January 12th

Hamas Members to Reside in Jordan ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Jordan Times January 12, 2012 - 1:00am AMMAN — The government is examining the best method to allow Hamas members to reside with their families in Jordan, according to Prime Minister Awn Khasawneh. In an interview with Time magazine, excerpts of which were published on Monday, Khasawneh said Hamas members will not be allowed to establish political headquarters for the movement in Jordan or to practise any political activity. "We will be finding modalities to bring back members of Hamas and their families to come," Khasawneh told Time. "We don’t want them to establish another organisation here." » Read more

Controversial Makeover for Gaza’s Beachfront ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Media Line by Omar Ghraieb - January 11, 2012 - 1:00am GAZA CITY, Gaza Strip – For years, it was a dusty, often garbage-strewn asphalt ribbon winding along Gaza City’s otherwise beautiful Mediterranean coast. Today, it’s a construction site, with heavy equipment plowing sand into position, digging tunnels and laying pipes. But if the plans proceed on schedule, Al-Rashid Road, popularly known as the Beach Road, will be transformed into a scenic seaside promenade, or corniche, in the style that has made the meeting between land and sea in places like Beirut, Alexandria and Nice tourist attractions and a gathering place for their residents. » Read more

EU Report: Israel Policy in West Bank Endangers Two-State Solution ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Haaretz by Amira Hass - January 12, 2012 - 1:00am The European Union will direct its activities towards supporting the West Bank’s Palestinian population, a report by the European Heads of Mission in Jerusalem and Ramallah said on Thursday, over what the survey said was Israeli efforts to muscle out Palestinians from Area C. » Read more

Clinton Asks Abbas to Extend Quartet’s Deadline for Talks Resumption: Palestinian Official ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Xinhua January 12, 2012 - 1:00am RAMALLAH -- U.S. State Secretary Hillary Clinton asked Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas to extend the deadline of Jan. 26 set by the Quartet to resume peace negotiations, a Fatah official said Thursday. "Clinton asked Abbas last night not to stop the Jordanian-hosted talks after the Quartet's deadline," member of Fatah Central Committee Azzam Al-Ahmad told reporters in Ramallah. Al-Ahmad added that Clinton has pledged that her country would continue to exert more efforts in order to achieve peace between Palestinians and Israelis in 2012. » Read more

Reconciliation Committee to Start Work Immediately ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Ma'an News Agency January 12, 2012 - 1:00am GAZA CITY (Ma'an) -- The committee tasked with implementing the reconciliation agreement between Hamas and Fatah has finalized all administrative preparations and will begin work immediately, committee head Rabah Mhannah said Wednesday. Speaking to reporters after a committee meeting in Gaza City, Mhannah said members were allocated aspects of the agreement to work on. » Read more

Israel’s Identity Crisis: Why it Could be as Detrimental as Palestinian Conflict ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Christian Science Monitor by Joshua Mitnick - January 11, 2012 - 1:00am Tel Aviv: When Tanya Rosenblit boarded the No. 451 bus to Jerusalem last month, she knew that the predominantly ultra-Orthodox passengers would keep their distance from her because of their adherence to strict rules of gender segregation. In the Ultra-Orthodox enclave of Bnei Brak, buses where passengers sit separated by gender are common. Last month the refusal of a secular woman to go to the rear of the bus touched off a national outcry about growing religious extremism. But when one of them demanded she move to the rear, Ms. Rosenblit held her ground. » Read more

Was Israel Behind Iran Nuclear Scientist’s Assassination? ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Christian Science Monitor by Joshua Mitnick - January 12, 2012 - 1:00am Tel Aviv: Israel has emerged as a key suspect in the assassination of an Iranian nuclear scientist in Tehran yesterday, thought to be the latest strike in a covert war that has targeted technicians, military plants, and computer systems at the heart of Islamic Republic’s uranium enrichment program. » Read more

Hamas Sentences Palestinian to Death ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Associated Press January 11, 2012 - 1:00am GAZA CITY, Gaza Strip — A Hamas official in Gaza says the militant group has sentenced a local Palestinian to death for collaborating with Israel. The official said the man was sentenced Wednesday to death by firing squad at a military court in Gaza. He spoke on condition of anonymity because he was not allowed to speak with reporters. Palestinians who collaborate with Israeli intelligence are widely loathed within Palestinian society. » Read more

Hamas Leader to Visit Iran, Qatar in New Trip ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Associated Press January 12, 2012 - 1:00am GAZA CITY, Gaza Strip — An adviser to Hamas' prime minister says the leader will visit Iran, Qatar and other Muslim countries at the end of the month. Yusef Rizka says the militant group's Ismail Haniyeh will embark on his second official international trip outside the Gaza Strip. He returned this week from a tour of Egypt, Sudan, Turkey and Tunisia. It was the first time Haniyeh had left Gaza since Hamas seized control of the territory from the rival Fatah movement in 2007. » Read more

Israel Upholds Limits on Palestinian Spouses ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Associated Press January 12, 2012 - 1:00am JERUSALEM — Israel's Supreme Court upheld late Wednesday a controversial law that bans most Palestinians who marry Israelis from living inside the Jewish state. In a 6-5 ruling, the court agreed that Palestinians who gain Israeli citizenship through marriage pose a security threat. The law is believed to have prevented thousands of Palestinians from living with their spouses. Parliament passed the law in 2003, at the height of the second Palestinian uprising, a time when militants from the West Bank frequently entered Israel to carry out deadly attacks. » Read more