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NEWS: Sec. Panetta says Israel must “get to the damn table” and negotiate with the Palestinians. Israeli officials condemn statements attributed to Sec. Clinton critical of recent antidemocratic Israeli legislation. An Israeli entrepreneur opens an online university in the occupied West Bank. After an outcry from Jewish Americans, the Israeli government cancels advertisements warning against life in the United States. Officials from Hamas and Fatah meet to discuss reconciliation. Diplomats say Hamas is quietly scaling back its presence in Syria and Iran is threatening to cut off its funding and weapons. PM Netanyahu calls for a Likud party vote, which could lead to early national elections. Israeli rights groups again say the government is curbing free speech. The US has reportedly asked Palestinians to stop leaking contents of Quartet proposals. PM Fayyad offers a frank analysis of the present situation facing the PA. COMMENTARY: David Ignatius says Panetta was merely saying what most US officials think but rarely say in public, and the Gulf News says he was right. Akiva Eldar says Jewish Americans should use their influence to stop “Israeli incitement.” Ha'aretz interviews historian Rashid Khalidi. Musa Keilani says Israel's diplomatic woes are of its own making. In an interview with an Israeli newspaper, Senior Egyptian journalist Mounir Mahmoud says there is no danger of a cancellation of the peace treaty. Amira Hass says if a New York Times reporter had not been abused by occupation forces, a Palestinian woman's story would never be known.

NEWS: PM Fayyad says he will not lead a national unity government. Concern is growing in Israel over what could happen if it continues to refuse to submit a peace proposal to the Quartet. Israel is completing its barrier along the border with Egypt. The PA says it will now be able to meet payroll since Israel has released tax funds. Hamas fires 120 employees. Israel is constructing news roads between West Bank settlements and occupied East Jerusalem. PLO officials say they are going to push forward with efforts to gain UN membership.Hamas leaders affirm that Jordan is not Palestine. Israel's practice of not allowing Palestinians to travel out of Gaza to pursue claims against occupation forces is being challenged in court. Israel may lose $250 million in US aid due to American budget constraints.

COMMENTARY: Rep. Steve Chabot says the US gave clear warnings in advance it would defund UNESCO over Palestine's membership. Yoel Marcus says renewing peace talks with the Palestinians is the key to repairing Israel's relationship with Egypt. Ha'aretz says PM Netanyahu should stop undermining Israeli democracy. Uri Savir says 64 years after the UN partition resolution, the conflict is more or less back to where it was then. Ghassan Rubeiz says it's going to be difficult for Palestinian leaders to reconcile. Nader Mousavizadeh says the Arab uprisings have strengthened the hand of the Israeli right. Andrew Sullivan challenges allegations of Israeli “pinkwashing.” Jeffrey Goldberg complains that the Israeli government has created ads suggesting it is impossible to remain Jewish in the United States. Ephraim Sneh says Israel cannot allow its relations with Jordan to deteriorate.

NEWS: PM Fayyad says he is working to reduce the Palestinian dependence on foreign aid. Palestinians submit a detailed peace proposal to the Quartet, according to their deadlines, including a significant land swap, but PM Netanyahu refuses to make a counteroffer. The resumption of Israeli transfers of Palestinian tax revenues helps avert a financial crisis for the PA, but FM Lieberman denounces the move. Palestinian prisoners released by Israel get on with the business of daily life. Israel arrests 22 Palestinians in the West Bank. Pres. Obama tells Jewish Americans “no ally is more important than Israel.” Netanyahu complains about a recent meeting between Pres. Abbas and Kadima leader Livni. Hamas complains the PA continues to arrest its supporters in the West Bank. Germany confirms the sale of a sixth Dolphin submarine to Israel, and will pay for one third of it. COMMENTARY: ADL National Director Abe Foxman decries new Israeli laws that "violate democratic principles." Carlo Strenger says Israel's liberals face a wave of anti-Semitism. Douglas Bloomfield says weakening Abbas only strengthens Hamas. Asharq Al-Awsat interviews Mahmoud al-Zahar. Mohammed Azhar Ali Khan says Canada is on the wrong side of history in opposing Palestinian statehood. Nadim Rouhana says antidemocratic legislation in Israel threatens rights for the Jewish majority as well as the Arab minority. Howard Sumka says the struggle for peace must continue even if conditions are difficult. Uri Misgav says Israel was only hurting itself by withholding Palestinian tax revenues. Karl Vick says Gaza's economy continues to suffer as the peace process is it an impasse. Jonathan Rosen says dismantling outlying settlements has few disadvantages and would be a huge boost for Israel. Jesse Rosenfeld looks at a new book by Arthur Neslen on the diversity of Palestinian experiences.
NEWS: Israel releases withheld Palestinian tax revenues. PA Economy Minister Abu Libdeh resigns amid corruption indictments. Hamas leaders accuse Pres. Abbas of not being serious about national unity. Iceland becomes the first Western European state to recognize Palestine. The Forward profiles the pro-Israel group StandWithUs. The ACLU files suit against a Michigan bus company that refused an advertisement critical of Israel. A bill pending in the US Congress would remove the presidential waiver on moving the US Embassy in Israel to Jerusalem. Asharq Al-Awsat reports on an allegedly major split in the Hamas leadership. The Independent looks at the plight of Palestinians in occupied East Jerusalem's old city. COMMENTARY: Thomas Friedman says if Israel is concerned about instability in the Arab world, it should move quickly to bolster the position of PM Fayyad. Zvi Bar'el says Israel's hostile reaction to Arab uprisings might undo its peace treaty with Egypt. Bradley Burston says in uniting to attack moderates, the Jewish pro-occupation extreme right and anti-Zionist ultra-left find common cause. Kenneth Bandler says Jewish Americans need to know more about challenges facing Palestinian citizens of Israel. The Jerusalem Post says Palestinians should focus on the unfinished job of state building. Yossi Alpher says both sides are to blame for Israel's shift to the nationalistic right. Bitterlemons Interviews Palestinian MK Haneen Zoubi. The Jordan Times says King Abdullah was right to remind Pres. Peres about the urgency of peace.
NEWS: A new poll finds a majority of Palestinians support the continuation of PM Fayyad as prime minister. Pres. Peres visits Jordan to discuss issues related to the Palestinians. A second Palestinian teenager is convicted of murdering an Israeli settler family. A Fatah leader says Palestinian factions have agreed to release each other's prisoners. Pres. Abbas says he “hopes” talks with Hamas will lead to elections on May 4. Israeli officials say there has been an exchange of rocket fire across the Lebanese border. Israeli authorities apologize for mistreating a New York Times journalist. FM Lieberman is looking for ways to prevent Israeli airport security from humiliating foreign VIPs. Ha'aretz says data shows that almost all cases before occupation military tribunals end in convictions. COMMENTARY: In an interview with the Media Line, Fayyad says "unity and non-violence" are prerequisites for Palestinian statehood. Sefi Rachlevsky says Palestinian citizens of Israel are being discouraged from voting. Amos Harel and Avi Issacharoff say Arab elections are boosting both democracy and Israeli fears. Asaf Gefen says right-wing legislation is threatening Israeli democracy. Gershon Baskin says it's in everyone's interests that Hamas adopt more moderate policies as a result of negotiations with Fatah. Khaled Diab says Israel could do with some freedom riders of its own. Hassan Jabareen says Israeli officials are prone to making false historical analogies. Amy Teibel says there is a battle raging for the character of the Israeli state. The UN urges greater support for Palestinian refugees. Ghassan Khatib says the occupation is starting to manifest itself inside Israel.
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