief Khaled Meshal, which was under-reported in the Israeli media, reflects the shifting alliances taking place in the Middle East. Meshal received a royal welcome in the palace in Amman, where he dined with King Abdullah. » Read more

Palestinians: Meeting delayed with Israeli vice PM ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Associated Press by Mohammed Daraghmeh - June 30, 2012 - 12:00am A scheduled high-profile meeting between Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas and Israeli Vice Prime Minister Shaul Mofaz has been postponed indefinitely, a senior Palestinian official said Saturday. The rare high-level talks would have been a step toward resuming formal peace negotiations, although expectations were low that they would produce any breakthrough. » Read more

Sporting chance for Palestinian Olympians ATFP World Press Roundup Article from BBC News by Lana Asfour, Randa Swift - July 1, 2012 - 12:00am After struggling to pursue sport for years because of the impact of the conflict with Israel, Palestinians now have a rare chance to celebrate success. Maher Abu Rmelleh, a judoist, is the first ever Palestinian sportsman to qualify on points to participate in the Olympic Games. » Read more

Former Israeli Prime Minister Shamir dies at 96 ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Associated Press by Ian Deitch - July 1, 2012 - 12:00am Yitzhak Shamir was a fighter for the Jews long before Israel's creation, an underground leader who led militias against the Arabs and British. He made no apologies and no compromises — not as an underground fighter, an intelligence agent who hunted Nazis, and as one of Israel's longest-serving prime ministers who refused to bargain for land. » Read more