July 6th

In Close Vote, Presbyterian Church Rejects Divesting in Firms That Aid Israeli Occupation ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The New York Times by Laurie Goodstein - July 5, 2012 - 12:00am A deeply divided Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.) on Thursday became the latest American church to shy away from divesting in companies that supply equipment to Israel to enforce its control in the occupied territories, after a passionate debate that stretched late into the evening and a vote that was nearly a tie. » Read more

Israeli Identity Is at the Heart of a Debate on Service ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The New York Times by Jodi Rudoren - July 5, 2012 - 12:00am On one level, the questions shaking the Israeli political system this week are pragmatic: how many ultra-Orthodox men and Arab citizens should be drafted into the military or national service, over how many years and how should those who resist be penalized? But the debate over these details masks a more fundamental and fractious one about evolving identity in this still-young state, where a “people’s army” has long been a defining principle, and about the growing cleavage among its tribes. » Read more

A warning to Hezbollah ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Jerusalem Post by Yaakov Katz - (Analysis) July 5, 2012 - 12:00am A few months ago, after the IDF began a concrete wall between Metulla and Lebanon, an Israeli observation post spotted a group of men gathered on a rooftop just over the northern border. A closer look identified one of the men as the commander of the Lebanese Armed Forces (LAF) in southern Lebanon. Several of the other men were later identified as senior Hezbollah operatives, also from southern Lebanon. » Read more

Time for Israel to join the world ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Jerusalem Post by Hirsh Goodman - (Opinion) July 6, 2012 - 12:00am Israelis in particular and Jews in general love to complain about how much the world hates us, as if the hatred of others is what makes Israel legitimate. It is time to move on, to take the victimhood out of the modern Jewish state, now approaching 65, and to live our lives without constantly having to explain ourselves to others, or to seek their approval. » Read more

Jewish, Palestinian American groups ‘swap’ summer interns ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Times of Israel by Ari Ben Goldberg - July 6, 2012 - 12:00am When Waleed Issa walked into the Americans for Peace Now (APN) Washington, DC office on the first day of his summer internship in June, the 25-year-old Palestinian from the Dheisheh refugee camp south of Bethlehem was startled by what he saw. “I never saw so much blue and white in my life,” he says. “Everywhere you look, there’s a Star of David and the colors of the Israeli flag. As a Palestinian, I thought to myself, ‘This is not good news. How am I going to work here for the next six weeks?’” » Read more

Arafatuous ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Foreign Policy by Hussein Ibish - (Opinion) July 5, 2012 - 12:00am In November 2004, a sad but very familiar scene played itself out: A sick, 75-year-old man who had been living in squalor for several years after an extremely difficult life -- including a near-death experience in the Libyan desert -- finally passed away. Doctors at the Percy hospital in France determined he died of natural causes: a stroke caused by an unidentified infection. As is so often the case, human life ends not with a bang, but with a whimper. » Read more

July 5th

West Bank high life masks deepening economic crisis ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Reuters by Noah Browning - July 5, 2012 - 12:00am Past the Israeli sentry towers blackened by firebombs and the entrance to a refugee camp emblazoned with posters of rifle-clenching militants, downtown Ramallah sparkles. The scars of an intractable conflict and occupation melt away: cafes bustle with smartly dressed patrons, water-pipe smoke perfumes the air and basslines from trendy clubs shake the night. New model BMWs ply leafy avenues beneath villas and tall apartment blocks sprout from the West Bank hills. But it's more mirage than miracle. » Read more

Israeli settlements 'jeopardising' Palestinian prosperity ATFP World Press Roundup Article from BBC News July 5, 2012 - 12:00am The study suggests Palestinians could generate an extra £1bn ($1.5bn) a year if restrictions to their use of land, water and movements were removed. It says Palestinians can use only 6% of the land, while settlers control 86%. Israel criticised the report, saying it had "a clearly political agenda". About 500,000 Jews live in more than 100 settlements built since Israel's 1967 occupation of the West Bank and East Jerusalem. The settlements are considered illegal under international law, though Israel disputes this. » Read more

The Coming War ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Daily Beast by Benny Morris - (Opinion) July 3, 2012 - 12:00am Over the years, commentators–including myself–have wrongly predicted an Israeli assault on Iran’s nuclear installations coming “soon.” But recent developments and a variety of signs indicate that such an attack is imminent, and highly likely before the American presidential elections. » Read more

Palestinians skeptical on Clinton-Abbas meet ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Jerusalem Post by Nida' Tuma - July 5, 2012 - 12:00am Palestinian officials don’t believe that Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas’s Friday-scheduled meeting with US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton and French President Francois Hollande will bring them back to the negotiation table. The meeting, which Clinton requested, will discuss the Israeli-Palestinian peace talks and the release of Palestinian detainees in Israeli jails. The meeting agenda also includes a Palestinian plan to seek a UN resolution that condemns settlements in the “occupied” territories. » Read more