NEWS:

Pres. Abbas approves the new PA budget as submitted by PM Fayyad. (Xinhua)

Abbas and Jordan's King Abdallah agree to cooperate to protect Arab and Islamic sites inoccupied Jerusalem. (Xinhua/Ma'an)

Hamas leader Haniyyeh meets with the chief of Egypt's intelligence services. (AP)

Hamas accuses Fatah of blocking reconciliation talks. (Xinhua)

Settlers attack Palestinian school buses. (Ma'an)

Israeli occupation forces clash with Palestinians during "Land Day" commemorations. (AP)

Palestinians say seven children are injured when settlers stoned school buses in the occupied West Bank. (Ma'an)

Abbas is accused of clamping down on critics in civil society. (AP)

Israel begins to exploit offshore natural gas reserves. (New York Times)

The Israeli military says it could withstand an attack from Syrian chemical weapons. (Reuters)

Christians in the Middle East and Palestine celebrate Easter weekend. (AP)

Hamas officials say Pres. Obama's visit to the region was counterproductive for Palestinian reconciliation. (Xinhua)

Israel's military is dealing with complications arising from having women and ultra-Orthodox male service members. (LA Times)

Palestinian Americans continue to face grave difficulties under the Israeli occupation. (The National)

A short documentary by Just Vision Media about the Palestinian neighborhood of Sheikh Jarrah in occupied East Jerusalem wins a Peabody award. (Daily Beast/Open Zion)

COMMENTARY:
Suzanne Nossel asks why it took so long for Israel to apologize to Turkey over the flotilla affair. (Foreign Policy)

Gideon Levy says Israeli cruelty reached the point of no return in the 2008-2009 Gaza war. (Ha'aretz)

Amira Hass says a new PA budget shows its dependence on Israel and the United States. (Ha'aretz)

Shoula Romano Horing says Obama still Be trusted by Israelis. (YNet)

Ha'aretz says the Israeli military should stop arresting Palestinian children. (Ha'aretz

Asharq Al-Awsat says Abbas refuses to take part in any Arab League summit which Hamas also attends. (Asharq Al-Awsat)

Joseph Dana says natural gas is the key to Israeli-Turkish reconciliation. (The National)

Abdullah Al Shayji says Obama has achieved nothing with Iraq to Syria or the two-state solution. (Gulf News)

Shlomi Eldar interviews Yara Mashour, editor of the Israeli Arabic-language magazine Lilac. (Al Monitor)