July 18th, 2012

West Bank: Israel Authorizes University in Jewish Settlement ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The New York Times by Isabel Kershner - July 17, 2012 - 12:00am An Israeli education committee voted Tuesday to grant full university status to an academic center in Ariel, a large Jewish settlement, making it the first Israeli university in the West Bank. Most of the world views the areas that Israal conquered from Jordan in the 1967 war, and where the Palestinians want to establish a future state, as occupied territory, and the Israeli settlements there as a violation of international law. Critics denounced the decision as a political move aimed at bolstering the settlement project. » Read more

Lieberman foresees early elections ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Ynetnews by Moran Azulay - July 18, 2012 - 12:00am With Kadima's withdrawl from the coalition final, all eyes are on Avigdor Leiberman's Yisrael Beiteinu which is now Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's senior coalition partner again. However, Lieberman is in no hurry to threaten resignation, despite the fact that his universal draft bill is not set to pass the Knesset vote on Wednesday. "We won't give anyone that pleasure," he told Ynet and suggested there is a possibility elections will be held in early 2013. » Read more

Unity Government in Israel Disbanding Over Dispute on Draft ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The New York Times by Jodi Rudoren - July 17, 2012 - 12:00am The broadest unity coalition Israel has seen in many years broke apart Tuesday evening, rent by irreconcilable differences over how to integrate ultra-Orthodox men and Arab citizens into the military » Read more

July 17th

Occupation Divides Israeli Protest Movement ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Jewish Daily Forward by Nathan Jeffay - July 15, 2012 - 12:00am One year after Israel’s social protest movement was born, activists are battling over its soul. Throughout June, protestors once again started to flow into the streets of Tel Aviv on Saturday nights. They all claimed to be reviving the demonstrations held weekly last summer, when tent cities proliferated all over the country. But it quickly became evident that this time, there were very different ideas among the protestors about what their demands should be. » Read more

The Palestinian Authority under pressure ATFP World Press Roundup Article from CNN by Lucky Gold - (Opinion) July 16, 2012 - 12:00am We have been facing serious financial difficulties for more than two years CNN – Can the stalled peace talks between Israel and the Palestinian Authority be revived by the visit of U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton to the region? On Monday, Christiane Amanpour sat down with Salam Fayyad, the Palestinian Prime Minister, in his Ramallah office on the West Bank, where he expressed serious doubts – not only about the peace talks but about the very existence of the Palestinian Authority he represents: » Read more

'Mofaz mulling departure from coalition today' ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Jerusalem Post by Gil Hoffman - July 17, 2012 - 12:00am Kadima leader Shaul Mofaz will remove his party from Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu’s coalition as early as Tuesday if gaps between Likud and Kadima on how to equalize the burden of IDF service are not bridged, sources close to Mofaz said Monday. » Read more

Gaza Christians protest 'forcible conversions' ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Associated Press by Diaa Hadid - July 16, 2012 - 12:00am Dozens of Gaza Christians staged a rare public protest Monday, claiming two congregants were forcibly converted to Islam and were being held against their will. The small but noisy demonstration showed the increasingly desperate situation facing the tiny minority. Protesters banged on a church bell and chanted, "With our spirit, with our blood we will sacrifice ourselves for you, Jesus." » Read more

MI chief: Over 10 recent Sinai attacks thwarted ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Jerusalem Post by Lahav Harkov - July 17, 2012 - 12:00am IDF Military Intelligence head Aviv Kochavi said that more than 10 recent planned terror attacks emanating from the Egyptian side of the Sinai border have been thwarted during remarks before the Knesset Foreign Affairs and Defense Committee. Kochavi said that upheaval in Egypt is expected to continue for a long time, and that the victory of the Muslim Brotherhood's Mohamed Mursi in the presidential election has ushered in an age of political Islam. » Read more

Israel and the West Bank’s Oil ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Al-Hayat by Walid Khadduri - (Opinion) July 15, 2012 - 12:00am On July 10, 2012, the English-language website of the BBC published an article by journalist Alex Rowell, who recently visited the West Bank. The article mentioned that Givot Olam Oil Ltd, an Israeli company, is producing oil from the Meged field located in Israeli territories “on the edge of the West Bank”, “raising concern that it might also draw from untapped Palestinian reserves”. » Read more

Premier Palestinian medical school graduates struggle to work in Jerusalem ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Washington Post by Joel Greenberg - July 16, 2012 - 12:00am Basel Nassar, a young Palestinian doctor from this city, is not allowed to practice medicine here. So he flew to Houston last week to take the last phase of a licensing exam that will qualify him to work in the United States. “I am forced to do this,” Nassar, 33, said on the eve of his departure. “Israel is so close, but it is making trouble for us for some trivial reason. I can’t work 15 minutes from my house, where they accepted me in a specialty I was dreaming to get. I simply can’t understand it.” » Read more