Middle East News: World Press Roundup

NEWS: Palestinian and Israeli officials have met secretly to explore the possibility of more talks. Pres. Abbas says he may file a complaint against Israeli policies, especially on settlements, with international agencies. PM Netanyahu delays the eviction of settlers from a house they seized in occupied Hebron. Occupation authorities are reportedly planning yet another settlement in occupied East Jerusalem. Hamas complains that the PA detained 79 of its members in March. Three Palestinian children are killed in a fire started by a candle, and Hamas says Israel is to blame because of the fuel crisis. A Palestinian family loses a court battle over ownership of a historic home in occupied East Jerusalem that was declared "absentee property." The International Red Cross is delivering fuel supplies to Gaza hospitals. An Israeli "reality TV" show is the scene of a controversy about the occupation. Israel's military predicts it would suffer less than 300 casualties in a conflict with Iran. Poems by Mahmoud Darwish will be taught in Arab schools in Israel. COMMENTARY: Alana Newhouse reviews Peter Beinart's new book on Zionism. Moshe Arens says the victory of Shaul Mofaz as new Kadima leader means the era of land-for-peace is dead. Yitzhak Laor says Israel is addicted to settlement activity at its own peril. The Jerusalem Post says Palestinians are being hypocritical on press freedoms. Alick Isaacs says religious communities are crucial for peace. The National says hunger-striking prisoners are winning moral victories against Israel. Bernard Avishai recalls the hostile reaction to his 1985 book, "The Tragedy of Zionism." Aviad Kleinberg says it's surprising that FM Lieberman is so clearly against any attack on Iran. Hussein Ibish says Israeli security can only be ensured through the establishment of a Palestinian state.

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Israeli, Palestinian officials hold secret meeting amid stall in peace talks ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Haaretz by Barak Ravid - April 3, 2012 - 12:00am Peace negotiations between Israel and the Palestinian Authority are at a complete standstill, with relations between Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas reaching a newfound low. And yet, contacts have been held behind the scenes in the last two weeks between officials from both Jerusalem and Ramallah, over the missive Abbas plans to send Netanyahu in the coming days. » Read more

Abbas warns of int'l complaint if Israel won't talk ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Jerusalem Post by Khaled Abu Toameh, Herb Keinon - April 2, 2012 - 12:00am If Israel is not prepared to return to the negotiating table, the Palestinian Authority will file a complaint with international bodies, PA President Mahmoud Abbas declared Monday. » Read more

Netanyahu delays eviction of West Bank settler house ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Reuters by Dan Williams - April 3, 2012 - 12:00am JERUSALEM (Reuters) -- Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu overruled the planned eviction on Tuesday of Jewish settlers from a building in an occupied West Bank city that is flashpoint of tensions with Palestinians. Some 20 settlers moved into the Hebron building last Thursday at night, seeking to expand a settlement of some 500 families in the heart of the ancient city. » Read more

Israeli mayor 'plans new East Jerusalem settlement' ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Ma'an News Agency April 3, 2012 - 12:00am TEL AVIV, Israel (Ma'an) -- Israel's Jerusalem Mayor plans to establish a new Israeli settlement in East Jerusalem, according to news reports Tuesday. Around 200 new homes are planned for the area, which lies between Abu Dis and Jabal al-Mukkabir, the Israeli daily Haaretz reported. The settlement, referred to as Kidmat Zion, will be built on land purchased by Irving Moskowitz, a Florida businessman and patron of Jewish settlers. » Read more

Hamas: PA detained 79 members in March ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Ma'an News Agency April 2, 2012 - 12:00am GAZA CITY (Ma'an) -- Hamas on Monday accused the Fatah-led Palestinian Authority of detaining 79 members in the West Bank during March. Some 32 former prisoners of Israel were among those detained by PA forces, as well as 14 university students, Hamas said in a statement. Another 50 Hamas affiliates were summoned by PA intelligence services last month, the party added. The Ramallah-based PA also fired a teacher and a doctor over their affiliation to Hamas, the statement said. » Read more

