April 25th

What Israeli hasbara won't hide
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Haaretz
by Doron Rosenblum - (Opinion) April 25, 2012 - 12:00am

When the Israeli universe was still young and full of hope, the cartoonist Dosh drew the iconic figure that reflected the collective self-perception: Srulik, a naive boy in a kova tembel (that sort of blue or khaki sailor cap with the brim turned down, sometimes still sighted on kibbutzim and in kindergartens ) whose intentions are pure and whose hands are clean. Were we called upon to update that icon today, possibly a great many Israelis would still cling to the self-image of an innocent child in a hostile world.

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Gas Deal Dispute Reflects Change in Israel-Egypt Relations
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Los Angeles Times
by Jeffrey Fleishman - April 24, 2012 - 12:00am

CAIRO — The decorum of diplomacy has devolved into embarrassing headlines and testy one-liners in the increasingly strained relations between Egypt and Israel. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said Tuesday that Egypt's Sinai peninsula had become a "kind of Wild West" overrun by militants, terrorists and arms smugglers. Over the weekend, Foreign Minister Avigdor Lieberman had suggested massing more Israeli troops along the border with Egypt.

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Is it late to save East Jerusalem?
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Arab News
by Osama Al-Sharif - (Opinion) April 25, 2012 - 12:00am

In the frustrating pursuit of Palestinian-Israeli peace settlement based on the concept of a two-state solution, one particular issue emerges as the most cumbersome and, in the view of most Israelis, non negotiable. It is the fate of Arab East Jerusalem, occupied along with the rest of the West Bank, Gaza Strip and Golan Heights in the 1967 Arab-Israeli war.

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The second Israeli democracy
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Haaretz
by Avraham Burg - (Opinion) April 25, 2012 - 12:00am

If I were prime minister I would feel very uneasy these days. Something is wrong, I would tell myself on Independence Day, the day of national spiritual stocktaking. Having no other choice, I would close myself off from the world and think. I would conclude that the first State of Israel was fading on my watch.

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Israeli Opposition Chief Fears Binational State
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Associated Press
by Dan Perry - April 24, 2012 - 12:00am

JERUSALEM — Israel's new parliamentary opposition leader said Tuesday that the Jewish state faces the danger of being replaced by a binational Jewish-Arab entity if it fails to separate itself from the Palestinians. Former military chief Shaul Mofaz won leadership of the centrist Kadima Party last month. "The threat of us losing the Jewish majority and Israel becoming a binational state is the biggest threat to Israel, and time is working against us," he told Israel Radio. "The threat of a binational state that we are bequeathing to our children really keeps me awake at night."

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A Second Response to Benny Morris
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Daily Beast
by Daniel Levy - (Opinion) April 24, 2012 - 12:00am

There is a certain redundancy to arguing with Benny Morris. The case he makes is easily debunked but the position he represents on rejectionism needs to be taken seriously, given the role that this narrative plays in perpetuating the conflict and the human misery for Palestinians, and not infrequently for Israelis. This piece will focus on that deeper narrative. But first, a little pushback, as Morris can’t be given a free pass on his deceptions.

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The Crisis of Zionism
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The New York Times
by Paul Krugman - (Blog) April 24, 2012 - 12:00am

Something I’ve been meaning to do — and still don’t have the time to do properly — is say something about Peter Beinart’s brave book The Crisis of Zionism.

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IDF Chief to Haaretz: I do not believe Iran will decide to develop nuclear weapons
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Haaretz
by Amos Harel - April 25, 2012 - 12:00am

"If Iran goes nuclear it will have negative dimensions for the world, for the region, for the freedom of action Iran will permit itself," Chief of Staff Lt. Gen. Benny Gantz told Haaretz in an Independence Day interview.

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Israel Releases Palestinian Protest Leader
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Associated Press
by Amy Teibel - April 25, 2012 - 12:00am

JERUSALEM — Activists say an Israeli military court has ordered the release of a prominent Palestinian protest leader. The European Union and rights group Amnesty International had condemned the detention of Bassem al-Tamimi because he was charged based on evidence obtained through confessions extracted by interrogating children. Activist Jonathan Pollak says Al-Tamimi was freed late Tuesday evening. He had been held since March 2011 on charges of inciting youths to throw rocks at Israeli soldiers and organizing demonstrations against Israeli activities in the West Bank.

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April 24th

Ha'aretz reports that Ismail Haniyeh has been secretly elected by a “significant margin” to head Hamas' Political Bureau in Gaza, while several noted "moderates" were not elected to the committee. Israel recognizes three “unauthorized” settlement outposts in the occupied West Bank. PM Netanyahu is asking Israel Supreme Court to defer eviction orders against more "unauthorized" outposts. Hamas says it will start teaching Hebrew in Gaza high schools next year. Israel has options for dealing with the cut off of natural gas from Egypt. Israel is punishing hunger-striking Palestinian prisoners. UNRWA inaugurates a Dutch-funded housing project for 1,300 Palestinians in Khan Younis in the Gaza Strip. Israel bans a textbook that encourages respect for the rights of Palestinian citizens. Palestinian officials say they will ask the UN Security Council to censure Israel on settlement expansion. Several websites are reportedly being blocked by the PA, many reportedly “loyal to Muhammad Dahlan.” Yasser Abed Rabbo has reportedly been dismissed as the PA media supervisor because he declined to join an official Palestinian delegation to deliver a letter to PM Netanyahu. Israeli officials reportedly describe a 60 Minutes report on the plight of Palestinian Christians as a “strategic terror attack." COMMENTARY: Ami Ayalon, Orni Petruschka and Gilead Sher say Israel should begin to unilaterally establish new de facto borders along the security barrier lines in the occupied West Bank. AP interviews PLO official Qureia, who expresses growing Palestinian doubts about the plausibility of a two-state solution. Ha'aretz says the natural gas dispute with Egyptian should not become a political issue, but Gershon Baskin says it is another sign of Israel's deteriorating relations with all its neighbors. Sefi Rachlevsky says that by attempting to bypass the High Court, the Knesset is, in effect, planning to end Israel's democracy. Zalman Shoval says there are many possible scenarios that could unfold, but a single Israeli-Palestinian state is not one of them. Joseph Dana says it's obvious that Israel is trying to seize all of occupied East Jerusalem permanently. Ben Caspit says FM Lieberman told him he's more "worried about Egypt than Iran." Efraim Inbar says the problem with Kadima leader Mofaz's peace ideas is that neither side would accept them. Hussein Ibish says in a recent interview with The Forward Hamas leader Abu Marzook demonstrated yet again that the group is not capable of leading the Palestinian national movement.

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