April 13th

Government mulls allowing flotillas to reach Gaza Strip ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Jerusalem Post April 13, 2011 - 12:00am The government is considering allowing flotillas bound for Gaza to dock in the Strip so long as they undergo a thorough search by an international authority, Channel 2 news reported Tuesday evening. According to the TV report, Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu was examining the idea of letting ships dock in the Strip as long as Israel and a third, international party, such as Greece, were to check any incoming vessel for illegal weapons or illicit materials. » Read more

'Blair to endorse Palestinian state at Brussels parley' ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Jerusalem Post April 13, 2011 - 12:00am Quartet envoy Tony Blair was set to present a report in Brussels on Wednesday endorsing a future Palestinian state, the London Times reported. » Read more

'US will have hard time standing alone in UN' ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Ynetnews by Attila Somfalvi - April 13, 2011 - 12:00am Israeli state officials estimated Wednesday that the US decision to postpone a European initiative to set parameters for peace talks between Israel and the Palestinians will involve a price to be paid by Benjamin Netanyahu. "The prime minister will be forced to outline his plans in a clear manner," one state official said. Israel has been working to prevent UN support in a unilateral declaration of a Palestinian state, however efforts to block endorsement have thus far failed. State officials now believe such efforts are futile, particularly in regards to the General Assembly. » Read more

Bieber: Netanyahu meeting never scheduled ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Ynetnews by Raz Shechnik - April 13, 2011 - 12:00am Justin Bieber never intended to meet with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, his manager told Yedioth Ahronoth Tuesday in response to reports that the teen idol had refused to hold such a meeting after discovering that children from the Gaza vicinity would also be in attendance. "We never asked to meet with (Netanyahu) nor has anyone connected with us asked to meet him," Scooter Braun told the paper. » Read more

Palestinians seek $5 billion for state ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Reuters April 13, 2011 - 12:00am Palestinian Prime Minister Salam Fayyad will brief Western representatives in Brussels on Wednesday on his bid for nearly $5 billion in investment to launch a Palestinian state. The Palestinian Authority's three-year development plan, obtained by Reuters, requires $1.467 billion this year, $1.754 billion in 2012 and $1.596 billion for 2013. "We have distributed the plan to the donors and they have welcomed it," Palestinian Planning Minister Ali al-Jarbawi said. The plan will be presented formally to donor countries at a pledging conference in June, he said. » Read more

Netanyahu's West Bank plan reeks of irrational desperation ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Haaretz by Aluf Benn - April 13, 2011 - 12:00am When Benjamin (Bibi) Netanyahu led the opposition to the Oslo Accords, he had a stroke of media brilliance. Speechwriter Netanyahu called the dynamic of the negotiations not "give and take," but "give and give," ridiculing the leaders of the left and promising that he would insist upon reciprocity. The Palestinians would have to pay through concessions for every dunam they receive in the territories. If they give, they'll get, he said on assuming office as prime minister, and if they don't give, they won't get. » Read more

Partial West Bank pullout can't stop Palestinian state ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Haaretz (Editorial) April 13, 2011 - 12:00am Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is assimilating too slowly the possibility - he calls it a danger - that come September, the world will recognize an independent Palestinian state. » Read more

Hamas split on resuming Gaza fire against Israel, top IDF officer says ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Haaretz April 13, 2011 - 12:00am Hamas' diplomatic leadership is interested in maintaining relative calm along the Gaza Strip's border with Israel, a top Israel Defense Forces officer said on Wednesday, while the group's military commanders are bent on resuming attacks. The remarks by GOC Southern Command Tal Russo come as international mediators brokered a respite to the recent fighting between Israel and Hamas. The cross border conflict escalated dramatically last week, becoming the most intense confrontation between the two since Israel's war in the Palestinian territory in late December 2008. » Read more

Abbas calls on Israel to stop settlement activities to resume peace ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Xinhua April 12, 2011 - 12:00am Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas on Tuesday called on Israel to cease settlement constructions in the occupied territories to resume peace talks. He also said that Israel should commit itself to the references of the peace process, including the recognition of the goal that the negotiations should lead to a Palestinian statehood on the lands that Israel has occupied in 1967. Abbas made the remarks as he received Spain's Crown Prince Philip, his wife and Spanish Foreign Minister Trinidad Jimenez in the West Bank city of Ramallah. » Read more

Israel reopens Gaza's only commercial crossing after week-long closure ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Xinhua April 13, 2011 - 12:00am Israel on Wednesday reopened the only commercial crossing point with the Gaza Strip after a week of closure, a Palestinian official said. About 250 trucks carrying cooking gas, diesel and aid for commercial and agricultural sectors will enter Gaza Wednesday and two truckloads of flowers would be exported through the Kerem Shalom crossing, said Ra'ed Fattouh, a Palestinian coordination official. Israel cited security concerns when it closed the crossing last week. » Read more