The PA's West Bank abuses weaken resistance to Israel
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The National
by Shawan Jabarin - (Opinion) July 31, 2012 - 12:00am

In the Occupied Palestinian Territories, there is little faith in the principles of human rights. Notions of justice, accountability and international law mean too little to too many.

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Israel's Barak plays down Syrian chemical arms risk
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Alertnet
by Dan Williams - July 30, 2012 - 12:00am

Israel played down on Monday the risk from Syria's chemical weapons, in what appeared to be a new tack after threats to take military action to prevent the arsenal falling into Islamist hands. Israel has been particularly worried that Hezbollah, the Iranian-inspired Shiite militia in neighbouring Lebanon, may gain access to the weapons should Syrian President Bashar al-Assad's grip slip amid a 16-month-old insurgency. Israel's warnings on this spread war fears and bumped up demand for government-issued gas masks.

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In Israel, Romney declares Jerusalem to be capital
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Associated Press
by Kasie Hunt - July 30, 2012 - 12:00am

Standing on Israeli soil, U.S. presidential candidate Mitt Romney on Sunday declared Jerusalem to be the capital of the Jewish state and said the United States has "a solemn duty and a moral imperative" to block Iran from achieving nuclear weapons capability. "Make no mistake, the ayatollahs in Iran are testing our moral defenses. They want to know who will object and who will look the other way," he said. "We will not look away nor will our country ever look away from our passion and commitment to Israel."

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Panetta Sidesteps Issue of Israel’s Plans on Iran
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The New York Times
by Elisabeth Bumiller - July 29, 2012 - 12:00am

Defense Secretary Leon E. Panetta said Sunday that he did not think Israel had yet made a decision to strike Iran, but that his goal in meeting with the Israeli leadership this week was to strengthen ties with the United States “so that we can be fully prepared to deal with any contingency that may happen.”

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U.S. presented Netanyahu with contingency plan for Iran strike
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Haaretz
by Barak Ravid - July 29, 2012 - 12:00am

The U.S. national security adviser has shared with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu the United States' contingency plans for a possible attack on Iran. According to a senior American official, National Security Advisor Tom Donilon briefed Netanyahu on the plans during Donilon's visit to Israel two weeks ago. According to the official, who requested anonymity, Netanyahu hosted Donilon at a three-hour dinner. For part of the time, Israel's national security adviser, Yaakov Amidror, was on hand.

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EU pressure for aid change in Area C
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Ma'an News Agency
July 28, 2012 - 12:00am

As demolition orders continue to threaten the work of humanitarian organizations in Israeli-controlled Area C in the West Bank, the European Union and humanitarian agencies are pressing to change the rules of the aid game.

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Palestinians in Syria get pulled into civil war
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Associated Press
by Ben Hubbard - July 27, 2012 - 12:00am

Like other communities sucked into Syria's widening civil war, the Yarmouk neighborhood in Damascus has seen death and destruction. Soldiers and snipers have gunned down demonstrators. Some protesters have taken up arms to fight back. But there's one key difference: Most of Yarmouk's residents are not Syrian citizens. They are Palestinian refugees.

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Factions maintain presence in Syria
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Ma'an News Agency
July 27, 2012 - 12:00am

Most Palestinian factions have remained in Syria, with the exception of Hamas whose leaders have relocated, officials in Syria said Thursday. Most Hamas leaders have fled Syria despite the movement's insistence that it was not seeking to move its politburo from Damascus. Only some local Hamas leaders in refugee camps remain, local officials told Ma'an. Meanwhile, leaders of the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine, Fatah and Islamic Jihad stayed in Syria amid the bloody 16-month uprising against President Bashar Assad, the officials say.

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U.S. counter-terrorism chief visits Israel to discuss Burgas terror attack, Syria
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Xinhua
July 27, 2012 - 12:00am

U.S. President Barak Obama's chief adviser on counter-terrorism, John O. Brennan, was in Israel to hold talks on the recent terror attack against Israelis in Bulgaria and the threat of al-Qaida involvement in the Syrian crisis, Ha'aretz daily reported on Thursday. The talks were held on Wednesday between Brennan and head of Israel's National Security Council (NSC), Brig.-Gen. (ret) Yaakov Amidror, Eitan Ben-David, head of NSC Counter-Terrorism Bureau, and senior officials of the Mossad, the Shin Bet security service and the Israel Defense Forces Intelligence Branch.

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The Munich massacre: A survivor's story
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from CNN
by James Montague - (Interview) July 27, 2012 - 12:00am

Professor Shaul Ladany has a busy schedule to keep these days but lays down one important condition before agreeing to speak to CNN. "Every morning I roll up the carpet and do my exercises," he explains.

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