Middle East News: World Press Roundup

NEWS: Two Palestinians are killed as the Syrian government shells a Palestinian refugee camp near Damascus. Unidentified explosions occur in a city in southern Israel. Some Israeli estimates anticipate a month-long conflict after a potential strike on Iranian nuclear targets. Families of slain Iranian nuclear scientists plan to sue Israel. Israel is raising the quota of Palestinian workers from the occupied territories to 30,000. Tension is rising on the Israel-Lebanon border. Muslim extremists are suspected in a bombing attack on a hair salon in a refugee camp in Gaza. Hundreds of Israelis petition IDF pilots to refuse potential orders to bomb Iran. In defiance of Israel's attorney general, government ministers decide to hand a building in occupied Hebron over to Israeli settlers. Egyptian troops are being reportedly deployed in northern Sinai without Israel's prior approval. Palestinians flock to Jerusalem as Israel eases restrictions for Ramadan prayers. The United Church of Canada votes to boycott goods produced in Israeli settlements, including occupied East Jerusalem. Secular Israelis are gentrifying some settlements. A ships sailing from Indonesia to Australia that includes 28 Palestinian passengers has been missing at sea for 48 days. COMMENTARY: Daniel Byman and Natan Sachs say Israel must move quickly to stop settler terrorism in the occupied West Bank. Adam Gonn says chances of Palestinian success at the UN later this year are slim. Ha'aretz says rather than being angry with the EU, Israel should examine its own conduct regarding settlements. Eitan Haber says Israeli leaders need to listen to what American officials are telling them regarding Iran. Attila Somfalvi says that message is to stop pretending that Israel on its own can do much damage to Iranian nuclear progress. Frank Lautenberg says Mitt Romney and other Republicans are “playing politics” with Israel. Jonathan Rosen says Israel's government isn't despotic and the threats the country faces are real and existential. Kenneth Stern says in spite of its repeated failures, the BDS campaign remains a danger to Israel. The National says Israeli politicians pushing for war with Iran may be acting with regard to personal and political gain. Aaron David Miller says the US doesn't really care that much about political freedom or peace in the Middle East. Hussein Ibish suggests American politicians should read Bernard Lewis more carefully and add other historians to the mix.

---

---

---

2 Palestinians killed in Yarmouk shelling ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Ma'an News Agency August 16, 2012 - 12:00am A Palestinian refugee and his child were killed Thursday after the Syrian regime bombed residential areas in Yarmouk camp in Damascus, local activists said. Palestinian activists in Yarmouk camp told Ma’an that the refugee, Jamal Abu al-Haija, and his daughter Hanin, 10, were killed by a mortar shell fired near their house in the sport city area. Activists said dozens of shells were fired at Yarmouk camp at dawn because Syrian and Palestinian houses are next to each other in the camp. He pointed out that the sounds of shells had frightened children. » Read more

Israeli military: Blasts heard in southern city ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Associated Press August 16, 2012 - 12:00am Explosions rocked the southern Israeli city of Eilat late Wednesday, and the military said it suspected that rockets were fired from Egypt's Sinai Peninsula. No casualties or damage were reported. Eilat is a Red Sea resort next to Sinai, scene of many militant attacks in recent months. On Aug. 5, Sinai militants killed 16 Egyptian soldiers where the borders of Egypt, Israel and Gaza converge. Then they stole Egyptian army vehicles and crashed into Israel, where Israeli forces stopped them with gunfire. » Read more

Israel sees monthlong war after Iran strike ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Associated Press by Amy Teibel - August 15, 2012 - 12:00am An Israeli attack on Iran's nuclear program could trigger a bloody monthlong war on multiple fronts, killing hundreds of Israelis or more, the Israeli Cabinet's civil defense chief warned in an interview published Wednesday. It was the most explicit assessment yet of how the government sees events unfolding in the aftermath of an Israeli attack. » Read more

Families of slain Iranian scientists sue Israel ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Associated Press by Ali Akbar Dareini - August 15, 2012 - 12:00am Families of Iran's slain nuclear scientists have filed a lawsuit against Israel, the U.S. and Britain accusing them of involvement in the assassination of their loved ones. Rahim Ahmadi Roshan, father of Mostafa Ahmadi Roshan, the slain chemistry expert and a director of the Natanz uranium enrichment facility in central Iran, told a press conference in Tehran Wednesday that the families have demanded Iran's judiciary to pursue their complaint through international bodies and bring those behind the killings to justice. » Read more

Israeli gov't to raise quota of Palestinian workers to 30,000 ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Xinhua August 16, 2012 - 12:00am The Israeli government will increase the quota of Palestinian construction workers allowed to enter Israel within a few weeks, local news outlets reported Wednesday. The reports said the Israeli government agreed to allow up to 30,000 workers to enter its country as a move of assistance to the financially-crippled Palestinian National Authority (PNA). In July, the Israeli government aided the PNA with 180 million shekels (45 million U.S. dollars) in light of its severe financial situation. » Read more

