November 21st

Towards more trade with Palestine ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Jordan Times by Fahed Fanek - (Opinion) November 21, 2011 - 1:00am Supporting the steadfastness of the Palestinians on their soil is supposed to be a firm and repeatedly confirmed Jordanian policy. Such policy is not subject to reservations or reconsideration at any time. However, the details of the current trade between Jordan and Palestine, as revealed by the Department of Statistics, do not support this claim. Trade with Palestine is running at a very low level. The trend deserves to be corrected, sooner rather than later, if we really want Palestinians to stay in Palestine. » Read more

A consensus that further isolates a repressive Israel ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The National (Editorial) November 21, 2011 - 1:00am The latest international condemnation of Israel will receive the usual denunciation, but it is becoming harder to deny. There is a growing international consensus that Israel is constructing a repressive system governing Palestinians that can be compared to apartheid South Africa. It is a mark of shame, and one that Israel has tried to reject. » Read more

Bibi Is a Liar, So What's the Fuss? ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Jewish Daily Forward by Leonard Fein - (Opinion) November 20, 2011 - 1:00am Few stories that start out as potential bombshells end up as utterly duddish (from “dud”) as the “hot mic” exchange between Presidents Sarkozy and Obama. Duddish, that is, here in Israel, where I am for a couple of weeks; not so back home, in the States, as we shall see. If I were a rich man, I’d immediately do a survey of Israeli public opinion, a survey with just two questions: (1) Do you believe that Prime Minister Netanyahu is a liar? (2) Do you hope that Prime Minister Netanyahu will stay in power for another term after the next elections? » Read more

An open letter to Christian leaders in Jerusalem ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Jerusalem Post by David Michaels - (Opinion) November 19, 2011 - 1:00am I write with a request: for your forgiveness. As a representative of the oldest Jewish communal organization – B’nai B’rith International, which includes members of many backgrounds in over 50 countries, including Israel, where we have been present in Jerusalem since 1888 – I feel obliged to express my revulsion over new reported incidents of spitting at Christian clergy in certain areas of the Holy City. I feel especially obliged to do so as an Orthodox Jew. » Read more

The ultra-Orthodox are changing the face of the IDF ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Haaretz by Amos Harel - (Opinion) November 18, 2011 - 1:00am The 19 reservist major generals who signed the letter to Chief of Staff Benny Gantz on Monday, warning of extremist religious trends in the Israel Defense Forces, "were in the army long ago," Rabbi Avichai Rontzki declared this week. Brig. Gen. (res. ) Rontzki, who was chief army rabbi until a year and a half ago, claimed that the veteran officers don't know what the IDF is like anymore. "Things are different nowadays," he explained. » Read more

New 'Jewish identity' bill will cause chaos in Israel ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Haaretz by Shlomo Avineri - (Opinion) November 21, 2011 - 1:00am In response to the scathing criticism and pressure within his Kadima party, MK Avi Dichter retreated from his original proposal for a Basic Law on Israel - the Nation-State of the Jewish People. Instead, he proposed what was ostensibly a softened version. But anyone who opposes the first version will oppose the second. In the new version, too, the bill is unnecessary and merely deepens tensions between Jews and Arabs, as well as among various parts of the Jewish population. And it will give Israel a bad name. There is only one remedy for this bill - to shelve it completely. » Read more

'Dangerous' balancing act threatening Palestinian Authority leader ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The National by Hugh Naylor - November 21, 2011 - 1:00am JERUSALEM // Critics say Mahmoud Abbas's reputation as the president of the Palestinian Authority is that of an indecisive leader who has regularly caved in to foreign pressure. But lately, those same commentators have expressed empathy for the 76-year-old, who is grappling with daunting challenges. "All his options are difficult because all would involve some degree of conflict with Israel and the US at the same time," said George Giacaman, a professor in Birzeit University's democracy and human-rights programme. » Read more

PCBS: Unemployment Up to 26.8% in Third Quarter ATFP World Press Roundup Article from WAFA November 21, 2011 - 1:00am RAMALLAH, November 21, 2011 (WAFA) - Unemployment rate in the Palestinian Territory increased from 24.0% in second quarter of 2011 to 26.8% in the third quarter, the Palestinian Central Bureau of Statistics (PCBS) said Monday. The PCBS labor force survey showed that the highest unemployment rate in the West Bank was in Tulkarm, while the highest in Gaza was in Rafah. It said that labor force participation rate of people aged 15 years and above was 43.6%. » Read more

Israel to continue freeze on Palestinian tax money, says senior official ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Haaretz by Barak Ravid - November 21, 2011 - 1:00am Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and his forum of eight senior ministers decided Sunday to continue Israel's freeze on the transfer of the Palestinian Authority's tax money, a senior Israeli official said, due to the latest moves by Fatah and Hamas aimed at establishing a unity government. Israel has been withholding $100 million of the PA's money, which Israel collects for it under the Oslo Accords. » Read more

The banality of a Palestinian's arrest ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Haaretz by Amira Hass - November 21, 2011 - 1:00am 1. A Palestinian is arrested - a routine matter (the routine in question took place on October 21, 2011). 2. The usual charges: "Throwing an object, including a stone, with the intention of harming a person or property," and organizing an illegal demonstration in which he participated. » Read more