February 15th

Reading Hebron – review
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Guardian
by Michael Billington - February 14, 2011 - 1:00am


No one could accuse this theatre of ducking the Arab-Israeli conflict. A year ago it staged an absorbing play, Ben Brown's The Promise, about the Balfour Declaration of 1917 supporting the principle of a Jewish homeland. Now it brings us a 15-year-old play by Toronto-based Jason Sherman about a massacre that took place in the occupied West Bank city of Hebron in 1994. While it would be comforting to say Sherman's play feels like old news, what is shocking is just how urgently relevant it seems.


Israel to build more East Jerusalem homes
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Ma'an News Agency
February 15, 2011 - 1:00am


Jerusalem's municipal council on Monday approved the construction of 120 new homes in the Jewish settlement neighborhood of Ramot in annexed East Jerusalem, a councilor told AFP. "It's not good news," Pepe Alalu of the opposition Meretz party said. "They approved 120 housing units in Ramot... there were two permits authorized, one for 56 housing units and another for 64."


Hamas: PA cabinet shuffle 'superficial'
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Ma'an News Agency
February 15, 2011 - 1:00am


The Palestinian Authority cabinet shuffle is a "superficial change with no hint of reform," Hamas spokesman Fawzi Barhoum said Monday. PA Prime Minister Salam Fayyad handed his cabinet's resignation letter to President Mahmoud Abbas following an early morning cabinet meeting Monday. Barhoum said the move was a weak attempt to legitimize upcoming elections in the West Bank.


A JNF Drive To Make the Desert Bloom Means Destruction for a Bedouin Village
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Jewish Daily Forward
by Nathan Jeffay - February 9, 2011 - 1:00am


In American Jewish memory, the Jewish National Fund’s historic blue pushkes, or charity boxes, evoke warm images of hard-earned pennies given to the group’s mission of redeeming the Land of Israel through planting trees. But to the Bedouin of Al-Arakib, a village in the Negev, the group’s current forestation plans mean the destruction of their homes and what they say is the theft of land they have owned since the beginning of the 20th century.


A JNF Drive To Make the Desert Bloom Means Destruction for a Bedouin Village
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Jewish Daily Forward
by Nathan Jeffay - February 9, 2011 - 1:00am


In American Jewish memory, the Jewish National Fund’s historic blue pushkes, or charity boxes, evoke warm images of hard-earned pennies given to the group’s mission of redeeming the Land of Israel through planting trees. But to the Bedouin of Al-Arakib, a village in the Negev, the group’s current forestation plans mean the destruction of their homes and what they say is the theft of land they have owned since the beginning of the 20th century.


Revolution in Egypt should prompt peace talks between Syria and Israel
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Christian Science Monitor
by Bilal Y. Saab - (Opinion) February 14, 2011 - 1:00am


The resignation of Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak and the ensuing political transition in Cairo has created a wave of uncertainty over the strategic politics of the Middle East, carrying both risks and opportunities for US interests and allies in the region. One potential and less-than-obvious opportunity is to relaunch peace talks between Syria and Israel.


Dennis Ross To Speak at J Street Conference
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Jewish Telegraphic Agency (JTA)
February 14, 2011 - 1:00am


Dennis Ross, the senior adviser to President Obama on Middle East issues, will address this year’s J Street conference, the group said. Ross, seen as an administration hard-liner on Iran and as arguing for greater consideration of Israel’s needs in peace negotiations, would be a coup for the group, which consistently has come under fire from the right and from some Democrats for not being sufficiently pro-Israel. The White House did not immediately comment on J Street’s announcement.


Palestinian cabinet quits as Fayyed is reappointed PM
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Agence France Presse (AFP)
February 15, 2011 - 1:00am


The Palestinian cabinet has resigned, months before elections due in the summer, as the leadership sought to reaffirm its legitimacy after the collapse of talks with Israel, and uprisings in Egypt and Tunisia. The move, which has been on the cards since last year, was announced at a cabinet meeting in Ramallah and comes after mass public protests in Tunisia and Egypt calling for democratic reforms.


The Successes of Palestinian Authority Institution Building
In Print by Ziad Asali - The Huffington Post - February 15, 2011 - 1:00am

For decades, the political process simply meant negotiations about the often-repeated final status issues. Hopes were raised and then dashed in extended clusters of negotiations, numerous international conferences, TV appearances and commentaries by politicians and pundits that yielded no meaningful progress toward resolution of the conflict.


More Arab democracy, Palestinian this time
In Print by Hussein Ibish - NOW Lebanon - February 15, 2011 - 1:00am

In what is probably a long-overdue move, the Palestinian leadership in Ramallah has called for new local, presidential and parliamentary elections before September.



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