2 Palestinians killed in Yarmouk shelling ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Ma'an News Agency August 16, 2012 - 12:00am A Palestinian refugee and his child were killed Thursday after the Syrian regime bombed residential areas in Yarmouk camp in Damascus, local activists said. Palestinian activists in Yarmouk camp told Ma’an that the refugee, Jamal Abu al-Haija, and his daughter Hanin, 10, were killed by a mortar shell fired near their house in the sport city area. Activists said dozens of shells were fired at Yarmouk camp at dawn because Syrian and Palestinian houses are next to each other in the camp. He pointed out that the sounds of shells had frightened children. » Read more

US punched Bibi, Barak in the face ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Ynetnews by Attila Somfalvi - (Opinion) August 15, 2012 - 12:00am Once every few years Israel needs a slap in the face to remember where it stands in the world. On Tuesday it was US Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff General Martin Dempsey who assumed the role of the responsible adult and slapped Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Defense Minister Ehud Barak, the duo orchestrating the national hysteria surrounding the possibility of an attack in Iran. » Read more

Gentlemen, America is telling you 'no' ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Ynetnews by Eitan Haber - (Opinion) August 16, 2012 - 12:00am Many years ago, the US ambassador to Israel requested an urgent meeting with the defense minister. The ambassador (I'm fairly certain it was Thomas Pickering) sat opposite Yitzhak Rabin, took out a piece of paper from his pocket and read from it. » Read more

The price of settlements ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Haaretz (Editorial) August 16, 2012 - 12:00am On Sunday Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu rejected a request by Defense Minister Ehud Barak to hold a cabinet meeting on the political stalemate with the Palestinians, to discuss ways of advancing peace negotiations for a final agreement. On Monday Haaretz reported Barak as saying in private talks that a thaw in relations is in Israel's strategic interest and that the country is "living on borrowed time." On Tuesday the European Union demonstrated the price of neglecting this political channel, combined with the race to expand settlements. » Read more

Chance of success slim for Palestinians' 2nd UN bid ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Xinhua by Adam Gonn - (Analysis) August 15, 2012 - 12:00am Palestinian National Authority (PNA) President Mahmoud Abbas is considering launching a second attempt at upgrading the status of the Palestinians in the United Nations from an observer entity to a non-member observer. With an upgraded status, the Palestinians would be able to vote in the UN General Assembly and seek full membership in UN organizations and at the International Criminal Court. The upgrade would also likely to help define the borders of a Palestinian state as containing the entire West Bank, the Gaza Strip and East Jerusalem. » Read more

Stopping Extremist Settlers ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The New York Times by Daniel Byman, Natan Sachs - (Opinion) August 16, 2012 - 12:00am Late this past June, a group of Israeli settlers in the West Bank defaced and burned a mosque in the small West Bank village of Jabaa. Graffiti sprayed by the vandals warned of a “war” over the planned evacuation, ordered by the Israeli Supreme Court, of a handful of houses illegally built on private Palestinian land near the settlement of Beit El. » Read more