August 4th

New US ambassador says Obama might visit Israel ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Statesman by The Associated Press - August 3, 2011 - 12:00am The new U.S. ambassador to Israel says President Barack Obama hopes to visit. Daniel Shapiro presented his credentials to Israeli President Shimon Peres on Wednesday. The 42-year-old Shapiro is Jewish and speaks Hebrew and Arabic. He told Israeli TV stations the U.S. is trying to restart peace talks to head off the Palestinian effort to win recognition from the U.N. He told Channel 2 TV the U.S. is hopeful but that "it's not certain that we will be able to achieve a formula." » Read more

President Peres Accepts Credentials of U.S. Ambassador to Israel ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Embassy of Israel to the United States August 3, 2011 - 12:00am President Shimon Peres accepted the credentials today (August 3) of the incoming Ambassador of the United States to Israel, Daniel Shapiro. » Read more

West Bank murder smashed the lie of 'honor killings' ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Ma'an News Agency August 3, 2011 - 12:00am Aya's remains were found bound, decomposed at the bottom of a well more than a year after she vanished without a trace, leaving her family beside themselves with worry. The university student's disappearance in April 2010 left her relatives increasingly ostracized in their southern West Bank village, an area known for its deeply conservative traditions and morals. Neighbors assumed the worst -- that their daughter had run away with a lover. » Read more

August 3rd

Something's Got to Give ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Foreign Policy by Marwan Muasher - (Opinion) July 27, 2011 - 12:00am Something -- or someone -- has got to give. With international momentum building for a U.N. resolution recognizing Palestinian statehood, Washington is finally coming to the realization that the Israeli-Palestinian status quo is unsustainable. » Read more

Where hope Is to be found ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Jewish Journal by David Myers - (Opinion) August 2, 2011 - 12:00am Recent events have cast a dark pall over Israel. The total collapse of negotiations between Israel and the Palestinian Authority (PA) has led the latter to pursue the course of unilateral action, as reflected in the drive for United Nations affirmation of Palestinian statehood in September. Meanwhile, a wave of parliamentary activity, instigated by Avigdor Lieberman’s Yisrael Beiteinu Party, threatens to undermine key foundations of Israel’s democratic tradition by seeking to stifle dissent and free expression. » Read more

A PALESTINIAN VIEW Sabotage or arrogance? ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Bitterlemons by Ghassan Khatib - (Opinion) August 1, 2011 - 12:00am The illegal changes that the Israeli occupier is undertaking in East Jerusalem have far-reaching consequences, not only for the day-to-day life of the Palestinian people, but also for the possibility of peace between the two sides. » Read more

AN ISRAELI VIEW Only by prioritizing the issues ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Bitterlemons by Yossi Alpher - (Opinion) August 1, 2011 - 12:00am It is not too late to create a Palestinian capital in Jerusalem alongside Israel's capital--unless this arrangement has to be part of a comprehensive, end-of-claims settlement between Israelis and Palestinians. In that case it is, and probably always has been, impossible. » Read more

Showdown over statehood bid ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Arab News by Osama Al-Sharif - (Opinion) August 2, 2011 - 12:00am Compared to East Timor, the first state to be welcomed into the UN community in the 21st century, or South Sudan, the latest newcomer into the 193-member organization, Palestine may fare much better as a state in terms of political, economic and social indicators. It certainly qualifies, in the view of many, in relation to the four accepted elements that are needed to be recognized as one. The elements are permanent population, a defined territory, a government and the capacity to enter into relations with others. » Read more

Editorial: A conjurer’s trick ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Arab News (Editorial) August 2, 2011 - 12:00am It is reported that, as a result of pressure from Washington, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is now willing to negotiate the border that will separate Israel and the future Palestinian state. It is being said that this represents both a breakthrough and a climb down by him. » Read more

Egypt-Sinai-Gaza: The triangular threat to Israel ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Jerusalem Post by Yoram Schweitzer, Gilad Stern, Einav Yogev - (Opinion) August 2, 2011 - 12:00am Last week’s attack on the gas pipeline in the El- Arish area in northern Sinai was the fifth such attack in the past six months. According to reports in the Egyptian press, four armed, masked men infiltrated the gas terminal, blew it up and escaped without disclosing their identities. The explosion caused serious damage to the pipeline, even more extensive than the damage caused in the attack of the previous week. » Read more