December 13th

Protesters shut down UNRWA offices after layoffs ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Ma'an News Agency December 11, 2012 - 1:00am BETHLEHEM (Ma’an) -- Labor leaders at Palestinian refugee camps on Tuesday shut down all UNRWA sub-offices in the West Bank in protest of the dismissal of 130 employees and reductions of services. Munthir Amira, director of the youth center of Aida refugee camp, told Ma'an that "it is time that UNRWA's administration realize that the plight of Palestinian refugees can't be a political trade or an opportunity for Western employees to seek livelihood." » Read more

Palestine decision reminiscent of another United Nations vote ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Arab News by Yaron Ezrahi - (Opinion) December 13, 2012 - 1:00am Late afternoon on Nov. 29, 1947, I was almost eight years old and our home in Tel Aviv was gripped by intense expectations that something big was going to happen. Our large Beethoven radio was on and my parents were already sitting on the couch as my 16-year-old sister, Ofra, and I joined them on the living room rug. My father explained: “The world is deciding if we will be a state”. » Read more

Abbas blasts Mashaal: We already recognized Israel ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Ynetnews by Elior Levy - December 13, 2012 - 1:00am Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas blasted Hamas Politburo Chief Khaled Mashaal for asserting that his group will never recognize Israel, hinting that the statement hinders the chances of the two-state solution, according to the Turkish newspaper Hurriyet. » Read more

Netanyahu between Abbas and Meshaal ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Al-Hayat by Abdullah Iskandar - (Opinion) December 12, 2012 - 1:00am With the historical visit conducted by Hamas’s politburo chief to the Gaza Strip, the Palestinian file is entering a new stage which the Israeli right wing and its leader Benjamin Netanyahu are trying to exploit, in order to undermine Palestinian credibility towards the peace process, end the negotiations with the Palestinians, and eliminate the idea of the two states. » Read more

Washington Watch: Evading peace ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Jerusalem Post by Douglas Bloomfield - (Opinion) December 12, 2012 - 1:00am It was an “Aha! moment” for Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu. When Hamas leader Khaled Mashaal told half a million followers in Gaza on Sunday that “Palestine is ours from the river to the sea” and “Israel has no right in Jerusalem,” and when Palestinian Authority chairman Mahmoud Abbas failed to denounce the speech, which one of his aides called “very positive,” Netanyahu declared: “I told you so.” » Read more

How Khaled Meshal's call for Israel's destruction played into Netanyahu's hands ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Haaretz by Carlo Strenger - (Blog) December 12, 2012 - 1:00am Benjamin Netanyahu’s most reliable ally is Hamas. That may sound like a strange proposition, but let me explain.     In the last weeks, Benjamin Netanyahu has pulled two of his more expectable stunts. » Read more

Abbas: Meshal approved an agreement recognizing two-state solution ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Haaretz by Barak Ravid - December 13, 2012 - 1:00am Palestinian Authority Chairman Mahmoud Abbas came out on Thursday in criticism of Hamas leader Khaled Meshal, who said last week during his visit to Gaza that the organization will never recognize Israel, and called for its destruction. Speaking to Turkish reporters in Ankara, Abbas said that he does not agree with Meshal's statements. "We recognized Israel in 1993," he said. "There is an agreement between Fatah and Hamas that recognizes the two-state solution. Meshal approved this agreement." » Read more

Abbas phones Mashaal to discuss reconciliation ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Ma'an News Agency December 13, 2012 - 1:00am BETHLEHEM (Ma’an) -- President Mahmoud Abbas phoned Hamas chief Khalid Mashaal on Wednesday to discuss ending the division according to prior agreements, a Fatah official said. Azzam al-Ahmad said Abbas phoned Mashaal to accelerate implementing national reconciliation. Abbas talked with him about his first visit to Gaza, and about Hamas' anniversary celebrations. Al-Ahmad said he met Mashaal on Wednesday and a member in Fatah's central committee as part of new efforts to see if a reconciliation deal could finally be implemented. » Read more

Interview: Palestinian negotiator rules out declaring new Mideast peace initiative soon ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Xinhua December 12, 2012 - 1:00am RAMALLAH, Dec. 12 (Xinhua) -- A high-ranking Palestinian negotiator said in an interview with Xinhua on Wednesday that there will be no new peace initiative declared on the Middle East conflict before February 2013. Mohamed Ishteya, also a member in the central committee of Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas's Fatah Party, told Xinhua at his office in the city of Ramallah that the Palestinian leadership welcomes any international initiative aiming at resuming the stalled peace talks with Israel. » Read more

Israeli election committee bans far-right campaign due to racism ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Xinhua December 12, 2012 - 1:00am JERUSALEM, Dec. 13 (Xinhua) -- Chairman of the Israeli Central Elections Committee Judge Elyakim Rubinstein has banned an ad campaign run by a far-right wing party over charges of racist and discriminatory against Arabs. "The campaign was meant to degrade a single group in the State of Israel, the Arab population," Rubinstein explained Wednesday night. » Read more