May 27th

Top Israeli judge slams state for building West Bank road against court order ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Haaretz by Chaim Levinson - May 27, 2010 - 12:00am Israel's Supreme Court president on Wednesday condemned the government's failure to enforce an order to stop building a West Bank road on private Palestinian land. In talks with state lawyers, Supreme Court President Dorit Beinisch gave the government 45 days to explain why illegal construction was continuing and justify damage to private property. Beinisch, who ordered the state to back up its explanation with aerial photographs, spoke out in response to a petition by the human rights organization Yesh Din. » Read more

Sha'ath: Obama preparing to put real pressure on Israel ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Ma'an News Agency May 27, 2010 - 12:00am Fatah Central Committee member Nabil Sha'ath called US President Barack Obama's sudden invitation to Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu part of the American framework to put pressure on Israel. Netanyahu will be "satisfied with gifts" from the American administration, Sha'ath told Ma'an radio on Wednesday, referring to a recent promise to fund an anti-missile defense system in Israel for some 250 million dollars. » Read more

Makhoul's defense: Harsh interrogation methods used ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Ynetnews by Sharon Roffe-ofir - May 27, 2010 - 12:00am Following the indictment against Arab-Israeli author Ameer Makhoul, chairman of Ittijah (the Union of Arab Community-Based Associations), his defense counsel claimed he is innocent and accused the Shin Bet of using particularly violent methods against his client. According to the lawyer, the violence led Makhoul to 'admit' to acts he did not in fact commit. A senior Shin Bet source said the accusations are groundless. Makhoul is accused of espionage, assisting an enemy at a time of war and maintaining contact with an enemy agent. » Read more

Why Rahm Emanuel is a lightning rod in Israel ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Christian Science Monitor by Joshua Mitnick - May 26, 2010 - 12:00am In a move seen in Israel as a bid to smooth ties after recent sharp differences over Israeli building in East Jerusalem, Rahm Emanuel paid a rare visit as White House chief of staff to Israel, delivering in person an invitation to Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to meet with President Barack Obama next week. » Read more

Palestinians complain of 'tree massacre' ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Ynetnews by Ali Waked - May 27, 2010 - 12:00am The Israel Defense Forces and Civil Administration uprooted 500 Palestinian trees in the village of Nahlin in the Gush Etzion region. The Palestinians sarcastically said this must be part of the easements the IDF announced hours earlier, but the Civil Administration said an evacuation order was issued to the Palestinians over two months ago for illegally trespassing on the land. » Read more

'PA boycott is a declaration of war' ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Jerusalem Post by Tovah Lazaroff - May 27, 2010 - 12:00am The Palestinian Authority has "declared war" on the Israeli economy by boycotting settlement goods, charged Knesset speaker Ruby Rivlin (Likud) during a solidarity visit he made Thursday morning to the Barkan Industrial Park in Samaria. The West Bank park, located right off Route 5, is home to 143 factories. Half of its 5,000 workers are Palestinian. Rivlin spoke on the same day that the PA inaugurated its house-to-house campaign, in which 3,000 volunteers are knocking on doors and explaining the significance of the boycott. » Read more

What’s Behind White House Strategy To Woo U.S. Jews ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Jewish Daily Forward by Nathan Guttman - May 27, 2010 - 12:00am Washington — As the Obama administration’s charm offensive toward the Jewish community enters its second month, a clearer picture is emerging of the White House’s strategy for recouping lost ground with American Jews on Israel. First and foremost, the administration is touting its strengthening of military cooperation and security ties with Israel, even as public clashes recede, for now, over expanding Israeli-Jewish settlements in predominantly Palestinian East Jerusalem and the occupied West Bank. » Read more

Israel's Arab-Jewish conflict played out on a soccer field ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Los Angeles Times by Lisa Rosen - May 27, 2010 - 12:00am Any soccer fanatic gearing up for the World Cup will tell you that national pride is on the line with every game. When that pride is caught up in geopolitics, keeping score can get even more complicated. The documentary "After the Cup: Sons of Sakhnin United" looks at Bnei Sakhnin, a soccer team from an Arab city in Israel that won that country's national cup in 2004. » Read more

The dig dividing Jerusalem ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Guardian by Ahdaf Soueif - May 27, 2010 - 12:00am If you walk out of Jerusalem Old City through its south-eastern gate and on to the perimeter road encircling it, you will most likely see several large coaches with elderly western tourists climbing out of them. You will see them stand at the low wall at the edge of the road and peer down into the lush valley with its pretty houses that nudge and lean against each other. The tourists may notice the woman marking exercise books on her sunny terrace, they may smile to see the bright-haired four-year-old riding her tricycle round the yard. » Read more

White House to Host Mideast Leaders ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Reuters May 27, 2010 - 12:00am President Obama has invited Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu of Israel and the Palestinian president, Mahmoud Abbas, to the White House for separate meetings, White House officials said Wednesday. The meetings with Mr. Obama will be the first for the Middle Eastern leaders since the start of the indirect peace talks that began last month, with the president’s special envoy, George J. Mitchell, mediating between the parties. » Read more