July 27th, 2009

Rabbi Ovadia slams US: We're not their slaves ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Ynetnews by Kobi Nahshoni - July 26, 2009 - 12:00am In his weekly sermon Saturday evening, Shas' spiritual leader Rabbi Ovadia Yosef slammed US President Barack Obama and other western leaders for pressuring Israel to freeze construction in the West Bank and east Jerusalem. "'You can't build here, you can't build there' – it's as if we were their slaves," the rabbi protested. "We are being ruled by slaves," he said," adding that, "Our messiah will come and throw them out." » Read more

Reality Check: Netanyahu's self-inflicted crisis ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Jerusalem Post by Jeff Barak - (Opinion) July 27, 2009 - 12:00am Binyamin Netanyahu's second term as prime minister is proving the truth of Karl Marx's comment: "History repeats itself, first as tragedy, second as farce," although the speed with which his government is descending into the farcical is surprising, even for the most ardent of Netanyahu's critics. » Read more

Out of the Stone Age: Empowering a West Bank village ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Independent by Donald MacIntyre - July 27, 2009 - 12:00am To the visitor it may seem picturesque. But when you've spent several hours a day for 20 years vigorously shaking a dead goat's stomach filled with milk to make butter, the novelty has long worn off. In the village of Susiya, not having electricity keeps them in their own dark age. So for Samia Shineran, 30, who has been making goat's butter by hand since she was 10, the installation of a powered churn in the family tent this spring was an unalloyed delight, giving her that much more time for the many other tasks which fall to this Palestinian mother of 10. » Read more

US Middle East envoy calls on Arab world for peace ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Independent by Josef Federman - July 27, 2009 - 12:00am President Barack Obama's Middle East envoy called on the Arab world yesterday to take steps towards normalising relations with Israel, while Israel's prime minister said he hoped his country's disputes with the US over West Bank settlement construction would soon be resolved. » Read more

Israel prepares 'defense brief' ahead of UN Gaza reports ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Haaretz by Barak Ravid - July 27, 2009 - 12:00am A group of legal experts from the Foreign Ministry is writing a defense brief for the government in advance of two harsh reports on Operation Cast Lead expected to be released soon. The ministry's defense brief is expected to be finished in a week or two, ahead of two United Nations reports that are expected to be highly critical of the extent of civilian injuries in the Gaza Strip during the operation. A draft of the two reports is expected to be given to Israel around the end of August, before they are officially presented to the Human Rights Council in mid-September. » Read more

Senators want Obama to press Arabs ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Jewish Telegraphic Agency (JTA) July 27, 2009 - 12:00am Two U.S. senators, a Democrat and a Republican, are circulating a letter pressing President Obama to lean on Arab nations to make peace overtures to Israel. » Read more

Obama should not give in ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Arab News by Uri Avnery - (Opinion) July 27, 2009 - 12:00am First, an honest disclosure: I loved the Shepherd hotel very much. In the first years after the Six-Day War, I was a frequent guest there. My work in the Knesset demanded that I stay in Jerusalem at least two nights every week, and after the war I switched from the hotels of West Jerusalem to those in the eastern part of the city. My favorite was the Shepherd. I felt at home there. » Read more

U.S., Israel inch closer to deal on settlement freeze ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Haaretz by Amos Harel, Avi Issacharoff - July 27, 2009 - 12:00am U.S. envoy to the Middle East George Mitchell arrived in Israel Sunday and met with Defense Minister Ehud Barak as part of an ongoing effort to reach an agreement on construction in the settlements. The two are reportedly close to a deal in which Washington would allow a limited number of projects in advanced stages of construction to be completed, but Israel would freeze all other building for an as-yet undetermined period of time. » Read more

A shared Jerusalem ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Boston Globe by James Carroll - (Opinion) July 27, 2009 - 12:00am George Mitchell is in the Middle East, pressing for peace. His planned itinerary brackets Israel and Palestine with a start in Abu Dhabi and Syria and a conclusion in Bahrain and Egypt. The Obama administration’s determination to revivify the Israeli-Palestinian peace process is further indicated by the arrivals in the region next week of Secretary of Defense Robert Gates, National Security Adviser James Jones, and special Middle East adviser Dennis Ross. President Obama has replaced the Bush policy of hands-off with a gloves-off readiness to push all parties hard. » Read more

IDF: More than 300,000 settlers live in West Bank ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Haaretz by Chaim Levinson - July 27, 2009 - 12:00am There are now more than 300,000 residents living in Jewish West Bank settlements, according to a Israel Defense Forces Civil Administration report covering the first half of 2009. As of June 30, the settlements had 304,569 residents, an increase of 2.3 percent since January. Most of the growth was in the most religious communities, including the ultra-Orthodox settlements. Modi'in Ilit gained 1,879 residents, a 4.5 percent increase. Beitar Ilit gained 1,074 residents, a 3.1 percent jump. » Read more