February 21st

To Block Gaza Tunnels, Egypt Lets Sewage Flow ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The New York Times by Fares Akram, David Kirkpatrick - February 20, 2013 - 1:00am The Egyptian military is resorting to a pungent new tactic to shut down the smuggling tunnels connecting Sinai and Gaza: flooding them with sewage. Along with the stink, the approach is raising new questions about relations between Egypt’s new Islamist leaders and their ideological allies in Hamas who control the Gaza Strip. » Read more

Morsi playing Israel’s, US’ game on Gaza ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Jordan Times by Michael Jansen - (Opinion) February 20, 2013 - 1:00am It is becoming increasingly clear that Egypt’s Muslim Brotherhood is colluding with Israel and the US to shut down the smuggling tunnels that link Gaza to Egypt and account for more than 30 per cent of the goods consumed in the besieged and blockaded coastal strip. » Read more

Commitment to a just cause ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Gulf News by Joseph A. Kechichian - (Opinion) February 20, 2013 - 1:00am President Barack Obama will no doubt get a chance to discuss with Israeli Prime Minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, several sensitive issues during his upcoming visit to Israel. Logically, the two men would reconsider the use of fake western passports by Mossad agents — as the most recent revelations involving Ben Zygier, an Australian citizen involved in the Dubai operation that killed the Hamas agent, Mahmoud Al Mabhouh in January 2010, confirmed. » Read more

A case for Mideast peace ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Gulf News by George S. Hishmeh - (Opinion) February 20, 2013 - 1:00am Barack Obama’s upcoming visit to three key states in the Middle East — Israel, Palestine and Jordan — for the first time as president of the US has been described by his Secretary of State, John Kerry, merely as a bid to “listen” to the three leaders. » Read more

Jewish Gays Should Fight Pinkwashing But Not With Censorship ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Jewish Daily Forward by Jay Michaelson - (Opinion) February 21, 2013 - 1:00am Is censoring disagreeable speech ever a good idea? A porn star and an aging Jewish icon seem to think so. Both men, Michael Lucas and Abraham Foxman, have recently opined that speech in favor of “BDS” — boycott, divestment and sanctions against Israel — is hate speech and should be banned from Jewish, LGBT, and academic community institutions. » Read more

Trial Offers Rare Look at Work of Hezbollah in Europe ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The New York Times by Nicholas Kulish - February 20, 2013 - 1:00am LIMASSOL, Cyprus — In a little-noticed trial in a small courtroom here on Wednesday, a 24-year-old man provided a rare look inside a covert global war between Israel and Iran, admitting that he is an operative of the militant group Hezbo » Read more

Doing business – tangible peacemaking ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Jerusalem Post by Paul Hirschson - (Opinion) February 20, 2013 - 1:00am The anti-Israel crowd is all gung-ho on assaulting Israel’s legitimacy. They propose advancing this through imposing sanctions, calling for divestment and implementing boycotts. Indicting Israelis for all sorts of supposed wrongs would be the ultimate thrill, turning the individual Israeli into all of Israel, facilitating the next round of assault. Isolation achieved, the undermining of the very legitimacy of Israel, they argue, is feasible. » Read more

Encountering Peace: Israeli-Palestinian peace is achievable ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Jerusalem Post by Gershon Baskin - (Opinion) February 20, 2013 - 1:00am Many of those who claim that a comprehensive Israeli-Palestinian peace treaty putting an end to the conflict is not possible are the very people who do not want it to happen. This includes those who say it’s too late, there are too many Israelis living beyond the green line, or too many new settlement houses have been built, and those who say there is no Palestinian partner. » Read more

A real Mideast peace process should look different ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Haaretz by Gideon Levy - (Opinion) February 21, 2013 - 1:00am A moment before our attention shifts once more to the chatter about peace and the nonsense about the talks, about Barack Obama’s upcoming visit and Tzipi Livni’s appointment as “chief negotiator,” it would be good if we remembered what people ought to mean when they utter the words “peace process.” Not another round of negotiations, endless meetings and photo opportunities. We’ve already had enough of those to spare, and they led nowhere. The solution has long been known, and it could have been carried out long ago. » Read more

Yair Lapid's crucial choice ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Haaretz by Ari Shavit - (Opinion) February 21, 2013 - 1:00am Yair Lapid, the chairman of Yesh Atid, wants to be prime minister. Okay, good. Lapid doesn’t have the experience necessary to be prime minister. Okay, good. But Lapid has impressive political skills, which he demonstrated during the election campaign. Okay, good. Therefore, in order to prove that he is indeed worthy of being prime minister in the future, the good Israeli needs to prove he is a good reader of the reality map. He has to prove he knows how to distinguish between what is important and what is not. » Read more