PA takes satirical TV series off air
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Ma'an News Agency
August 17, 2011 - 12:00am

A Ramadan TV series that became notorious for its criticism of Palestinian Authority officials has been discontinued on the PA-run Palestine TV, Attorney General Ahmad Al-Mughni said Tuesday evening. Al-Mughni told Ma'an that the decision had been made to stop broadcasts of Watan Ala Watar [Homeland on a Thread] after Tuesday's episode because "it is full of mistakes, is meaningless and is a waste of time for people to watch."

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Fetishizing nationalism
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from NOW Lebanon
by Hussein Ibish - (Opinion) August 16, 2011 - 12:00am

For those in the grip of its authority, a clearheaded understanding of how nationalist ideology actually operates seems extremely difficult. All contemporary nationalisms are based on constructed and imagined narratives about history, geography, culture, ethnicity and religion. Such narratives invariably involve a great deal of what can only be described as fiction. In particular, reading the past—whether real or imagined—as a justification for present-day political projects is, by definition, intellectually treacherous territory.

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Divided We Execute
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Inter Press Service (IPS)
by Mel Frykberg - (Opinion) August 16, 2011 - 12:00am

The execution of a Palestinian father and son by Hamas security forces in Gaza throws up a sharp difference over the death penalty between Gaza and the West Bank. In the West Bank a temporary moratorium is in place. The executions were carried out despite pressure from Palestinian and international human rights organisations for the death penalty in the occupied Palestinian territories to be rescinded.

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Mixed Views on Palestinian’s UN Recognition Plans
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Public Radio International (PRI)
by Matthew Bell - (Opinion) August 15, 2011 - 12:00am

The Palestinians are gearing up for their plan to go to the United Nations in September to seek recognition as a state. No one doubts the Palestinians could win broad support at the UN in a vote to recognize the state of Palestine. In fact, they already have. Back in 1988, the Palestinian Liberation Organization’s chairman, Yasir Arafat proclaimed a Palestinian state. A UN resolution to recognize the move got 104 yes votes. Two countries voted no: Israel and the United States.

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Paranoia and intrigue on the West Bank
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The National
by Hugh Naylor - August 14, 2011 - 12:00am

Juliano Mer-Khamis' legacy weighs heavily on the internationally acclaimed youth theatre he founded inside this turbulent Palestinian refugee camp, where some suspect his killer still lurks. In April, a masked gunman shot dead the 52-year-old Israeli actor and filmmaker, born to a Jewish mother and Palestinian father, as he sat in a car in front of his Freedom Theatre in Jenin.

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In Prison, and Denied Education
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Inter Press Service (IPS)
by Mohammed Omer - August 11, 2011 - 12:00am

In the early morning hours, Fatima Abu Jayyab, mother of Palestinian prisoner Eyad Khalid Abu Jayyab, gets ready for morning prayers. For the past nine years, every Monday morning this 57-year-old mother has stood outside the International Red Cross Committee (ICRC) office in Gaza City with a poster displaying her son. The Israeli authorities have prevented her from seeing him for the last five years. Israeli authorities imprisoned Eyad Khalid Abu Jayyab for what Fatima calls affiliation to a political party. "I think of him every moment," she told IPS.

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Satirical Palestinian TV show elicits anger in West Bank
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Jerusalem Post
by Khaled Abu Toameh - August 10, 2011 - 12:00am

Palestine TV’s controversial satire show, Watan ala Watar (Homeland on a String), has angered the Palestinian Authority police force in the West Bank, whose commanders have decided to sue the station for libel. The police are furious with the satire – especially because of a scene where two traffic policemen stop a drunk driver for inspection. The policemen are portrayed in an obnoxious manner that suggests that they too are under the influence of alcohol.

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WEST BANK: Not everyone's laughing at Palestinian TV comedy
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Los Angeles Times
by Maher Abukhater - August 10, 2011 - 12:00am

At a time when revolts in Arab nations are gradually taking their toll on the leaders of those countries, Palestinian officials seem worried that too much criticism of their performance may eventually lead them to a fate similar to their Arab brothers. At least that's what one comedian-actor-writer believes.

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The fabric of Palestinian identity
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from NOW Lebanon
by Hussein Ibish - (Opinion) August 9, 2011 - 12:00am

What can a book about traditional folkloric costumes tell us about contemporary politics? Quite a lot as it happens. Hanan Karaman Munayyer’s beautiful new volume, “Traditional Palestinian Costume: Origins and Evolution” (Interlink, 2011) combines superb photography of the renowned Munayyer collection of traditional Palestinian dress with an analysis of their origins, evolution and variations. Since the 1980s, Munayyer and her husband Farah have been assembling these costumes and other artifacts of Palestinian traditional life in their Palestinian Heritage Foundation.

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‘There’s a Girl Here’ Proves Recipe for Banking Deposit Growth in Mideast
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Bloomberg
by Simon Clark - August 8, 2011 - 12:00am

Reem Qaraqe was a novelty at the Bethlehem branch of Bank of Palestine Plc (BOP), and she says some customers didn’t hide their astonishment. “There’s a girl here,” was a typical remark. “Why?” As the branch’s first female teller, Qaraqe says she quietly fumed as she endured teasing and disrespect. She had about reached her limit the day Munjed the fish seller showed up, unfurled a wad of smelly shekels, threw it on the counter and commanded her to deposit it. She says her first notion was to hit him. Instead, she decided to try extreme politeness.

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