March 16th

Root of Israeli paranoia ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Gulf News by George S. Hishmeh - (Opinion) March 15, 2012 - 12:00am After failing to arm-twist Barack Obama over Iran’s nuclear programme, Benjamin Netanyahu thought he could take his frustration out on Palestinians, especially those in the Gaza Strip. But, if anything, Israel’s four-day aerial bombardment has once again underlined that the number-one issue in the Middle East remains Israel’s failure to negotiate a peaceful settlement with the Palestinians, most of whom lost 78 per cent of their homeland since 1948. » Read more

Israel Stops Infiltration From Egypt, 1 Killed ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Associated Press March 15, 2012 - 12:00am JERUSALEM — The Israeli military says soldiers have stopped an infiltration attempt along the Israel-Egypt border. One infiltrator was killed and three wounded. A military statement said the incident occurred late Thursday. It said soldiers saw the infiltrators and ordered them to stop. When they ignored the order, the soldiers opened fire. The statement said there was also gunfire from the Egyptian side of the border. The statement did not say if the infiltrators were armed. Often, migrants from Africa try to sneak into Israel, seeking refuge or work. » Read more

Syrian Security Forces ‘Warn Palestinian Camp’ ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Ma'an News Agency March 16, 2012 - 12:00am BETHLEHEM (Ma’an) -- Sources in Damascus say Syrian security forces threatened to raid the Yarmuk refugee camp due to Fatah's alleged support of demonstrations against Syrian leader Bashar Assad. “Yarmuk is not more precious than (Homs neighborhood) Baba Amro, and it will be raided if the demonstrations which Fatah movement organizes” continue, a security agent was quoted as saying. Syrian security forces have detained a number of Fatah members: Ayman Juda Abu Ala, public action official in Yarmuk, Jihad Abu Yousef, Abdul Wahed Kherma, Firas Tahmaz, and Amjad Sadya. » Read more

Open Letter to Hamas: You Are Responsible for Your People's Fate ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Huffington Post by Carlo Strenger - (Opinion) March 15, 2012 - 12:00am The last days have brought another round of violence between Gaza and Israel. Most commentators assume that neither Hamas nor Israel in interested in further escalation of the hostilities that have been initiated by Islamic Jihad this time, ostensibly to jockey for position vis-à-vis Hamas. Iron Dome has prevented casualties on Israel's side, but it has almost paralyzed life in Southern Israel. So far the death toll in Gaza is 26, and we can only hope that it will not rise any further. » Read more

A Year On, Unity Activists Ponder Next Steps ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Ma'an News Agency March 16, 2012 - 12:00am BETHLEHEM (Ma'an) -- The anniversary of the March 15 movement to restore unity to the occupied territories passed quietly Wednesday, with no major rallies in Palestinian cities. The principle demands of the masses who demonstrated in the West Bank and Gaza have yet to be met, although the leaders of Fatah and Hamas technically agreed to reconcile in May 2011. Progress has stalled ever since. » Read more

Israel Aircraft Open Fire West of Gaza City ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Ma'an News Agency March 16, 2012 - 12:00am GAZA CITY (MA’an) -- Israeli helicopters opened fire toward farmland in the Sheikh Ajlen area west of Gaza City late Thursday, witnesses said. No injuries were reported. An Israeli military spokeswoman said aircraft fired warning shots in response to rocket fire. Earlier, several rockets were fired toward the western Negev, Israeli media reported. A Grad rocket was intercepted by a nearby "Iron Dome" battery, and another rocket landed in an open area in the Eshkol regional council outside Hof Ashkelon, Israel's Ynet news service reported. » Read more

Members of Israel’s Diverse African Community Join Forces to Lobby for Better Treatment ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Associated Press March 16, 2012 - 12:00am DIMONA, Israel — For years, Israel’s array of African communities had little interaction, divided by religious, linguistic and cultural differences. That is changing. They are facing a common situation in Israel — relegated to bottom rungs, partly because of discrimination over their skin color. That has brought some members of a wide range of communities together, including Jewish Ethiopians, nomadic Muslim Arabs and migrants from Eritrea and Sudan. » Read more

Turkey’s Erdogan to Discuss Palestinian Reconciliation Efforts with Hamas’ Exiled Leader ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Associated Press March 16, 2012 - 12:00am ANKARA, Turkey — Turkey’s prime minister is meeting Hamas’ chief Khaled Mashaal to discuss reconciliation efforts between the rival Palestinian factions. Recep Tayyip Erdogan said Friday he would be discussing developments concerning Palestinian unity in Ankara on Friday with Hamas’ top leader in exile. Reconciliation efforts between Hamas — shunned by the West as a terror group — and Fatah continue, but they have encountered new obstacles. » Read more

March 15th

The Other One Staters ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Daily Beast by Peter Beinart - (Opinion) March 15, 2012 - 12:00am Sometimes I love right-wing Christians. In the past few weeks, in the wake of pro-BDS conferences at Harvard and the University of Pennsylvania, American Jewish groups have been venting their outrage about the legitimacy that powerful institutions are giving to people who support turning Israel, the West Bank and the Gaza Strip into a single state. This Jewish outrage is not surprising, explains the Anti-Defamation League, because the “ADL has consistently expressed opposition to any notion of a one-state solution.” » Read more

A Journalist's Battle with Hamas ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Daily Beast by George Hale - (Opinion) March 14, 2012 - 12:00am Several prominent critics of Hamas have departed the Gaza Strip in recent weeks, relocating abroad nearly one year since grassroots activists launched a popular movement to democratize Palestinian politics and re-unite the occupied West Bank and Gaza. The failure of the so-called March 15 movement to end the division between Fatah and Hamas has wreaked havoc on freedom of speech and the press for residents of the occupied territories, who continue to be ruled by rival regimes. The news agency I work for, Maan, is no exception. » Read more