July 11th, 2012

How Not to Host a Summit ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Foreign Policy by Aaron David Miller - (Opinion) July 10, 2012 - 12:00am Twelve years ago this week, U.S. President Bill Clinton, Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Barak, and Palestinian leader Yasir Arafat gathered at Camp David to launch a historic bid to put an end to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. » Read more

Israel Didn't Kill Arafat ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Daily Beast by Yossi Melman - (Opinion) July 10, 2012 - 12:00am Al Jazeera’s English-language TV service released a new documentary that reveals evidence suggesting that Yasser Arafat was poisoned by a radioactive element, polonium-210.  Many who followed Arafat’s death believe that Israel took a byproduct of its nuclear program and used it to turn Arafat into a sickly, weak man, leading to his death in November 2004. » Read more

Israel ignores decades of Occupation ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The National (Editorial) July 11, 2012 - 12:00am The latest news out of Israel will come as a surprise to both students of international law and the world in general: according to Israeli officials, apparently, the illegal occupation of the West Bank is neither illegal, nor an occupation. That appears to be the ludicrous conclusion of the Levy Committee, set-up by the Israeli prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu to explore the status of Jewish settlements in the West Bank. » Read more

Occupation can't be erased ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Ynetnews by Boaz Okon - (Opinion) July 11, 2012 - 12:00am The Levy Report on legitimizing Israel’s West Bank outposts cannot legitimize Israel’s actions in the territories. One cannot curb millions of Palestinians’ demands for freedom via legal reports. At the end of the day, the report will be shelved, and its main contribution would be the boosting cynicism and suspicions towards judges. » Read more

Occupation no more ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Haaretz by Michael Sfard - (Opinion) July 10, 2012 - 12:00am Every lawyer is familiar with that embarrassing situation. A friend or acquaintance asks you an everyday legal question they came across. While you get carried away explaining different legal schools of thought and indications that could lead one way or another, you see in the questioner’s eyes that they were expecting a yes or no answer. » Read more

Crossing Religious Lines in an Israeli Hospital ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The New York Times by Souad Mekhennet - July 10, 2012 - 12:00am Hadassah-Ein Kerem hospital. Doctors and nurses hover over patients. Manar Igbarya, 25, is giving a woman an injection and inspecting a bandage on her right leg. The Orthodox patient is absorbed in talking to her visiting husband. Everyone is chatting in Hebrew; nothing in this scene seems unusual, except that Ms. Igbarya is a Palestinian Muslim. » Read more

Be grateful Presbyterians voted before the settlements were ‘legalized’ ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Haaretz by Eric H. Yoffie - (Opinion) July 11, 2012 - 12:00am Last week, the Presbyterian Church (USA) rejected a resolution calling for divestment from Israel. This was a victory for supporters of Israel - sort of. The resolution was defeated by a single vote, and another resolution endorsing a boycott of West Bank products was adopted. Divestment advocates have vowed to continue their struggle, and they may win next time around. » Read more

UN head warns Israeli-Palestinian peace process at 'dangerous standstill' ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Examiner by Rhonda Parker - July 11, 2012 - 12:00am The Israeli Palestinian peace process is at a “dangerous standstill,” according to United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon. At an Asian and Pacific meeting in support of the peace process, a spokesperson for Ki-moon said the U.N. leader was calling on the international community to help steer the situation towards negotiations and a historic peace process. » Read more

OSCE denies observer status for Palestinian Authority ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Jewish Telegraphic Agency (JTA) July 10, 2012 - 12:00am The Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe denied observer status to the Palestinian Authority, according to Israeli media reports. In a 28-21 vote, the OSCE voted last month against granting the observer status, according to the reports. The PA denied making a request for observer status, however, according to the Ma'an Palestinian news service. "Joining the organization is not one of the Palestinian Authority’s priorities," Majdi al-Khalidi told Ma'an after learning about Israeli reports of the vote. » Read more

There. It's finally done. Israel has ended the occupation. Tick. Tick. Tick. ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Haaretz by Bradley Burston - (Opinion) July 10, 2012 - 12:00am I thought the occupation would end differently. I thought that when the occupation finally ended, Palestinians would flood into the streets in delight and relief and weeping at their newfound freedom, a sudden intoxication of rights, their lifelong hopes for independence made concrete. I thought the end of occupation would be deafening and terrifying and liberating and wholly new. I thought that when the occupation ended, we would know. » Read more