June 11th

Help us save Israel ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Ynetnews by Dor Glick - (Opinion) June 11, 2012 - 12:00am My consciousness was sawed off this week. Ever since the global boycott campaign against the settlements got underway, I objected to it and attempted to persuade my friends to avoid any foreign intervention in our situation. » Read more

Israel to decide on settlement university ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Statesman by Diaa Hadid - June 9, 2012 - 12:00am In the fraught atmosphere of the Israeli-occupied West Bank, an approaching decision on whether to award coveted university status to a college has taken on powerful political overtones. For critics of Israel's policy of settling Jews in the West Bank, the upgrade of the "Ariel University Center of Samaria" into a permanent university would be a strong signal of what they say is creeping annexation of the hilly territory. » Read more

The Nakba is a question of responsibility ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Haaretz by Hannan Hever - (Opinion) June 7, 2012 - 12:00am On May 23 in these pages, Professor Yehuda Bauer wrote an open letter to Palestinian director and actor Mohammad Bakri in response to Bakri's public assertion that Israel was only created because of the Holocaust. Bakri made his statement at an event marking Nakba ("catastrophe") Day –which Palestinians commemorate annually on the anniversary of Israel's establishment. » Read more

Military: Syria chemical stocks threaten Israel ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Associated Press June 11, 2012 - 12:00am Israel's deputy military chief has warned that Syria's large chemical weapons stocks could be trained on Israel. According to Maj. Gen. Yair Naveh, Syria has the largest arsenal of chemical weapons in the world. If the Syrians had the chance, he said, they would "treat us the same way they treat their own people." Syria has not declared its chemical weapons stocks so their exact size is not known. Among other things, Israel is worried that such weapons could fall into the hands of anti-Israel militants should the Syrian regime crumble. » Read more

1967 has been bad for Palestinians and Israelis alike ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Hill by Hanan Ashrawi - (Opinion) June 8, 2012 - 12:00am Forty-five years ago this week, catastrophe befell the Palestinian people for the second time in as many decades, when Israel occupied the West Bank, East Jerusalem, and Gaza Strip during the 1967 War. Nearly half a century later, the catastrophe continues, as millions of Palestinians still live under Israeli military rule, denied the most basic civil and political rights, while their land is relentlessly colonized with illegal, Jewish-only settlements that are destroying their hopes for the future. » Read more

Israeli, Palestinian negotiators quietly meet ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Statesman by Mohammed Daraghmeh - June 10, 2012 - 12:00am Israeli and Palestinian negotiators have been meeting quietly in recent weeks in hopes of ending a three-year standstill in peace efforts, both sides confirmed Sunday. Officials acknowledged the agenda of the recent talks has been modest, and stressed there is no breakthrough in sight. Nonetheless, the revelations gave a small sign of hope that a formula can be found to restart formal negotiations addressing core issues. » Read more

June 1967 was good for the Arabs ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Haaretz by Oudeh Basharat - (Opinion) June 11, 2012 - 12:00am Last week marked the 45th anniversary of the "Six-Day War" which has so far lasted for 16,448 days, and still counting. Apparently because the calendar is so crowded, the first Lebanon War did not find any other time to break out other than during the cursed month of June. A special offer - two wars in one month.

June 8th

UN envoy: All settlements contrary to international law ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Ma'an News Agency June 8, 2012 - 12:00am The UN special coordinator for the Middle East peace process on Thursday reiterated the international community's view that settlements in occupied Palestinian territory are illegitimate. In a statement, Robert Serry said that Israel's settlements were contrary to international law "whether on private Palestinian land or elsewhere in occupied Palestinian territory." » Read more

The Time for a Palestinian State Is Now ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Wall Street Journal by Maen Areikat - (Opinion) June 8, 2012 - 12:00am This week marks the 45th anniversary of the Arab-Israeli War, when Palestinians living in the West Bank and the Gaza Strip fell under Israel's occupation. Since 1967, the power relationship that ensued has had deep and wide ramifications. What is remarkable is how each side has observed the anniversary. » Read more

Facing the Lords of the Land ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Ma'ariv by Yael Paz-Melamed - (Opinion) June 7, 2012 - 12:00am A young committed man brimming with public courage stands today almost alone against the settlers, mainly those who reside on private Palestinian lands in illegal settlement outposts. His name is Yariv Oppenheimer, and he drives the settlers mad because he has succeeded time and again in placing a few boundaries for this band of people, who are certain that the entire area beyond the Green Line is their private domain, and they can do with it as they please without interference. » Read more