August 21st

Israel overturns appeal, orders eviction of West Bank outpost ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Xinhua August 20, 2012 - 12:00am JERUSALEM, Aug. 20 (Xinhua) -- Israel's State Attorney-General' s Office (SAO) on Monday ordered the eviction of an illegal West Bank outpost, in response to an appeal by its residents hoping to prevent its destruction. » Read more

Attacks on Palestinians kindle debate on values ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Associated Press by Amy Teibel - August 21, 2012 - 12:00am JERUSALEM — Two vicious attacks on Palestinians, presumed to be the work of Jews, have some Israelis worried that their society is increasingly tolerant of hate crimes. Over the weekend, unknown assailants firebombed a Palestinian taxi in the West Bank. Hours later, a mob of Jewish teens beat a 17-year-old Palestinian unconscious in downtown Jerusalem. Israeli leaders have condemned the violence. On Tuesday, President Shimon Peres said he was "mortified" by the "intolerable" attack on the teen. » Read more

Young Israelis Held in Attack on Arabs ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The New York Times by Isabel Kershner - August 20, 2012 - 12:00am JERUSALEM — Seven Israeli teenagers were in custody on Monday, accused of what a police official and several witnesses described as an attempted lynching of several Palestinian youths, laying bare the undercurrent of tension in this ethnically mixed but politically divided city. A 15-year-old suspect standing outside court said, “For my part he can die, he’s an Arab.” » Read more

Account of ‘a Lynch’ in Jerusalem on Facebook ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The New York Times by Robert Mackey - August 20, 2012 - 12:00am As my colleague Isabel Kershner reports, several Israeli teenagers who appeared in court on Monday following their arrest for beating a young Palestinian unconscious expressed little remorse for the attack after a hearing. » Read more

August 20th

Palestinian Statehood Returns (Ho-Hum) ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Jewish Daily Forward by Ben Lynfield - (Opinion) August 19, 2012 - 12:00am A second bid by the Palestinian Authority to have the United Nations recognize Palestinian statehood appears to be a case of “once more, but with less feeling.” » Read more

Intolerable behavior ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Jerusalem Post (Editorial) August 19, 2012 - 12:00am Israeli Jews were reportedly responsible for two attacks perpetrated against Palestinians in recent days. Last Thursday, a Molotov cocktail was thrown at a taxi carrying six Palestinians outside the West Bank settlement of Bat Ayin. The ensuing explosion caused the taxi to flip over and resulted in the injury of several of the passengers. The assailants were aware that the victims were Palestinians since the attack took place during the day and the vehicle was yellow with green license plates, characteristic of Palestinian taxis. » Read more

Reality Check: Peres and the voice of reason ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Jerusalem Post by Jeff Barak - (Opinion) August 19, 2012 - 12:00am It’s a sad state of affairs when it takes an 89-year-old to provide the clearest perspective on Israel’s present-day reality. Admittedly, President Shimon Peres is no ordinary almost-nonagenarian, but he is to be applauded for both his courage in publicly demolishing the prime minister and defense minister’s arguments in favor of an Israeli strike on Iran and for his cogent analysis of the limits of Israel’s strength. » Read more

A proper Zionist live fire zone ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Haaretz by Amira Hass - (Opinion) August 20, 2012 - 12:00am When police of the African National Congress are slaughtering platinum miners who demand that the mine owner (a private transnational company registered in London! ) pay them a wage that begins to befit the hardships of the job and value of the metal in operating rooms and on the fingers of plutocrats, there is no chance that one Palestinian tractor impounded by Israeli soldiers will attract the attention of a single foreign news editor anywhere on earth. » Read more

Israel Attack on Iran Runs Risk of Massive Missile Retaliation ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Al-Monitor by Barbara Slavin - (Opinion) August 19, 2012 - 12:00am If Israel attacks Iran, the Israeli heartland could face retaliation from more than 10,000 missiles based in Iran, Syria, Lebanon and the Gaza Strip, according to Uzi Rubin, the founder and first director of Israel’s Missile Defense Organization. » Read more

Bibi's Iran Plan Rests on Shaky Ground ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Jewish Daily Forward by Leonard Fein - (Opinion) August 19, 2012 - 12:00am Israel’s leading television news program, Channel 2 News, now informs us that Prime Minister Netanyahu and Defense Minister Barak are “on the brink” of approving an Israeli military attack on Iran. » Read more