Jewish Donors Can Influence Israel’s War on Arabic
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Haaretz
by Ron Gerlitz - (Opinion) March 16, 2012 - 12:00am

Last week, I had to spend some time at the new children's wing of Hadassah University Hospital in Ein Karem, Jerusalem. The hospital serves Arabs as well as Jews, and it was my impression that all its patients are treated professionally and with equality. But Arabic-language signs are almost nonexistent in this brand-new and impressive wing.

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Israel’s Military Chief Leaves for U.S., Canada
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Jewish Telegraphic Agency (JTA)
March 15, 2012 - 12:00am

JERUSALEM (JTA) -- IDF Chief of Staff Lt. Gen. Benjamin Gantz left for his first official visit to the United States and Canada. Gantz, who left Thursday on a trip that was delayed several days due to the violence on Israel's southern border, will meet with his counterparts in both countries, as well as security, government and military officials. They are scheduled to discuss joint military cooperation and mutual security challenges, as well as participate in briefings on the region.

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Defining Jews, Defining a Nation: Can Genetics Save Israel?
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Atlantic
by Jeff Wheelwright - (Analysis) March 14, 2012 - 12:00am

Herzliya, a broad-beached ocean-side resort 10 miles north of Tel Aviv, is booming with construction -- big hotels going up on the bluffs and expensive new bungalows on the bougainvillea-laden streets. Herzliya was named for Theodor Herzl, the 19th-century Zionist visionary whose dream to see the Jewish people resettled in their homeland triumphantly came to pass.

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Israeli-Egyptian relations still stable after rocket bombardments: official
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Xinhua
March 14, 2012 - 12:00am

JERUSALEM, March 13 (Xinhua) -- A senior Israeli military official on Tuesday said that last week's targeted assassination of an Islamic militant headed off a cross-border attack with " strategic implications" for already-tense relations with Cairo. "Always -- in our constellation -- the peace between us and Egypt is very important, and the national security of Egypt is very important as well," Maj.-Gen. (res) Amos Gilad, the Defense Ministry's Director of Policy and Political-Military Affairs, told reporters in a conference call focusing on the targeted assassination.

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Netanyahu: The Man Who Won't Take "Yes" For an Answer
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Yedioth Ahronoth
by Yigal Sarna - (Opinion) March 14, 2012 - 12:00am

Things are bad. The prime minister is a gloomy man, a man without hope, a weak man, trapped in the hands of others, carrying childhood memories of a somber, subdued home, where the study of the Inquisition set the tone (his father was a historian who specialized in medieval Spanish Jewry). Forever feeling deprived, always suspicious and wary of others, keeping aloof, friendless, anticipating catastrophe where there is no threat, prone to improbable, pessimistic forecasts and casting his gloom over an entire nation.

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Arabs to Play Key Role Deciding Kadima Race
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Jerusalem Post
by Gil Hoffman - March 14, 2012 - 12:00am

Two weeks ahead of the March 27 Kadima leadership primary, sources close to opposition leader Tzipi Livni and Knesset Foreign Affairs and Defense Committee chairman Shaul Mofaz said the race could be decided by the votes of Arab Israelis. More than 23,000 out of Kadima’s 95,000 members eligible to vote in the race are non- Jews. While there are no exact figures within the sector, party officials said it is split evenly among Arab Israelis and Druse.

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Israelis See Iran “Mini-Drill” in Gaza Flare Up
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Reuters
by Dan Williams - March 13, 2012 - 12:00am

JERUSALEM, March 13 (Reuters) - Israel has emerged from the past few days of fighting with Palestinians in Gaza more confident that its advanced missile shield and civil defences can perform well in any war with Iran. Describing how the flare-up in violence had provided an impromptu opportunity to test out Israel's defences, one Israeli official said on Tuesday it gave useful indicators for any potential conflict with Tehran: "In a sense, this was a mini-drill," the official said, speaking on condition of anonymity.

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Marketing the Iron Dome: Why Israel Attacked Gaza
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Dar Al-Hayat
(Opinion) March 13, 2012 - 12:00am

Through a quick review of the days preceding the assassination of Zuhair al-Qaisi, the secretary-general of the Popular Resistance Committees (PRC), and his companion, liberated prisoner Mahmoud Al-Hannani, and in view of Israeli statements before the bombing, it is clear that Israel had three reasons to step up security measures on its Southern border. The first reason was that Israel had been preparing for the strike against Gaza. Israeli Defense Minister Ehud Barak revealed the second reason, while Israeli Army Chief of Staff Benny Gantz shed light on the third.

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Israeli counterterrorism unit warns of imminent attacks in Turkey, urges Israelis to stay away
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Associated Press
March 13, 2012 - 12:00am

JERUSALEM — Israel is calling on its citizens to stay away from Turkey because of intelligence warning of imminent attacks against sites frequented by Jews and Israelis there. The prime minister’s counterterrorism office issued the warning late Tuesday. It said “terror groups are planning to carry out attacks against Jewish and Israeli sites inside Turkey in the coming days.” Last month Israel blamed Iran for attacks in Thailand and India. An Israeli diplomat’s wife was wounded in India.

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In Israel, Druze Community Divided Over Military Service
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Los Angeles Times
by Edmund Sanders - March 13, 2012 - 12:00am

Reporting from Isfiyeh, Israel— Amal Asad began his barrier-breaking military career in the Israel Defense Forces after being drafted just days before the 1973 Yom Kippur War. He went on to become one of its first Arab paratroopers and retired as brigadier general, the second-highest rank achieved by a non-Jewish officer.

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