Breaking Israel's spell ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Guardian by Seth Freedman - (Opinion) July 31, 2009 - 12:00am For the most part, London's Jewish community is a shining example of social cohesion and pastoral care. Large charitable donations are raised on a constant basis and distributed to those in need of assistance; sick or lonely individuals are clutched to the communal bosom and provided for by welfare associations and concerned neighbours; and the ethics inculcated into each new generation are built on a bedrock of values dating back to biblical times. » Read more

Gaza children go for world record for kite flying ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Associated Press by Ibrahim Barzak - July 30, 2009 - 12:00am Thousands of children in the Gaza Strip attempted to set a new world record Thursday by flying colorful homemade kites amid the ruins of Israel's bruising offensive earlier this year — a rare display of joy in the isolated seaside territory ruled by Hamas militants. The festive event, sponsored by the United Nations, brought some 6,000 campers in orange uniforms and blue caps to a beach in Gaza's war-torn north, where they released their kites into clear skies. Some included designs such as the red, green, black and white Palestinian flag. » Read more

Israeli NGO battles settlements in US ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Jerusalem Post by Dan Izenberg - July 30, 2009 - 12:00am The left-wing organization Gush Shalom is launching a campaign against organizations soliciting donations in the United States, particularly those receiving US federal tax exemptions for settlements and illegal outposts, The Jerusalem Post has learned. The timing of the campaign has been stepped up from September to August because the Foreign Ministry recently launched its own campaign to block governments of foreign countries from donating money to human rights organizations in Israel. » Read more

Israel targets foreign gov't NGO funds ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Jerusalem Post by Herb Keinon - July 31, 2009 - 12:00am Recent revelations about foreign government funding for local NGOs involved in political activity have triggered discussions by senior Israeli officials about the possibility of making such aid illegal, The Jerusalem Post has learned. The senior officials are looking into whether it might be possible to ban donations from foreign governments to political NGOs, just as it is forbidden for foreign residents, let alone governments, to contribute to Israeli political parties. » Read more

A new Palestine ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Haaretz by Ari Shavit - July 31, 2009 - 12:00am Remember the name: Rawabi. The city of hills to be built nine kilometers northwest of Ramallah. The first planned city in Palestinian history. The first planned city in the West Bank to be inhabited by Palestinians rather than settlers. A city designed to be a Palestinian city of abundance - secular, open and vibrant. A city of pedestrian malls, cafes, kindergartens and schools. A city of thriving Palestinian start-ups and Palestinian yuppies. A city that will pave the Palestinians' way to the 21st century. » Read more

Rahm Emanuel: Self-hating Jew or peace-broker? ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Haaretz by Natasha Mozgovaya - (Opinion) July 31, 2009 - 12:00am When I ask a liberal American Jew involved in politics what he thinks of the claim that Rahm Emanuel is an anti-Israeli fifth column in the Obama administration, he laughs. "So, do they really think in Israel that Rahm Emanuel, David Axelrod, Dan Shapiro, Mara Rudman, Dennis Ross and the other good American Jews who work with Obama are a fifth column?" And then he says slowly, like someone explaining something to a person who has difficulty understanding: "How many times do you have to be told ... " "... that you love us?" I try to complete the sentence. » Read more

Not quite as gloomy as they look ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Economist (Editorial) July 31, 2009 - 12:00am BACK in the autumn of last year, Ehud Olmert, then Israel’s fading prime minister, and Mahmoud Abbas, the Palestinians’ more durable president, were astonishingly close to a peace deal. Judging by an interview with Mr Olmert published in Newsweek in June, after he had given up his post, they appeared to have been only a whisker apart—though Mr Abbas has since called the gap “wide”. But it is worth spelling out what Mr Olmert says he offered, in an account that other senior Palestinians have pretty much verified. » Read more

Get stuck in, Mr President ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Economist July 30, 2009 - 12:00am THE American president may think he has enough on his plate without worrying about the dog’s dinner simmering away in the corner: the sickly Middle East peace process, with its often nauseous ingredients. This week he has sent an array of colleagues to stir the pot, including his envoy, George Mitchell, who has been in and out of the region; Robert Gates, his secretary of defence; and Jim Jones, his security adviser, who knows the Palestinians from the past. But Mr Obama is the indispensable head chef. However preoccupied, it is he who must decide what to serve up—and when. » Read more

Hamas Chief Outlines Terms for Talks on Arab-Israeli Peace ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Wall Street Journal by Julien Barnes-Dacey, Jay Solomon - July 31, 2009 - 12:00am The chief of Palestinian militant group Hamas said his organization is prepared to cooperate with the U.S. in promoting a peaceful resolution to the Arab-Israeli conflict if the White House can secure an Israeli settlement freeze and a lifting of the economic and military blockade of the Gaza Strip. » Read more

Settlement Foes Take Fight to Israel's High Court ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Washington Post by Howard Schneider - July 31, 2009 - 12:00am It has been nearly a decade since the Jewish settlement of Migron appeared on the hilltop opposite this Palestinian village, beginning with a communications tower and followed by a cluster of homes and a fence around approximately 90 acres of land. Data tucked onto the hard drive of anti-settlement activist Dror Etkes's computer indicates that the land belongs to the residents of Burqa and nearby Deir Dibwan, and Etkes said he expects that information will one day force the settlers to leave. » Read more