Israel Charges 5 Settlers in West Bank Army Base Clash ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The New York Times by Isabel Kershner - January 8, 2012 - 1:00am JERUSALEM — Israeli prosecutors on Sunday charged five radical Jewish settlers with tracking troop movements in the West Bank and organizing a raid on an Israeli Army base there last month. The indictment was the first sign of a promised crackdown on settlers whose increasingly provocative actions have been described by some Israeli officials as homegrown terrorism. » Read more

Fayyad: Govt raises tax, cutting costs to plug deficit ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Ma'an News Agency January 9, 2012 - 1:00am RAMALLAH (Ma'an) -- Palestinian Authority Prime Minister Salam Fayyad is cutting spending and raising taxes in an attempt to plug the $1.1 billion deficit in the public budget, he told reporters in Ramallah on Sunday evening. Fayyad's government aims to knock $350 million off the budget deficit through new measures to cut costs and increase revenues, including an income tax increase now in effect, the premier said. The global financial crisis and a failure of donor countries to honor their aid pledges has caused a sharp increase in the budget shortfall in 2011. » Read more