'why Did They Treat Me Like That?' ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Haaretz by Gideon Levy - July 7, 2008 - 4:42pm He has already seen everything. At 24, he has already been documenting the horrors of his city, Rafah, for six years. He photographs and writes, seeking to be a voice for those who are voiceless, as he puts it. On his Web site Rafah Today (www.rafahtoday.org) - like that of USA Today or Israel Today, only from Rafah - he paints a picture for readers around the world of the horrors of his city, the most afflicted of all cities in the anguished Gaza Strip, in strong and shocking colors. You will see there demolished houses and crushed bodies, tanks shelling people's homes and lost children. » Read more

Gaza Militants Fire Mortar Shells At Karni Border Crossing ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Haaretz by Fadi Eyadat - July 7, 2008 - 4:39pm Defense Minister Ehud Barak on Monday called for Gaza Strip border crossings to close starting on Tuesday, hours after Palestinian militants fired two mortar shells into Israel, which struck an open space between the Karni crossing and Nahal Oz causing neither casualties nor property damage. Since the cease-fire between Israel and Hamas went into effect in the Gaza Strip June 19, militants have fired several Qassam rockets into Israel, including one last week that fell in the western Negev region. » Read more

Jerusalem Attack Highlights Discrimatory Israeli Policies [june 29 – July 5] ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Miftah July 7, 2008 - 4:37pm Jerusalem was back in the spotlight this week after three Israelis were killed and more than 50 others injured when 30-year old Hussam Duweiyat plowed into them with a bulldozer on a busy west Jerusalem street. On July 2, Duweiyat, a construction worker in the city, went on a rampage on Jaffa Street in the western sector of Jerusalem, overturning an Israeli bus filled with passengers, ramming into it again before hitting another bus and several cars. Duweiyat was shot and killed by a nearby policeman. » Read more

New System To Intercept Rockets Tested In Israel ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Gulf News July 7, 2008 - 4:35pm Occupied Jerusalem: Israel has successfully tested a new defence system designed to intercept rockets fired from southern Lebanon and the Hamas-ruled Gaza Strip, public radio reported on Sunday. The "Iron Dome" system is expected to be fully operational within a year and will be able to intercept the military-grade Katyusha rockets used by Lebanon's Hezbollah fighters and the cruder Qassam rockets favoured by Hamas. Citing Israeli security officials, public radio said the system would also be effective against mortar fire.

Hamas Tries To Play Keeper Of The Peace ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Star-telegram by Dion Nissenbaum - July 7, 2008 - 4:33pm Like a Gettysburg battlefield tour guide, Ali Kafarna pointed out the scars of war as he walked through the fields between his home and the Israeli border. "Here’s where the tanks used to stop," said Ali, 14, as he passed a dirt berm dug into dry grass littered with shrapnel and animal bones. "Here’s where they used to fire rockets," Ali said of the charred square of earth that Palestinians used as a launching pad to attack Israel. » Read more

Israel Targets Hamas' West Bank Activities ATFP World Press Roundup Article from United Press International (UPI) July 7, 2008 - 4:32pm Israeli military forces say they are shutting down Hamas-affiliated institutions in the West Bank, including schools, health centers and charities. Israeli officials say Hamas, the more militant of the two main Palestinian Arab factions, is spreading its control from Gaza to the West Bank, where popular support for it over the more moderate Fatah faction is enabling Hamas to take over not just Islamic institutions but civilian infrastructure as well, the Israeli newspaper Haaretz reported Monday. » Read more

Palestinian Residents Defy Curfew ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Reuters July 7, 2008 - 4:30pm Shots sounded from a Palestinian town on Sunday as local people marched in defiance of a daylight curfew imposed by Israeli troops who have sealed off Ni’lin, in the occupied West Bank, since Friday. One resident said up to 50 people were hurt by tear gas and rubber bullets. The Israeli army said a soldier was wounded and declined to comment on any casualties among civilians on a third day of clashes and a clampdown that has kept journalists out. » Read more

Israel Right Demands Wall To Keep Palestinians Out Of Jerusalem ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Times by Sheera Frenkel - July 7, 2008 - 4:23pm Israel’s vision of Jerusalem as its “indivisible capital” came under attack yesterday as leaders reacted to Wednesday’s carnage by calling for a wall across the city’s ethnic divide. The Government says that the barrier between itself and Palestinian communities in the West Bank has thwarted many terrorist attacks. However, two recent acts of terrorism perpetuated by Arabs living in east Jerusalem has left some asking whether Israel should abandon the dream of a united Jerusalem and isolate itself further from Arab communities. » Read more

Israel To Destroy Attacker's Home ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Bbc News July 7, 2008 - 4:19pm Israeli Defence Minister Ehud Barak has ordered the army to prepare to demolish the home of the Palestinian who killed three Israelis in Jerusalem. The order follows advice by Attorney-General Menachem Mazuz that the proposed demolition could create legal difficulties, but would not be illegal. An Israeli rights group has said such a move would be collective punishment. B'tselem says it has written to Mr Mazuz demanding that he prevent the attacker's home from being demolished. » Read more

Gaza Ceasefire Breaking Down As Violations By Hamas And Israel Continue ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Times by Sheera Frenkel - July 7, 2008 - 4:16pm The ceasefire between Israel and the Hamas-controlled Gaza Strip was on its last legs yesterday, according to Egyptian officials who spent months mediating the complex accord. Hamas said that it was suspending negotiations with Israel over a prisoner swap deal, citing Israeli violations of a declared truce in Gaza. “There is no way for those talks to begin before the obligations of calm are implemented \,” Sami Abu Zuhri, the Hamas spokesman, said. » Read more