June 6th

Can equality exist in the Jewish state? ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Al-Jazeera English by Kieron Monks - (Opinion) June 4, 2011 - 12:00am In 2005, following the arrest of several high profile Arab politicians and lobbyists living in Israel, the Shin Bet security agency made a statement justifying their actions: "The security service will thwart the activity of any group or individual seeking to harm the Jewish and democratic character of the State of Israel, even if such activity is sanctioned by the law." » Read more

Blueprint for future Palestinian state ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Gulf News by Adel Safty - (Opinion) June 6, 2011 - 12:00am Last week US President Barack Obama reiterated and clarified his earlier statement endorsing the 1967 borders as the basis for negotiated permanent borders between Israel and a future Palestinian state. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu reacted furiously to the statement and promptly rejected the idea saying that the 1967 borders were indefensible, and vowed that a Palestinian state would not be founded “at Israel’s expense”. » Read more

Israel's isolation grows as Gaza noose tightens ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The National (Editorial) June 5, 2011 - 12:00am A year after Israel earned itself a public-relations disaster by killing nine civilians aboard the MV Mavi Marmara, another flotilla is fitting out in Turkey to sail to Gaza. And three weeks after last month's Nakba ("catastrophe") marches, marking the 1948 creation of Israel, ended with Palestinian deaths at border points, more marches to Israel's frontiers have been planned for today. June 5 is set aside to mark the anniversary of the Naksa ("setback"), the 1967 war, in which Israel occupied the West Bank and Gaza. » Read more

UN’s 193rd member: Palestine? ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Ynetnews by Ronen Medzini - (Opinion) June 5, 2011 - 12:00am The United Nations has 192 member states at this time. For Israel, the most pessimistic scenario is to discover one morning that the Palestinians got the 193rd seat, via a unilateral move that circumvents negotiations. However the Ramallah leadership’s path to the sought-after seat at the General Assembly in Manhattan is not an easy one at all. First and foremost, the Palestinians are facing the American obstacle. US President Barack Obama declared last week on no less than three separate occasions his objection to the Palestinian intention to seek UN recognition of statehood. » Read more

Let Dagan speak ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Jerusalem Post (Editorial) June 5, 2011 - 12:00am Outgoing Mossad chief Meir Dagan has been making headlines. A military strike on Iran would be a “stupid idea,” Dagan said a few weeks ago at a Hebrew University conference. At a Tel Aviv University conference last week he elaborated that such an attack “would mean regional war, and in that case you would have given Iran the best possible reason to continue the nuclear program.” » Read more

Unarmed demonstrators – the new threat? ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Jerusalem Post by Jacques Neriah - (Opinion) June 4, 2011 - 12:00am Ignoring all the warnings that were readily available, Israel is finding itself facing new, dire challenges – challenges for which it has failed to prepare and for which it has yet to think of a response. For years, the traditional Israeli reaction to provocation has been a show of force – firing tear gas, water cannons and, if needed, sending in the police cavalry. » Read more

The battle for Europe ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Jerusalem Post by David Horovitz - (Opinion) June 3, 2011 - 12:00am Warmth, supportive laughter and applause – from the first sentence to the last. More than two dozen standing ovations. Smiles and handshakes and embraces before and afterward. A solitary heckler apart, the prime minister won the kind of adulatory reception in Congress 10 days ago that he could not dream of receiving in any sizable political forum in Israel. He wouldn’t feel that kind of love at a big gathering of his own Likud Party, never mind his parliament, where he is lucky if he can get through a few sentences without hostile interruption. » Read more

Netanyahu must accept French peace initiative ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Haaretz (Editorial) June 6, 2011 - 12:00am France has placed an offer on the desk of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu: Begin direct negotiations with the Palestinians in September, on the basis of the Obama plan. The proposal does not define Israel's borders, draw a map of Jerusalem or determine which settlements Israel must remove. It even helps the Israeli position in that it speaks of "two states for two peoples," in other words it acknowledges that Israel is a Jewish state. » Read more

Palestinians are people, too ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Hill by Mustafa Barghouthi - (Blog) June 3, 2011 - 12:00am Every June 5 for the past 44 years of my life has brought back memories of being a 13-year-old facing life under Israeli occupation. Forty-four years ago I saw Israelis for the first time. It took my generation a very long and difficult time to come to terms with accepting the need for peace and compromise with our occupier. That compromise was the two-state solution. Our goal was to end occupation and achieve freedom, dignity, and self-determination. » Read more

Killing Them Softly? ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Media Line by Arieh O'Sullivan - (Opinion) June 2, 2011 - 12:00am “Here’s what they did,” says the commander of an Israeli reserve combat company deployed in the northern West Bank. “They dumped on us thousands of rounds of rubber bullets, cases of stun grenades and tear gas and that’s it. That’s the great Israeli army doctrine on how to cope with this Naksa.” “God help us if [the Palestinians] start staging a non-violent march our way,” the officer told The Media Line, on condition he not be identified. » Read more