Israel to hand over Palestinian tax revenues
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Ma'an News Agency
May 16, 2011 - 12:00am

The Civil Servants' union said the Palestinian Authority would pay government employees' salaries on Monday, following confirmation that Israel would resume transfers of Palestinian tax revenues A PA government spokesman, however, said he could not confirm the announcement, adding that the salaries would be paid when Israel transferred the cash. Israel said it "got confirmation from the Palestinians that no [tax revenue] money will be transferred to Hamas or to terrorist operations," allowing the country's finance ministry to resume cash transfers, reports said Sunday night.

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First Palestinian corporate bonds issued
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Ma'an News Agency
May 11, 2011 - 12:00am

Palestinian investment firm PADICO announced Tuesday the first issue of corporate bonds in the Palestinian territories worth $70 million. At a press conference in Ramallah, PADICO said it was issuing 7,000 five-year bonds, which will be privately placed and neither traded nor listed on the Palestinian stock exchange. The investment company, which is publicly traded, focuses on investment in the Palestinian economy, and has interests in infrastructure, real estate and tourism projects.

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Palestinian leadership condemns Israeli finance minister on revenues
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Xinhua
May 11, 2011 - 12:00am

The Palestinian leadership on Wednesday condemned remarks by Israeli finance minister that withholding Palestinian money was an initial warning to the Palestinian National Authority. The statements by the minister, Yuval Steinitz, were "racial," said Yasser Abed Rabbo, a member of the PLO's Executive Committee. "They indicate that collective punishment is the easiest policy Israel resorts to."

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Israel is getting away with robbing Palestinian taxes
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Haaretz
by Amira Hass - (Opinion) May 11, 2011 - 12:00am

Once again, Israel is showing everyone who the real man is here. It is busy carrying out (yet another ) robbery in broad daylight of $105 million from the Palestinians. And as usual, it is going off without a hitch.

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European Commission to allocate €85 million for PA salaries
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Ma'an News Agency
May 8, 2011 - 12:00am

The European Commission Friday announced the approval of a $121.85 million financial package for the Palestinian Authority, said to be for the salaries and pensions of PA civil servants. The decision comes as Israel continues to withhold tax revenues paid by Palestinians for goods imported into Palestinian areas, which are due under agreement for transfer to the PA. The EU package was in addition to the $143.35 million already approved from European Neighborhood and Partnership Instrument.

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The Successes of Palestinian Authority Institution Building
Media Mention of Ziad Asali In The Jerusalem Times - Bulletin - February 17, 2011 - 1:00am

For decades, the political process simply meant negotiations about the often-repeated final status issues. Hopes were raised and then dashed in extended clusters of negotiations, numerous international conferences, TV appearances and commentaries by politicians and pundits that yielded no meaningful progress toward resolution of the conflict.

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New Jerusalem tunnel will damage Temple Mount, Palestinians say
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Haaretz
by Yair Ettinger, Nir Hasson - January 26, 2011 - 1:00am

The tunnel leading from the City of David in Silwan to beneath the walls of Jerusalem's Old City, excavated by the Israel Antiquities Authority and announced to media fanfare Sunday, is drawing fire from Palestinians who claim it will damage the Temple Mount. Parts of the tunnel come within just a few meters of the Western Wall, contrary to Antiquities Authority claims yesterday, but officials stress that the religiously sensitive parts of the tunnel were not dug by the agency. They were dug out many years ago, and were merely reexposed by the project, they say.

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WikiLeaks: Israel vowed to limit Gaza economy
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Ynetnews
January 5, 2011 - 1:00am

Israel told US officials in 2008 it would keep Gaza's economy "on the brink of collapse" while avoiding a humanitarian crisis, according to US diplomatic cables published by a Norwegian daily on Wednesday. Three cables cited by the Aftenposten newspaper, which has said it has all 250,000 US cables leaked to WikiLeaks, showed that Israel kept the US embassy in Tel Aviv briefed on its internationally criticized blockade of the Gaza Strip.

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Building a Palestinian state
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Global Post
by Fredy Gareis - December 17, 2010 - 1:00am

RAMALLAH, West Bank — It was a couple of minutes after 10 on a Saturday morning when the Palestinian prime minister, Salam Fayyad, stepped onto a rainy stage in Bethlehem and voiced his support for the enemy. Fayyad urged the people not to hold all Israelis responsible for the actions of some fanatical settlers. The day before some of them had burned down a Palestinian olive grove. The audience at the Olive Harvest Festival clapped their hands cautiously. Maybe they were expecting something else: rallying cries, slogans, boasting. But their prime minister is not the inciting type.

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Who's stopping the peace process?
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Los Angeles Times
by Danny Ayalon - (Opinion) December 14, 2010 - 1:00am

The breakdown of Israeli-Palestinian peace talks has predictably resulted in blame laid almost exclusively on Israel. However, events of the last 17 years — since Israeli-Palestinian peace talks began — demonstrate a different story about what has prevented peace.

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