July 12th

What about Palestinian residents of Israel? ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Jerusalem Post by Ahmad Tibi - July 12, 2010 - 12:00am In the 11 years that I have served in the Knesset, I have received numerous death threats. Pulsa Denura (the term for a rabbinical death curse) has evidently taken exception to my consistent call for equal rights for the country’s Palestinian minority. Recently I received a letter – the second in as many days – that warned: “You have 180 days to live. Your death will be sudden and cruel, accompanied by great pain...” » Read more

A jihad’s inspiration ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Boston Globe by Philip Smucker - July 12, 2010 - 12:00am AMID THE frosty peaks of the Hindu Kush, I imagined the echo of George W. Bush’s words, “Justice will be done!’’ rebounding through the boulders like a snow leopard on the prowl. Nearly nine years after the terrorist attacks on Sept. 11, 2001, it is worth remembering that killing or capturing Osama bin Laden was once front and center of the US government’s anti-terrorism policy. » Read more

Gaza's smuggling-tunnel millionaire ATFP World Press Roundup Article from BBC World News by Jon Donnison - July 10, 2010 - 12:00am While many Gazans live in poverty, one Gazan refugee has used the illegal network of tunnels which enable goods to be smuggled into Gaza to build a millionaire's empire. Maybe, like most people in Gaza, I had been watching a little bit too much of the World Cup. But sitting on Abu Nafez's lush sprinkler-assisted lawn outside his palatial home in the southern Gaza Strip, I kept thinking it was a bit like meeting a Premiership footballer. » Read more

Palestinians in Syria have to be taught about 'home' ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The National by Phil Sands - July 11, 2010 - 12:00am A year before Srur Ali’s father died, he gave his son a bundle of papers, wrapped in a pillowcase and a plastic bag, with instructions that they were a priceless inheritance and must never be lost. Aged 15 at the time, Srur, a Palestinian refugee living in Syria, gave little thought to the contents but promised to protect them. For the next half-century the documents were hidden away. » Read more

The other Israeli conflict: with itself ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Christian Science Monitor by Joshua Mitnick - July 12, 2010 - 12:00am With side curls tucked under wire-rimmed glasses, Mordechai Kry­bus has become an ultra-Orthodox celebrity virtually overnight. Israel's Supreme Court ruled that the Emmanuel elementary school, which his daughter attends, practices de facto ethnic segregation by separating students along religious lines. Mr. Kyrbus and 35 other parents went to jail rather than comply with what they considered religious coercion by the secular court. » Read more

The US Shift in Peace ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Dar Al-Hayat by Raghida Dergham - July 9, 2010 - 12:00am It would be appropriate to resume direct negotiations between the Palestinian Authority and the Israeli government within “a few weeks” as long as President Barack Obama has a clear vision of what the role of the US should be in the negotiations, from the strategic perspective as well as from the perspective of the structure of opinions and how to implement them. » Read more

Libya's Qaddafi latest to challenge Israel's Gaza blockade ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Christian Science Monitor by Joshua Mitnick - July 12, 2010 - 12:00am Six weeks after Israeli commandos killed nine pro-Palestinian activists to prevent a Turkish aid ship from reaching the Gaza Strip, tensions are on the rise as a Libyan-sponsored vessel sets out to challenge Israel's naval blockade of the Hamas-controlled territory. Backed by a charity headed by the son of Libyan ruler Muammar Qaddafi, the ship Amalthea is carrying a cargo of 2,000 tons of food. Organizers say the plan is to reach Gaza within the coming days. » Read more

ISRAEL: Don't restart negotiations from scratch, former peace-table adversaries agree ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Los Angeles Times by Edmund Sanders - July 12, 2010 - 12:00am Two years ago Tzipi Livni and Ahmed Qurei had a standing rendezvous at Jerusalem's King David Hotel, at least twice a week, to hash over hotly disputed issues such as borders, refugees and the future of Jerusalem. Back then meetings between the then-Israeli foreign minister and the former Palestinian Authority prime minister hardly drew notice. No reporters, no cameras and no fanfare. But their return engagement on the same stage Sunday caused a mini stir since direct Israeli-Palestinian peace talks have been stalled since 2008 and they hadn't seen each other since. » Read more

Pressure for direct Israeli-Palestinian builds ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Los Angeles Times by Edmund Sanders - July 12, 2010 - 12:00am Pressure intensified for a resumption of direct peace talks between Israel and the Palestinian Authority on Sunday, but Palestinian leaders continued to insist that Israel first freeze settlement construction in the West Bank. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said he would travel to Cairo this week to solicit help from Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak in persuading the Palestinian Authority to resume direct talks. Get dispatches from Times correspondents around the globe delivered to your inbox with our daily World newsletter. Sign up » » Read more

Shin Bet visits West Bank cities to boost security ties with PA ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Haaretz by Amos Harel, Avi Issacharoff - (Blog) July 12, 2010 - 12:00am Shin Bet security service head Yuval Diskin recently spent a day in the West Bank city of Jenin as a guest of the Palestinian Authority's security service. This is Diskin's second visit of this kind to Palestinian Authority territory in recent months, the aim of which is to coordinate security ties between Israel and the PA. The first visit was to Ramallah. The meetings have not been made public, in accordance with an agreement between the two sides. » Read more