Gilad Shalit’s Father: I Would Kidnap Israelis if I were Palestinian
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Guardian
by Phoebe Greenwood - March 15, 2012 - 12:00am

The father of an Israeli soldier held in captivity for more than five years by Hamas has said he would kidnap Israeli soldiers if he were a Palestinian. Noam Shalit, who announced earlier this year that he would be standing for the opposition Labour party in the next Israeli elections, has provoked outrage among the Israeli right with the comments. His son, Gilad, was released in a prisoner swap in October 2011.

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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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To the leftist who has no problem with rocket fire on Israel
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Haaretz
by Bradley Burston - (Opinion) March 14, 2012 - 12:00am

War again. Rockets again. Israel assassinates the commander of a radical Palestinian militia coalition in Gaza. In retaliation, gunners in the Strip fire rockets at cities across southern Israel. Israel launches a series of air strikes targeting the launch crews. More than 20 Palestinians are killed and scores injured. In Israel, questions are raised about the wisdom and the necessity of the assassination. Sounds all too familiar. Not much new here, from the looks of it. Back pages, even in the Arab world.

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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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Unjustified
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Jordan Times
(Editorial) March 13, 2012 - 12:00am

An uneasy ceasefire seems to have taken hold in Gaza, stopping Israeli warplanes from pounding the Palestinians in the strip after four days that left 25 Palestinians dead. The blame game started from day one: Israel said it killed the leader of the Popular Resistance Committees (PRC) on Friday because he was “planning” to attack it through the Sinai desert; US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton condemned the firing of rockets at Israel — in response to its initial killings — the UN, France and Russia expressed concern or tepidly appealed for an end to the fighting.

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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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Palestinians Are Caught in the Middle
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Bitterlemons
by Ghassan Khatib - (Opinion) March 12, 2012 - 12:00am

The tension between Iran, on one hand, and Israel and the United States, on the other hand, is growing and having a variety of impacts regionally and internationally. The reason for the increased tension is numerous official statements and periodic leaks over a possible Israeli strike on Iranian nuclear facilities as a way to prevent it from becoming a nuclear power.

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Ex-Israeli spymaster: Iran response to Israeli attack would be devastating
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Haaretz
March 12, 2012 - 12:00am

Former Mossad chief Meir Dagan said that an Israeli strike on Iran would lead to a missile attack on Israel that would have a "devastating impact" on the country, in an interview that aired Sunday on CBS's 60 minutes. According to Dagan, an attack will start a regional war. “And wars, you know how they start. You never know how you are ending it," he said. “I think that Israel will be in a very serious situation for quite a time,” Dagan told 60 Minutes reporter Lesley Stahl, when asked about a possible Israeli response to an Israeli attack on Iran’s nuclear program.

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Israel has a legal case for striking Iran
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Jewish Telegraphic Agency (JTA)
by Robert Ash, Jay Sekulow - (Opinion) March 12, 2012 - 12:00am

WASHINGTON (JTA) -- In a world where nuclear weapons could soon be in the hands of a rogue nation like Iran, an Israeli preemptive strike on Iran’s nuclear facilities would be fully justified. Despite its ban on aggressive war, Article 51 of the United Nations Charter clearly recognizes a state’s inherent right of self-defense. Thus, Israel has full authority to act unilaterally or collectively in its self-defense.

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