September 10th

Rare TV satire mocks Palestinian politicians ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Associated Press by Mohammed Daraghmeh - September 10, 2009 - 12:00am Palestine TV was once the boring channel that viewers skipped over while searching for entertainment. But this time, the state-run station has picked a winner — an irreverent comedy show that mocks and often bites the hand that feeds it: the government. "Homeland on a Thread" satirizes inept Palestinian politicians, police bullies and Muslim extremists. It's Palestine TV's first ever attempt at political satire, an art form that remains rare in the Arab world where authoritarian regimes abound. » Read more

Netanyahu risks US anger by building settlements ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Associated Press by Josef Federman - September 10, 2009 - 12:00am Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has given the green light for hundreds of new homes in a Palestinian-claimed area of Jerusalem, officials confirmed Wednesday, part of a gamble to mollify his restive coalition without sparking a major confrontation with the U.S. » Read more

Seized Israeli Writes of Deep Depression ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Associated Press September 10, 2009 - 12:00am An Israeli soldier seized by Palestinian fighters more than three years ago described his captivity as an "intolerable and inhumane nightmare" in a 2006 letter to his parents that was made public Wednesday. In carefully printed script, Sgt. Gilad Shalit reported deteriorating health and deep depression, making an anguished appeal to the Israeli government to release him from his "closed and solitary prison." Shalit, now 23, wrote the 14-line letter three months after gunmen affiliated with the Gaza Strip's Islamist Hamas rulers captured him in a cross-border raid. » Read more

The West Bank's Deceptive Growth ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The New York Times by Zahi Khouri - (Opinion) September 10, 2009 - 12:00am Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has long tried to substitute the slogan of “economic peace” for genuine progress with the Palestinians on the political front. Yet the International Monetary Fund’s projected growth of 7 percent in the West Bank for 2009 is largely the result of Palestinian reforms undertaken in spite of the obstacles Israel continues to place in the way of Palestinian development. Too many in the West remain unaware of the impediments to economic development — not to mention political freedom — we Palestinians continue to face. » Read more

The New Israel Lobby ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The New York Times by James Traub - September 10, 2009 - 12:00am In July, President Obama met for 45 minutes with leaders of American Jewish organizations. All presidents meet with Israel’s advocates. Obama, however, had taken his time, and powerhouse figures of the Jewish community were grumbling; Obama’s coolness seemed to be of a piece with his willingness to publicly pressure Israel to freeze the growth of its settlements and with what was deemed his excessive solicitude toward the plight of the Palestinians. » Read more

Getting real about a Palestinian state ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Los Angeles Times by Daoud Kuttab - (Opinion) September 10, 2009 - 12:00am Writing From Ramallah, West Bank - Something different is happening among the Palestinians. Their political leaders and civil servants are spending more time planning for a Palestinian state than criticizing the Israelis for their intransigence. » Read more

September 9th

Israel's settlement charade makes mockery of peace, curbs Palestinians' options ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Daily Star (Editorial) September 9, 2009 - 12:00am The Israeli government’s approval this week of plans to construct hundreds of new settler homes on occupied Palestinian Territory may well be remembered as the hammer that drove the final nail into the coffin of President Barack Obama’s peace efforts. All Israeli settlement construction on occupied Palestinian land is viewed as a “breach of international law,” according to a 2004 ruling by the International Court of Justice. » Read more

Jerusalem can only gain through cooperative neighborhood initiatives ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Daily Star by Fuad Abu Hamed, Hagai Agmon-Snir - (Opinion) September 9, 2009 - 12:00am All over the Western world, community empowerment programs encourage resident participation by involving community leaders and organizers in decisions about the city in which they live. What could be better than the authorities and residents taking joint responsibility for muni­cipal challenges? In East Jerusalem, this is not so straightforward. » Read more

The Salam Fayad Document: A Palestinian Initiative to Bear Responsibility ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Dar Al-Hayat by Raghida Dergham - (Analysis) September 9, 2009 - 12:00am Quite frankly, the program put forth by the government of the Palestinian Authority, detailed by Prime Minister Salam Fayyad in a document entitled “Palestine: Ending the Occupation, Establishing the State”, for the next two years is the only program that preserves the two states, undermines the occupation and ruptures its backbone by building the institutions of the de facto state. » Read more

Israel is not at all interested in peace ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Gulf News (Editorial) September 9, 2009 - 12:00am It is becoming increasingly clear to the United States and Europe that Israel is simply not interested in returning to peace negotiations or ever will be under its current leadership. The latest show of defiance from Netanyahu's government came through a few days ago when Israel officially approved the construction of 455 new colonies in the West Bank, totally dismissing US and others' demand to freeze all colony activity. » Read more