Encountering Peace: Oh no, Jerusalem
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Jerusalem Post
by Gershon Baskin - (Opinion) July 21, 2009 - 12:00am

Israel Radio reported that the Obama administration has demanded an immediate halt to the construction of a Jewish housing project in an east Jerusalem neighborhood. The report said that Ambassador to the United States Michael Oren was summoned to the State Department and told that the project, which is being developed by an American citizen, must stop.

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Netanyahu Upholds Plan To Build in E. Jerusalem
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Washington Post
by Howard Schneider - July 20, 2009 - 12:00am

Israeli Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu on Sunday defended plans for a new Jewish housing development in East Jerusalem, rebuffing the Obama administration's opposition to Israeli construction in the mostly Palestinian area.

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Israel backs East Jerusalem housing construction despite U.S. opposition
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Los Angeles Times
by Jeffrey Fleishman - July 20, 2009 - 12:00am

Calling Israel's sovereignty over Jerusalem indisputable, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Sunday rejected U.S. demands to stop plans to build 20 Jewish-owned apartments in the eastern part of the city that Palestinians regard as key to their future state.

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Playing with fire
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Haaretz
(Editorial) July 20, 2009 - 12:00am

The controversy surrounding the plan to create a Jewish enclave in the heart of the Palestinian neighborhood of Sheikh Jarrah in East Jerusalem is not another routine expression of the U.S.-Israel dispute over the settlements. The timing of the decision to build dozens of housing units in the Shepherd Hotel complex, at the height of efforts to reach an agreement on limited construction in the settlements, casts doubt over Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's willingness to enter serious negotiations on a final-status agreement.

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PA bid: Each clerk to donate dollar for Jerusalem
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Ynetnews
by Ali Waked - July 20, 2009 - 12:00am

A member of the Palestinian Legislative Council proposes to deduct one dollar from the salaries of hundreds of thousands of PA clerks to be invested in the struggle for Jerusalem. Jihad Abu Zneid, a Fatah member from Jerusalem presented her bid during a visit held by Palestinian Prime Minister Salam Fayyad in the Qalandiya refugee camp, north of the capital. Abu Zneid mentioned that the PA must put a lot of effort into dealing with the "Israeli Judaization efforts" which include the evacuation and destruction of houses in Jerusalem and its suburbs.

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An unholy row
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Financial Times
(Editorial) July 20, 2009 - 12:00am

The Obama administration has made clear its demand for a freeze on illegal Israeli settlements on the West Bank and in East Jerusalem. Benjamin Netanyahu, the Israeli prime minister, has declined to demonstrate any willingness to accede. The US cannot afford to ignore this new round of colonisation in occupied East Jerusalem.

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Israel Rejects U.S. Call to Hold Off on Development
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The New York Times
by Ethan Bronner - July 19, 2009 - 12:00am

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu rejected Sunday an American call to hold off on a planned Jewish housing development in East Jerusalem, saying Israel’s sovereignty over the disputed city could not be challenged.

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Israeli PM defiant on Jerusalem
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from BBC World News
July 19, 2009 - 12:00am

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has rejected a reported US request that a building project in Jerusalem be halted. The project involves building 20 apartments in the mainly Arab East Jerusalem area, which was captured by Israel in 1967. Last week US officials told the Israeli ambassador that the project should be suspended, Israeli media said. But Mr Netanyahu rejected this in comments at his weekly Cabinet meeting. "We cannot accept the idea that Jews will not have the right to live and buy (homes) anywhere in Jerusalem," he said.

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Jerusalem adviser: Demolish illegal buildings near Old City
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Haaretz
by Akiva Eldar - July 17, 2009 - 12:00am

Jerusalem's legal adviser has ordered city prosecutors to take legal action to remove new structures built illegally in the City of David by Elad, the nonprofit organization that operates the site, Haaretz has learned. The order was issued after Elad put up several structures in the Peace Forest, just south of the Old City.

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No change in Jerusalem, yet
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Guardian
by Mick Dumper - (Analysis) July 1, 2009 - 12:00am

Something is moving in the Middle East but it has not yet arrived in Jerusalem. A new chess game has started in the region: the US ambassador is returning to Damascus, the Hamas leader, Khaled Meshaal, made a speech welcoming the new tone set by Barack Obama in his speech in Cairo, there are leaks of an imminent deal between the Israelis, Egyptians and Hamas over a prisoner exchange and pressure is being brought to bear on Fatah and Hamas to reconcile so that credible negotiations for a Palestinian state can begin.

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