July 2nd, 2012

Palestinians: UN heritage nod is political victory ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Associated Press by Karin Laub - June 29, 2012 - 12:00am The Palestinians on Friday persuaded the U.N. cultural agency to list the Church of the Nativity — the place where Christians believe Jesus was born — as an endangered World Heritage site despite misgivings by churches in charge of the basilica. The Palestinians hailed the nod by UNESCO as a step forward in their quest for global recognition of an independent Palestine in the West Bank, Gaza and east Jerusalem, captured by Israel in 1967. » Read more

Hamas leader gets royal welcome from Jordan's king ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Haaretz by Amos Harel, Avi Issacharoff - (Analysis) July 2, 2012 - 12:00am Last week's visit to Jordan by Hamas politburo chief Khaled Meshal, which was under-reported in the Israeli media, reflects the shifting alliances taking place in the Middle East. Meshal received a royal welcome in the palace in Amman, where he dined with King Abdullah. » Read more

Palestinians: Meeting delayed with Israeli vice PM ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Associated Press by Mohammed Daraghmeh - June 30, 2012 - 12:00am A scheduled high-profile meeting between Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas and Israeli Vice Prime Minister Shaul Mofaz has been postponed indefinitely, a senior Palestinian official said Saturday. The rare high-level talks would have been a step toward resuming formal peace negotiations, although expectations were low that they would produce any breakthrough. » Read more

Sporting chance for Palestinian Olympians ATFP World Press Roundup Article from BBC News by Lana Asfour, Randa Swift - July 1, 2012 - 12:00am After struggling to pursue sport for years because of the impact of the conflict with Israel, Palestinians now have a rare chance to celebrate success. Maher Abu Rmelleh, a judoist, is the first ever Palestinian sportsman to qualify on points to participate in the Olympic Games. » Read more

Former Israeli Prime Minister Shamir dies at 96 ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Associated Press by Ian Deitch - July 1, 2012 - 12:00am Yitzhak Shamir was a fighter for the Jews long before Israel's creation, an underground leader who led militias against the Arabs and British. He made no apologies and no compromises — not as an underground fighter, an intelligence agent who hunted Nazis, and as one of Israel's longest-serving prime ministers who refused to bargain for land. » Read more

Israelis and Jordanians: Ammunition for peace ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Haaretz by Assaf David - (Opinion) July 1, 2012 - 12:00am Israeli-Arab relations witnessed a historic event last week. Modest and hidden from the limelight of the media, it touched everyone who attended it, moving some to tears: Israeli and Jordanian war veterans who fought each other 45 years ago visited together their shared combat zones in Jerusalem, honoring each other and paying tribute to their fallen comrades. » Read more

Palestinians detain dozens in weapons crackdown ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Associated Press by Karin Laub - July 2, 2012 - 12:00am The Palestinian self-rule government has detained some 200 people, including security officers, in recent weeks in the biggest crackdown on illegal weapons in the West Bank in five years, a spokesman said Monday. Officials say the campaign is unusual because it targets include alleged vigilante gunmen linked to Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas' Fatah movement. Previously, security forces went mainly after armed supporters of rival groups Hamas and Islamic Jihad. » Read more

Is the PA afraid of a third intifada? ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Haaretz by Amira Hass - (Opinion) July 2, 2012 - 12:00am The light was still too dim to penetrate the cracks in the shutters when the rooster crowed. For a fraction of a second it felt like a village. But it was the Jenin refugee camp, circa two weeks ago. There, as in other refugee camps, the rooster's wake-up call is something more: nutrition for the unemployed, as well as the longing and the desire to maintain continuity, if only symbolic, with the village that once was, and has since been destroyed. » Read more

Palestinians in Syria Are Reluctantly Drawn Into Vortex of Uprising ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The New York Times by Dalal Mawad, Rod Nordland - June 30, 2012 - 12:00am The body of a Hamas official was found in his home on Wednesday night, bearing marks of torture. A colonel in the Palestine Liberation Army was sprawled in his car on Tuesday, fatally shot near his home. Three Palestinians were shot down in the alleyways of a refugee camp late last Sunday by a group of unidentified gunmen. » Read more

Ten Questions + One for the One-Staters ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Huffington Post by Ziad Asali - (Blog) June 29, 2012 - 12:00am The supporters of the two-state solution are often told that this vision is unrealistic and has become unachievable. Young, idealistic seekers of justice and equality are increasingly offering what they claim is a more "realistic" solution: a single state for all Israelis and Palestinians, including refugees. » Read more