Israelis awakening to the power of grass-roots activism ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Jewish Telegraphic Agency (JTA) by David Borowich Ya'ari - (Opinion) August 17, 2011 - 12:00am On a recent Saturday night, my wife and I waded into a sea of 6,000 protesters in Modiin as part of 12 other similarly staged rallies across Israel to demand social justice and greater accountability from our elected officials in Israel. This was Modiin, the newly created suburban retreat of the middle class -- a far cry from the social challenges facing the country. Amid a wave of upwardly mobile suburbanites, we found common cause with the hundreds of thousands of protestors who believe that Israel must provide greater social mobility and opportunity. » Read more

Palestinians on statehood ATFP World Press Roundup Article from NOW Lebanon by Mona Alami - (Opinion) August 19, 2011 - 12:00am Mahmoud Abbas most likely left Lebanon Thursday a satisfied man. With high-level talks—most notably with President Michel Sleiman, Prime Minister Najib Mikati and Parliament Speaker Nabih Berri—as well as the inauguration of the Palestinian Embassy in Lebanon on his itinerary, the Palestinian president has laid some important diplomatic groundwork in preparation of an event next month that has the potential to define his career. » Read more

Deadly direction ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Daily Star (Editorial) August 19, 2011 - 12:00am When attacks and counterattacks erupted Thursday in Gaza, it might have been expected to hear analysts and the media talk about a sudden outbreak of violence – in fact, the developments of the last few months represent an instance of deliberately laying the groundwork for such an explosion. » Read more

The boundaries of July 14 ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Bitterlemons by Abir Kopty - (Opinion) August 18, 2011 - 12:00am Although some Israelis are calling for making a clear connection to Israel's occupation, the July 14 movement for "social justice" is far from endorsing a position on this, for many reasons. » Read more

The Israeli protest is indifferent to the Palestinians ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Bitterlemons by Yisrael Harel - (Opinion) August 19, 2011 - 12:00am Until Barack Obama entered the White House, Abu Mazen (PLO Chairman Mahmoud Abbas) was obliged, under pressure from the United States and the Quartet, to negotiate with Israel. But his goal was never to reach agreement. This was graphically illustrated in late 2008 by his refusal to accept the most generous set of principles ever proposed by an Israeli prime minister, Ehud Olmert. » Read more

Semites unite! You’ve nothing to lose but your pain ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Daily Star by Roi Ben-Yehuda - (Opinion) August 19, 2011 - 12:00am On July 15 a small bit of history was made in Jerusalem. Around 3,000 Jews and Arabs marched from the Jaffa Gate in the Old City to the Sheikh Jarrah neighborhood in East Jerusalem calling for Palestinian independence, freedom and dignity. The demonstration was organized by the Sheikh Jarrah Solidarity Movement and leaders of the Palestinian East Jerusalem neighborhood committees. We, an Israeli from Tel Aviv and a Palestinian resident of Jerusalem, were among those who joined and made our voices heard. » Read more

The Egyptian revolution has created a vacuum in Sinai ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Haaretz by Avi Issacharoff - (Opinion) August 19, 2011 - 12:00am Thursday's attack, in which eight Israelis were killed and some 30 wounded, was one of the worst terror attacks Israel has experienced in recent years. Israeli defense sources said the cell, belonging to the Popular Resistance Committees, left the Gaza Strip through the tunnels and entered Israel from Sinai to carry out a suicide attack combined with an abduction. Seven of the terrorists who carried out the attack were killed by the IDF and special police forces, as well as by fire from the Egyptian army. » Read more

The myth of Israel's Goliath image has been slain ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Haaretz by Akiva Eldar - (Opinion) August 19, 2011 - 12:00am The planning, time, place and methodology of the attacks in the south indicate that the intention was not just to kill Israelis, avenge Palestinian deaths, or speed up the end of occupation. Whoever sent the terrorists is no friend of President Mahmoud Abbas and his people, who are scurrying around trying to lobby support for a UN General Assembly vote for a Palestinian state next month. » Read more

Hill fight simmers over Palestinian statehood vote ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Politico by Marin Cogan, Jake Sherman - August 19, 2011 - 12:00am Republicans and Democrats on Capitol Hill will spend much of the fall warring over budget deficits and the national debt, but a mass excursion by lawmakers to Israel this month offers a glimpse into a simmering foreign policy fight that could unify the two parties and cause headaches for the White House. » Read more

Abbas: We refuse observer status at the UN ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Ma'an News Agency August 19, 2011 - 12:00am President Mahmoud Abbas said the Palestinian leadership rejected upgrading Palestine to observer status at the UN and would demand full membership, the official news agency Wafa reported. Palestine refuses to be like the Vatican, which is not a member of the world body but has observer status, Abbas said. Speaking in Beirut, Abbas said 122 countries supported an independent Palestinian state on 1967 borders, adding that the number could increase. Palestine also had the support of nine of the 15 UN Security Council members, the president said. » Read more