Attili: Israeli settlers draining Palestinian water supply
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Ma'an News Agency
July 30, 2012 - 12:00am


Israel allocates 70 times more water to each settler than to the average Palestinian in the West Bank, the head of the Palestinian Water Authority said Sunday. At a press conference in Ramallah, Shaddad Attili said Palestinians received 105 million cubic meters of water, less than the amount allocated in the 1995 Oslo Accords and around a quarter of the 400 million cubic meters needed according to international standards.


Arafat inquiry like looking for 'needle in the ocean'
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Ma'an News Agency
July 30, 2012 - 12:00am


The investigation into late President Yasser Arafat's death is ongoing, director of the committee responsible for the inquiry said Sunday. Tawfiq al-Tirawi told Ma'an that a medical committee headed by Abdullah al-Basheer is undertaking research in coordination with international specialists and will brief officials on the results once investigations reach their final stages.


Back lot Israel
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Jerusalem Post
by Herb Keinon - (Analysis) July 29, 2012 - 12:00am


With a setting Jerusalem sun casting shadows on the Tower of David and the walls of the Old City as his background, US Republican presidential hopeful Mitt Romney got what he wanted Sunday before he even delivered a word of his speech – valuable Holy City campaign footage.


Israel to deploy two new rocket interceptors in 2013
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Xinhua
July 30, 2012 - 12:00am


The Israel Air Force (IAF) is expected to deploy two additional Iron Dome missile-defense batteries early next year, The Jerusalem Post reported Sunday. The new batteries have reportedly been outfitted with upgraded software and radars that will enable interception at extended ranges, and will be operated by reservists, according to the report. The batteries will join the four currently at the disposal of the IAF, with additional systems scheduled for supply in the coming years.


Abbas confident in Palestinian bid for UN recognition
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Xinhua
July 29, 2012 - 12:00am


Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas on Saturday expressed confidence that the Palestinian bid for the United Nations' recognition of a Palestinian state will succeed this time once the bid is applied. Abbas, who paid a visit to the West Bank's northern city of Jenin to have Iftar meal with city notables during the holy month of Ramadan, said that "we went to the UN and we didn't succeed in the first time, but next time we will."


Mitt, Are You Sure This Trip Was a Good Idea?
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Daily Beast
by Gershom Gorenberg - (Opinion) July 27, 2012 - 12:00am


Even before he gets to Israel this weekend, Mitt Romney has discovered the perils of trying to look like a statesman overseas while running for office at home.


Israel troops shoot dead Palestinian at checkpoint
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Associated Press
July 30, 2012 - 12:00am


Israeli border police have shot dead a Palestinian man and wounded two others at the entrance to Jerusalem. Border police spokesman Shai Hakimi says 40-year-old Akram Badr was traveling in a car that burst through a checkpoint at high speed early Monday and tried to run over officers who ordered him to stop. Palestinian police said the car had entered a wrong lane and was backing up to enter the right one when Israeli border police mistakenly thought it was trying to hit them and opened fire.


Fayyad meets US presidential candidate Romney
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Ma'an News Agency
July 30, 2012 - 12:00am


Palestinian Authority prime minister Salam Fayyad met with Republican presidential candidate Mitt Romney on Sunday, PA spokesman Ghassan al-Khatib said. The former Massachusetts governor was in Jerusalem on the second leg of a trip to strengthen his foreign policy credentials in his race to unseat Obama. After talks with Israeli leaders, Romney met with Fayyad. He then visited the Western Wall, Judaism's most revered site.


In Jerusalem speech, it was Romney's voice but Netanyahu's words
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Haaretz
by Barak Ravid - (Opinion) July 30, 2012 - 12:00am


Romney's staff picked the 150 guests carefully. Religious American immigrants dominated the crowd; secular Jews and native-born Israelis were few and far between. Those present included Jewish-American millionaires, settler leaders like the former chairman of the Yesha Council of settlements Israel Harel, and former Netanyahu aides such as Dore Gold, Naftali Bennett, Ayelet Shaked and Yoaz Hendel.


Romney: US, Israel differences embolden enemies
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Associated Press
July 30, 2012 - 12:00am


Mitt Romney says any public differences between the United States and Israel only embolden adversaries. The U.S. presidential candidate says it is a "basic truth" that the United States and Israel will always stand together. Without mentioning the tensions between President Barack Obama and Israel's leaders, Romney suggested in a Jerusalem speech Sunday that the diplomatic differences only encourage Israel's enemies.



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