Israeli official: US resisting on Iran ultimatum ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Associated Press by Ian Deitch - September 10, 2012 - 12:00am JERUSALEM — An Israeli official said Monday that Washington's refusal to issue an ultimatum to Iran over its nuclear program brings Tehran closer to producing an atomic bomb. Israel has been pushing for the international community to give Iran "clear red lines" with regard to the disputed program, which Tehran insists is for peaceful purposes only. An Israeli official reiterated his country's position on Monday night, speaking on condition of anonymity because of the sensitivity of the issue. » Read more

PA Official: Israel to confiscate Nablus land for bypass road ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Ma'an News Agency September 11, 2012 - 12:00am NABLUS (Ma'an) -- Israeli authorities will confiscate 800 acres of land west of Nablus to build a bypass road, a PA official said Tuesday. Ghassan Doughlas, who monitors settlement activity in the northern West Bank, told Ma'an that Israeli forces handed confiscation orders to several farmers in the villages of Beit Iba, al-Naqura, Zawatta and Ijnisinya on Tuesday. » Read more

Minister: PA making efforts to facilitate Jenin industrial zone ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Ma'an News Agency September 10, 2012 - 12:00am RAMALLAH (Ma'an) -- The Palestinian Authority is making efforts to facilitate the construction of an industrial area in Jenin, the PA Ministry of Economy said Monday. PA economy minister Jawad Naji made the comments during a meeting with the Turkish ambassador to the PA, Shaker Ozkan, and the executive director of Turkish development company Jovan Sak. The Turkish company is involved in the construction of the industrial area and will begin implementing a working plan of the project, Naji said. » Read more

Abbas promises Palestinians action on rising prices ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Washington Post by Joel Greenberg - September 8, 2012 - 12:00am RAMALLAH, West Bank — Thrown on the defensive by street protests against rising prices of basic goods, Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas backed his embattled prime minister Saturday and blamed Israel for restrictions that he said hampered an effective response. Abbas said that he bore ultimate responsibility for government policies and that he had asked Prime Minister Salam Fayyad and the cabinet to meet with representatives of the business sector and civic groups to examine ways to lower the cost of living. » Read more

Palestinian leaders seek economic solutions after protests ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Reuters by Noah Browning - September 11, 2012 - 12:00am RAMALLAH, West Bank, Sept 11 (Reuters) - Palestinian ministers met on Tuesday to discuss ways of easing economic hardships, which have provoked growing protests across the West Bank, challenging the Western-backed Palestinian Authority. The demonstrations turned violent in the cities of Hebron and Nablus on Monday as thousands of angry youths burned tyres, blocked streets and hurled stones at armed police, raising pressure on Prime Minister Salam Fayyad. » Read more

Palestinian protests turn violent in West Bank ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Associated Press by Nasser Shiyoukhi - September 10, 2012 - 12:00am HEBRON, West Bank — Palestinian demonstrators fed up with high prices and unpaid salaries shuttered shops, halted traffic with burning tires and clashed with riot police in demonstrations across the West Bank on Monday— the largest show of popular discontent with the Palestinian Authority in its 18-year existence. The violence showed that the unrest, initially supported by Palestinian leaders in hopes of drawing international attention to the struggling economy, risks backfiring and morphing into a broader movement against the government. » Read more

Spreading Palestinian Protests Focus on Leaders ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The New York Times by Isabel Kershner - September 10, 2012 - 12:00am HEBRON, West Bank — A week of Palestinian protests against rising prices and economic hardship erupted Monday into rioting against the Palestinian Authority in this city and others in the West Bank, posing a new challenge to the Western-backed government that has worked to promote stability. » Read more

Fayyad announces measures to alleviate economic crisis ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Ma'an News Agency September 11, 2012 - 12:00am RAMALLAH (Ma'an) -- Palestinian Authority Prime Minister Salam Fayyad announced several measures on Tuesday to alleviate the economic crisis. VAT will be reduced to 15 percent and diesel, gas and kerosene will revert back to August prices, he said during a Ramallah press conference. Palestinian Authority ministers had met earlier on Tuesday to discuss ways of easing economic hardships as protests erupted across the West Bank this week against rising living costs. » Read more

Will Morsi Offer Change for Gaza? ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Al-Monitor by Sophie Claudet, Saleh Jadallah - (Opinion) September 5, 2012 - 12:00am GAZA CITY – When Egypt reopened the Rafah crossing border with Gaza late last month, Palestinians hailed the move as a possible end to their isolation from the rest of the world after years of near-total closure enforced by both Israel and former Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak. » Read more

Refugees and peace ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Jerusalem Post (Editorial) September 10, 2012 - 12:00am ‘Palestinians” are the first people to come to mind when the word “refugee” is uttered in a Middle East context. And Palestinians have paid dearly to reinforce this misconception. Largely dispossessed by their fellow Arabs, Palestinians have lived as second-class citizens in Jordan, Lebanon, Syria and elsewhere in the region. Palestinians’ dismal treatment by their Arab brethren is undoubtedly due in part to strongly held prejudices and exclusionary nationalist loyalties. » Read more