October 10th, 2012

Netanyahu Calls for Early Elections in Israel ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The New York Times by Jodi Rudoren - October 9, 2012 - 12:00am JERUSALEM — Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu of Israel on Tuesday called for elections early next year instead of as scheduled in October 2013, saying that conversations with his coalition partners had proved it would be impossible to pass “a responsible budget” with deep cuts. » Read more

Gaza rockets hit southern Israel following air strike ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Xinhua October 10, 2012 - 12:00am JERUSALEM, Oct. 10 (Xinhua) -- Militants in the Gaza Strip early Wednesday fired more rockets at Israeli communities in the western Negev, as a new round of hostilities entered its fourth day. » Read more

Aides: Israel's ex-PM Olmert considering comeback ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Associated Press by Aron Heller - October 10, 2012 - 12:00am JERUSALEM — Former Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert is considering a political comeback to challenge incumbent Benjamin Netanyahu in the upcoming elections, aides said Wednesday. » Read more

Report: Abbas to propose peace talks after UN vote ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Ma'an News Agency October 10, 2012 - 12:00am NEW YORK (Ma'an) -- President Abbas told European diplomats on Tuesday that he will resume peace talks with Israel after a UN vote on the Palestinian request for non-member status in the world body, The Associated Press reported. Abbas believes that a freeze on illegal settlement building may not be necessary to engage in talks if the UN recognizes a Palestinian state which includes all of the West Bank, AP reported. » Read more

October 9th

Obama must stand up to Netanyahu on Israeli settler violence ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Christian Science Monitor by Ibrahim Sharqieh - (Opinion) October 9, 2012 - 12:00am My Palestinian driver had reason to worry as we passed near the Israeli settlement Yitzhar in the West Bank. The settlement is notorious for frequent attacks on nearby Palestinian citizens. Only a month earlier, my driver had himself been attacked by a group of settlers with a big rock that barely missed his car. Two miles farther up the road, he reported the attack to an Israeli Army patrol that was in the area. The patrol commander asked if anyone in the car had been injured. “No,” the driver had said. » Read more

Israel-Iran War Not on Horizon ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Media Line by Linda Gradstein - (Opinion) October 9, 2012 - 12:00am This summer, it seemed that the world believed that an Israeli attack on Iran was imminent – a belief shared in the Jewish state as well. Panicked Israelis rushed to gas mask distribution centers, newspapers published banner headlines speculating on Israeli war plans, and Israel saw a seemingly endless parade of senior American officials trying to convince their counterparts to rethink plans for an attack. » Read more

Hamas in transition ATFP World Press Roundup Article from NOW Lebanon by Hussein Ibish - (Opinion) October 9, 2012 - 12:00am The recent exchange of attacks between Israel and militants in the Gaza Strip is unlikely to lead to a broader conflict, but it helps illuminate some of the dramatic changes happening within Hamas. It is yet another indication of the increasing willingness of Hamas factions in Gaza to resume not only countenancing but participating in rocket attacks against Israel. This, in turn, reflects the increasing influence and independence of more militant elements within the organization and their strategy for trying to wrest control of Hamas away from externally-based leaders.  » Read more

Unconditional US military aid fuels Israeli-Palestinian violence ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Hill by Kate Gould - (Opinion) October 8, 2012 - 12:00am Amidst another week of deadly Israeli-Palestinian violence, fifteen faith leaders representing U.S. churches and faith organizations have called on Congress to condition U.S. military aid to Israel upon Israel’s “compliance with applicable U.S. laws and policies.” These leaders--representing Baptist, Lutheran, Catholic, Presbyterian, Methodist, Orthodox, Quaker and other major Christian groups--agree that unconditional U.S. » Read more

Not Trying To Cause A Big Sensation ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Daily Beast by Jacob Silverman - (Opinion) October 8, 2012 - 12:00am Alan Dershowitz would have been disappointed. Not only did Dershowitz's occasional debating partner, Noam Chomsky, have to cancel his New School appearance on Saturday (laryngitis, we were told), but his adversary, the controversial scholar Norman Finkelstein, was positively mainstream in his own remarks. Those who are quick to vilify Finkelstein—variations on “self-hating Jew” represent the typical charge—might do well to listen again. » Read more

Abandoned ideals ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Daily Star (Editorial) October 6, 2012 - 12:00am Saturday marks the anniversary of the October War of 1973, which the Israelis call the Yom Kippur War, while the Arabs have a few additional names for it. Some, like the Egyptians, might refer to it called the Ramadan War, because the month of fasting in which it took place, while the Syrians officially refer to it as the War of Liberation. » Read more