October 5th

Poll: Most Palestinians back dropping talks if Israel builds settlements ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Haaretz October 4, 2010 - 12:00am A majority of Palestinians would want to withdraw from Middle East peace negotiations if Israel continues to build settlements in the West Bank, according to a public opinion poll published Monday. The poll, conducted by the Ramallah-based Palestinian Centre for Policy and Survey Research, found that 66 per cent of participants supported that position. » Read more

Korans burnt in West Bank mosque attack ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Reuters by Douglas Hamilton - October 4, 2010 - 12:00am BEIT FAJJAR, West Bank, Oct 4 (Reuters) - Jewish settlers opposed to a peace deal between Israel and the Palestinians were accused of setting fire to a mosque in the West Bank on Monday, burning the Koran and scrawling threats in Hebrew on its walls. "Mosques, we burn," said a warning scribbled at the door of the smoke-smudged mosque of Beit Fajjar south of Bethlehem on the day Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu appealed for cool heads to avert the collapse of U.S.-brokered peace talks. » Read more

ADL 'outraged' by West Bank mosque arson, condemns extremist Jewish violence ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Haaretz by Natasha Mozgovaya - October 4, 2010 - 12:00am The Anti-Defamation League on Monday condemned the torching of a Palestinian mosque in the West Bank, an act believed to have been carried out by angry settlers as part of their "price tag operation. ? "We are outraged by the attack on the mosque in Bayt Fajar,” Anti-Defamation League Israel office said in a statement. “We join with Israeli officials in condemning this act of hate, and hope that the joint IDF-Palestinian investigative team will identify and apprehend the perpetrators of this vicious act and bring them to justice according to the law." » Read more

Poet Zach: Israel apartheid state ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Ynetnews by Boaz Fyler - October 5, 2010 - 12:00am The Knesset is on the offensive as one of Israel's leading poets has announced his intent to join the next flotilla to Gaza. Natan Zach condemned the government and said he was willing to join activists attempting to reach Gaza via flotillas. He added that while visiting Germany, he witnessed a huge rally where Israel was labeled as an "apartheid state. "I do not wish to live in such state," he said. Zach told Ynet that he did not understand why his statements caused such uproar. » Read more

Study shows Israelis, Palestinians both retaliate ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Reuters by Maggie Fox - October 4, 2010 - 12:00am WASHINGTON, Oct 4 (Reuters) - An unusual attempt to quantify the conflicts between Israelis and Palestinians shows that both act in retaliation for violent attacks, researchers reported on Monday. They said their findings defy the perception that Palestinians attack randomly and demonstrate that both sides damage their own interests with acts of violence. Writing in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, the researchers also said they hope to shed some light on the psychology that makes both Israelis and Palestinians feel they are the victims in the conflict. » Read more

Play the wild card ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Jerusalem Post by Ami Kaufman - October 4, 2010 - 12:00am Pessimism,” “doomed to fail” and “waste of time” – these words and phrases litter the reporting and blogging on the current talks between Israel and the Palestinians. One can only hope to be pleasantly surprised and hear that by the end of next summer they will be deemed a success. But seeing as how the pessimists seem to be a majority, now may just be the time to think of creative ways to end the stalemate. One possibility would be for a third party to change the rules of the game. This would fundamentally change the status quo and force the two sides to act accordingly. » Read more

New US consulate to open in west Jerusalem ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Jerusalem Post by Melanie Lidman - October 5, 2010 - 12:00am After six years of construction, the American Consulate in Jerusalem will open its new facility for consular services on Rehov David Flusser in the southern Arnona neighborhood next Tuesday. The office that previously dealt with consular services, located on Nablus Road in east Jerusalem, will remain open for consulate programs, along with the facility in west Jerusalem on Rehov Agron, and America House, a cultural outreach center in east Jerusalem. » Read more

PA: Latest Israeli soldier video 'deeply offensive' ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Ma'an News Agency October 5, 2010 - 12:00am RAMALLAH (Ma'an) -- A personal film showing an Israeli soldier dancing around a Palestinian woman uploaded to YouTube on Monday "is a disgusting illustration of the sick mentality of the occupier," a Palestinian Authority statement said. The video, showing an Israeli soldier belly-dancing next to a woman who is a blindfolded and handcuffed, head leaning against a concrete wall, sparked outrage for Palestinians and embarrassment for the Israeli military, as Tel Aviv papers branded the incident "Another YouTube embarrassment for IDF." » Read more

Roger Waters: I'm not anti-Semitic, I'm anti-occupation ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Jerusalem Post by Lahav Harkov - October 5, 2010 - 12:00am Pink Floyd's Roger Waters denied being anti-Semitic in an open letter to the UK newspaper The Independent on Monday, after the Anti-Defamation League slammed him for using "imagery long associated with steretotypes about Jews and money." In Waters' The Wall Live tour, during performances of the song "Goodbye Blue Sky," a animated B52 bomber plane is shown dropping bombs shaped like the Star of David, dollar signs and logos for Shell Oil and Mercedes. The ADL released a statement saying Waters "cross[ed] the line into anti-Semitism." » Read more

Qalqiliya checkpoint shooting leaves 1 injured ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Ma'an News Agency October 5, 2010 - 12:00am BETHLEHEM (Ma’an) – A young Palestinian man was shot and injured by Israeli forces near a military checkpoint in Qalqiliya on Tuesday morning. Israeli sources said the young man was from the village of Habla, a Palestinian area inside Israel, while a military spokeswoman told Ma'an that three young men driving a car identified as stolen were driving from Israel into the West Bank. » Read more