March 8th, 2013

Israeli police, Palestinians clash at Jerusalem mosque
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Reuters
by Ori Lewis - March 8, 2013 - 1:00am

Israeli police fired stun grenades to disperse Palestinian worshippers who had thrown rocks and firebombs at them after Friday prayers at the al-Aqsa Mosque compound in Jerusalem's Old City, police said. Dozens of officers entered the politically sensitive area, one of Islam's holiest sites to break up several hundred protesters. A number of policemen were lightly hurt, a police spokesman said, and Palestinian media said at least 15 protesters were injured.

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Who is an Israeli?
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Ynetnews
by Ranan Hartman - March 8, 2013 - 1:00am

Legendary US Secretary of State Henry Kissinger once said that "the task of the leader is to get his people from where they are to where they have not been.” These days, while the uproar of an equal share of the national burden is bubbling again as the main issue in the coalition negotiations for the establishment of a new government, the Israeli public is waiting for leaders to get

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The empty debate on Zionism in Britain
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Haaretz
by Anshel Pfeffer - (Opinion) March 7, 2013 - 1:00am

Who is a Zionist? Once upon a time the answer to this question was simple. A Zionist was someone who believed there were moral justifications and a need for a Jewish sovereign state in the historical Land of Israel. If you recognized this, you were Zionist and all the rest was just nuance. But the definition of a Zionist has become hopelessly murky in the more than six decades since Israel's establishment amid the never-ending debate over Israel's definition, borders and values.

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US, Israeli threats of force against Iran are illegal and harm chances for a deal
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from
by Reza Nasri - (Opinion) March 7, 2013 - 1:00am

These threats were issued at a time when the latest round of nuclear talks between Iran and the P5+1 in

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Is a Jew Meshuga for Wanting to Live in Palestine?
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Bloomberg
by Noah Feldman - (Opinion) March 7, 2013 - 1:00am

If Israelis and Palestinians agree on one thing, it’s that more settlements in the West Bank will eventually make a two-state solution impossible. Rabbi Menachem Froman, who died on March 4 at age 68, thought differently.

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Savir's Corner: The day after
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Jerusalem Post
by Uri Savir - (Editorial) March 7, 2013 - 1:00am

With the historic visit of President Barack Obama to Israel, the Palestinian Authority and Jordan at the end of the month, it seems that leaders in our region are thinking along the lines of “life before Obama” and “life after Obama.” One can safely assume that both Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu and PA President Mahmoud Abbas cannot wait for the day the American president returns to Washington.

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Obama in Israel: Can he overcome low expectations?
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Los Angeles Times
by Yisrael Medad - (Editorial) March 8, 2013 - 1:00am

Later this month, President Obama will visit Israel, a country intended by an act of international law to be the reconstituted Jewish national home. The visit will be highly charged, but at the same time, many Israelis have low expectations for what could come of it.

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Obama in Israel: The start of a new era?
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Los Angeles Times
by Ami Ayalon - (Opinion) March 8, 2013 - 1:00am

Israel, I fear, is on a suicidal path: It could cease to be the democratic home of the Jewish people.

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March 7th

NEWS: A Palestinian protester shot two weeks ago by Israeli troops at a protest in the occupied West Bank has died of his wounds. (AP) An East Jerusalem woman is injured by rubber bullets fired by Israeli border police. (Ha'aretz) The prisoner issue continues to inflame Palestinian public opinion. (Reuters) Palestinian officials say they have no intention of reviving peace talks with Israel before Pres. Obama's visit later this month. (Xinhua) The closure of smuggling tunnels by Egypt hits Gaza construction projects and businesses. (Reuters) Israeli occupation forces arrest two Palestinians in West Bank raids. (Ma'an) Pres. Abbas and senior Fatah leaders express condolences on the death of Pres. Chavez. (PNN/Ma'an) Palestinians accuse Israeli occupation forces of harassing women at a Jerusalem holy site. (PNN) Israel's police commissioner describes the wave of attacks against ordinary Palestinians as "despicable." (YNet) A Jewish American pro-Palestinian activist is denied entry to Israel. (Ha'aretz) The Israeli government agrees to dismantle four "unauthorized" settlement outposts. (Ha'aretz) Israel is continuing to maintain separate roads for settlers and Palestinians in occupied Hebron. (YNet) Pres. Obama will not speak at the Knesset during his upcoming visit to Israel. (Jerusalem Post) Sweden becomes the ninth European country to upgrade the Palestinian mission to the status of embassy. (AFP)

COMMENTARY: Nabila Ramdani says Hamas squandered a great opportunity by banning women from running in a Gaza marathon, resulting in its cancellation. (The Guardian) Gideon Levy says the atmosphere in Israel created by PM Netanyahu's tenure in office is responsible for the wave of attack against ordinary Palestinians. (Ha'aretz) J. J. Goldberg looks at the decline in Netanyahu's political fortunes. (Daily Beast/Open Zion) Liam Hoare says Obama should address the Israeli public from Rabin Square. (The Forward) Efraim Halevy says Israel and Hamas are increasingly realizing they can provide each other with mutually-beneficial short-term arrangements. (The New Republic) Former Secretary of State Baker says informal representatives from Gaza could help Western and Israeli communications with Hamas. (Al Arabiya) Chemi Shalev says AIPAC is an impressive organization, but has a natural right-wing tendency. (Ha'aretz) Samuel Lebens says if diaspora Jews can't be critical of Israeli policies, they can't be successful in the battle of ideas. (Ha'aretz) Adnan Abu Amer says PM Erdogan is becoming increasingly popular among Palestinians. (Al Monitor) Douglas Bloomfield says Obama will promote, but not push hard for, peace. (Jerusalem Post),/p>

Obama is promoting, not proposing, peace
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Jerusalem Post
by Douglas Bloomfield - (Opinion) March 6, 2013 - 1:00am

resident Barack Obama plans to go to the Middle East in two weeks, and the Israeli Left and the Palestinians are praying he’ll be bringing an American peace initiative. Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu and the Israeli Right are praying he won’t. Even if he wanted to, President Obama knows another US peace push wouldn’t work. All the rhetoric aside – and it really is little more than rhetoric – neither side is interested in, much less ready for, serious peace talks.

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