February 16th

Milestones along the road to a new Mideast peace ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Haaretz by Ari Shavit - (Opinion) February 16, 2012 - 1:00am The first basic assumption of the new peace is that, in the coming years, no Israeli-Palestinian peace deal will be signed. Of course, we must keep trying. Some secret diplomatic team must always be maintained to conduct hushed-up negotiations to check whether it is possible. But the working assumption is that, in the current strategic environment, there's no chance of resolving the problems of Jerusalem, the refugees or Hamas. Someday there will be peace, perhaps, but not in this decade. » Read more

Israel’s other reasons to bomb Iran ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Jordan Times by Osama Al-Sharif - (Opinion) February 15, 2012 - 1:00am US Defence Secretary Leon Panetta predicts that Israel will direct a preemptive strike against Iran’s nuclear facilities “in April, May or June”, according to David Ignatius, the widely-circulated Washington Post columnist. In the view of many Western analysts, Israel has taken the decision to bomb Iran and is only waiting for an opportune time to direct its blow. » Read more

Israel a bigger concern ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Gulf Times by George S. Hishmeh - (Opinion) February 16, 2012 - 1:00am The carnage under way in Syria, particularly in Homs, is reprehensible. The bloody conflict, which has so far cost the lives of some 7,000 people, threatens to precipitate a civil war in this key Arab state adjoining several other prominent countries in the Middle East. What it will take to bring about a cessation of hostilities in Syria is the 64,000-dollar question, as Americans would say. Despite the pleas of besieged Syrians, all attempts to end the crackdown on protesters have failed. » Read more

On Iran, a stark choice ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Los Angeles Times by Benny Morris - (Opinion) February 14, 2012 - 1:00am Most people in the Arab world, according to opinion polls, believe that the Holocaust never happened, that it's a Jewish invention and trick to win the world's sympathy and support. President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad of Iran is similarly minded; he has said so countless times. » Read more

How history lessons could deter Iranian aggression ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Washington Post by Fareed Zakaria - (Opinion) February 15, 2012 - 1:00am We are hearing a new concept these days in discussions about Iran — the zone of immunity. The idea, often explained by Ehud Barak, Israel’s defense minister, is that soon Iran will have enough nuclear capability that Israel would not be able to inflict a crippling blow to its program. » Read more

Palestinian hunger striker Khader Adnan 'near death' in Israeli detention ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Guardian by Harriet Sherwood - February 16, 2012 - 1:00am A Palestinian prisoner on his 61st day of hunger strike while shackled to a bed in an Israeli hospital is in immediate danger of death, according to a medical report submitted to the supreme court in an effort to secure his release. Khader Adnan, 33, a baker from a village near Jenin, is being held without charge by the Israeli authorities under a four-month term of "administrative detention". He began his hunger strike on 18 December, the day after being arrested. » Read more

Transatlantic Jewish Meeting Triggers Row ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Jewish Daily Forward by Nathan Guttman - February 15, 2012 - 1:00am Washington — A recent meeting between American Jewry’s primary umbrella group for Israel and other foreign affairs, and a controversial new European group has sparked heated exchanges among European and American Jewish leaders. In the days leading up to the meeting, communal officials on both continents warned the Conference of Presidents of Major American Jewish Organizations against its plans for an official exchange involving the American umbrella group and the European Jewish Union. » Read more

Obama administration to seek waiver on UNESCO funding ban ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Jewish Telegraphic Agency (JTA) by Ron Kampeas - February 15, 2012 - 1:00am WASHINGTON (JTA) -- The Obama administration formally announced its intention to ask Congress to waive a ban on funding UNESCO over its recognition of Palestinian statehood. "The Department of State intends to work with Congress to seek legislation that would provide authority to waive restrictions on paying the U.S. assessed contributions to UNESCO," says a footnote in the budget that the White House submitted to Congress this month. » Read more

Israeli Arab journalist switches airline after 'humiliating' El Al security check ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Haaretz by Jack Khoury - February 16, 2012 - 1:00am An Arab journalist says she was so profoundly insulted by El Al security staff at a Milan airport that she changed her itinerary and may sue the Israeli national carrier. Yara Mashour is the editor of the Nazareth-based women's magazine Lilac and the daughter of the late Lutfi Mashour, the editor and publisher of the Arabic weekly Al-Sinara. Yesterday she related what she said happened to her, her brother-in-law and another relative when they arrived at Milan's Malpensa Airport on Monday for their return flight to Israel, and reached the El Al security checkpoint. » Read more

Gaza power plant stops due to smuggled fuel shortage ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Reuters by Nidal al-Mughrabi - February 14, 2012 - 1:00am GAZA, Feb 14 (Reuters) - The Gaza Strip's only power station, which supplies the Palestinian enclave with up to two-thirds of its energy needs, was shut down on Tuesday because of a shortage of fuel smuggled in from neighbouring Egypt. The closure led to widespread blackouts for Gaza's 1.7 million inhabitants. The local power company warned that households would receive only six hours of electricity a day until the problem was resolved. » Read more