April 19th

House Newcomer Defies GOP Leaders on Israel, From the Right Read more ATFP World Press Roundup Article from by Nathan Guttman, Josh Nathan-Kazis - April 18, 2011 - 12:00am For those who know him, it was no surprise when freshman Rep. Michael Grimm broke ranks with his party and became the first House Republican to call for the release of Jonathan Pollard. The freshman member from New York has made Israel a key element of his political work. And while the Republican House leadership has thus far refrained from speaking out in favor of a commutation of Pollard’s life sentence for spying for Israel, Grimm pays small heed to political consensus. » Read more

A needless death in Gaza, and one less witness to its plight ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The National by Charles Glass - April 19, 2011 - 12:00am The spectacle of a European or North American hostage - shackled and blindfolded - has been a recurring sight in the Middle East since kidnapping became a political weapon in Lebanon in 1982. More often than not, the culprits claimed their captives were spies, soldiers or agents of foreign powers. That was usually, though not always, a lie. The reason most foreigners within the grasp of, say, Hizbollah in Lebanon or extremists in Gaza, remained in the danger zone was to help the victims of occupation. Their own humanity was their undoing. » Read more

Abbas arrives in Tunis for three-day visit ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Xinhua April 18, 2011 - 12:00am Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas arrived on Monday in Tunis for a three-day work visit, the official press agency TAP reported. Abbas was met at the airport by senior Tunisian officials including Interim Prime Minister Beji Caid Essebsi and Foreign Minister Mouldi Kefi. It is Abbas' first visit to Tunisia since former president Zine El Abidine Ben Ali fled the country on January 14.

Fatah man dies days after Hamas arrested him ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Xinhua April 19, 2011 - 12:00am A Palestinian from Fatah party has died Tuesday in a prison run by rival Hamas movement in the Gaza Strip, local sources said. The detainee, Adel Rezeq, has been held at one of Hamas' internal security detention facilities since Thursday, sources from local rights groups added. The sources noted that a call for an investigation would be issued soon, as the circumstances behind the death are still unknown. The 50-year-old man was not suffering from any illness "and was in a very good condition when he was arrested," his brother, Muin, told Xinhua. » Read more

Jewish groups debate ways to thwart U.N. recognition of ‘Palestine’ ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Jewish Telegraphic Agency (JTA) by Ron Kampeas - April 15, 2011 - 12:00am The path to international recognition of Palestinian statehood by September -- when the Palestinians plan to bring the matter before the U.N. General Assembly -- seems clear. The question before Israel and its supporters who oppose such recognition is how to create a detour. Some say the way to go is through diplomatic suasion. Others say there needs to be a push forward with peace initiatives. Still others believe that threatening counteractions is the best way to derail the Palestinian plan. » Read more

West Bank contractors protest unpaid fees ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Ma'an News Agency April 19, 2011 - 12:00am Contractors and their union representatives protested Monday outside the Palestinian Authority Ministry of Finance in Ramallah over millions of dollars owed to them by the government. Union officials said the PA owed the contractors around 200 million shekels (around $58 million) for their work on government projects. PA Prime Minister Salam Fayyad's advisor Jamal Zaqout talked to the contractors and suggested they met with the premier Tuesday to discuss the debt but protesters refused the proposal, a Ma'an correspondent said. » Read more

No one is really interested ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Bitterlemons by Yossi Alpher - (Opinion) April 18, 2011 - 12:00am The question why there is no peace progress offers a good opportunity to review the obstacles to peace that have emerged in the course of the past two and a half years. During that time, Israeli Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu and US President Barack Obama took office, and the Olmert-Abbas peace talks ended in failure. » Read more

State funeral for Italian activist slain in Gaza ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Ma'an News Agency April 19, 2011 - 12:00am Palestinian civilians joined members of the Hamas police and security forces on Monday for a funeral to mourn the death of an Italian activist killed by a Salafist group last week. Hundreds of people gathered in Gaza City and at the Rafah border crossing to pay to their respects to Vittorio Arrigoni, 36, who was found hanged in an empty house in northern Gaza on Friday, hours after he was kidnapped. His body was carried from Gaza City's Shifa Hospital in a wooden coffin draped in a Palestinian flag and strewn with rose petals. » Read more

Abbas: New PA cabinet within a week ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Ma'an News Agency April 19, 2011 - 12:00am A new Palestinian Authority cabinet will be announced within the week, President Mahmoud Abbas told interviewers on the Al-Arabiya satellite channel Monday, as he headed for Tunis to meet with its new transitional government. "Since Hamas did not respond positively, we cannot wait anymore," Abbas said over his earlier decision to postpone the reappointment of a cabinet, which he said was an attempt to buy time for a reconciliation effort between Fatah and Hamas. » Read more

Israel under pressure to offer peace plan ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Los Angeles Times by Edmund Sanders - April 19, 2011 - 12:00am Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is under mounting pressure to unveil a new plan for solving the longstanding Israeli-Palestinian conflict or risk having the U.S. and international community move ahead with a strategy of their own. » Read more