June 20th

Toddler killed in Gaza explosion
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Ma'an News Agency
June 20, 2012 - 12:00am

A Palestinian toddler was killed Tuesday evening in an explosion south of Gaza City, medics said. Emergency services spokesman Adham Abu Salmiya said in a statement that Hadil al-Haddad, 2, was killed and her brother was injured in the Zaitoun neighborhood of Gaza City. A Hamas medical official told Reuters the cause of the child's death was not clear. Witnesses said she was killed when militants launched a rocket close by.

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Israel kills Gaza militant on 3rd day of fighting
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Reuters
by Dan Williams - June 20, 2012 - 12:00am

Israel killed a Gaza militant on Wednesday as a surge of fighting across the border of the Palestinian enclave entered a third day despite what Egypt said were its efforts to broker a truce. The militant, a Palestinian belonging to one of Gaza's fringe Islamist Salafi networks, died and a comrade was wounded in an air strike on their motorcycle in southern Rafah, near Gaza's frontier with the Egyptian Sinai, medical officials said.

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Israel Weighs Response After Attacks by Hamas
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The New York Times
by Fares Akram, Isabel Kershner - June 19, 2012 - 12:00am

Hamas, the Islamic militant group that governs here, fired barrages of rockets into southern Israel on Tuesday after a break of more than a year during which the group largely adhered to an informal cease-fire. By evening, Israel had issued a stern warning that it was examining all possible responses, signaling the potential for a sharp escalation in the area.

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June 19th

Hamas claims responsibility for rocket fire into Israel
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Jerusalem Post
June 19, 2012 - 12:00am

Hamas on Tuesday took responsibility for at least some of the rocket fire aimed at Israeli civilians Monday night, stating that it was responding to the killing of Palestinians in recent days. The IAF  four Palestinian terrorists in the last 24 hours, at least two of whom were  of the Islamic Jihad terrorist group.

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NEWS: A hunger-striking Palestinian soccer player is released in a deal with Israeli authorities. Hamas welcomes Muslim Brotherhood claims of victory in the Egyptian presidential election. Two Palestinians are killed in a refugee camp in Lebanon. The death toll on Israel's Egypt and Gaza borders rises to seven. PM Netanyahu condemns an attack by extremist settlers on a mosque near Ramallah. Israelis and Palestinians cooperate in stopping the spread of deadly bacteria. Israel says Hamas, in a rare move, is firing rockets into southern Israel, and reports say Hamas is taking “credit” for the attacks. No Palestinian citizens of Israel will be in that country's upcoming Olympic delegation. Former Palestinian prisoners describe life after being released. Palestinians are seeking full representation at the Rio+20 sustainable development summit. COMMENTARY: Shaul Arieli says unilateral Israeli moves may not advance the peace process. Carlo Strenger says messianism is endangering Israel. Yaakov Katz says Israel can't deal with it security concerns In Sinai and elsewhere, and it needs Egyptian cooperation. Nachman Shai asks if it's really a good idea for Israel to surround itself with barriers. Gerson Baskin says national unity talks between Fatah and Hamas have broken down completely. The National says the MRSA bacteria scare in Gaza is one more affliction the people there don't need. Aaron David Miller looks at what he identifies as five myths about the US-Israel relationship. Yael Gvirtz says Israeli society needs to count the costs of the settlement project. Lara Friedman says Israeli unilateralism won't work.

The Siren Call of Israeli Unilateralism
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Daily Beast
by Lara Friedman - (Opinion) June 18, 2012 - 12:00am

With Israeli-Palestinian efforts at an impasse and immediate-term hopes for progress toward any agreement fading, the appeal of new ideas is understandable. This is no doubt why discussion of Israeli unilateral options—generally in terms of unilateral “withdrawals” from the West Bank—is in the air.

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The Real Cost of Israel's Settlers
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Yedioth Ahronoth
by Yael Gvirtz - (Opinion) June 13, 2012 - 12:00am

The only difference between the hate crime perpetrated at Neve Shalom ("Oasis of Peace," a cooperative village jointly established by Jewish and Arab citizens of Israel as a model of coexistence) and others is that the target this time around was an Israeli village.

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Five Myths About the US-Israeli Relationship
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Al-Monitor
by Aaron David Miller - (Opinion) June 18, 2012 - 12:00am

Urban legends, fantasies, misconceptions abound in life. But nowhere do they seem to be more pronounced and durable than in the discussion of America's relationship with the State of Israel. Some are simply a result of fuzzy thinking; others flow from the willful propaganda efforts of both the pro and anti-Israeli advocates and the battles they wage for the hearts and minds of the committed and the not-so-committed.

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Palestinians seek full representation at Rio+20
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Economic Times
June 19, 2012 - 12:00am

Palestinians are pushing for full representation as a state at the UN Rio+20 summit on sustainable development, but the issue will have to be decided by world leaders, according to officials. "We expect full-status participation because we already have it in UNESCO and we have ties with Brazil (the host country which recognizes the Palestinian state) and with more than 130 countries," Palestinian ambassador Ibrahim Alzeben told AFP.

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MRSA scare in Gaza
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The National
(Editorial) June 19, 2012 - 12:00am

MRSA is an all-too-real monster. A bacterium that can resist most antibiotics, methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus can be fatal. It spreads easily and quickly, and is particularly dangerous to patients in hospitals and nursing homes, where it is increasingly found. And now a strain of this microbe has been found in Gaza City, Haaretz reports. The danger of this fast-moving, hard-to-treat and potentially deadly germ must now be added to the list of tribulations afflicting people in Gaza, one of the most densely populated areas on Earth.

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