June 30th, 2009

PA official: Hamas planned to assassinate senior officials ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Ynetnews by Ali Waked - June 30, 2009 - 12:00am The Palestinian Authority has recently arrested a Hamas cell that admitted to planning to assassinate senior Palestinian officials by July 7, the date set by Egypt for the signing of an agreement between Fatah and the Islamist group, the head of the Palestinian Presidency said on Monday. According to Tayeb Abdul-Rahim, the order to attack Palestinian officials and institutions in the northern West Bank was given by Hamas' leadership abroad and by its armed wing in Gaza, the Izz al-Din al-Qassam Brigades. » Read more

Bibi’s inner circle ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Jewish Telegraphic Agency (JTA) by Leslie Susser - June 29, 2009 - 12:00am Benjamin Netanyahu’s father, the historian Ben Zion Netanyahu, once said that his son's biggest failure as a leader was his inability to pick the right people to advise him. Now prime minister for a second time and facing major decisions on Iran, the Palestinians and the Arab world -- not to mention ties with the United States -- Netanyahu has picked what looks like a strong but possibly too like-minded team. These are the more influential members of the inner circle Netanyahu has put together in the weeks since taking office. » Read more

In the West Bank, Suburb or Settlement? ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Washington Post by Howard Schneider - June 30, 2009 - 12:00am Chaim Hanfling knows a lot about this settlement's population boom. Six of his 11 siblings have moved here from Jerusalem in recent years to take advantage of the lower land prices, and at age 29, he has added four children of his own. » Read more

Israel's Man of Conscience ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Nation by Ezra Nawi - June 29, 2009 - 12:00am My name is Ezra Nawi. I am a Jewish citizen of Israel. I will be sentenced on the first of July after being found guilty of assaulting two police officers in 2007 while struggling against the demolition of a Palestinian house in Um El Hir, located in the southern part of the West Bank. Of course the policemen who accused me of assaulting them are lying. Indeed, lying has become common within the Israeli police force, military and among the Jewish settlers. » Read more

US 'optimistic' ahead of Barak-Mitchell meeting ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Ynetnews by Yitzhak Benhorin - June 30, 2009 - 12:00am Will the Barak-Mitchell meeting manage to relieve some of the tension between Israel and the United States? The White House has expressed its optimism over the chances of making progress during Tuesday's meeting between Defense Minister Ehud Barak and special US envoy George Mitchell, which will be held in New York. Barak was sent by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to meet with Mitchell in a bid to reach an understanding with the Obama administration about continuing construction in West Bank settlement for natural growth purposes. » Read more

Report Criticizes Israeli Drone Strike ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The New York Times by Christopher Drew - June 30, 2009 - 12:00am Twenty-nine civilians, including eight children, were killed in several missile strikes by Israeli drones in Gaza in December and January, according to a report released on Tuesday by Human Rights Watch. The group questioned whether Israeli forces had taken “all feasible precautions” to avoid civilian casualties. Lt. Col. Avital Leibovich, a spokeswoman for the Israeli military, said Israeli forces had gone to extraordinary lengths to warn civilians during the Gaza offensive, and she questioned the credibility of some of the Palestinian witnesses cited by the advocacy group. » Read more

The PA Financial Crisis: Causes and Implications ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Washington Institute for Near East Policy by Mohammed Yaghi - June 29, 2009 - 12:00am Eighteen months have passed since the Paris donor conference, where members of the international community promised the Palestinian government $1.45 billion in assistance for its 2009 budget. The Palestinian Authority (PA), however, has received less than a quarter of this amount, and Arab governments in particular have fallen short, contributing only $78 million of the $600 million pledged. » Read more

Lieberman ally slams Netanyahu over Sarkozy remarks ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Haaretz June 30, 2009 - 12:00am French President Nicolas Sarkozy's unusually blunt call on Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to remove Foreign Minister Avigdor Lieberman from his post has sparked a political backlash among Lieberman's allies in Jerusalem. During the premier's visit to Paris last week, Sarkozy urged Netanyahu to "get rid" of hard-line Foreign Minister Avigdor Lieberman, Channel Two reported on Monday. The second-in-command of Lieberman's Yisrael Beteinu party said Netanyahu should have "banged on the table" in response to Sarkozy's attack on Lieberman. » Read more

Experts Voice New Hope for Solution to Israeli-Palestinian Conflict ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Voice of America by Mohamed Elshinnawi - June 29, 2009 - 12:00am In the wake of U.S. President Barack Obama's June 4th speech to the Muslim world and the Israeli prime minister's recent acceptance of a conditional Palestinian state, hopes have risen for a resumption of talks aimed at resolving the long-running Israeli-Palestinian conflict. » Read more

Fatah deputy reports progress in unity talks with Hamas ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Haaretz by Avi Issacharoff - June 30, 2009 - 12:00am The head of the Fatah faction in the Palestinian parliament, Azzam al-Ahmed, said on Tuesday that significant progress has been made in Egyptian-mediated reconciliation talks with Hamas. The Fatah deputy said that both sides have found common ground on key issues, including Hamas prisoners being held in Palestinian Authority prisons, Palestinian elections, as well as the make-up of the armed force that is likely to be deployed in the Gaza Strip. » Read more