Tension rises on Israeli-Lebanese border ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Xinhua August 16, 2012 - 12:00am Tension has clearly risen on the Lebanese-Israeli border, security sources told Xinhua Wednesday. The sources, who asked to remain anonymous, said the Israeli army had intensified its patrols and observation mission all along the border, while Hezbollah is on high alert and has also raised its readiness. The rise of tension came amid a war of words between the Israeli army commanders and the militant party officials. » Read more

Blast damages women hair salon in Gaza ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Xinhua August 15, 2012 - 12:00am A women hair salon was damaged in an explosion in central Gaza Strip, a human rights organization reported Wednesday. Al Mezan Center for Human Rights said in a statement that unidentified gunmen blew up a hair salon in the Nuseirat camp, damaging the salon's interior, a nearby building and a number of windows in nearby houses. An investigation has been opened into the case, a police spokesman said. » Read more

Hundreds of Israelis petition IDF pilots: Refuse orders to bomb Iran ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Haaretz by Dan Evens, Tomer Zarchin - August 16, 2012 - 12:00am More than 400 Israelis, including Tel Aviv University law professors Menachem Mautner and Chaim Gans, have recently signed an online petition calling on Israel Defense Forces pilots to refuse to obey if ordered to bomb Iran. The petition calls a decision to launch a strike against Iran a "highly mistaken gamble" that would only delay Iran's nuclear program, without stopping it, and would come "at an exorbitant price." » Read more

Defying AG, ministers decide to hand Hebron market stores over to Israeli settlers ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Haaretz by Chaim Levinson - August 16, 2012 - 12:00am A panel of ministers has decided to instruct the army to transfer possession of a Hebron building that Jewish settlers were living in illegally to the city's Jewish community, after first evicting the squatters. However, Attorney General Yehuda Weinstein believes there may be legal obstacles to the position of the Ministerial Committee for Settlement Affairs, which was created in June and consists mainly of Likud cabinet ministers. Weinstein is trying to formulate a new position on the matter. » Read more

Egypt deployed troops in Sinai without Israel's prior approval ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Haaretz by Avi Issacharoff - August 16, 2012 - 12:00am The Egyptian army has been deploying large anti-terrorist forces in parts of the Sinai peninsula without informing Israel in advance. The peace treaty between the two countries limits the Egyptian military presence in Sinai. » Read more

Palestinians flock to Jerusalem as restrictions eased for Ramadan ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Reuters August 16, 2012 - 12:00am Israel has unexpectedly eased restrictions on Palestinians looking to visit Jerusalem during the Muslim holy month of Ramadan, saying improved security meant it could let in thousands more from the occupied West Bank. Israeli officials said Wednesday they had lowered the age limit for men wanting to visit al-Aqsa mosque in the Old City to 40 from 50 and had also handed out seven times more permits to Palestinians between the ages of 35 and 40. » Read more

Canada's United Church affirms settlements boycott ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Jerusalem Post August 16, 2012 - 12:00am Members of the United Church of Canada, the country’s largest Protestant denomination, voted on Wednesday to affirm a controversial motion supporting a boycott of goods produced in Israeli settlements in the West Bank and East Jerusalem. The boycott has has outraged many Jewish groups, including the Center for Israel and Jewish Affairs, which expressed it's anger by "the decision to single out Israeli communities for boycott." » Read more

Secular Israelis Gentrify West Bank Settlements ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Yedioth Ahronoth by Ofer Petersburg - August 16, 2012 - 12:00am It's rather in doubt whether this is the solution that the leaders of the social justice protest [that swept Israel in the summer of 2011] wished for when they took to the streets to demonstrate against the exorbitant cost of housing in Israel. » Read more

Palestinian envoy raised alarm about missing asylum boat ATFP World Press Roundup Article from National Times by Natalie O'Brien - August 16, 2012 - 12:00am The federal government has known for weeks that another asylum seeker boat, this one with dozens of Palestinians on board, had disappeared yet it kept silent about the details. The boat carrying 67 passengers, including 28 Palestinians, was last heard from 48 days ago after setting sail from Indonesia. » Read more

Stopping Extremist Settlers ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The New York Times by Daniel Byman, Natan Sachs - (Opinion) August 16, 2012 - 12:00am Late this past June, a group of Israeli settlers in the West Bank defaced and burned a mosque in the small West Bank village of Jabaa. Graffiti sprayed by the vandals warned of a “war” over the planned evacuation, ordered by the Israeli Supreme Court, of a handful of houses illegally built on private Palestinian land near the settlement of Beit El. » Read more

