AP Interview: Prosecutor says Palestinians could join ICC as a UN non-member observer state ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Associated Press (Interview) April 4, 2012 - 12:00am UNITED NATIONS — The International Criminal Court’s chief prosecutor said Wednesday the war crimes tribunal would allow the Palestinians to sign up if the U.N. General Assembly approves a resolution recognizing Palestine as a non-member observer state. Prosecutor Luis Moreno-Ocampo ruled Tuesday that only internationally recognized states can join the court, and therefore the Palestinian Authority’s bid for membership could not be accepted. » Read more

Mishal sole candidate for Hamas presidency –sources ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Asharq Alawsat April 4, 2012 - 12:00am Occupied Jerusalem, Asharq Al-Awsat – A well-informed source within the Hamas movement informed Asharq Al-Awsat that the internal elections for the Hamas Shura Council and Political Bureau are expected to take place within the next two weeks. The source revealed that in the first phase, members of local Consultative Councils are selected, who in turn vote for the Hamas Shura Council, which ultimately elects the movement’s administrative leadership, the Hamas Political Bureau. » Read more

PM looks to convert three outposts to settlements ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Jerusalem Post by Tovah Lazaroff, Joanna Paraszczuck - April 5, 2012 - 12:00am In a move likely to be condemned by the international community, Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu on Wednesday said that his government planned to transform three West Bank Jewish outposts – Bruchin, Rehalim and Sansana – into new settlements. All three communities were created on state land over a decade ago, Rehalim in 1991, Sansana in 1997 and Bruchin in 1999, but were never authorized as settlements by the government. The government last authorized a settlement, Negahot, in 1999. » Read more

Israel asks US for $700 million in military aid ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Ynetnews by Ron Ben-Yishai - April 4, 2012 - 12:00am Israel has asked the United States for assistance estimated at $700 million in order to produce more Iron Dome and Magic Wand missile and rocket defense batteries, sources told Ynet on Wednesday. The Iron Dome is designed to intercept rockets fired from a relatively short range, while the Magic Wand intercepts missiles fired from a range of at least 70km, including cruise missiles and missiles with ballistic warheads such as the Squd, Shihab and Sejil. » Read more

German author Grass says Israel endangers world peace ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Reuters by Gareth Jones - April 4, 2012 - 12:00am BERLIN (Reuters) -- Nobel Prize-winning German writer Guenter Grass has attacked Israel as a threat to world peace and said it must not be allowed to launch military strikes against Iran, in a poem that led one German newspaper to brand him "the eternal anti-Semite." Grass, 84, a seasoned campaigner for left-wing causes and a critic of Western military interventions such as Iraq, also condemned German arms sales to Israel in his poem "What must be said", published in the Sueddeutsche Zeitung daily on Wednesday. » Read more

Woman jailed for Abbas insult 'in isolation' ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Ma'an News Agency April 4, 2012 - 12:00am RAMALLAH (Ma'an) -- The condition of a woman arrested over her critical writings about President Mahmoud Abbas is deteriorating in isolation, a member of the Palestinian Journalists Syndicate said Tuesday. Ismat Abdul Khaliq was seen by doctors late Tuesday before being returned to her cell, said Nihad Abu Ghosh, a member of the syndicate. He said the prosecution is refusing to let her see visitors. » Read more

Presidency: Israeli settlement tender 'harms peace' ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Ma'an News Agency April 5, 2012 - 12:00am BETHLEHEM (Ma'an) -- The Palestinian presidency on Wednesday condemned Israel's issuing of tenders for hundreds of new settler homes near Bethlehem. Israel's Housing Ministry published tenders on Tuesday for 827 new houses in illegal settlement Har Homa, between East Jerusalem and Bethlehem, Israeli daily Haaretz reported. » Read more

AP Interview: Jerusalem mayor sees vast potential in tourism ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Associated Press April 5, 2012 - 12:00am JERUSALEM — When Jerusalem Mayor Nir Barkat stares out at his city, the one-time venture capitalist sees fresh opportunity: He believes he can turn Jerusalem into one of the world’s leading tourist destinations, on par with New York, Paris and London. In a city known as much for its religious strife as its religious sites, this will be no simple task. But Barkat, sounding very much like the businessman he once was, says he has a product that’s easy to market. He confidently predicts he can nearly triple the number of visitors over the next decade. » Read more

Israel Doesn’t Let Eviction Slow Push for Settlements ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The New York Times by Isabel Kershner - April 4, 2012 - 12:00am JERUSALEM — The Israeli police and border officers swiftly evicted a group of Jewish settlers from a contested house in the volatile West Bank city of Hebron on Wednesday on the orders of the minister of defense, officials said. At the same time, however, the Israeli government signaled strong support for more Jewish settlement in areas captured in the 1967 war. » Read more

Rocket From Sinai Lands in Israel ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The New York Times by Isabel Kershner - April 5, 2012 - 12:00am JERUSALEM — At least one rocket fired from the Sinai Peninsula in Egypt struck the southern Israeli resort city of Eilat overnight, causing alarm but no injuries, police officials said on Thursday. Residents reported hearing several explosions shortly after midnight, and bomb-disposal experts located one rocket that fell in an open area close to buildings in a residential neighborhood. » Read more