August 8th

Israel’s Court Demands New Route For Wall ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Washington Times by Mel Frkyberg - August 8, 2008 - 3:38pm BIL'IN, West Bank | The Israeli High Court of Justice has given the state 45 days to submit a new route for part of the separation wall that cuts through this Palestinian village near Ramallah in the central West Bank. Supreme Court President Dorit Beinisch and Justices Eliezer Rivlin and Ayala Procaccia also criticized the state's representative for ignoring a previous court ruling on the issue just over a year ago after the Bil'in Popular Committee Against the Wall and Settlements took the state to court. » Read more

Israeli Officer In Prisoner Abuse Video Quits Post ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Washington Times by Steve Weizman - August 8, 2008 - 3:37pm JERUSALEM (AP) - An officer filmed ordering a soldier to abuse a bound and blindfolded Palestinian prisoner was indicted Thursday and has resigned his command of an army battalion but will continue to serve elsewhere, the Israeli military said. Lt.Col. Omri Borberg and the soldier were charged in a military court with "unworthy conduct," the military said in a statement. » Read more

Israel Soldiers Indicted Over Treatment Of Palestinian Protester ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Los Angeles Times by Richard Bourdreaux - August 8, 2008 - 3:36pm JERUSALEM -- An Israeli battalion commander and a staff sergeant caught on film allegedly abusing a handcuffed, blindfolded Palestinian detainee were indicted by a military court Thursday on the charge of "unworthy conduct." The July 7 incident, in which the sergeant fired a rubber-coated bullet at point-blank range, bruising the detainee's toe, embarrassed the army and focused renewed attention on its role in policing unruly demonstrations in the West Bank. » Read more

August 7th

Barak Orders Demolition Of Jerusalem Yeshiva Terrorist's Home ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Haaretz August 7, 2008 - 5:04pm Defense Minister Ehud Barak on Wednesday instructed the security establishment to take initial steps leading to the demolition of the home of the Palestinian terrorist who gunned down eight yeshiva students in Jerusalem in March. The house is situated in the East Jerusalem neighborhood of Jabel Mukaber. Alaa Abu Dhaim, the gunman, killed seven teenage boys and one 26-year-old, as well as wounding nine others, when he burst into the Mercaz Harav seminary in Jerusalem's Kiryat Moshe neighborhood and opened fire in the library. » Read more

Israel To Boycott Al-jazeera Again ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Ynetnews by Roni Sofer - August 7, 2008 - 5:03pm The Government Press Office in Jerusalem will not provide services to the al-Jazeera television network in the wake of a festive show organized in honor of terrorist Samir Kuntar upon his return to Lebanon. Kuntar was imprisoned in an Israeli jail for murdering three members of the Haran family and policeman Eliyahu Shahar. The show celebrating the convicted murderer's release  A included special guests and a band. According to the GPO announcement, the office manager of al-Jazeera  in Beirut,called Kuntar a hero.   » Read more

Gunmen Burn Down Gaza Beachfront Resort ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Deutsche Presse Agentur August 7, 2008 - 5:00pm Gaza - Unknown militants stormed a Gaza Strip beach resort early Wednesday and burned it down, after handcuffing three security guards, witnesses and security sources said. The militants left the Ebad al-Rahman resort after confiscating three computers, the sources added. The resort, which opened this summer, is located in the north-west of the salient, not far from the main headquarter of Hamas' internal security force. » Read more

Occupation Has Only Corrupted Israel's Democracy ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Daily Star by Avraham B> Yehoshua - August 7, 2008 - 4:59pm Police investigations, commissions of inquiry examining the errors committed during the Lebanon war of 2006, repugnance at former President Moshe Katsav's alleged sex crimes, and now Prime Minister Ehud Olmert's announcement that, with charges of corruption swirling about him, he will resign in September. All of this suggests profound wounds in Israel's moral tissue. » Read more

Israel To Release 150 Palestinian Prisoners ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Arab News by Hisham Abu Taha - August 7, 2008 - 4:58pm GAZA CITY/JERUSALEM: Israel’s premier pledged to free more than 150 Palestinian prisoners in a meeting yesterday with President Mahmoud Abbas, as a way of energizing their sluggish peace talks. The release could also boost the prestige of the embattled Palestinian leader, whose Fatah movement is engaged in a tense power struggle with the Hamas. » Read more

The Mideast Mirage ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Gulf News by George Hishmeh - August 7, 2008 - 4:54pm It all depends on whether one is an optimist or a pessimist to argue whether there will be, as promised, an "outline" for a fair conclusion to the slow-moving peace talks between the Palestinians and Israelis before President George W. Bush leaves his office at the White House in six month's time. For a start, the belated talks have been plagued by the presence at the helm of three weak leaders in Palestine, Israel and the United States, all approaching their last days in office. » Read more

Egypt Cracks Down On Fuel Smugglers To Gaza ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Associated Press August 7, 2008 - 4:53pm   A senior Egyptian security official says police have discovered 20 underground tunnels and seized thousands of gallons of fuel being smuggled under the Egypt-Gaza border. He says four smugglers were arrested early Thursday after a heavy exchange of gunfire with Egyptian forces. Three of the suspects and one policeman were injured. The official says the suspects were laying an 800-meter underground pipeline to ship fuel illegally into Gaza. He spoke on condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to talk to media. » Read more