3 Gaza children burned to death due to energy crisis, Hamas blames Israel ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Xinhua by Saud Abu Ramadan, Emad Drimly - April 3, 2012 - 12:00am GAZA, April 2 (Xinhua) -- Islamic Hamas movement on Monday held Israel responsible for the death of three children from central Gaza Strip, who were burned to death on Sunday night, when a candle ignited their room as they were sleeping amid a severe crisis of electricity and fuel in the coastal enclave. Ismail Haneya, the deposed premier of Hamas rule in the enclave, who participated in the funeral of the three children from the town of Deir el-Ballah, told reporters that Israel, which keeps a tight blockade on the Gaza Strip, is responsible in the first place for the tragedy. » Read more

Palestinian family loses Shepherd Hotel court fight ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Reuters April 2, 2012 - 12:00am The High Court of Justice ruled Monday that a prominent Palestinian family could not claim ownership of a landmark and now derelict building in east Jerusalem - paving the way for a Jewish settlement project. The Husseini family said the Shepherd Hotel, now partially demolished, is a symbol of the Palestinian rights to their land and to east Jerusalem, and criticized the court ruling. The Shepherd Hotel was built in the 1930s and served as the home of Jerusalem grand mufti Haj Amin Husseini, who fought the British and Zionists. » Read more

Red Cross delivers fuel to Gaza hospitals ATFP World Press Roundup Article from BBC News April 2, 2012 - 12:00am The International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) says it has begun distributing emergency fuel supplies to hospitals in the Gaza Strip. The 150,000 litres (33,000 gallons) of diesel would help 13 public hospitals maintain essential health services for the next 10 days, the ICRC said. Immediate action had to be taken to prevent further deterioration of the fuel and electricity crisis, it added. Gaza's only power plant closed eight days ago because of a lack of fuel. » Read more

How Israeli Big Brother became a hotbed of thoughtful debate ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Guardian by Mia de Graaf - April 2, 2012 - 12:00am In the UK, Big Brother is known for turning fame-hungry contestants – the Nadias, Chantelles and Jade Goodys of this world – into instant celebrities. Though normally no more high-brow, Israel's equivalent has this year achieved a surprising twist, by making a superstar out of "Palestine sympathiser" Saar Szekely. » Read more

Israel predicts few casualties from war with Iran ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Guardian by Harriet Sherwood - April 3, 2012 - 12:00am Israeli security officials have estimated the number of casualties in Israel as a result of a military conflict with Iran would be fewer than 300. An assessment presented to the security cabinet last weekend anticipates three weeks of rocket and missile attacks from Lebanon and Syria, as well as probably Iran and – to a limited extent – Gaza, according to reports in the Israeli media. The projected death toll, although significant in a country with a population of 7.8m, is lower than earlier estimates. » Read more

Palestinian National Poet's Work To Be in Israeli-Arab Curriculum ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Ma'ariv by Raymond Marjiya, Omri Meniv - March 23, 2012 - 12:00am For the first time, the poems of Mahmoud Darwish, widely considered the Palestinian national poet, will be taught in Arab schools in Israel. High-placed officials in charge of education in the sector have recently instructed the school principals to adopt a new literature curriculum including, in addition to Darwish's poetry, works from Knesset Member and ex-mayor of Nazareth Tawfiq Ziad and poet Samih Al-Qasem. » Read more

Book review: ‘The Crisis of Zionism,’ by Peter Beinart ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Washington Post by Alana Newhouse - (Book Review) March 30, 2012 - 12:00am Many books have been written on the Israeli-Palestinian struggle — by reporters, elected officials, diplomats, novelists, poets, human rights workers, Nobel laureates and ordinary citizens. But Peter Beinart’s “The Crisis of Zionism” stands out not least for the avalanche of attention it has received even before publication. It is also unusual because it offers little in the way of personal reporting on the Israelis or the Palestinians themselves. » Read more

