Fayyad announces measures to alleviate economic crisis
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Ma'an News Agency
September 11, 2012 - 12:00am

RAMALLAH (Ma'an) -- Palestinian Authority Prime Minister Salam Fayyad announced several measures on Tuesday to alleviate the economic crisis. VAT will be reduced to 15 percent and diesel, gas and kerosene will revert back to August prices, he said during a Ramallah press conference. Palestinian Authority ministers had met earlier on Tuesday to discuss ways of easing economic hardships as protests erupted across the West Bank this week against rising living costs.

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Palestinian leaders seek economic solutions after protests
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Reuters
by Noah Browning - September 11, 2012 - 12:00am

RAMALLAH, West Bank, Sept 11 (Reuters) - Palestinian ministers met on Tuesday to discuss ways of easing economic hardships, which have provoked growing protests across the West Bank, challenging the Western-backed Palestinian Authority. The demonstrations turned violent in the cities of Hebron and Nablus on Monday as thousands of angry youths burned tyres, blocked streets and hurled stones at armed police, raising pressure on Prime Minister Salam Fayyad.

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Minister: PA making efforts to facilitate Jenin industrial zone
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Ma'an News Agency
September 10, 2012 - 12:00am

RAMALLAH (Ma'an) -- The Palestinian Authority is making efforts to facilitate the construction of an industrial area in Jenin, the PA Ministry of Economy said Monday. PA economy minister Jawad Naji made the comments during a meeting with the Turkish ambassador to the PA, Shaker Ozkan, and the executive director of Turkish development company Jovan Sak. The Turkish company is involved in the construction of the industrial area and will begin implementing a working plan of the project, Naji said.

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Someone tell the Palestinians: It's the occupation, stupid!
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Haaretz
by Amira Hass - (Opinion) September 10, 2012 - 12:00am

“Geniuses,” I said to myself when dozens of trucks and taxis blocked traffic in the heart of Hebron last Wednesday in protest against the price hikes. “Geniuses,” I continued to think when four hours later I passed by the same place, and heard that other demonstrators had set fire to an effigy of Palestinian Authority Prime Minister Salam Fayyad.

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Spreading Palestinian Protests Focus on Leaders
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The New York Times
by Isabel Kershner - September 10, 2012 - 12:00am

HEBRON, West Bank — A week of Palestinian protests against rising prices and economic hardship erupted Monday into rioting against the Palestinian Authority in this city and others in the West Bank, posing a new challenge to the Western-backed government that has worked to promote stability.

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Palestinian protests turn violent in West Bank
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Associated Press
by Nasser Shiyoukhi - September 10, 2012 - 12:00am

HEBRON, West Bank — Palestinian demonstrators fed up with high prices and unpaid salaries shuttered shops, halted traffic with burning tires and clashed with riot police in demonstrations across the West Bank on Monday— the largest show of popular discontent with the Palestinian Authority in its 18-year existence. The violence showed that the unrest, initially supported by Palestinian leaders in hopes of drawing international attention to the struggling economy, risks backfiring and morphing into a broader movement against the government.

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For Palestinian Kids in Hebron, Little Joy on Back-to-School Day
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Al-Monitor
by Lena Odgaard - September 9, 2012 - 12:00am

HEBRON — Catching up with friends, showing off new clothes and getting new books — for most kids, the first day of school is exciting. But for Palestinian children who live in or go to school in the Old City of Hebron, the day is nothing to look forward to. Here, crossing checkpoints manned by heavily armed Israeli soldiers and dodging barbs and attacks from Israeli settlers are unfortunate parts of an ordinary school day.

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Abbas promises Palestinians action on rising prices
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Washington Post
by Joel Greenberg - September 8, 2012 - 12:00am

RAMALLAH, West Bank — Thrown on the defensive by street protests against rising prices of basic goods, Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas backed his embattled prime minister Saturday and blamed Israel for restrictions that he said hampered an effective response. Abbas said that he bore ultimate responsibility for government policies and that he had asked Prime Minister Salam Fayyad and the cabinet to meet with representatives of the business sector and civic groups to examine ways to lower the cost of living.

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Protests shake West Bank as Palestinians hit by rising prices
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The National
by Hugh Naylor - September 7, 2012 - 12:00am

In a backlash against lighter wallets and rising prices in the West Bank, Palestinians burnt effigies of their prime minister and striking taxi drivers blocked traffic. As the unrest shook the West Bank, President Mahmoud Abbas promised to revive the Palestinian bid for recognition at the United Nations. For Palestinians who are struggling to survive, the increasingly dire economic situation and the Palestinian Authority's (PA) financial crisis is a more pressing concern than Mr Abbas's move.

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News Analysis: Tensions simmering in West Bank over high living cost
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Xinhua
September 6, 2012 - 12:00am

RAMALLAH, Sept. 6 (Xinhua) -- Protests against the high cost of living increasingly erupted all over the West Bank over the past few days, during which some demonstrators burned Palestinian Prime Minister Salam Fayyad's posters while others attempted to set themselves ablaze.

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