Israel seeks closer ties with Dominican Republic ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Xinhua July 19, 2012 - 12:00am Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said he wanted to deepen friendly ties with the Dominican Republic, Israel's embassy in Santo Domingo said Wednesday. In a message sent to Dominican President-elect Danilo Medina, Netanyahu wished to "strengthen the ties of friendship between the two countries," according to the embassy. » Read more

Egyptian president meets Hamas chief ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Xinhua July 19, 2012 - 12:00am Egyptian President Mohamed Morsi held talks Thursday with Islamic Hamas movement's politburo chief Khaled Mashaal, official news agency MENA reported. The two talked about the latest developments in the Palestinian reconciliation, efforts exerted by Egypt supporting the Palestinian issue, and ways to get a Palestinian independent state. The meeting was attended by the deputy head of Hamas movement office and members of the political bureau, including Mahmoud al- Zahar. Morsi met visiting Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas Wednesday. » Read more

Israel plans to revive ailing Jordan river ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Reuters by Ari Rabinovitch - July 19, 2012 - 12:00am The River Jordan is neither deep nor wide these days. The Biblical river, which has inspired countless spirituals and folk songs, is just a narrow stream in many parts - polluted and stagnant. But that's about to change. Thanks to desalination and wastewater recycling, there is more fresh water to go around and the Jordan will slowly be returned to its former glory. » Read more

Israel official: Suicide bomber attacked Israelis in Bulgaria ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Haaretz by Yaniv Kubovich, Barak Ravid - July 19, 2012 - 12:00am The bombing in Bulgaria on Wednesday was committed by a suicide bomber and not by a charge planted in the bus beforehand as believed at first, a senior official in the Israeli Foreign Ministry told Haaretz on Thursday. The estimate was bolstered by comments made by Bulgarian Prime Minister Boyko Metodiev Borisov as saying that chances were that the bombing was perpetrated by a suicide bomber. » Read more

Ex-official: Israel targeted Hezbollah army chief; Iran has been retaliating ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Haaretz July 19, 2012 - 12:00am Former National Security Adviser Uzi Arad responded on Thursday to comments made by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, and according to which Iran was behind the attack on Israeli tourists in Bulgaria, saying that Israel was not a "passive side" to the struggle against Iran and must do more to anticipate the responses. On Wednesday, Netanyahu, apparently supported by detailed intelligence, immediately blamed Iran for the terror attack on Israelis in Bulgaria, that let eight people dead, possibly including a suspected suicide bomber. » Read more

Cracks in the foundation ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Jerusalem Post by Douglas Bloomfield - (Opinion) July 19, 2012 - 12:00am Several recent developments to erode Israel’s support among American Jews and its political base on Capitol Hill. The government is grappling with questions involving conscription of ultra-religious Jews, recognition of non-Orthodox streams of Judaism, Israel’s control of the West Bank and the future of the settler enterprise. » Read more

Iran TV: Links to attack on Israelis 'ridiculous' ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Associated Press July 19, 2012 - 12:00am Iran's state TV is rejecting accusations of Tehran's involvement in an apparent suicide attack against Israeli tourists in Bulgaria that killed at least eight people. A commentary Thursday on the TV website calls the claims by Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and others "ridiculous" and "sensational." The website described the Israeli charges as attempts to discredit Iran and its allies such as Syria. » Read more

Israel's Barak: We'll block Syrian refugees ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Associated Press by Amy Teibel - July 19, 2012 - 12:00am Defense Minister Ehud Barak, standing within earshot of fighting in Syria, said Thursday that Israel would stop Syrian refugees from entering the Israeli-controlled Golan Heights if they try to flee there. Barak was touring the Golan, which Israel captured from Syria in the 1967 Mideast war, a day after three top officials in the regime of President Bashar Assad were killed in a suicide attack in Damascus. Israeli defense officials are closely monitoring the deteriorating situation in their neighbor to the north, worried it could spill across the frontier. » Read more

Though Bruised, Netanyahu Is Seen as Secure in Post After Coalition’s Demise ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The New York Times by Isabel Kershner - July 18, 2012 - 12:00am Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s image of invincibility has taken a knock, Israeli analysts said on Wednesday, a day after the breakup of the large and broad coalition that had given him almost unprecedented power. But for now, they said, his political future seemed assured for one simple reason: he has no obvious rival for the premiership. » Read more

Interview: Israeli school books write out Palestinian, Arab story ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Ma'an News Agency by Brandon Davis - (Interview) July 19, 2012 - 12:00am JERUSALEM (Ma'an) -- Professor of language and education at Hebrew University Nurit Peled-ElHanan recently released a book analyzing the portrayal of Palestinians in 16 history, civics and geography textbooks authorized by the Israeli Ministry of Education. 'Palestine in Israeli School Books' argues that the textbooks legitimate Israeli military policy in the eyes of young students, and prepares them for military service upon graduation. Ma'an spoke to Peled-ElHanan about the ideas behind her latest book. » Read more