October 7th

Does Israel Actually Want the U.S. to Defund the UN? ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Atlantic by Zvika Krieger - (Opinion) October 6, 2011 - 12:00am One of the many effects of the Palestinians' bid for statehood at the United Nations is a renewed campaign for the U.S. to withdraw its financial support of the institution and downgrade its engagement. "I would tell the other 190-plus members of the United Nations: If you vote for a declaration of Palestinian statehood, the United States will defund the United Nations, period, close quote," Bush-era UN ambassador John Bolton recently said on Fox News. » Read more

The settler leader who led Israelis to disaster ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Haaretz by Nehemia Shtrasler - (Opinion) October 7, 2011 - 12:00am There were so many accolades and so much praise that I found myself getting confused. Was this the same Hanan Porat that I also knew? True, he was an idealist, and charismatic, and modest, and he always said what he felt in his heart. True, also, that he was the great leader of Gush Emunim. But we must not forget, and this is the tragic part of the story, that his biggest success - covering the West Bank with a carpet of Israeli settlements - was also the greatest disaster that befell the people of Israel. » Read more

It's only a matter of time until Netanyahu falls ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Haaretz by Yoel Marcus - (Opinion) October 7, 2011 - 12:00am Something bad happens to us during the holiday period. Not only is work not work, not only is it unclear what's open and what's closed and whether the clock is showing summer time or winter time - official intelligence also goes on vacation. You have to be emptyheaded in order to get to a situation in which German Chancellor Angela Merkel - the only leader in Europe, if not in the entire world, who treats us with understanding and empathy - loses trust and is disappointed in our prime minister. » Read more

Palestinians Feel Effects Of Frozen U.S. Aid ATFP World Press Roundup Article from National Public Radio (NPR) by Sheera Frenkel - October 7, 2011 - 12:00am The Obama administration is urging Congress to rescind a decision blocking some aid to the Palestinians. The congressional decision to put a hold on $200 million of aid money was prompted by the Palestinian Authority's bid for statehood recognition at the United Nations —something both the administration and Congress oppose. The funding cut is already having an impact in the Palestinian territories. » Read more

Swedish academics call for boycott of Israeli institutions ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Jewish Telegraphic Agency (JTA) October 7, 2011 - 12:00am More than 200 professors and students from Sweden have signed on to a call for an academic boycott of Israeli institutions. The boycott petition was initiated by the Action Group for the Boycott of Israel at the Royal Institute of Technology in Stockholm. » Read more

Israeli reservists called up for surprise pre-Yom Kippur drill ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Jewish Telegraphic Agency (JTA) October 7, 2011 - 12:00am The Israeli military called up reservists for a surprise drill on the 38th anniversary of the start of the Yom Kippur War. Two reserve divisions in central and northern Israel were mobilized Wednesday evening and participated in the exercise until Thursday afternoon, according to reports. The exercise was held due to events in the region, Ynet reported. The divisions were declared to be ready by military officials. Lt.-Gen. Benny Gantz, the Israeli military's chief of staff, observed the exercise.

B'Tselem: Israeli govt responsible for Qusra attacks ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Ma'an News Agency October 7, 2011 - 12:00am Israeli authorities are failing to stop settler attacks on Nablus village Qusra, which has faced a repeated campaign of harassment from Israeli settlers, an Israeli rights group said on Thursday. Israeli settlers uprooted 200 olive trees in the south of the village overnight Wednesday. Israeli organization B'Tselem said due to a new Israeli army post overlooking the valley, "the attack occurred in an open area with excellent visibility." » Read more

PA official: IDF protects settlers who attack Palestinians ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Jerusalem Post by Khaled Abu Toameh - October 7, 2011 - 12:00am The IDF dismissed accusations by the Palestinian Authority that it was protecting settlers who attack Palestinians and/or their property in the West Bank as ridiculous on Thursday. “It is both baseless and ridiculous to say the IDF is supporting such activity,” an army source said. “The IDF together with other law enforcement bodies constantly work to prevent and investigate unlawful activities in the West Bank, whether they are perpetuated by Palestinians or Israelis,” the sources said. » Read more

Hamas, Israel's enemy or economic partner? ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Haaretz by Amos Harel, Avi Issacharoff - October 7, 2011 - 12:00am The line of trucks at the entry to Kerem Shalom, the southern crossing point into the Gaza Strip, is more than a kilometer long. The trucks, mostly from Israel and some from the West Bank, carry a variety of goodies: equipment from the German company Siemens for Gaza's power station, boxes of soft drinks, sacks of cement. North of the crossing point, on the Israeli side, renovation work to expand the terminal continues energetically, at an estimated cost of some NIS 100 million. » Read more

Carter: Obama must make good on Nobel Prize and back Palestinian statehood ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Haaretz October 7, 2011 - 12:00am U.S. President Barack Obama needs to make good on the promises that won him the Nobel Peace Prize, fellow laureate and former U.S. president Jimmy Carter said on Thursday. Carter called on the current American president to back the Palestinian’s bid to the UN for statehood and seize the opportunity provided by the Arab Spring to facilitate Palestinian-Israeli peace. » Read more