Security | The American Task Force on Palestine

Report: Egypt finds 266 rockets near Israel border
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Ynetnews
by Roee Nahmias - May 15, 2009 - 12:00am

Egyptian security forces uncovered 266 rockets and three antitank missiles in a cache near the border with Israel, an Egyptian security source told the London-based al-Quds al-Arab newspaper. The source said the weapons were likely meant to be smuggled into the Gaza Strip. The cache, that was located in northern Sinai, also contained 43 mines, 51 shells, 21 grenades and 178 machinegun bullets. The source said Egyptian security forces did not find any suspects when they stormed the hideout, in which they found another 50 grenades, 80 mortar shells, 20 rockets and some 500 bullets.

It's not up to Israelis to determine the status of Palestine
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Daily Star
by Daoud Kuttab - (Opinion) May 14, 2009 - 12:00am

As the summit between US President Barack Obama and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu approaches, most of the discussion has focused on whether or not the newly elected Israeli leader will finally say that he backs a two-state solution. This is the wrong approach. Israelis should not determine the status of the Palestinian entity, nor should Palestinians have a say in what Israelis call their own state.

UN laments choking of Bethlehem
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from BBC News
May 7, 2009 - 12:00am

The UN has accused Israel of restricting development of the Bethlehem region in the West Bank. The UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (Ocha) said just 13% of land around Bethlehem was open for use by the Palestinian population. It said the traditional birthplace of Jesus Christ was hemmed in by Israeli settlements and military zones as well as Israel's West Bank barrier. An Israeli foreign ministry official said the issue was beyond Ocha's remit.

Arab parties angry over citizenship decision
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The National
by Vita Bekker - May 7, 2009 - 12:00am

Legislators from Israeli Palestinian parties yesterday blasted as racist and dangerous a plan by the country’s right-wing interior minister to rescind the citizenships of four Palestinians suspected of involvement in anti-Israel activities. Eli Yishai, the interior minister, announced on Tuesday that he will begin the process of revoking the citizenship of the four men, claiming they left Israel over three decades ago for countries such as Lebanon, considered by Israel to be enemy territory, and alleging they had been involved in acts that undermined Israel’s security.

Border Guard kills Palestinian near Tomb of Patriarchs
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Ynetnews
by Erfat Weiss - May 6, 2009 - 12:00am

Border Guard officers stationed at the Tomb of the Patriarchs in Hebron shot and killed a Palestinian man who approached a guard post and disobeyed several orders to halt. One officer was lightly wounded in the incident. The officers became wary of the Palestinian when he approached their post and refused to undergo a search. He then fled towards a guard post located nearby, where other officers were standing watch.

Livni: Iran threat opens door to peace with Arabs
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Haaretz
by Natasha Mozgovaya - May 4, 2009 - 12:00am

Opposition leader and Kadima party head Tzipi Livni on Sunday said that Israel must view the threat posed by Iran as an opportunity to further peace with other neighbors in the region. "Let me be clear: On the issue of Iran, there is no opposition party in Israel," Livni told an audience at the annual AIPAC conference in Washington. Livni continued: "The threat from Iran has created new possibilities for alliances between Israel and the pragmatic states in the region - countries that realize that Israel is not the source of the problems in the Middle East."

Suspect Arrested in Ramat Gan Bus Stabbing
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Ynetnews
May 4, 2009 - 12:00am

The security forces on Sunday night arrested a Palestinian suspected of stabbing an Israel Defense Forces soldier on a bus in Ramat Gan. The man, whose identity has been placed under a gag order, was turned over to the Shin Bet for questioning. The suspect was seized near the place where the soldier was stabbed.

Israeli-run zones shield West Bank criminals
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Associated Press
May 4, 2009 - 12:00am

When Nasser Qaout went to investigate strange sounds in his sheep pen late at night, a gang of armed thieves shot him in the leg and made off with half his flock. He and Palestinian police know who the thieves are - and even where they are - but a year and half later, they’re still in their homes about five kilometers (three miles) down the road.

Israel Faces a Hard Sell in Bid to Shift Policy
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The New York Times
by Ethan Bronner - (Analysis) May 3, 2009 - 12:00am

The new government of Israel is seeking to reorient the country’s foreign policy, arguing that to rely purely on the formulas of trading land for peace and promising a Palestinian state fails to grasp what it views as the deeper issues: Muslim rejection of a Jewish state and the rising hegemonic appetite of Iran.

The Dangers of the US Submission to the Accomplished Fact with Iran and Israel
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Dar Al-Hayat
by Raghida Dergham - (Opinion) May 1, 2009 - 12:00am

'Reassurance' could be the title of the current phase of Barack Obama's administration, in anticipation of what strategies it will disclose for the Middle East region, including Iran, Israel, and Pakistan, as well as Iraq, Palestine, and Lebanon.

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