April 17th

Palestinians mark prisoners day in Gaza, West Bank
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Ma'an News Agency
April 17, 2012 - 12:00am


JENIN (Ma'an) -- Palestinians in Gaza and the West Bank marked Palestinian Prisoners Day on Tuesday with ceremonies symbolizing long-hoped-for freedom from Israeli jails. In Arraba village, south of Jenin, officials gathered to mark the day ahead of the expected release of local Khader Adnan, whose 66-day hunger strike ended with a deal to free him from administrative detention.


New Hamas politburo 'remains confidential'
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Ma'an News Agency
April 16, 2012 - 12:00am


BETHLEHEM (Ma'an) -- The results of Hamas' internal leadership re-shuffle are still confidential, party officials said Monday. Hamas officials, speaking to Ma'an on condition of anonymity, denied that there had been any clashes over the process which took place in Gaza recently. The Shura Council, a 55-member advisory body, nominates candidates to form the politburo, and those selected must accept their positions or provide acceptable reasons to refuse. Political analyst Mustafa al-Sawwaf told Ma'an current politburo chief Khalid Mashaal was likely to retain his post.


New Hamas politburo 'remains confidential'
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Ma'an News Agency
April 16, 2012 - 12:00am


BETHLEHEM (Ma'an) -- The results of Hamas' internal leadership re-shuffle are still confidential, party officials said Monday. Hamas officials, speaking to Ma'an on condition of anonymity, denied that there had been any clashes over the process which took place in Gaza recently. The Shura Council, a 55-member advisory body, nominates candidates to form the politburo, and those selected must accept their positions or provide acceptable reasons to refuse. Political analyst Mustafa al-Sawwaf told Ma'an current politburo chief Khalid Mashaal was likely to retain his post.


Hundreds of Palestinians declare hunger strike
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Associated Press
by Dalia Nammari - April 16, 2012 - 12:00am


RAMALLAH, West Bank — Hundreds of Palestinian prisoners held by Israel launched a hunger strike on Tuesday, officials said, protesting their conditions and demanding an end to open-ended detentions without trial as the Palestinians marked their annual day of solidarity with the inmates. Some 3,500 prisoners refused meals on "Prisoners' Day," and 1,200 of them said they would continue with an open-ended hunger strike, according to Israeli prison service spokeswoman Sivan Weizman.


Barak says Israel never ruled out attacking Iran
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Associated Press
by Aron Heller - April 17, 2012 - 12:00am


JERUSALEM — Israeli Defense Minister Ehud Barak said Tuesday his country has never promised the United States it would hold off from attacking Iran while nuclear talks were taking place. The comments, in which Barak said that a diplomatic push to reach a compromise with Iran was a waste of "precious time," further exposed a rift between Israel and the U.S. over how to deal with the Islamic Republic and its nuclear program.


Can UN observers end the cycle of violence?
Interview with Hussein Ibish - Al-Jazeera English - April 14, 2012 - 12:00am

As the UN security council debates a resolution to send 30 monitors into Syria to monitor the ceasefire between Syrian government forces and the opposition fighters, the shelling and gunfire continues. On the second day of the UN-backed ceasefire to end the 13-month uprising, protests continued. Both sides are believed to have breached the terms, with several deaths being reported. The violence now makes the UN's next move more important than ever. But as Ahmad Fawzi, Kofi Annan's spokesperson, points out, there is still a long way to go:


April 16th

NEWS: Israel is blocking pro-Palestinian activists from boarding flights bound for Israel. The “flytilla” is gaining attention, but not access to the country. Israel dismisses the protest, pointing to human rights abuses in Syria, Iran and other countries. An Israeli officer is suspended from duty after striking a foreign national in the face with his rifle. Pres. Abbas says Israel is attempting to maintain the status quo, defends security cooperation with Israel, and dismisses the idea of dismantling the PA. IDF chief Gantz says Israel “can handle all its enemies.” US Amb. to Israel Shapiro reiterates his government will veto any further Palestinian UN membership efforts at the Security Council. The PA has moved to ban the sale of Israeli potatoes in areas under its control. A new poll suggests that Jewish Americans, including ardent supporters of Israel, are more suspicious of evangelical Christians than is generally assumed. COMMENTARY: Noah Browning says the Arab uprisings have yet to find a Palestinian equivalent. Akiva Eldar says PM Netanyahu fears successful negotiations on Iran's nuclear program. Yitzhak Laor says Israel must remember that it has committed atrocities like many other countries. Amira Hass says the Israeli military is persistently evicting Palestinians from their homes. Dan Calic says Israel can and should push the issue of Jewish refugees from Arab states to counter the Palestinian refugee issue. Jeff Barak says Israel has mishandled the “flytilla” from a PR perspective. Barry Rubin takes on three common ideas he calls “myths” about Israel. Musa Keilani says Palestinians should focus on institution-building and diplomacy until there is a new Israeli government that is willing to negotiate seriously. The Forward says arrests of journalists by the PA are disturbing intimidations of the press. Jeffrey Goldberg agrees that Hussein Ibish is not a “Zionist,” but someone pragmatically interested in ending conflict.

Hussein Ibish Is Not a Zionist
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Atlantic
by Jeffrey Goldberg - (Opinion) April 13, 2012 - 12:00am


Hussein Ibish, of the American Task Force on Palestine, has written an extremely sensible piece about Middle East pragmatism, in which he takes on advocates of the so-called one-state solution, who argue, among other things, that any Arab who supports a two-state solution is an Uncle Tom, or worse, an actual Zionist:


The Press on Trial
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Jewish Daily Forward
(Editorial) April 16, 2012 - 12:00am


As investigative stories go, it doesn’t read like a blockbuster, hardly in the league of a Watergate scandal or the groundbreaking constitutional challenge ignited by the publication of the Pentagon Papers. The January 30 story appeared in the Jordanian newspaper Al-Ghad, written by Yousef al-Shayeb, and it described the kind of government corruption that, frankly, many have come to expect the world over.


Netanyahu’s offer for peace
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Jordan Times
by Musa Keilani - (Opinion) April 16, 2012 - 12:00am


Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is said to be drafting a letter to Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas, detailing his offer of renewed peace negotiations in response to a Palestinian statement on their stand. Netanyahu’s letter, according to officials quoted in the Israeli news media, will contain nothing new except that it will not include a demand for Palestinian recognition of Israel as a Jewish state. Netanyahu will restate his demand that Israel maintain control over the Jordan Valley and that any future Palestinian state be demilitarised, according to the reports.



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