Tel Aviv Rising
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Daily Beast
by Bernard Avishai - (Opinion) April 30, 2012 - 12:00am

''I don't believe in a leadership that makes decisions based on messianic feelings,'' Yuval Diskin, the former head of the Israeli Secret Service said this past week. The gathering was to celebrate Israeli’s Independence Day in the Tel Aviv suburb of Kfar Saba. He was speaking in code.

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Obama doesn't need Israeli ex-officials to know Netanyahu doesn't want peace
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Haaretz
by Akiva Eldar - (Opinion) May 1, 2012 - 12:00am

True, it would very much benefit Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to hold the election as early as possible, before Kadima chairman MK Shaul Mofaz gains altitude and former media personality Yair Lapid manages to convince people that his nascent party really does have a future. Indeed, Netanyahu would benefit from summoning voters to the ballot boxes before the 2013 budget compels the next government to plunge its hands deep into their pockets.

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It's wrong to push out Israeli settlers, even if its legal
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Haaretz
by Moshe Arens - (Opinion) May 1, 2012 - 12:00am

The State of Israel rightfully prides itself on being the only democracy in the Middle East. It also takes pride in being a country in which the rule of law prevails. That is no small matter in a country that has had to contend with wars and acts of terrorism throughout the 64 years of its existence and presently faces what might be an existential threat. It is probably without parallel in other democracies throughout history that have had to deal with the kinds of emergencies with which Israel must contend.

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Muslim Students: Radicals or Partners?
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Jewish Daily Forward
by Nathan Guttman - (Analysis) May 1, 2012 - 12:00am

Washington — In their cautious dialogue with American Muslims, national Jewish groups have long steered clear of the Muslim Students Association, one of the biggest Muslim groups in the country and one that many Jewish communal officials see as extremist. But that red line is increasingly being ignored by Jewish students at colleges across the country, where campus Hillel foundations are finding their local MSA counterparts to be congenial partners for interfaith activities.

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Co-op boycotts exports from Israel's West Bank settlements
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Guardian
by Harriet Sherwood - May 28, 2012 - 12:00am

The Co-operative Group has become the first major European supermarket group to end trade with companies that export produce from illegal Israeli settlements.

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US Jews vastly prefer Obama to Romney
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Jerusalem Post
by Hilary Leila Krieger - May 1, 2012 - 12:00am

BOSTON – US Jewish voters prefer US President Barack Obama to former Massachusetts governor Mitt Romney by 61 percent to 28%, according to a new American Jewish Committee survey released Monday. Those surveyed also approved more than disapproved of the way Obama has handled what they saw as the major issues in deciding how they would vote, when asked to list their top three: the economy (80%), health care (57%), national security (26%), taxes (26%), the US-Israel relationship (22%) and social security (22%).

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NEWS: Likud and Kadima leaders agree to cancel the planned September election in Israel and create a coalition government. PM Netanyahu says the move will enhance "stability." Palestinians express pessimism about the prospects for a peace agreement with the new Israeli government. Israel's Supreme Court refuses to release two Palestinian “administrative detainees” on hunger strike. Palestinian negotiator Erekat sufferers a non-fatal heart attack. Israel's Supreme Court says that an “unauthorized” settlement outpost must be demolished by June 1, in spite of government resistance to the order. Israeli occupation forces raid the offices of a Palestinian watchdog organization on Israeli settlements in the West Bank. The EU expresses concern about the condition of Palestinian hunger striking detainees. The PA reportedly agrees on a new cabinet in which Salam Fayyad will remain prime minister but Nabil Qassis will become finance minister. COMMENTARY: Hussein Ibish says ATFP President Ziad Asali has pioneered a genuine and indispensable Palestinian-American willingness to openly and honestly talk with pro-Israel Jewish Americans and Israeli officials. Amir Oren says Israel's new coalition government might pave the road to an attack on Iran. Bradley Burston says Israel's hand-picked government cannot last and will be soon challenged at the polls. Rep. Howard Berman says Israel's “Iron Dome” antimissile system is a strategic imperative for Israel, and also important for the United States. Meir Margalit explains what it's like working as an Israeli against the demolition of Palestinian homes and other occupation abuses. Gershon Baskin says Israeli activists are right to worry about “social justice” but should also have peace as a priority. Jonathan Marcus says Netanyahu has strengthened his political hand with the new coalition deal. Peter Joseph says a moderate middle ground must be staked out in the debate about the relationship between Jewish Americans and Israel. Khalaf Al Habtoor says there has to be a "Plan B" for Israel and the Palestinians. Nati Sharoni says Israel certainly does have a Palestinian negotiating partner, if it wants one.

Israel Does Have a Partner At the Negotiating Table
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Ma'ariv
by Nati Sharoni - (Opinion) May 2, 2012 - 12:00am

This is the first time that former chiefs of Israeli security Meir Dagan of the Mossad and Yuval Diskin of the General Security Services (GSS or Shin Bet) have issued such a scathing warning about flawed analyses of major security risks. This is also the first time that Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Defense Minister Ehud Barak have been accused of "messianic impulses" and of portraying a false picture of the situation.

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Plan B needed to halt Palestinian suffering
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Gulf News
by Khalef Al Habtoor - (Opinion) May 8, 2012 - 12:00am

There is no cause dearer to my heart than that of the Palestinians and it saddens me that international efforts towards a Palestinian state are on the backburner. Since the 1980s when I got together with Emirati friends to form associations committed to supporting the Palestinians, their right of return is less viable now than it was then. Unfortunately, the idea of a Palestinian state is at the point of being shelved as a mythical Shangri-La unless we take advantage of space in a closing window.

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Moderate middle must be heard on Israel debate
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Jewish Telegraphic Agency (JTA)
by Peter Joseph - (Opinion) May 7, 2012 - 12:00am

NEW YORK (JTA) -- The intellectual food fight over Israel that has played out over the Op-Ed pages of virtually all Jewish and many mainstream newspapers in recent weeks may have settled down, but the passion of the discussion has made one thing very clear: The boundaries dividing American Jewish opinion on Israel, and its policies regarding Palestinians, have become as contentious as the borders between Israel and the West Bank.

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