June 7th

Israel Ambassador Rejects Flotilla Clash Inquiry ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The New York Times by Isabel Kershner - June 7, 2010 - 12:00am Israel’s ambassador to Washington said Sunday that his country would reject an international inquiry into last week’s deadly raid on a Turkish ship, but there was still no formal announcement from Jerusalem on the matter. “We are rejecting the idea of an international commission,” Michael B. Oren, the ambassador, told Fox News Sunday. “We are discussing with the Obama administration the way in which our inquiry will take place.” He added, “At the end of the day, Israel has the right, the duty, as a democracy to investigate any military activity.” » Read more

June 4th

Parliament comes close to blows over flotilla raid ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Los Angeles Times by Batsheva Sobelman - (Blog) June 4, 2010 - 12:00am A discussion in Israel's parliament Wednesday went from heated to a total boil as lawmaker Haneen Zoabi took the stand. Zoabi, an Arab Israeli legislator, took part in the Gaza flotilla and was aboard the Mavi Marmara during the ill-fated takeover that left nine dead and dozens more injured. Jewish public opinion in Israel was not impressed with her decision to join aid ship. Some dismissed it as a populist, attention-seeking move. Others denounced her participation as siding with the country's enemies conspiring against the state. » Read more

4 rockets hit south ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Ynetnews by Shumlik Hadad - June 4, 2010 - 12:00am Four Qassam rockets were fired from the Gaza Strip into Israel Thursday, causing no injuries. One rocket was fired at Sderot Thursday evening prompting the Color Red alert to go off. The Qassam apparently exploded in an open area near the town. Earlier in the evening, two rockets landed near the southern city of Ashkelon, while another rocket landed in the Ashkelon Beach region, near a kibbutz. » Read more

Hamas raids, closes NGO offices ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Jerusalem Post by Khaled Abu Toameh - June 4, 2010 - 12:00am Hamas’s security forces on Monday and Tuesday raided the offices of several non-governmental organizations in the Gaza Strip and confiscated equipment and furniture, drawing sharp condemnations from human rights groups. The sources said the raids were carried out by agents belonging to Hamas’s Internal Security apparatus without court permission. Hamas spokesmen in the Gaza Strip on Thursday refused to comment on the raids. » Read more

In its hour of need, Israel was let down by Diaspora ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Haaretz by Anshel Pfeffer - (Opinion) June 4, 2010 - 12:00am "We felt like the Ramallah lynch." I am certain that the unnamed Israeli naval commando who said these words to a reporter a few hours after the bloodbath on the Mavi Marmara regrets them now. It is quite clear why the image came to his mind at the time. None of us has forgotten the pictures of a baying mob literally hacking to pieces the reservists Yossi Avrahami and Vadim Nurzhitz nine and a half years ago and throwing their bodies out of the window of a Palestinian police station. » Read more

Henning Mankell on Gaza flotilla attack: 'I think they went out to murder' ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Guardian by Kate Connolly - June 3, 2010 - 12:00am The bestselling Swedish crime writer Henning Mankell today accused Israel of murder, piracy and kidnapping after describing how the aid ship he was travelling on was seized by Israeli forces this week. Mankell, whose detective novels featuring the commissar Kurt Wallander have sold almost 30m copies worldwide, was aboard the Swedish ship Sofia, one of six ships in the flotilla carrying aid to Gaza. The 25-strong crew, including Mankell, were all arrested and held in custody. » Read more

Netanyahu was right ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Haaretz by Gideon Levy - (Opinion) June 4, 2010 - 12:00am The time has come to take off our hats to the prime minister. Benjamin Netanyahu's predictions have proved accurate, and his prophecies are coming true right before our eyes. Now we can proudly declare that our government is led by a man of vision, a statesman who has foretold the future. Even his greatest critics can't deny it; the facts speak for themselves. » Read more

Gaza flotilla: Sarah Colborne's account ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Guardian by Robert Booth - June 3, 2010 - 12:00am On Sunday 30th we set off together. We had assembled all the boats in international waters. At 11pm that night, Israeli naval boats were detected on the radar and sighted and a decision was made to move further back into international waters, further from Israel. » Read more

Interior Minister seeks to strip Israeli Arab MK of citizenship ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Haaretz by Barak Ravid - June 4, 2010 - 12:00am Interior Minister Eli Yishai petitioned Attorney General Yehuda Weinstein to help him revoke the Israeli citizenship of Israeli Arab MK Hanin Zuabi, who took part in efforts to break Israel's blockade of Gaza on a flotilla of aid ships earlier this week. » Read more

The flotilla - a non-violent success? ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Jordan Times by Jonathan Power - June 4, 2010 - 12:00am The unprovoked and murderous Israeli commando attack on the peace flotilla is the Selma of the Arab-Jewish struggle for the land of Palestine. » Read more