Postscript: OK, you’ve won; now what?
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Jerusalem Post
by Hirsh Goodman - (Opinion) July 12, 2012 - 12:00am

Now that we have the findings of the government-appointed advisory committee on the legality of Israeli “outposts” in the West Bank, a three-person handpicked by the prime minister which, not unsurprisingly, found that all settlement in the West Bank is legal.

»

Arab singer in Israeli spotlight after talent show win
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from BBC World News
by Farhana Dawood - July 12, 2012 - 12:00am

A young Israeli Arab woman who won a popular Israeli TV music talent show has become an unlikely star in a country where suspicion and hostility often mark relations between Israel's minority Arab population and the Jewish majority. Nissren Kader won first place on a programme that seeks to find the best singer of Mizrahi songs - the musical tradition of Middle Eastern Jews. The past few months have been an incredible journey for Ms Kader, who used to work as a wedding singer in the coastal city of Haifa.

»

Inside Out: Why Netanyahu won’t endorse the Levy Report
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Jerusalem Post
by Jonathan Rosen - (Opinion) July 11, 2012 - 12:00am

The settlers and their supporters erupted in jubilation Monday after a committee headed by retired Supreme Court Justice Edmond Levy presented its report on the issue of settlements and outposts in the West Bank. Likud MK Danny Danon was quoted on Tuesday by Ma’ariv as describing the publication of the report a “day of celebration for settlement.”

»

A Tale of Two Reports
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Daily Beast
by Raphael Magarik - (Analysis) July 11, 2012 - 12:00am

I’ll say this for the Levy report: It filled my inbox. After the Israeli blue-ribbon commission, headed by former Israeli Supreme Court Justice Edmund Levy, concluded that “Israelis have the legal right to settle in Judea and Samaria,” the usual suspects leapt into action. J Street wants me to “Urge US Opposition to Israeli Settlement Report,” Americans for Peace Now wonders whether it is “1984” in Israel.

»

Be grateful Presbyterians voted before the settlements were ‘legalized’
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Haaretz
by Eric H. Yoffie - (Opinion) July 11, 2012 - 12:00am

Last week, the Presbyterian Church (USA) rejected a resolution calling for divestment from Israel. This was a victory for supporters of Israel - sort of. The resolution was defeated by a single vote, and another resolution endorsing a boycott of West Bank products was adopted. Divestment advocates have vowed to continue their struggle, and they may win next time around.

»

Mutiny fear in Israeli army as religious Zionists gain influence
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Guardian
by Harriet Sherwood - (Opinion) July 11, 2012 - 12:00am

In large study halls, ranks of young Jewish men are bent over religious books or debating in pairs the meaning of their texts. Many wear the large knitted kippa associated with the settler movement; a few have guns by their side. This scene is typical in settlements all over the West Bank, where the hesder yeshiva movement has gained strength in recent decades. The programme, backed by the Israeli Defence Forces (IDF), allows religious Jews to combine intensive theological study with a shortened period of military service over five years.

»

Occupation can't be erased
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Ynetnews
by Boaz Okon - (Opinion) July 11, 2012 - 12:00am

The Levy Report on legitimizing Israel’s West Bank outposts cannot legitimize Israel’s actions in the territories. One cannot curb millions of Palestinians’ demands for freedom via legal reports. At the end of the day, the report will be shelved, and its main contribution would be the boosting cynicism and suspicions towards judges.

»

Israel ignores decades of Occupation
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The National
(Editorial) July 11, 2012 - 12:00am

The latest news out of Israel will come as a surprise to both students of international law and the world in general: according to Israeli officials, apparently, the illegal occupation of the West Bank is neither illegal, nor an occupation. That appears to be the ludicrous conclusion of the Levy Committee, set-up by the Israeli prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu to explore the status of Jewish settlements in the West Bank.

»

Former Israeli Premier Is Cleared of Most Corruption Charges
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The New York Times
by Isabel Kershner - July 10, 2012 - 12:00am

Ehud Olmert, a former prime minister of Israel, was acquitted of corruption charges in two matters by a Jerusalem court on Tuesday, but convicted in a third, in a high-profile corruption prosecution that cut short his term in office and changed the course of Israeli politics and diplomacy. Mr. Olmert was convicted of breach of trust, the least serious of the charges he faced, and will be sentenced in September, according to court documents.

»

Netanyahu to discuss legal status of West Bank settlements
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Xinhua
July 10, 2012 - 12:00am

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Monday said he will discuss a recent report stating that settlements in the West Bank are not illegal. "This report, in my opinion, discusses the question of the legality and legitimacy of the settlement movement in Judea and Samaria on the basis of the facts and claims that merit serious examination," said a statement sent by the prime minister's office. "I will submit this report to the Ministerial Committee on Settlement Affairs I established and we will discuss it and make a decision," Netanyahu said.

»


American Task Force on Palestine - 1634 Eye St. NW, Suite 725, Washington DC 20006 - Telephone: 202-262-0017