June 25th

An historic moment for Gaza ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Jordan Times by Rami Khouri - June 25, 2010 - 12:00am The Israeli decision to ease the three-year-old siege of Gaza is being mildly welcomed in many quarters, and deep scepticism in others. The Palestinian president, Mahmoud Abbas, has pleaded with the world via the Quartet to pressure Israel to fully lift its siege, while Lebanese and Iranian groups are planning to send more humanitarian aid ships to Gaza to challenge and break the Israeli blockade. » Read more

Israeli President Shimon Peres: U.S. and other powers must engage Hamas on peace ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Washington Post by Janine Zacharia - June 25, 2010 - 12:00am Israel's president and elder statesman, Shimon Peres, urged the United States and other world powers this week to engage with Hamas in order to persuade the Islamist group to renounce violence and prepare for peace with Israel. » Read more

Israeli Official Assails Plans for Demolition of Arab Homes ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The New York Times by Dina Kraft - June 25, 2010 - 12:00am A top Israeli official scolded local officials on Tuesday for giving preliminary approval to a plan calling for the demolition of 22 Palestinian homes, in an echo of past stumbles over Jewish development in East Jerusalem. The official, Defense Minister Ehud Barak, was on a visit to Washington, where tensions have run high over Jewish housing in East Jerusalem. A member of the Labor Party, the only centrist element in a right-leaning government, Mr. Barak seemed annoyed by the move, which threatened to upset the indirect, American-brokered peace talks between Israel and the Palestinians. » Read more

June 24th

'Pause before going to war, once again'? ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Jordan Times by Michael Jansen - June 24, 2010 - 12:00am The Israeli liberal daily Haaretz carried a very illuminating article this week, written by Ari Shavit, who argued that Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Defence Minister Ehud Barak are regarded by many Israelis as "twins", dependent on one another. Shavit reveals that while the atmosphere between Netanyahu and the White House is frosty, Vice President Joe Biden gets along just fine with Barak. For this reason and others, Netanyahu treats Barak with "respect". » Read more

Why Palestinians are second-class citizens in Lebanon ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Guardian by Ahmed Moor - (Opinion) June 24, 2010 - 12:00am I moved to Beirut from New York nine months ago and began looking for an apartment. After 10 continuous years in America, I wanted to return to the Arab world – and returning to my family's roots in Palestine wasn't an option. I knew that in Beirut, I likely wasn't going to be renting from a faceless, impersonal property company; real people mostly own the real estate here – and often, they are interested in knowing their tenants personally. That's how I learned, to my dismay, that being a Palestinian in Beirut is mostly a liability; anti-Palestinian racism is a fact of life here. » Read more

Israel launches Ofek 9 spy satellite ATFP World Press Roundup Article from BBC News June 24, 2010 - 12:00am The satellite's high resolution camera would significantly boost Israel's intelligence gathering, officials told local media. Israel's defence ministry said the Ofek 9 was launched from Palmachim air force base on its south coast near Tel Aviv. It is one of at least four Israeli spy satellites currently orbiting the Earth. "This provides Israel with greater operational flexibility, since we now have another set of eyes on a target," Chaim Eshed, the director of Israel's military space programme, told The Jerusalem Post. » Read more

UN chief says East Jerusalem demolition plan 'illegal' ATFP World Press Roundup Article from BBC News June 24, 2010 - 12:00am On Monday Jerusalem City Council approved the plan to demolish 22 Palestinian homes in Silwan - part of a major redevelopment of the area. The move has drawn criticism both at home and from the Obama administration. Mr Ban said the plan was "contrary to international law" and "unhelpful" to efforts to restart peace negotiations. The scheme is still in an initial stage. » Read more

My blueprint for a resolution ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Jerusalem Post by Avigdor Lieberman - (Opinion) June 24, 2010 - 12:00am The definition of insanity is doing the same thing over and over again and expecting different results,” Albert Einstein once said. Since 1993, successive governments, supported by the international community, have tried to end the Israeli-Palestinian conflict using the flawed paradigm of land for peace. Each time, the same formula was attempted, but failed every time because of Arab recalcitrance. » Read more

Lieberman proposes peace 'blueprint' ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Jerusalem Post June 24, 2010 - 12:00am Arguing that “history is moving away from attempts to accommodate competing national aspirations in a single state,” Foreign Minister Avigdor Lieberman on Thursday issued a highly specific demand for “an exchange of populated territories” that would place many Israeli Arabs inside a new Palestinian state. In an op-ed that appears in Thursday’s Jerusalem Post, he stressed that this would not require “physical population transfer or the demolition of houses,” but rather “creating a border where none existed, according to demographics...” » Read more

Malaysia pushing for UN debate on raid ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Ynetnews by Yitzhak Benhorin - June 24, 2010 - 12:00am Malaysia, backed by the Arab states, has initiated a UN debate regarding the Turkish flotilla events, which is slated to be held during Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's visit to Washington. The Arab states and Non-Aligned countries are working to keep the issue on the international agenda. » Read more