Palestinian Society | The American Task Force on Palestine

Palestinian Road Warriors Give Jerusalem Streets New Names
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Media Line
by David Miller - April 11, 2011 - 12:00am

A group of Palestinian activists erected nine street signs in Jerusalem’s Jabel Mukabber neighborhood last Saturday, assigning the anonymous thoroughfares road names in Arabic and English. One was named Farouk Street, a popular nick name for Omar Ibn Al-Khattab, the Muslim general who conquered Jerusalem in 637 A.D.

Ahead of games, West Bank summons Olympic spirit
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Ma'an News Agency
April 8, 2011 - 12:00am

"It's one thing winning the medal, that's great, but I think some of the other things I've been able to experience because of this have been enriching as much as completing that original goal," says Jamie Staff, 2008 Beijing Gold medal winner for the UK. "It changed my life," he reflected on the tail end of a whirlwind trip to the West Bank. With the gold medal in his pocket, Staff arrived in the West Bank as part of London's Cultural Olympiad, in events celebrating 500 days to the opening of the Summer Games.

Israel and Palestinians have conflicting visions for village's future
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Los Angeles Times
by Edmund Sanders - April 7, 2011 - 12:00am

It's easy to conjure the village that once was, hidden deep in a picturesque valley at the western gateway to Jerusalem, almost buried by blooming almond trees, tangled grapevines and a carpet of yellow wildflowers. The roofs and window shutters are long gone from the old stone houses, but decorative brickwork around the doorways and broken staircases bears witness to a bygone prosperity. The freshwater spring was paved over years ago, but the water still gurgles down the main road, just as it did more than 60 years ago.

Poll: One-third of Palestinians support Itamar attack
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Jerusalem Post
April 6, 2011 - 12:00am

One-third of Palestinians support the attack in Itamar in March, in which an Israeli family of five was murdered while 63 percent opposed it, according to a Hebrew University poll released on Wednesday. The survey was conducted by Prof. Yaacov Shamir of the Harry S. Truman Research Institute for the Advancement of Peace and the Department of Communication and Journalism at the Hebrew University, and Prof. Khalil Shikaki, Director of the Palestinian Center for Policy and Survey Research (PSR).

World Bank: Palestinian economic growth stunted by 'closure regime'
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Haaretz
by Avi Issacharoff - April 6, 2011 - 12:00am

The World Bank on Wednesday commended the Palestinian Authority for its institution-building efforts, but voiced concern over limited economic growth in Palestinian-run areas in both Gaza and the West Bank. "Rebuilding the Palestinian economy's productive capacity is a priority,” Mariam J. Sherman, World Bank Country Director for the West Bank and Gaza told donors, in presenting her report on the matter. "While we commend the solid performance of Palestinian institutions, we are concerned about the prospect for continued economic growth," said Sherman.

First Palestinian Venture Fund Bets on West Bank's Tech Potential
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Media Line
by David Rosenberg - April 5, 2011 - 12:00am

The first-ever venture capital fund to invest in Palestinian high technology opened for business on Tuesday with almost $29 million in capital and the backing of some of the world's leading technology companies. Sadara Ventures/The Middle East Venture Capital Fund will invest in Palestinian companies developing innovative, new technology in mobile, Internet content and technologies, social networks and software outsourcing, Yadin Kauffman and Saed Nashef, the fund's two managers, told a news conference in the West Bank city of Ramallah. Sadara's investors include Google and Cisco.

Returning to our references
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Bitterlemons
by Ghassan Khatib - (Opinion) April 4, 2011 - 12:00am

Palestinians look at the approaching September deadline as a very critical and decisive crossroads. It is the end of the one-year time-frame for the bilateral negotiations that started upon the initiative of the United States last September. It is also the end of the two-year plan of the Palestinian government for achieving national readiness for statehood.

A New Palestinian Movement: Young, Networked, Nonviolent
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Time
by Joe Klein - March 31, 2011 - 12:00am

Fadi Quran is the face of the new Middle East. He is 23, a graduate of Stanford University, with a double major in physics and international relations. He is a Palestinian who has returned home to start an alternative-energy company and see what he can do to help create a Palestinian state. He identifies with neither of the two preeminent Palestinian political factions, Hamas and Fatah. His allegiance is to the Facebook multitudes who orchestrated the overthrow of Hosni Mubarak in Egypt and who are organizing nonviolent protests throughout the region.

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