Court orders state to explain why Amona outpost not demolished
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Haaretz
by Chaim Levinson - May 5, 2010 - 12:00am

The Supreme Court on Wednesday issued a temporary injunction requiring the state to explain why it has not followed through with evacuating every illegal outpost built on Palestinian land in the West Bank. The court made its ruling particularly with regard to the Amona outpost, where settlers began to build in 1995 and have continued to do so despite an official evacuation as recently as 2006.

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Obama advisor: Jerusalem issue at end of talks
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Ynetnews
by Yitzhak Benhorin - May 5, 2010 - 12:00am

Just before the start of proximity talks between Israel and the Palestinians, the Obama administration has indicated that the issue of Jerusalem will be discussed at the end of the talks, and not at the beginning. The US interest in Jerusalem stems from construction plans made public during Vice President Joe Biden's visit to the region, just a short time before Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu was due to meet with US President Barack Obama in the White House.

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Settlers wish destruction on Barak's home
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Ynetnews
by Shmulik Grossman - May 5, 2010 - 12:00am

Settlers from Shavei Shomron scattered building bricks near the homes of the prime minister, defense minister, and Minister Moshe Ya'alon, a day after security forces demolished six structures in the Nablus-area settlement. The blocks were brought from the ruins of the illegal structures that the Civil Administration demolished in the settlement. Outside the defense minister's house in the Akirov Towers in Tel Aviv, a pile of stones was placed with a sign that read: "Barak, minister of destruction, may your home be destroyed soon as well."

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Jewish settlers blamed for West Bank mosque fire
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Reuters
by Mohammed Assadi - May 4, 2010 - 12:00am

Palestinians accused Jewish settlers of setting fire to a mosque in the occupied West Bank on Tuesday, an incident that raised tensions as a U.S. envoy began a mission to get peace talks going. Israeli security officers were at the scene investigating the fire but have not determined its cause. Evidence was taken for forensic examination, an Israeli police spokesman said. The mosque in the village of Libban al-Sharqia, near the Palestinian city of Nablus, was gutted overnight by the blaze that also burned holy books.

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Four years after eviction, Amona settlers are building anew
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Haaretz
by Akiva Eldar - May 4, 2010 - 12:00am

Evacuating the outposts does not appear to be high on the national agenda Next Independence Day it would be appropriate to award the Israel Prize for lifetime achievement and exceptional contribution to the nation to the State Prosecutor's Office. The creativity its people have shown for the sake of the West Bank settlement project knows no bounds. Especially not the boundaries of the Green Line, the pre-Six-Day War border.

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Palestinians’ Emotions Run High After a Fire Destroys a Mosque in the West Bank
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The New York Times
by Isabel Kershner - May 4, 2010 - 12:00am

A fire swept through a mosque in this Palestinian village early Tuesday, angering Palestinians who said they were certain that extremist Israeli settlers were to blame, although investigators have found no proof. The Palestinian president, Mahmoud Abbas, echoed those sentiments and warned that the blaze “represented a threat to the efforts to revive the peace process.”

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Like a plane without a pilot
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Haaretz
by Amira Hass - May 4, 2010 - 12:00am

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu unjustifiably draws fire for policies that move ahead without his involvement. The Jewish intellectuals, who suddenly saw the darkness and were terrified, should know: Even if not one more Jewish home is built in the occupied territories ?(including East Jerusalem?), the enormous apparatus of domination continues to operate there with an inner logic of many years’ duration. It moves along by itself, like some huge aircraft without a pilot.

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Israel planning new West Bank train network, minister says
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Haaretz
by Chaim Levinson - May 4, 2010 - 12:00am

Transportation Minister Yisrael Katz (Likud) announced Tuesday that the ministry was promoting a plan to establish a train network in the West Bank which will converge with the new train tracks planned throughout Israel. Katz said that the plan had been drawn up with the cooperation of international organizations which have expressed great interest in the issue. He added that a train track is planned to run between Jenin, the Yizrael Valley and to Jerusalem.

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Peace products
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Jerusalem Post
May 4, 2010 - 12:00am

The issue of settlements and their illegality under international law should dominate debate surrounding the Palestinian-Israeli conflict and a return to negotiations. Israel’s refusal to adhere to international law or its previous commitments, particularly its obligation to freeze all settlement construction as stipulated under the 2003 road map, has led to a low point in relations with Washington. Israel’s policy of building settlements on occupied Palestinian land undermines prospects for peace, and continues at the expense of all Palestinians.

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Government backs settlement goods ban
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Ma'an News Agency
May 4, 2010 - 12:00am

Following Israeli complaints about the Palestinian Authority ban on settlement goods in the West Bank, the Government Media Center issued a statement confirming that the "campaign is implementing the rule of law." In the statement, PA officials reiterated their commitment to "all economic agreements with Israel," but said authorities would not back down from efforts to replace the "illegal products of Israel’s settlement [with] legal Palestinian and other imported products."

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