Israeli leaders choosing personal interests over law ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Haaretz (Editorial) November 14, 2011 - 1:00am Late last week, another mark of disgrace was stamped on the foreheads of Israel's decision-makers and law enforcement authorities. The response that the state submitted to a High Court of Justice petition filed by Palestinian farmers demanding the return of their land, on which the settlement of Amona was built, is still more evidence of an incredibly serious phenomenon - the government and prosecution's collaboration with thieves and lawbreakers. » Read more

Obama makes his Jewish outreach work harder ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Haaretz by Natasha Mozgovaya - (Blog) November 12, 2011 - 1:00am It's not nice to publicly use overheard conversation, but during tense elections, there is no chance that a dialogue between the French and the U.S. presidents will be easily dismissed. On Friday, Republican presidential hopeful, former Speaker of the House Newt Gingrich, addressed the Obama-Sarkozy "hot mic" remarks at the opening of his New Hampshire campaign office. » Read more

The Irony of Netanyahu's 'Success Story' ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Huffington Post by Alon Ben-Meir - (Opinion) November 14, 2011 - 1:00am It is ironic how those loyal to Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu have created a narrative of a success story of Netanyahu's achievements where failure is clearly rampant. They point to the solidity of the governing coalition, the halting of the Gaza flotillas, the failure of the Palestinian UN gambit, the release of Gilad Shalit, the expansion of settlements and the standing ovation from Congress, all while defiantly opposing any of the peacemaking moves proposed by President Obama. » Read more

Ransoming Israel’s chance for peace ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Jordan Times by Shlomo Ben-Ami - (Opinion) November 19, 2011 - 1:00am The exchange of prisoners between enemies is often a prelude to political reconciliation. Unfortunately, the recent exchange between Israel and Hamas, in which the Islamist organisation gained the lion’s share of more than 1,000 prisoners in exchange for the Israeli soldier Gilad Shalit, does not augur well for the chances of an Israeli-Palestinian peace. » Read more

I'm Palestinian - but where am I from? ATFP World Press Roundup Article from BBC News by Mourid Barghouti - (Opinion) November 11, 2011 - 1:00am For years, the Facebook team has been reminding me that I have to edit my profile and add the country I come from. As a matter of fact, I deliberately left this out because of my irresponsible fancy that writers belong everywhere and to everyone. Fed up with the dogged persistence of that dialogue box, I finally complied and clicked the "edit" button to write down "Palestine". Oh, it was not as easy as I had thought. I am not allowed to type, I must select from an alphabetically prearranged list of countries. » Read more

Reducing dangers to Israeli democracy ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Jerusalem Post by Susan Hattis Rolef - (Opinion) November 13, 2011 - 1:00am Many observers, mostly left-wing liberals but not only, are worried about the state of Israeli democracy. The danger, they say, is coming from several directions. First on the list are legislative initiatives allegedly designed to discourage freedom of speech, human rights activities and a settlement of the conflict with the Palestinians based on territorial compromise, and to encourage a change in the make-up of the Supreme Court. » Read more

It's not that Israel is finding new ways to expel Palestinians, it's that no one cares ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Haaretz by Amira Hass - (Opinion) November 14, 2011 - 1:00am The affair of the rapist president Moshe Katsav is always associated in my mind with my limitations as a journalist. And the mention of the week in which the affair became public (after July 8, 2006 ) brings to mind the Israeli expulsion bureaucracy. » Read more

The anti-Bibi debacle ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Ynetnews by Deborah Danino Harkham - (Opinion) November 13, 2011 - 1:00am “I cannot stand him anymore,” said S. “He is a liar.” “You’re fed up with him, but I have to deal with him every day!” added O. At first, this seems like an innocuous and banal exchange – albeit petty – between colleagues indulging in gossip for lack of better things to discuss. The problem here is that the characters of this scene are not your average men on the street, they are the heads of state of two of the world’s most powerful countries: US President Barack Obama and French President Nicolas Sarkozy. » Read more

‘You are fed up with him?’ ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Arab News by Uri Avnery - (Analysis) November 14, 2011 - 1:00am With the Internet now everywhere, it has become impossible to suppress news YOU CAN lie to all of the people some of the time, and to some of the people all of the time, but you cannot lie to all of the people all of the time.” » Read more

Why should anyone believe Netanyahu? ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Haaretz by Akiva Eldar - (Opinion) November 14, 2011 - 1:00am If the law enabled putting leaders on trial for serial defrauding of the public and obtaining support through deception, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu would be keeping company with Moshe Katsav in prison. The former president has been convicted of raping women who were his subordinates and misuse of his authority. Netanyahu is having his nefarious way with Israeli democracy and using his status in order to lead Israeli society astray, all the way to diplomatic and economic isolation. » Read more