July 25, 2012

Middle East News: World Press Roundup

NEWS: Hundreds of Palestinians are facing eviction to make way for an Israeli firing range in the occupied West Bank, and PM Fayyad urges EU leaders to intervene. PLO officials say upgrading Palestine's status at the UN to that of nonmember observer state doesn't contradict a two-state solution, but Pres. Abbas may have agreed to delay any such effort until after the US presidential elections. Hamas leaders are asking Egypt to open the crossing with Gaza. Because of Israel's blockade, books have become a rare commodity in Gaza. A bomb is detonated near Israeli soldiers on the Gaza border without any reported injuries. Palestinian families are fleeing Syria to escape the fighting. A Palestinian-American woman was among the shooting victims in Colorado. A PA investigation concludes that violence against protesters last month was unjustified. GOP candidate Romney condemns Pres. Obama for “lecturing” Israeli leaders. A Jerusalem family is keeping up the tradition of firing a cannon to signal the end of fasting during Ramadan. COMMENTARY: Ruth Marcus says Israel's approach to African migrants is a moral failure. Brandon Davis looks at a new documentary about the life of the late Pres. Arafat. Carlo Strenger says Israel's right is likely to stay in power. Michael Sfard says Israel's crackdown on OCHA is part of a larger assault on democracy. Ben Caspit asks what if PM Rabin had lived. Eli Avidar says Israel stands to gain from the downfall of Pres. Assad. Tom Phillips lists 10 reasons why there hasn't been Israeli-Palestinian peace. The Jewish Week interviews Alan Baker, a member of the Levy Committee.

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Hundreds of Palestinians face eviction from land

The Israeli Defense Ministry wants to evict hundreds of Palestinians from eight hamlets in a West Bank area the military has designated as a firing zone, rights activists said Tuesday, portraying the decision as a new Israeli land grab.

The firing zone, one of several in the West Bank, covers several thousand acres close to the border with Israel. Hundreds of Palestinian herders and farmers live there for part of the year in caves and shacks.

Fayyad meets EU parliament member

RAMALLAH (Ma’an) -- The prime minister in Ramallah met Tuesday with an Austrian social democrat politician and called for international action to stop Israel's violations of international law.

Salam Fayyad told Hannes Swoboda that Israel's violations were "endangering the two-state solution," and called for European and international intervention to stop plans to demolish eight villages.

Fayyad said Israel's plan, disclosed Monday by Israeli media, will displace 1,500 Palestinians.

Upgrading Palestine to non-member state in UN does not contradict with peace plan – Erekat

RAMALLAH, Juky 25 (KUNA) – A member of the Executive Committee of the Palestine Liberation Organization, Dr. Saeb Erekat, said that approaching the General Assembly of the United Nations to seek a non-member state status for Palestine does not contradict with the peace process of the principle of two-state solution.

During interviews conducted in the city of Areeha (Jericho) with the residing consuls, Eekat said that the Palestinian approach is a real focal point for the protection of two-state option.

Abbas to delay Palestinian UN bid until after US elections

Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas has decided to delay a Palestinian bid for UN recognition until after US elections in the fall, Arabic daily Al Hayat reported on Tuesday.

Last year, Abbas sought full UN membership for Palestine but failed to win the necessary votes in the UN Security Council. Palestine was eventually accepted as a member of UNESCO, the UN’s cultural and educational arm, in a separate process that drew harsh condemnation from Israel and the US.

Hamas PM heads to Egypt to seek lift of Gaza closure

GAZA, July 25 (Xinhua) -- Prime minister of the Hamas authority in Gaza, Ismail Haneya, will visit Egypt Wednesday and meet Egyptian President Mohamed Morsi to discuss lifting the blockade on the Hamas-controlled Gaza Strip.

It will be the first meeting between the Hamas official and the Egyptian president.

Under Israeli blockade of Gaza, books are a rare, cherished commodity

The Israeli blockade of the Gaza Strip [12] has been blamed for a multitude of problems facing the population there: malnutrition, unemployment, limited access to electricity and potable water.

Attempted bombing against Israeli soldiers near Gaza

JERUSALEM, July 25 (Xinhua) -- Palestinian militants in the southern Gaza Strip on Wednesday set off a bomb targeting several Israel Defense Forces (IDF) soldiers, an army source said.

"Earlier this morning an explosive device was detonated against IDF soldiers who were performing routine activity adjacent to the security fence," the source told Xinhua Wednesday.

