March 7th

Growing signs of frustration
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Bitterlemons
by Yossi Alpher - (Opinion) March 5, 2012 - 1:00am

In recent weeks and months, we have confronted a growing number of worrisome possible precursors of a new intifada or some similar round of violence on the West Bank and in East Jerusalem. While the previous two intifadas were seemingly triggered by unintended actions or events (a traffic accident in 1987, a Temple Mount visit in 2000), in retrospect it is clear that they erupted due to the accumulation of frustrations on the Palestinian side, at least some of which could have been prevented by Israel.

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Israel’s Best Friend
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The New York Times
by Thomas L. Friedman - (Opinion) March 6, 2012 - 1:00am

The only question I have when it comes to President Obama and Israel is whether he is the most pro-Israel president in history or just one of the most. Why? Because the question of whether Israel has the need and the right to pre-emptively attack Iran as it develops a nuclear potential is one of the most hotly contested issues on the world stage today. It is also an issue fraught with danger for Israel and American Jews, neither of whom want to be accused of dragging America into a war, especially one that could weaken an already frail world economy.

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Volatile, but unpredictable
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Bitterlemons
by Ghassan Khatib - (Opinion) March 5, 2012 - 1:00am

The combination of a complete absence of political prospects for solving the Palestinian-Israeli conflict and ending the Israeli occupation, as well as the growing daily difficulties experienced by Palestinians in the occupied territories, has been encouraging many analysts and politicians to warn of a possible resumption of violence or another intifada of some kind. This reflects a consensus view that the current situation is not sustainable.

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On Iran, patience and power
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Los Angeles Times
(Editorial) March 7, 2012 - 1:00am

It's not clear that Israel is convinced, but President Obama deserves credit for his forceful argument that the Jewish state shouldn't precipitously attack Iran's nuclear program. He has also effectively rebuked American politicians, including his Republican rivals, for "beating the drums of war." At the same time, Obama has committed the United States to a "military effort" to block a nuclear weapon — a newly muscular formulation of his long-standing commitment to take no option off the table.

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Time for uprising number three?
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Bitterlemons
by Saleh Abdel Jawad - (Opinion) March 5, 2012 - 1:00am

The question of whether we are on the verge of another uprising is a difficult one that nobody can really answer--not political analysts, not Israel's security services nor the decision makers of the Palestinian factions Fateh and Hamas that appear to have the button at their fingertips. The query raises more questions than answers, in fact.

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On Iran, Questions of Detection and Response Divide U.S. and Israel
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The New York Times
by David E. Sanger - (Analysis) March 6, 2012 - 1:00am

WASHINGTON — When President Obama and Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu of Israel met in the White House on Monday, the main subject was how to calibrate the resumption of negotiations with Iran while continuing to accelerate sanctions and sabotage against its nuclear program. But they remained divided on two central questions: If Iran decided to race for a nuclear weapon, would the West detect that in time to stop it? And even if it were detected, would an airstrike be the best option?

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March 6th

Obama assures Netanyahu on efforts to stop Iran’s nuclear program
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Washington Post
by Joby Warrick, Scott Wilson - March 5, 2012 - 1:00am

President Obama sought to convince Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Monday that he would not allow Iran to develop a nuclear weapon, but their meeting concluded with U.S. officials unsure whether the president had succeeded in persuading the Israelis to hold off on unilateral military action.

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NEWS: The Sinai gas pipeline is again attacked. PM Netanyahu meets Pres. Obama at the White House, and Israeli officials say they are “disappointed” with the meeting. Palestinians say they are also “disappointed but not surprised” by the tenor of the meetings. PA officials warn new austerity measures may not offset the financial crisis. A Palestinian Constitutional Court postpones a hearing on whether the PA president can also serve as prime minister. Two Palestinian children are killed by abandoned Israeli ordnance in the West Bank. Gazans turn to generators given constant electricity outages. A Hamas leader says the organization would not get dragged into any conflict involving Iran. COMMENTARY: The New York Times says neither Israel nor Iran should doubt Obama's resolve. Bruce Ackerman says there is an important legal case against any attack on Iran. Robert Malley and Aaron David Miller say a unilateral Israeli pullback from parts of the West Bank could be useful. The CSM asks if Israel is formally an "ally" of the United States at all. Merav Michaeli says Palestinian women in Israel face a double-discrimination. Gershon Baskin says something must be done urgently to save the two-state solution. Emad El Din Adeeb says Israel believes another intifada may be imminent, and if it does emerge, it must be peaceful. Linda Heard agrees another intifada may be coming. Musa Keilani says many Israelis think a destabilized, disintegrated Syria is in their interests. Connie Bruck explains how those quoted in an ad by the Emergency Committee for Israel strongly objected to the advertisement.

Arab women in Israel face double discrimination
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Haaretz
by Merav Michaeli - (Opinion) March 6, 2012 - 1:00am

In Israel, 17-year-olds are minors for all intents and purposes - except when it comes to marriage. This is not merely theoretical: Every year more than 4,500 Israelis aged 17 or younger marry. The vast majority - around 4,000 - are female. For this purpose, they are not minors. After all, they can already cook and clean; more important, their wombs and all the organs leading to them are ready. The Knesset plenum is to vote today on a bill to raise the minimum marriage age from 17 to 18; there is still a danger that the ultra-Orthodox parties will scuttle it.

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War talk on Iran forces the issue: Is Israel a formal US ally?
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Christian Science Monitor
(Editorial) March 2, 2012 - 1:00am

According to polls, Americans remain wary of supporting the idea of either Israel or the United States – or both together – attacking Iran’s nuclear facilities. Perhaps one reason for this hesitancy is the fact that Israel, in a historic choice to rely on itself for defense, has never become an official US ally. America has no treaty obligation to come to Israel’s defense as it does with many countries in Europe and Asia. This little-known fact may loom large in a meeting Monday between President Obama and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.

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