Occupation double-speak
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Haaretz
by Michael Sfard - (Opinion) June 12, 2012 - 12:00am

We are now marking the 45th anniversary of the largest national project in our young country's history: the suppression of millions of peoples' longing for independence and freedom. This project is bigger than the National Water Carrier, more expensive than the Lavi fighter jet, which never did take off, and more foolish than the idea of draining Lake Hula, which wound up exacting a tremendous ecological cost. We are all invested in it up to our necks -- financially, politically and, most important, morally.

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Parties say Israel-Vatican accord accepts occupation
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Ma'an News Agency
June 12, 2012 - 12:00am

Palestinian political factions on Sunday condemned a draft economic agreement between Israel and the Vatican, saying it entails the Holy See recognizing Israeli legislation in East Jerusalem and occupied Palestinian territory. The document outlining an agreement between Israel and the Vatican on legal and fiscal issues has been circulating in different circles, the PLO said in a statement.

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Why Shakespeare is … Palestinian
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Guardian
by Amir Nizar Zuabi - (Opinion) June 11, 2012 - 12:00am

It is a well-known fact that Shakespeare is a Palestinian. And when I say "is" I do mean "is", not "was". The man might have been born in Stratford-upon-Avon four centuries ago, but he is alive and well today in Aida refugee camp, not far from the church of the nativity in Bethlehem. Shakespeare scholars may dispute this. But the reason I say this with such conviction (and even dare, sometimes, to believe it) is that, reading his plays, I have a sense of familiarity that can only come from compatriots.

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Bedouin are ‘squatters’ on their own land
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The National
by Hugh Naylor - June 11, 2012 - 12:00am

Nuri Al Okbi’s home is an archive of his futile campaign to prove to Israel that he owns land he says has been in his family for centuries. Tucked away in boxes and stacked on bookshelves are maps and land deeds dating back to the Ottoman Empire. The collection, he says, is evidence of the Okbi clan’s ownership of land in the Al Araqib area of Israel’s Negev desert.

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Abbas looking to break deadlock in negotiations with Israel
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Xinhua
by Adam Gonn - (Analysis) June 11, 2012 - 12:00am

Palestinian National Authority ( PNA) President Mahmoud Abbas said he might be willing to hold talks with Israel, if it frees Palestinian prisoners and allows for weapons to be transferred to Palestinian security forces. Abbas said that, since Israel has rejected both his previous demand to halt settlement construction on the West Bank or accept the cease-fire lines that existed prior to the 1967 war as the borders for a Palestinian state, he might be willing to attend talks if the new demands were meet.

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Doctor: Al-Sarsak at immediate risk of death
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Ma'an News Agency
June 7, 2012 - 12:00am

After 80 days on hunger strike, Mahmoud al-Sarsak is at immediate risk of death and must be hospitalized immediately, an independent doctor said Wednesday. Until Wednesday, Israel's prison service had refused to allow independent doctors to visit al-Sarsak, who is being held at Ramle prison clinic. Physicians for Human Rights - Israel were able to send a doctor to visit al-Sarsak on Wednesday after petitioning an Israeli court for access.

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Jerusalem: Haredim attack elderly Arab
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Ynetnews
by Gili Elkabetz - June 7, 2012 - 12:00am

A number of ultra-Orthodox attacked an elederly Arab and an Arab family following a violent demonstration in Jerusalem against the desecration of the Sabbath, Ynet reported. An eyewitness said the attack, which took place Saturday evening near the ultra-Orthodox neighborhood of Mea Shearim, was "shocking."

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Israel releases Palestinian prisoner Thaer Halahleh
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Los Angeles Times
by Maher Abukhater - June 6, 2012 - 12:00am

Israel has released a Palestinian prisoner who had been on a long hunger strike amid growing international criticism of its administrative detention policy. Thaer Halahleh, 33, started a hunger strike in February to protest consecutive terms of administrative detention during which he was held without being charged or going on trial.

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Does the world have room for Battir village?
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Ma'an News Agency
by Ghassan Olayan - (Opinion) June 6, 2012 - 12:00am

Battir, a Palestinian village south west of Jerusalem, has a charming, rural landscape which was recently recognized by UNESCO with the Melina Mercouri International Prize for the Safeguarding and Management of Cultural Landscapes. Battir also has had a unique agreement with Israel since 1949. The Rhodes Armistice Agreements, signed during the period of Jordanian rule over the West Bank, was implemented by Israeli military leader Moshe Dayan, Hassan Mustafa and six others from Battir village.

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No men allowed, the first 'women only' coffee shop in Ramallah
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Xinhua
June 5, 2012 - 12:00am

A few meters away from the popular men's coffee shop of Baladna in downtown Ramallah lays a new rebellious concept: a 'women only' coffee shop. A billboard featuring three women on the sideways of the street advertises the coffee shop as well as a few radio and newspapers advertisements. A pink sign right outside the coffee shop reads: "Ladies coffee shop: for women only." As opposed to the open men cafes, the pink and white balloons at the entrance of the coffee shop, lead to a closed, yet colorful place.

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