Hamas prevents youths from holding conference in Gaza ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Xinhua May 31, 2011 - 12:00am The Hamas police arrested two people on Tuesday and prevented a group of youths from holding a conference sponsored by the Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO) , witnesses said. The conference was aimed at supporting a national agreement that Egypt brokered between Hamas and President Mahmoud Abbas' Fatah party. Dozens of policemen surrounded the hall where the conference was scheduled to be held, prevented people from entering, "beat several organizers and arrested two of them," said Ibrahim Al- Shatali, one of the organizers. » Read more

Fayyad says PNA's deficit nearly 1 bln USD ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Xinhua May 31, 2011 - 12:00am The Palestinian National Authority (PNA) needs nearly one billion U.S. dollars to cover shortage in its budget, Prime Minister Salam Fayyad said Tuesday. His remarks came as Germany pledged to pay 42 million euros (60 million dollars) in support of the PNA over the next year. Also on Tuesday, the PNA and the European Union (EU) signed an agreement to support educational, health and development projects in East Jerusalem. According to the agreement, the EU will pay six million euros (8.6 million dollars) to implement these programs. » Read more

Hamas opens memorial to dead flotilla activists ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Statesman May 31, 2011 - 12:00am The Islamic militant group Hamas has unveiled a memorial for nine activists killed last year in an Israeli raid on an international flotilla seeking to break a blockade of the Gaza Strip. The memorial at Gaza's harbor includes nine 12-yard-(meter)-high metal statues shaped as sails, and a new public park. Hamas Prime Minister Ismail Haniyeh said Tuesday the memorial commemorates "the heroes who drew the world's attention to the siege of Gaza." » Read more

East Jerusalem residents face police violence ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Ma'an News Agency June 1, 2011 - 12:00am An Israeli rights group on Tuesday called on Jerusalem's new police chief to "fundamentally change" what it said was his officers' violent treatment towards the city's Palestinian residents. In a report timed to coincide with the anniversary of Israel's 1967 occupation of east Jerusalem, the Association for Civil Rights in Israel said that over the past two years it had received a rising number of complaints and mounting evidence of abuses suffered by Palestinian residents. "Residents do not view the Jerusalem District Police as a body meant to serve and protect them," the report says. » Read more

Peace process and Arab Spring ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Jordan Times by Christopher Hill - (Opinion) June 1, 2011 - 12:00am President Barack Obama’s speech on the ongoing popular uprisings in the Middle East, followed by Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s recent visit to Washington, was intended to kick off a renewed effort to revive the Israeli-Palestinian peace process. Things are not turning out as planned. » Read more

Fayyad: Promised donor aid not arriving ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Ma'an News Agency June 1, 2011 - 12:00am The Palestinian Authority is facing a financial crisis because funds pledged by donor nations are not arriving on time, Prime Minister of the West Bank government Salam Fayyad said Tuesday. Speaking at a press conference with Japan's representative to the Palestinian Authority, Fayyad said the slow delivery of promised aid was putting pressure on the government. "The financial crisis continues until now, to varying degrees, and has continued alongside the work of the Palestinian Authority since mid-2010," Fayyad warned, saying the government was facing a serious shortfall. » Read more

Scores at Rafah spark tension with Egypt ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Ma'an News Agency June 1, 2011 - 12:00am An escalated crisis between Egypt and the Hamas government of the Gaza Strip was dampened Tuesday night, as officials met over ways to handle the flood of Palestinians seeking to cross the Rafah border terminal. Following the May 28 opening of the Gaza-Egypt border, for almost unfettered access to Palestinians except men between 18-40, floods of would-be travelers arrived prepared to cross, overwhelming the terminal. » Read more