Graphic Glimpses of West Bank Struggle on YouTube
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The New York Times
by Robert Mackey - (Blog) December 9, 2009 - 1:00am

Israel announced plans last week to use the Web to improve its image abroad in two ways: by setting up a new unit of the Israel Defense Forces devoted to fighting criticism on YouTube, Facebook and Twitter, and through what the Israeli newspaper Haaretz described as “an initiative by the Information and Diaspora Ministry to train people to represent Israel independently on the Internet.”

»

The US cash behind extremist settlers
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from
by Andrew Kadi, Aaron Levitt - (Opinion) December 8, 2009 - 1:00am

Last month, a Brooklyn-based non-profit organisation called the Hebron Fund, which supports Jewish settlers in the Israeli-occupied city of Hebron, held a fundraiser at the New York Mets' stadium, Citi Field.

»

Jenin: Israeli forces herd men into town square
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Ma'an News Agency
December 3, 2009 - 1:00am

Jenin – Ma’an – Israeli forces carried out a wide-scale detention campaign east of Jenin overnight Wednesday, targeting young men in the village of Deir Abu Daif. Israel's military said 15 were detained from across the West Bank, but local sources said troops seized 20 men during the raid. Thirteen were released by Thursday morning, according to locals.

»

Israeli settlers scuffle with govt inspectors
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Agence France Presse (AFP)
December 1, 2009 - 1:00am

Residents of Israeli settlements in the occupied West Bank on Tuesday scuffled with government inspectors who had come to enforce a moratorium on construction, a military official said. "There were several scuffles between residents of various Jewish communities in Judea and Samaria (West Bank) and site inspectors," a senior military official told AFP on condition of anonymity. "But the authorities will continue to work to apply the decision."

»

Inside Israeli jails, the real victims of a cry for justice
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The National
by Jesse Rosenfeld - (Opinion) November 24, 2009 - 1:00am

Amid the growing media fever over a possible prisoner swap involving the release of Gilad Shalit, the Israeli soldier held by Hamas, another young captive has a less visible public profile – but personifies Israel’s chokehold on Palestinian self-expression.

»

USA steps in, expresses concern over Israeli arrest of PA officers
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Ma'an News Agency
November 20, 2009 - 1:00am

Israeli forces detained six Palestinians from Nablus and Salfit overnight including the commander and four officers of the Palestinian Authority Intelligence Services. High-level negotiations between Palestinian and Israeli officials have been ongoing since dawn in an effort to have the men released, with American officials entering the debate shortly after 11am local time, expressing "concern" over the Israeli actions, reportedly approved by Israeli government officials before the raids took place, Palestinian security sources said.

»

Army faces friction over evacuations
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The National
by Vita Bekker - November 19, 2009 - 1:00am

A growing threat of mutiny by pro-settler soldiers has alarmed Israel’s senior political and military leaders and spurred fears that a rightwards shift in the country’s army may hinder any future land-for-peace deal with the Palestinians. On Monday, six soldiers hung a banner on a rooftop inside their military base proclaiming their refusal to dismantle Jewish outposts in the occupied West Bank. That rebellion followed a demonstration last month by conscripts, who waved banners calling for continued Jewish settlement in the West Bank, during their swearing-in ceremony in Jerusalem.

»

Would Palestinian Security Forces Survive if Abbas Quits?
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Time
by Tim McGirk - November 17, 2009 - 1:00am

Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas' decision not to stand for re-election in January casts a pall over U.S. hopes to broker a two-state peace agreement with Israel. But it could also have dire consequences for the security situation in the West Bank. That's because Abbas' possible resignation threatens the future of the U.S.-funded Palestinian security forces that have begun to play a key role in preventing militants from launching attacks on Israel.

»

Fragmenting Palestinian land
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Guardian
by Ben White - (Opinion) November 12, 2009 - 1:00am

A young student deported from the West Bank to Gaza is just the latest victim of Israeli efforts to sever ties between the territories Ben White guardian.co.uk, Thursday 12 November 2009 11.00 GMT Twenty-one-year-old Palestinian student Berlanty Azzam was seized by Israeli soldiers at a checkpoint in the West Bank last month. Bound and blindfolded, she was forcibly deported to the Gaza Strip. Berlanty was in her final semester at Bethlehem University in the West Bank, and was returning from a job interview in Ramallah.

»

Palestinians who see nonviolence as their weapon
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Los Angeles Times
by Richard Boudreaux - November 4, 2009 - 1:00am

Every Friday, Mohammed Khatib's forces assemble for battle with the Israeli army and gather their weapons: a bullhorn, banners -- and a fierce belief that peaceful protest can bring about a Palestinian state. A few hundred strong, they march to the Israeli barrier that separates the tiny farming community of Bilin from much of its land. They chant and shout. A few teenagers throw stones. Khatib helped launch the weekly ritual five years ago in an attempt to "re-brand" a Palestinian struggle often associated with rocket attacks and suicide bombers.

»


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