The powerful blast, which Israel Radio said took place near the Kerem Shalom crossing point, did not cause any casualty or damage.

Over 100 Gaza families flee Syria

GAZA CITY (Ma’an) -- More than 100 Palestinian families have fled Syria due to the deterioration in safety and security resulting from the uprising against President Bashar Assad, an official said Tuesday.

Hamza Abu Shanab of the Gaza-based Palestinian Coalition for the Syrian Revolution told Ma'an that 105 families originally from the Gaza Strip have returned safely through Egypt's Rafah crossing in recent days. The families had business ties in Syria or were students studying at Syrian universities, Abu Shanab said.

Palestinian-American among theater shooting victims

BETHLEHEM (Ma'an) -- A young Palestinian-American woman is among the dead after a gunman opened fire in a US theater last Friday, killing 12 people and injuring 70, her family confirmed on Tuesday.

Jessica Ghawi, 24, was an aspiring journalist who had moved to Aurora, Colorado to pursue a broadcast career, according to her brother Jordan, 26, who lives in Texas.

Jordan told Ma'an that Ghawi was a Palestinian-American. "My father is a Christian Arab from Palestine," he said Tuesday.

Ramallah violence 'unjustified,' inquiry concludes

RAMALLAH (Ma’an) -- A committee to probe violence against protesters in Ramallah last month has concluded that attacks on civilians, including journalists, were unjustified, an official said Tuesday.

Wasel Abu Yousif told Ma'an that President Mahmoud Abbas has received the report from the committee, which was formed by Munib al-Musri and included Abu Yousif, a PLO leader, and Ahmad Harb of the Independent Commission for Human Rights.

Romney slams Obama for 'lecturing Israel's leaders'

Leading into his major trip [18]to the UK, Israel and Poland to highlight his foreign policy competence and positions, US Republican Presidential candidate Mitt Romney on Tuesday lashed out at US President Barack Obama for "lecturing Israel's leaders."

Family keeps up Jerusalem's cannon ritual for 120 years

The ancient tradition of firing cannons to signify the end of the daily fast during the Islamic month of Ramadan is thought to have taken place in the Arab world for hundreds of years.

It is believed to have started in the Egyptian capital, Cairo, but long ago the practice was also adopted just outside the Old City of Jerusalem.

Wherever cannons are used, Muslims do not break their dawn until dusk fast until they hear its booming sound. The call to prayer follows and then it is time for the iftar meal.

Israel confronts a flood of African refugees

Walk through Levinsky Park [21] near the central bus station here and you might think you were in another country. African men, and some women, occupy every inch of a low stone bench in the brutal sun. Blankets are stashed in the branches of a eucalyptus tree, to be retrieved at nightfall.

Arafat documentary paints intimate portrait of late leader

He has been called a terrorist, a freedom fighter and the founding father of the Palestinian nation - and in Richard Symons' and Joanna Natasegara

Why Israel’s Right will stay in power

Over the last weekend the New York Times published an editorial entitled "Israel's embattled democracy" that expresses concern that Israel may be distancing itself from the liberal democratic principles on which it was founded. Of course, Jewish right-wing groups, both in Israel and the US, will point out that the NYT is anti-Israel, and that therefore we can simply disregard what they say.

Israel's crackdown on UN aid organization part of an assault on democracy

You don't need to be Sherlock Holmes to grasp that Israel's democracy is under attack.

What if Rabin Had Lived?

This week 20 years ago, Yitzhak Rabin's government was sworn in to the Knesset. Following the defeat of the Likud, Yitzhak Shamir retired permanently from political life. Rabin had prepared meticulously for his rise to power.

Israel Stands to Gain From Assad's Ouster

Ever since the demonstrations began in Syria in January 2011, the world has waited for a tie-breaking development in the struggle between the regime and the rebels.

There May Never Be Peace

For the last six years I have served as a British ambassador in the Middle East, first to Israel and then to Saudi Arabia. I leave the region with particular sadness that in this period the chances of a solution to the long-running conflict between the Israelis and the Palestinians—on which, ultimately, turns the issue of Israel’s acceptance in the region—have grown bleaker. These are my ten rules for why this is the case.

Rule 1: “The worst thing will always happen at the worst possible time”

Examples are legion. A few follow.

Levy Commission: Concerned By ‘Misuse’ Of Report

The Levy Commission report that earlier this month found Israelis have the legal right to settle in the West Bank is being twisted and distorted by those here who are on both sides of the issue, according to its authors.

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