December 23rd

Diplomacy should conform to international norms
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Jerusalem Post
by Jay Bushinsky - (Opinion) December 23, 2011 - 1:00am

Two major mistakes were by Israeli policy- makers: The Oslo Accords of 1993 and the unilateral and unconditional withdrawal of troops and civilians from the Gaza Strip in 2005. These ill-considered initiatives have caused seemingly insoluble problems. They were radical departures from the Jewish state’s original adherence to traditional diplomacy based on international norms, and deviated from the initially consistent effort to gain recognition as a bona fide member of the international community.

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Gaza in Shock After Rare Double Homicide
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Media Line
by Omar Ghraieb - (Analysis) December 23, 2011 - 1:00am

GAZA CITY, Gaza Strip – The Gaza Strip is all abuzz about a grisly murder of an elderly couple in a story that brings together drugs, money, the dangers of leaving home and family, and a desperate escape by tunnel to Egypt. It’s the routine stuff of tabloid journalism in America and Europe, but here in this tiny coastal enclave, killings like those of Mustafa Al-Huweihi and his wife Salma are quite rare, despite all the violence associated with the ruling Hamas movement and the other Islamic groups in Gaza that are in constant war with Israel.

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No room to compare Binyamin to Bil'in
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Haaretz
(Editorial) December 23, 2011 - 1:00am

It's true that the settlers are also rising up against what they see as injustice: the evacuation of settlement outposts, but these outposts are patently illegal. Ever since dozens of settlers rioted at the Binyamin Brigade's base in the West Bank last week, several people, including Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, have compared the rioters to those who gather weekly at Bil'in to protest the separation fence. Netanyahu compared the two again this week, during the lighting of the first Hanukkah candle at the brigade's headquarters. This is an unfounded and outrageous comparison.

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How I became a 'terrorist'
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Haaretz
by Abdelrahman Al Ahmar - (Opinion) December 23, 2011 - 1:00am

The first time I was attacked by an Israeli settler, I was 14 years old. I was walking to school when an armed man wearing a skullcap, standing near some Israeli soldiers, pulled my pack off my back and threw it in the mud. That wasn't last month, nor was it near a new outpost in Nablus. Rather, this happened 30 years ago, on the main road running through Bethlehem, near Deheisheh refugee camp, where I lived. The settler was not just any alienated, disaffected man. He was, I learned later, the father of the national religious settlement project - Rabbi Moshe Levinger.

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Netanyahu's choice of advisers is cause for concern
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Haaretz
by Yoel Marcus - (Opinion) December 23, 2011 - 1:00am

The situation is so funny that I feel like crying. There's something about Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu that, despite his pretensions to glory as the nation's unparalleled leader, and despite the basso-profundo voice that presents him as a person of authority and the nation's savior, makes him look like a caricature of a leader.

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December 22nd

NEWS: Israel accuses foreign countries of “meddling” in its internal affairs. Hamas is showing signs of adjusting its positions and alignments in the wake of the Arab uprisings, and has agreed in principle to join the PLO. Israel and the PA are competing for tourist dollars. Hamas denies that Khalid Mashaal criticized Yousif al-Qaradawi's statements on Syria. The PA is planning a major desalinization plant for the Dead Sea. Israeli extremists say former PM Sharon's stroke was caused by the unilateral redeployment in Gaza. The State Department says statements at the UN aren't advancing the cause of peace. Israel issues a statement supporting resumed US aid to the PA. PM Netanyahu's office says it is “shocked” to find Pres. Abbas meeting in Turkey with some former Palestinian prisoners. American Charities for Palestine delivers $10,000 to support the work of the Four Homes of Mercy in Palestine. COMMENTARY: Amir Oren says Netanyahu is failing in his stated mission to “save Israel.” Natasha Mozgovaya looks at the political dynamics in the Jewish Reform movement. The Media Line says Palestinian patients are being treated by Israeli doctors, breaking down suspicions. Maura Judkis looks at the controversy over a pro-Palestinian art exhibit in Switzerland and Artinfo interviews Larissa Sansour, the artist in question. Jonathan Schanzer looks at how Hamas is responding to regional pressures. Barak Ravid says Netanyahu's links to Republican candidates and the US Christian far-right are intensifying. Roula Khalaf says everything about Egypt's foreign policy, including its relations with Israel, has been thrown into question. Ahmad Tibi says the world is beginning to understand the Palestinian need for statehood.

Tibi: World beginning to understand Palestinians' hopes for state
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Richmond Times Dispatch
by Ahmad Tibi - (Opinion) December 22, 2011 - 1:00am

The arrogance of some American politicians and presidential candidates toward the Palestinians and Palestinian national aspirations is breathtaking. Last week, House Majority Leader Eric Cantor stated, "If the Palestinians want to live in peace in a state of their own, they must demonstrate that they are worthy of a state." He appeared to hold all Palestinians responsible for the violence of a few.

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Foreign relations: Everything has been thrown into question
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Financial Times
by Roula Khalaf - (Opinion) December 22, 2011 - 1:00am

A senior Israeli official called in journalists for an unusual briefing this month. Arab societies were simply not mature enough to hold free and fair elections, declared Moshe Yaalon; they needed a long period of “education”. Mr Yaalon, a close aide to Benjamin Netanyahu, the prime minister, did not specifically refer to Egypt. But it could not have been far from his mind, since the country had just voted for Islamist parties in the first round of its staggered parliamentary elections.

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Netanyahu and the New (Old) Testament
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Haaretz
by Barak Ravid - (Opinion) December 22, 2011 - 1:00am

Some two months ago, the Prime Minister's Office received a request to arrange a conference call with some Jewish and Christian leaders. The proposal was to sponsor an event of a routine kind – Netanyahu gets on the line, gives a short briefing about the "situation," fires off some relevant advocacy points, and then answers questions, making a concerted effort not to supply fodder for headlines.

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Hamas for Sale?
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Weekly Standard
by Jonathan Schanzer - (Opinion) December 21, 2011 - 1:00am

Palestinian news sources reported earlier this month that Turkish prime minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan promised $300 million to the Gaza-based terrorist organization Hamas. If true, this pledge would cover nearly half of Hamas’s reported $769 million budget next year, and would make Turkey its primary benefactor. Hamas and Turkish officials deny the report, and Hamas probably won’t submit to an external audit any time soon. But let there be no doubt: Hamas is for sale, thanks to the Iranian nuclear program and the Arab Spring.

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