August 23rd

“The Embassy… in the Building” ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Dar Al-Hayat by Mohammad Salah - (Opinion) August 22, 2011 - 12:00am Very innocent, pure and chaste are the feelings of pride that erupted among Egyptians when a young man was able to climb the tall building, the last floor of which is occupied by the Israeli embassy, bringing down the flag of the Hebrew state and raising the Egyptian flag in its stead. For more than quarter of a century, walking alongside the building or near it remained an endeavor rife with danger (the embassy was located in Iran Street in the Dokki district, before it moved to a building overlooking the Nile in Giza). » Read more

New Strategic Flaw Affects Israel? ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Dar Al-Hayat by George Semaan - (Opinion) August 22, 2011 - 12:00am The Arab action has started to cast its shadows over Israel, while the security repercussions of the Eilat operation on the Gaza Strip and the killing of the Egyptian soldiers with the bullets of the Israeli army on the border between the two countries might lead to political repercussions that could make the Hebrew state come face to face with a blunt strategic flaw. In the meantime, Benjamin Netanyahu’s government is standing before challenges for which it is not envied. » Read more

The EU must give Gazan hope a hand ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Guardian by Sami Abdel-shafi - (Opinion) August 22, 2011 - 12:00am It is no longer fitting to wonder whether Gaza is a problem: of course it is, and will continue to be for as long as its residents are forced to survive on aid for lack of economic opportunity and are denied the simple freedoms to pursue a decent and peaceful life. Whenever violence breaks out in or around the Gaza Strip, whether Gazans are responsible or not, we end up bearing the brunt. » Read more

Yes, apologize to Egypt ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Ynetnews by Eitan Haber - (Opinion) August 23, 2011 - 12:00am Some of the people reading this column, and possibly very many of them, are infuriated and fuming at this very moment: Apologize? To the Egyptians? Why should we? What for? And what about our “national honor”? Well, they can relax, take a tranquillizer and get some rest. The undersigned cares about national honor no less than they do, and possibly even more so. However, peace – as long as it’s alive – is more important. We have nothing that is more important. » Read more

Glenn Beck Brings Firebreathing Rhetoric Back to Israel ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Jewish Daily Forward by Noam Sheizaf - (Opinion) August 22, 2011 - 12:00am Glenn Beck is in Israel, again. In July, the talk radio host and former Fox News star was invited to the Kensset, where he met “a room full of admirers” — in the words of a Channel 1 report — led by Likud MK Danny Danon. Beck urged Israelis to stand strong; among those shaking his hand was Baruch Marzel, former chairman of the outlawed Kach movement. Yet it seems that this honor wasn’t enough for Beck, who is back for a couple of Israeli rallies this week under the name of “Restoring Courage.” » Read more

With friends like Glenn Beck... ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Haaretz by Rachel Tabachnick - (Opinion) August 23, 2011 - 12:00am Israel's international standing and relationship with Jewish-Americans is threatened as Israel is increasingly linked to right-wing political agendas in the United States. This situation has been exacerbated as controversial American broadcaster Glenn Beck has tried to remake himself into Israel's champion. Beck, who is currently in Israel to lead his "Restoring Courage" rally in Jerusalem, has become a marginal and toxic figure in the United States. So much so that Fox News ended his daily show earlier this year. » Read more

Arab League: Palestinian statehood bid could be 'dangerous' ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Israel Hayom by Daniel Siryoti - August 22, 2011 - 12:00am Arab League Secretary-General Nabil Elaraby on Sunday suggested Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas reconsider his appeal to the U.N. to recognize an independent Palestinian state in September. "The unilateral appeal to the U.N. Security Council and U.N. General Assembly could be a very dangerous move for the Palestinians during this period and I propose that Abbas reconsider the handling of the matter," Elaraby said. » Read more

Egyptian government bans export of palm leaves to Israel ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Al-Masry Al-Youm August 22, 2011 - 12:00am Egypt’s Agriculture Ministry has announced a ban on the export of palm leaves to Israel starting this year and for the coming two years, a decision that some news reports have linked with recent violence along the Egyptian border with Israel in the past week. Tensions have been high between the Israeli and Egyptian governments this past week after Israeli military units crossed into Egyptian territory while pursuing alleged terrorists along the border. Six Egyptian police and army personnel were killed by Israeli fire. » Read more

Gaza’s Underground Economy ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Media Line by Omar Ghraieb - August 21, 2011 - 12:00am RAFAH, Gaza – Just a few months ago, Abu Ola, a 60-year-old Gazan, thought the future of his tunnel business was bleak. Israel had eased its blockade on the Gaza Strip in the spring of 2010, allowing everything from concrete to confections into the Hamas-ruled enclave and putting and a damper on the smuggling trade. Then, Egypt opened the Rafah border crossing last May, making it easier for people to get in and out. With business drying up, Ola dismissed half of his 13-man workforce. » Read more

Resentment toward Hamas grows among Gaza's budding middle class ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Associated Press August 23, 2011 - 12:00am A budding middle class in the impoverished Gaza Strip is flaunting its wealth, sipping coffee at gleaming new cafes, shopping for shoes at the new tiny shopping malls, and fueling perhaps the most acrimonious grass roots resentment yet toward the ruling Hamas movement. » Read more