Factions maintain presence in Syria ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Ma'an News Agency July 27, 2012 - 12:00am Most Palestinian factions have remained in Syria, with the exception of Hamas whose leaders have relocated, officials in Syria said Thursday. Most Hamas leaders have fled Syria despite the movement's insistence that it was not seeking to move its politburo from Damascus. Only some local Hamas leaders in refugee camps remain, local officials told Ma'an. Meanwhile, leaders of the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine, Fatah and Islamic Jihad stayed in Syria amid the bloody 16-month uprising against President Bashar Assad, the officials say. » Read more

Palestinians in Syria get pulled into civil war ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Associated Press by Ben Hubbard - July 27, 2012 - 12:00am Like other communities sucked into Syria's widening civil war, the Yarmouk neighborhood in Damascus has seen death and destruction. Soldiers and snipers have gunned down demonstrators. Some protesters have taken up arms to fight back. But there's one key difference: Most of Yarmouk's residents are not Syrian citizens. They are Palestinian refugees. » Read more

Israel's top court delays evacuation of settlement ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Associated Press July 27, 2012 - 12:00am Israel's Supreme Court on Friday delayed by at least three weeks the scheduled evacuation of an unauthorized West Bank settlement outpost that has become a symbol of settler defiance. The court said it has scheduled another hearing for the state to argue its case against the evacuation on Aug. 21, after previously ordering the Migron outpost be dismantled by Aug. 1. » Read more