Israeli academics boycott West Bank settlements ATFP World Press Roundup Article from BBC News August 31, 2010 - 12:00am More than 150 Israeli academics say they will no longer lecture or work in Jewish settlements in the West Bank. In a letter, they said they supported the recent decision by a group of actors and others not to take part in cultural activity there. The academics said that acceptance of the settlements caused "critical" damage to Israel's chances of achieving peace with the Palestinians. The actors were criticised for refusing to perform at a new cultural centre. » Read more

PA official vows: 'We'll hit Hamas with an iron fist' ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Jerusalem Post September 2, 2010 - 12:00am Palestinian Authority security forces have vowed to arrest Hamas members and bring order to the West Bank, according to a Thursday report by London daily Asharq Al-Awsat. "We arrested hundreds of Hamas members, and we'll continue to do so," a high-ranking Palestinian Authority official told Asharq. "We will prevent them, however we can, from bringing anarchy to the West Bank. We will hit them with an iron fist." » Read more

ZAKA headquarters authorized in east Jerusalem ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Ynetnews by Ronen Medzini - September 1, 2010 - 12:00am As leaders gather in Washington to talk peace, the Jerusalem Municipality is promoting a building plan for the east of the city. Ynet learned on Wednesday that the municipal committee for commemorating terror victims has authorized the construction of a new headquarters for ZAKA, a voluntary rescue organization, in the Sheikh Jarrah neighborhood. The planned headquarters will include facilities for refrigerating and storing thousands of bodies and a museum for commemorating terror victims. » Read more

Abbas has the will, and the way ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Haaretz by Avi Issacharoff - September 2, 2010 - 12:00am In spite of Tuesday's terror attack and its tragic consequences, Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas remains a partner for peace. Over the next few days we will, of course, hear the same old slogans bandied about: "There is no Palestinian partner," or better yet, "Yasser Arafat could have made peace but didn't want to; Abbas may or might not want to conclude a peace with Israel, but he cannot." » Read more

Hamas claims responsibility for second West Bank shooting attack in two days ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Haaretz by Anshel Pfeffer - September 2, 2010 - 12:00am Hamas on Thursday claimed responsibility for a shooting attack in which two Israelis were wounded, one of them seriously, in the West Bank. Wednesday's roadside attack, near the Jewish settlement of Kochav Hashachar, occurred on the eve of face-to-face peace negotiations between Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu in Washington. » Read more

Settlers defy peace talks with new construction across West Bank ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Haaretz September 2, 2010 - 12:00am Hours before peace talks were set to begin in Washington, Jewish settlers defiantly announced plans on Thursday to launch new construction in their West Bank enclaves in a test of strength with Palestinian Islamists. Naftali Bennett, director of the settlers' Yesha council, said settlers would begin building homes and public structures in at least 80 settlements, breaking a partial government freeze on building that ends on September 26. » Read more

As Mideast talks begin, Palestinians find unlikely support from Jewish settlers ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Christian Science Monitor by Danielle Cheslow - September 1, 2010 - 12:00am As Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu traveled to Washington this week, he carried with him a mix of hopes and fears about what the renewal of Mideast talks would – or should – bring. One of the more unusual proposals came from Rabbi Menachem Froman: In order to move negotiations forward in an amiable atmosphere, why not send a delegation of rabbis to the West Bank to wish Palestinian leader Mahmoud Abbas and the Palestinian people long life? » Read more

The trickiest issue in Israeli-Palestinian peace talks ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Christian Science Monitor by Christa Case Bryant - September 1, 2010 - 12:00am As Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Palestinian leader Mahmoud Abbas enter direct peace talks on Thursday, an intensifying battle for Jerusalem has rendered the conflict’s trickiest issue even more intractable. A key flashpoint in this battle is Sheikh Jarrah, a predominantly Arab neighborhood revered by religious Jews. While the number of new Jewish residents remains small, Palestinians and human rights activists see their expanding presence as fulfilling a larger plan. » Read more

Abbas: It is time to achieve peace ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Ma'an News Agency September 1, 2010 - 12:00am "It is time to make peace, it is time to end the occupation that began in 1967, and for the Palestinian people to achieve their freedom, independence and justice," President Mahmoud Abbas said from the White House moments after a second shooting attack against settlers in the West Bank. "We condemned what happened today. We do not want any drop of blood to be shed neither from Palestinians nor Israelis. We want peace between our two peoples. We want to live as partners and neighbors. Let us sign a final peace agreement and end, forever, a long era of conflict," Abbas said. » Read more

Barack Obama seeks peace within a year ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Politico by Carrie Budoff Brown, Laura Rozen - September 1, 2010 - 12:00am President Barack Obama opened the first round of direct Israeli-Palestinian negotiations Wednesday in nearly two years by challenging Mideast leaders to put aside decades of antagonism and reach a peace accord within the next year. "Do we have the wisdom and the courage to walk the path of peace?" Obama asked, standing alongside leaders of Jordan, Egypt, Israel and the Palestinians in the East Room of the White House. » Read more