Chance of success slim for Palestinians' 2nd UN bid ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Xinhua by Adam Gonn - (Analysis) August 15, 2012 - 12:00am Palestinian National Authority (PNA) President Mahmoud Abbas is considering launching a second attempt at upgrading the status of the Palestinians in the United Nations from an observer entity to a non-member observer. With an upgraded status, the Palestinians would be able to vote in the UN General Assembly and seek full membership in UN organizations and at the International Criminal Court. The upgrade would also likely to help define the borders of a Palestinian state as containing the entire West Bank, the Gaza Strip and East Jerusalem. » Read more

The price of settlements ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Haaretz (Editorial) August 16, 2012 - 12:00am On Sunday Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu rejected a request by Defense Minister Ehud Barak to hold a cabinet meeting on the political stalemate with the Palestinians, to discuss ways of advancing peace negotiations for a final agreement. On Monday Haaretz reported Barak as saying in private talks that a thaw in relations is in Israel's strategic interest and that the country is "living on borrowed time." On Tuesday the European Union demonstrated the price of neglecting this political channel, combined with the race to expand settlements. » Read more

Gentlemen, America is telling you 'no' ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Ynetnews by Eitan Haber - (Opinion) August 16, 2012 - 12:00am Many years ago, the US ambassador to Israel requested an urgent meeting with the defense minister. The ambassador (I'm fairly certain it was Thomas Pickering) sat opposite Yitzhak Rabin, took out a piece of paper from his pocket and read from it. » Read more

US punched Bibi, Barak in the face ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Ynetnews by Attila Somfalvi - (Opinion) August 15, 2012 - 12:00am Once every few years Israel needs a slap in the face to remember where it stands in the world. On Tuesday it was US Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff General Martin Dempsey who assumed the role of the responsible adult and slapped Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Defense Minister Ehud Barak, the duo orchestrating the national hysteria surrounding the possibility of an attack in Iran. » Read more

Romney must stop playing politics with Israel ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Ynetnews by Frank R. Lautenberg - (Opinion) August 15, 2012 - 12:00am The rhetoric coming from Republicans and their presidential candidate, Governor Mitt Romney, concerning the US relationship with Israel is downright dangerous. Republicans want to use our relationship with Israel as part of a political game – which is terrible for US national security and bad for Israel’s safety. » Read more

Existential priorities ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Jerusalem Post by Jonathan Rosen - (Opinion) August 15, 2012 - 12:00am Israelis have had a number of pressing issues on their minds lately, all of which have been placed in the forefront by the media and the political leadership in the past number of weeks. First and foremost perhaps is the threat posed by the Iranian nuclear program, followed closely by the danger of armed jihadists in Sinai, the rise of Mohamed Mursi and the Muslim Brotherhood in Egypt and the impending fall of the Syrian regime and the fate of its enormous arsenal of chemical and biological weapons. » Read more

BDS campaign remains dangerous, despite failures ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Jewish Telegraphic Agency (JTA) by Kenneth Stern - (Opinion) August 15, 2012 - 12:00am For more than a decade, anti-Israel activists have sought to shoehorn Israel into the nomenclature of apartheid-era South Africa through the use of a tactic named BDS (boycott, divestment, sanctions). Apartheid was a universally decried racist system. BDS activists argue that Israel is the second coming of apartheid South Africa and must be treated the same. » Read more

Israel's hawks push a war for personal gain ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The National (Editorial) August 16, 2012 - 12:00am Bluster on Iran is not just dangerous, it is also deceptive. There is growing evidence that a military strike would fail to achieve its strategic goals. That, however, has done little to deter Israel's Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Defense Minister Ehud Barak from their campaign of threats. For these two men, it seems, a regional war is an acceptable risk to promote their own political careers. » Read more

The Politically Incorrect Guide to U.S. Interests in the Middle East ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Foreign Policy by Aaron David Miller - (Opinion) August 15, 2012 - 12:00am Foreign policy, including the use of military power, isn't an end in itself. It consists of tools and instruments designed to achieve specific and hopefully well-thought-out ends. Those ends -- let's call them interests -- are theoretically supposed to drive a country's foreign-policy strategy. Sounds pretty simple, right? » Read more

Paul Ryan, Meet Dr. Lewis and Mr. Bernard ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Daily Beast by Hussein Ibish - (Opinion) August 15, 2012 - 12:00am Mitt Romney's vice presidential nominee pick, Congressman Paul Ryan, doesn't have a lot of foreign policy experience. But neither does Romney himself, nor did President Barack Obama when he was nominated by the Democratic Party four years ago. Romney's selection confirms the conventional wisdom that, barring unforeseen developments, this will be an election almost entirely fought over domestic policy issues, particularly the economy. » Read more

---

---