August 20th

Hamas calls on Egypt to exclude Israel of any security coordination in Sinai ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Xinhua August 19, 2012 - 12:00am Ismail Haneya, premier of Islamic Hamas movement's rule in the Gaza Strip, on Sunday called on Egypt to exclude Israelis from any security coordination to control the security in the Peninsula of Sinai. During a speech on Sunday morning to mark Eid al-Fitr, the end of the 30 days of fasting in the holy month of Ramadan, Haneya said security in Sinai has to be controlled through coordination between Egypt and Hamas. » Read more

Militants fire on Egyptian troops in Sinai, 4 hurt ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Associated Press by Ashraf Sweilam - August 18, 2012 - 12:00am Militants attacked Egypt's security forces and wounded four policemen in the Sinai peninsula on Saturday, in the tenth day of clashes since 16 soldiers were killed in the volatile borderland near Israel and the Gaza strip earlier this month. The troops were returning from an early morning raid where they had arrested two suspects in their homes when militants fired a rocket-propelled grenade at their convoy as it was driving along a major road, a security official said. » Read more

Palestinian government debt hurts private sector ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Associated Press by Mohammed Daraghmeh - August 18, 2012 - 12:00am Palestinian drug importer Ghassan Mustaklem says he can't afford to work with the West Bank's Palestinian government anymore. He recently halted supplies to his biggest client, which now owes $12 million in unpaid bills, or more than half his annual turnover. The cutoff by Mustaklem and other suppliers has fueled a shortage of key drugs in Palestinian hospitals, making the health sector the latest victim of a deepening financial crisis for the Palestinian Authority. » Read more

Mofaz demands clarifications from Netanyahu over his 'intention to lead Israel to war with Iran' ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Haaretz by Barak Ravid - August 20, 2012 - 12:00am Israel's opposition head Shaul Mofaz sent Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu a letter on Monday demanding an urgent meeting on the Iranian issue. "I ask that this meeting be convened without delay, and address your intention to lead Israel to war," Mofaz wrote. According to law, the prime minister must brief the opposition head on a monthly basis. » Read more

Iran’s President Calls Israel ‘an Insult to Humankind’ ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The New York Times by Rick Gladstone - August 17, 2012 - 12:00am Iran’s president fanned the flames of confrontation with Israel on Friday, calling the Israeli government “an insult to humankind” in a speech on the annual Iranian holiday that calls for the Palestinian reclamation of Jerusalem from Israel’s control. President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad of Iran was surrounded by his bodyguards at the demonstration, where he spoke. » Read more

A Gaza Border Slams Shut, and With It, Chances for a Pilgrimage to Mecca ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The New York Times by Fares Akram - August 17, 2012 - 12:00am Every Ramadan for the past two decades, Mouin Mushtaha has made the pilgrimage to Mecca during the last 10 days of the Muslim holy month. This year, as Ramadan ticked away, he sat gloomily at the office of his tourism agency here, watching the festivities on television. » Read more

August 17th

No Palestinians involved in Sinai attack ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Asharq Alawsat August 16, 2012 - 12:00am Asharq Al-Awsat has learned that security agencies operating in the Gaza Strip are currently in the process of providing their Egyptian counterparts with information highlighting their past experiences in confronting Salafist jihadist groups. This is in order to help Cairo confront the militant groups operating on the Sinai Peninsula following the killing of 16 Egyptian soldiers close to the Rafah Border Crossing. » Read more

Sinai Chaos Threatens Peacekeeping Mission ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Jewish Daily Forward by Nathan Guttman - August 17, 2012 - 12:00am Recent unrest and violence in Sinai are leaving more than 1,500 troops from the United States and other countries exposed as they seek to maintain a peacekeeping mission there that many experts now criticize as anachronistic. The troops’ presence in Sinai, mandated by the 1979 Camp David peace accords between Israel and Egypt, has served as a guarantor of that treaty. But current developments are transforming the peninsula, long seen as a vast desert buffer that reinforced the treaty, into a regional flashpoint putting the fragile peace between the two nations at risk. » Read more

A building boom ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Economist (Opinion) August 18, 2012 - 12:00am Five years after Israel and Egypt closed their gates, the Palestinian strip of land they encircle is rising from the ashes of war and siege. “We’re building cities,” says a delighted UN engineer, putting the finishing touches to “Saudi City”, a public housing estate replete with garages, tiled bathrooms and dishwashers that cost its Saudi sponsors $120m. Built on land where Israel first settled Jews after its 1967 conquest and then removed them in 2005, it is set to open its doors to 11,000 residents in the next few months. » Read more

Peace Now complains over commander’s Hebron comments ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Jerusalem Post by Tovah Lazaroff - August 17, 2012 - 12:00am Peace Now on Thursday complained to the Defense Ministry about public comments an IDF commander made in support of Israeli sovereignty over the Cave of the Patriarchs in Hebron. It also took issue with the IDF’s decision to hold a ceremony Wednesday at the Cave of the Patriarchs for the incoming commander of the IDF Judea Brigade, Avi Balut, and the outgoing commander, Shai Hazut. It noted that in the past the ceremony had been held in the nearby brigade base. » Read more