In the IDF, it's the officers vs. the rabbis ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Haaretz by Amos Harel - (Blog) November 14, 2011 - 1:00am Amid renewed fighting on the Gaza border and an influx of reports on a possible Israeli attack on Iran’s nuclear sites, Israel Defense Forces chief Benny Gantz’s term is being dominated by an entirely different issue: the cultural war brewing within the army. Specifically, the impact of rabbis and religious officers on the day-to-day life of the military, beyond the basic rights promised to them by IDF regulations. » Read more

Netanyahu is less of a liar than past Israeli PMs ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Haaretz by Amira Hass - (Opinion) November 16, 2011 - 1:00am Does Benjamin Netanyahu lie more than other politicians? That, at least, is the impression one gets from various reports in the press. But does he lie more than other prime ministers about Israel's strong (lack of ) desire for peace with the Palestinians? To say that would be downright mendacious. » Read more

Republicans’ ‘Starting from zero’ aid proposal startles pro-Israel community ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Jewish Telegraphic Agency (JTA) by Ron Kampeas - November 16, 2011 - 1:00am “Starting from zero,” the foreign assistance plan touted by leading Republican candidates at a debate, is getting low marks, and not just from Democrats and the foreign policy community. Pro-Israel activists and fellow Republicans also have concerns. Texas Gov. Rick Perry introduced the plan during the first foreign policy debate Saturday night, held by CBS and the National Journal at Wofford College in Spartanburg, S.C. South Carolina is a key early primary state. » Read more

Fatah: Fayyad remains candidate for PM of Palestinian unity government ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Haaretz by Avi Issacharoff - November 16, 2011 - 1:00am Palestinian Authority Prime Minister Salam Fayyad has been and remains PA President Mahmoud Abbas' candidate for prime minister in a unity government with Hamas, Fatah parliament member Faisal Abu Shahla said on Wednesday. Abu Shahla added, however, that the matter will only be decided when Abbas meets with Hamas leader Khaled Meshal in Cairo next Friday. On Tuesday, Palestinian sources said that Fatah and Hamas agreed to hold elections next May and are due to establish a caretaker government in the coming weeks which will exclude Fayyad. » Read more

Palestinian official: Rivals agree on election ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Statesman by Mohammed Daraghmeh - November 16, 2011 - 1:00am The rival Palestinian factions Fatah and Hamas have agreed to hold elections next May, a senior official said Tuesday, in what would be a major step toward ending a four-year rift. Azzam al-Ahmad, a senior Fatah negotiator, said the sides agreed on the election plan in secret talks and are expected to formally approve it later this month. The plan calls for the establishment of a caretaker government to prepare for the vote — most likely without current Prime Minister Salam Fayyad. » Read more

Abbas vows to speed up reconciliation with Hamas ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Ma'an News Agency November 16, 2011 - 1:00am President and Fatah leader Mahmoud Abbas pledged Wednesday to speed up reconciliation with Hamas in a speech to honor late President Yasser Arafat. Abbas said he would meet Hamas leader Khalid Mashaal in Cairo on Nov. 23, addressing his leadership in Ramallah to commemorate the seventh anniversary of Arafat's death. The party leaders will address the reconciliation deal signed in May to end years of rivalry that split Palestinians into separate administrations in the West Bank and Gaza. » Read more

France summons Israeli ambassador over Gaza raid ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Reuters November 16, 2011 - 1:00am France's Foreign Ministry summoned Israel's ambassador on Wednesday over an airstrike in Gaza that injured the French consul and his family on Sunday. Majdi Jameel Yaseen Shaqqoura and his daughter were injured by shrapnel and his wife suffered a miscarriage when Israeli warplanes bombed a police building in Beit Lahiya early Monday morning, the Palestinian Center for Human Rights said in a statement. » Read more

Israeli-Palestinian jolt? Why some want to dismantle PA. ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Christian Science Monitor by Joshua Mitnick - November 16, 2011 - 1:00am The Palestinian Authority is seeking to regroup after the United Nations Security Council officially declared its bid for full UN membership to be dead. After the Council's announcement Friday, Israeli-Palestinian relations returned to a familiar stasis this week. In talks with the Quartet (the US, UN, European Union, and Russia) yesterday, Israel sought a return to the table with no preconditions and Palestinians insisted on a settlement freeze before resuming talks. » Read more

Palestinian 'freedom riders' board Israeli buses in protest ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Christian Science Monitor by Rebecca Collard - November 16, 2011 - 1:00am Decked-out in T-shirts bearing slogans such as “dignity,” “freedom,” and “justice,” and wearing the symbolic black and white Palestinian kaffiyeh scarves, six Palestinian activists waited at a bus stop this afternoon with a group of Israeli settlers. » Read more

Palestinian activists arrested on Israeli bus ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Statesman by Diaa Hadid - November 16, 2011 - 1:00am Six Palestinian activists, clutching national flags and surrounded by dozens of reporters, were dragged off an Israeli bus they planned to ride into Jerusalem after a standoff with police Tuesday. They were detained and then released a few hours later in the West Bank, said pro-Palestinian activist Jonathan Pollack. The Palestinians boarded the Israeli bus in a widely advertised action hoping to draw attention to what they call discriminatory measures in the West Bank, particularly travel restrictions. » Read more