January 20th, 2012

Toddling to talks about talks ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Economist (Analysis) January 21, 2012 - 1:00am NO ONE disagreed with the cautious assessment of King Abdullah of Jordan that “little baby steps” had been taken when Israelis and Palestinians met several times in Amman, the king’s capital, in early January to see if there were grounds to resume full-scale peace talks that might one day lead to the peaceful coexistence of two states. Even this tentative diplomatic toe-dipping was fraught. Big grown-up strides still seem a long way off. » Read more

Likudnik Paranoia ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Time Magazine by Joe Klein - (Opinion) January 20, 2012 - 1:00am Uh-oh, there’s another wave of attacks–both here and in Israel–on those of us who support Israel, but not in the mindless, aggressive way that neoconservatives do and not at the expense of America’s national interests. Over there, Bibi Netanyahu has proclaimed the New York Times and Haaretz the “biggest” enemies of Israel. » Read more

Are Arab Jews extinct? ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Daily News Egypt by Naava Mashiah - (Opinion) January 20, 2012 - 1:00am GENEVA: The growing rift between Israel and the Arab world makes it hard to imagine that Jews and Arabs once coexisted across the Middle East. At one point these identities could be found not only in the same neighborhood, but even in the same person. » Read more

Are Arab Jews extinct? ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Daily News Egypt by Naava Mashiah - (Opinion) January 20, 2012 - 1:00am GENEVA: The growing rift between Israel and the Arab world makes it hard to imagine that Jews and Arabs once coexisted across the Middle East. At one point these identities could be found not only in the same neighborhood, but even in the same person. » Read more

Palestinians to Renew Efforts for Bid to U.N. ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Washington Times by Ben Birnbaum - January 19, 2012 - 1:00am RAMALLAH, West Bank — Palestinian officials say that they will resume their effort to gain U.N. membership, and that they could launch a nonviolent third intifada because they see no chance of reaching a peace deal with the current Israeli government. The Palestinians had put their U.N. bid on hold to participate in informal Jordanian-sponsored talks with Israel that began at the beginning of the year in Amman. » Read more

Obama vs. Netanyahu vs. Ahmadinejad ATFP World Press Roundup Article from CNN by Trita Parsi - (Opinion) January 19, 2012 - 1:00am U.S.-Israeli relations are in a crisis over Iran. It has been in the making for quite some time – arguably since the early 1990s – and edging closer to climax by the minute. The personal chemistry between the leaders is abysmal – Barack Obama and Nicolas Sarkozy recently discussed how they can’t stand Benjamin Netanyahu – and disagreements abound on the Arab uprisings, the Israeli-Palestinian conflict and on how to deal with Iran. » Read more

Hamas Attack on Gaza Shiites May Indicate its Political Shift ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The National by Hugh Naylor - January 20, 2012 - 1:00am BEIT LAHIA // When they later recalled the siege by Hamas security forces, it was not its ferocity that astonished the residents of Beit Lahiya. It was the target - Shiite Muslims gathered in the building to commemorate the death of Imam Hussein, the Prophet Mohammed's grandson. Up to 100 policemen and masked men in civilian clothes stormed an apartment building in the Gaza enclave late on Saturday. Minutes later, they emerged dragging 15 men, whom they then beat with truncheons and denounced as infidels. Neighbourhood residents drawn to the commotion said they were shocked. » Read more

Islamic Jihad Cell Arrested in West Bank ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Jewish Telegraphic Agency (JTA) January 19, 2012 - 1:00am JERUSALEM (JTA) -- Ten members of an Islamic Jihad terror cell were arrested near Jenin in the West Bank. The cell was planning attacks against Israeli soldiers and the abductions of Israelis, according to reports Thursday after the Shin Bet security services lifted a gag order on the case. It also had been in contact with Islamic Jihad in Gaza and accepted significant amounts of money from Islamic Jihad in Syria to buy weapons. » Read more

Falling in Love With Dusty Treaties ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Jewish Daily Forward by J.J. Goldberg - (Analysis) January 20, 2012 - 1:00am One of the more surprising twists in recent Middle East punditry is a sudden surge of interest among pro-Israel hard-liners in the fine points of international law. The topic isn’t usually popular with hawks; they tend to see it as an infringement on national sovereignty, employed mainly as a club for bludgeoning Israel. Seeing it raised in Israel’s defense is a novelty. It could be a good sign, if it gets Israel’s defenders and critics talking the same language for a change. But maybe I’m being too optimistic. » Read more

Arab Students Arrested Over Call to Avoid Peres Lecture ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Ynetnews by Hassan Shaalan - January 20, 2012 - 1:00am Three Arab students from the Jerusalem College of Engineering (JCE) claimed Thursday that they were arrested after urging other JCE student to boycott a recent lecture by President Shimon Peres. The police said that the three were threatening other students and inciting racism, stressing that the students were detained only after a complaint was filed in the matter. The three were interrogated by officers of the Jerusalem District Police and were later remanded to one week's house arrest. » Read more