Mofaz's Kadima win signals end of the land for peace era ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Haaretz by Moshe Arens - (Opinion) April 2, 2012 - 12:00am Of course Shaul Mofaz won, and Tzipi Livni lost. But there was much more to the Kadima primary race than that. It was the "two-state solution," at the forefront of Israeli political discourse for a number of years, that lost. It was the offer of more concessions to the Palestinians, whose most prominent advocate was former Kadima chairwoman, MK Tzipi Livni, that went down in defeat. » Read more

Israelis can't resist following the the occupation's pied piper ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Haaretz by Yitzhak Laor - (Opinion) April 3, 2012 - 12:00am In Ra'anan Alexandrowicz's documentary film "The Law in These Parts," former Supreme Court President Meir Shamgar is presented as the person who removed, with one decision, the legal obstacle to settlement on Jordanian lands. In doing so, Shamgar created a situation in which no peaceful solution to the conflict with the Palestinians is visible on the horizon. Shamgar does not come out of it looking good. Moreover, he doesn't quite remember the crucial decision. » Read more

Palestinian responsibility ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Jerusalem Post (Editorial) April 3, 2012 - 12:00am The hypocrisy was mind-boggling. The same week that the Palestinian Authority announced the introduction of a new award to honor press freedom, it launched a crackdown on Palestinian journalists to intimidate them and stifle their voices. » Read more

Putting peace before liberalism is crucial ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Jerusalem Post by Alick Isaacs - (Opinion) April 2, 2012 - 12:00am My interest in peace work began to grow after I returned from the war in Southern Lebanon in the summer of 2006. I was drafted as a military reservist in the IDF and was, at the grand age of 38, one of the older people to participate in the combat. » Read more

Hunger strikers score a victory for Palestinians ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The National (Editorial) April 3, 2012 - 12:00am From Israel's Ramla prison south of Tel Aviv, Hana Shalabi moved on Sunday to the relative freedom of Gaza. Her negotiated release came, not by coincidence, after a 44-day hunger strike. The case provides a new example of how effectively Palestinians can use the moral high ground. » Read more

Real Life, not “Counterlife” ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Daily Beast by Bernard Avishai - (Opinion) April 2, 2012 - 12:00am In 1985, I published a book called The Tragedy of Zionism. It argued that the Zionist movement had been a good, largely secular and cultural revolution that had run its course, that is, with the founding of Israel and the consolidation of the national Hebrew culture; but that the residual institutions and theories of that revolution—rashly kept alive by Israel’s leaders, who feared the fight with the orthodox Jewish parties over a constitution—had grown to be a burden on, even a threat to, Israel’s democratic life. » Read more

Israel's Most Unlikely Dove ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Yedioth Ahronoth by Aviad Kleinberg - (Opinion) March 20, 2012 - 12:00am "If, God forbid, a war with Iran breaks out, it will be a nightmare. And we will all be in it, including the Persian Gulf countries and Saudi Arabia. No one will remain unscathed. We have to do everything we can to urge the international community to assume responsibility and take action to stop the Iranians … The State of Israel keeps all options open. » Read more

Safer Side by Side: Why Israel Needs Palestine ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Daily Beast by Hussein Ibish - (Opinion) April 2, 2012 - 12:00am Benny Begin, a member of Prime Minister Netanuyahu's inner cabinet, recently dismissed the idea of the creation of a viable Palestinian state, claiming it would be an unbearable security threat to Israel. He added that Netanuyahu's 2009 Bar-Ilan speech, which seemingly endorsed the two-state goal, was aimed exclusively at foreign audiences but that Palestinian statehood "was not brought up for discussion in the government, nor will it be discussed." "This is not the government's position," he stated bluntly. All the evidence suggests he's correct. » Read more

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