NEWS: Cross-border violence between Israel and militants in Gaza continues. It began with the assassination of a noted Gaza militant by Israel. 21 Palestinians have been killed in the outbreak so far. The PLO envoy at the UN condemns Israeli "terrorism." Many rockets and missiles have also been launched at southern Israel. Former Mossad head Dagan says an Israeli attack on Iran would be pointless and the response devastating. Israel is still planning to demolish Palestinian solar energy plants in the occupied territories. Settlers in a major "unauthorized" outpost seem to have agreed on a plan to leave. COMMENTARY: Akiva Eldar says PM Netanyahu needs to define what he thinks Israel is. Ha'aretz says Israel needs an anthem that can represent its Arab as well as Jewish citizens, but Michael Sussman defends the current one. Amos Harel and Avi Issacharoff say the new violence between Israel and Gaza will likely wind-down by mid-week. Jeff Barak says a true friend of Israel would have acted towards it exactly as Pres. Obama has. Harriet Sherwood looks at weddings in Gaza. Jay Sekulow and Robert Ash says Israel has a legal case for attacking Iran but Adel Safty says Netanyahu has not made any convincing arguments. The National says Palestinian disunity is a crucial failure. Khaled Diab says cultural changes are making occupied East Jerusalem more livable. Rami Khouri says Israel's vision is walls and wars.

For Israel, it is about walls and war
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Daily Star
by Rami Khouri - (Opinion) March 10, 2012 - 1:00am

The recent visit of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to the United States received the lion’s share of publicity about Israel’s position in the Middle East and the world. However, the real story about the Palestinian-Israeli conflict rests elsewhere.

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‘Reel freedom’ helps make Jerusalem more livable
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Daily Star
by Khaled Diab - (Opinion) March 12, 2012 - 12:00am

In East Jerusalem, the Israeli occupation has affected the city’s cultural landscape. Chronic underinvestment, expanding settlements and a massive wall – which Israel says it has constructed for security purposes and Palestinians allege is a land grab – have had the effect of squeezing the life out of Palestinian quarters and shifting the cultural center of gravity to Ramallah in the West Bank. In addition, it seems many Palestinian Jerusalemites have not been able to shake off the curfew mentality of the intifada, which ended almost seven years ago.

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Political disunity of Palestinians is a critical failure
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The National
(Editorial) March 11, 2012 - 1:00am

When it comes to Palestinian politics, every step forward seems inevitably followed by two steps back. On Friday, a day after Hamas had rejected the idea that it would at any point strike Israel on behalf of Iran, Israeli air strikes on Gaza killed 12 and wounded a dozen others. Hamas once again finds itself on the defensive, both from Israel and from factions within the Occupied Territory.

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Netanyahu's flawed arguments for war
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Gulf News
by Adel Safty - (Opinion) March 12, 2012 - 12:00am

The Iranian crisis has given rise to another duel between US President Barack Obama and Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu of Israel. The public platform for the confrontation of the two men was provided by the powerful American Israel Public Affairs Committee (Aipac) policy conference which the two men addressed separately last week. They duelled in the past over how to achieve peace in the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. At the Aipac policy conference, they publicly duelled about waging another war in the Middle East.

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Israel has a legal case for striking Iran
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Jewish Telegraphic Agency (JTA)
by Robert Ash, Jay Sekulow - (Opinion) March 12, 2012 - 12:00am

WASHINGTON (JTA) -- In a world where nuclear weapons could soon be in the hands of a rogue nation like Iran, an Israeli preemptive strike on Iran’s nuclear facilities would be fully justified. Despite its ban on aggressive war, Article 51 of the United Nations Charter clearly recognizes a state’s inherent right of self-defense. Thus, Israel has full authority to act unilaterally or collectively in its self-defense.

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A typical Gaza wedding
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Guardian
by Harriet Sherwood - (Analysis) March 11, 2012 - 1:00am

She slips through the door resembling any other Gaza girl, head scarf and jilbab concealing her hair and body, and emerges three hours later looking like a beauty queen. But before Aya Abu Shoqa steps outside the salon in her wedding finery, she dons a hooded ivory satin cape, complete with opaque veil.

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Reality Check: A true friend
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Jerusalem Post
by Jeff Barak - (Opinion) March 12, 2012 - 12:00am

At the risk of sounding like a teenage magazine agony aunt, here’s my definition of a true friend: A true friend is someone who will always look out for you, will protect your best interests and, when the situation demands it, tell you straight to your face a truth you might not particularly want to hear. In other words, a true friend will act exactly the way US President Barack Obama has acted toward Israel throughout his entire presidency.

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This round will likely go to Israel
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Haaretz
by Amos Harel, Avi Issacharoff - (Analysis) March 12, 2012 - 12:00am

Fewer rockets were fired at Israel on Sunday, but the fact that Katyushas did nonetheless fall in Be'er Sheva spurred tough talk from Israel, which threatened to continue attacking the Gaza Strip. Still, if there are fewer launches Monday, Israel will likely reduce its attacks, and this round of hostilities will wind down by midweek, much as last year's periodic flare-ups did.

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Jewish identity and democratic values
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Jerusalem Post
(Opinion) March 12, 2012 - 12:00am

Since its inception, democracy, or more specifically an elected government, freedom of speech, freedom of expression, freedom of religion, as well as equal rights have been the cornerstone of the identity of the State of Israel. To quote the Declaration of Independence: “it [Israel] will be based on freedom, justice and peace as envisaged by the prophets of Israel; it will ensure complete equality of social and political rights to all its inhabitants irrespective of religion, race or sex; it will guarantee freedom of religion, conscience, language, education and culture.”

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