August 1st

Lebanese, Israeli soldiers exchange fire over border ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Xinhua August 1, 2011 - 12:00am BEIRUT/JERUSALEM, Aug. 1 (Xinhua) -- The Lebanese Army opened fire at a group of Israeli soldiers that crossed the border Blue Line into Lebanon in the Wazzani area early Monday, a security source told Xinhua. The source said the six Israeli soldiers, who had crossed into Lebanon, fired at the Lebanese army post in response. No casualties were reported. The Lebanese military sent reinforcement to the Wazzani area soon after the incident and the United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL) circulated extensive patrols, said the source. » Read more

PA: Employees to receive salaries Tuesday ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Ma'an News Agency August 1, 2011 - 12:00am BETHLEHEM (Ma'an) -- The Palestinian Authority premier said Sunday that full salaries for the month of July would be paid Tuesday, following strike threats from a union representing government employees. But Salam Fayyad said that "the payment of full salaries will significantly reduce the ability of the Palestinian Authority to meet other needs during the next month.” Fayyad urged patience, saying he would continue to make tireless efforts to secure foreign aid that needed to overcome the crisis and enable the Palestinian Authority to meet all of its commitments. » Read more

Soldiers kill 2 in raid on refugee camp ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Ma'an News Agency August 1, 2011 - 12:00am RAMALLAH (Ma’an) – Israeli forces shot dead two Palestinians during an arrest raid near Ramallah in the central West Bank early Monday, onlookers and medical officials said. Witnesses told Ma’an that soldiers stormed Qalandiya refugee camp at dawn and as they ransacked homes, confrontations erupted between the army and local residents. » Read more

Gaza border violence: Another threat to Palestinian statehood? ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Christian Science Monitor by Ahmed al-Dabba - July 29, 2011 - 12:00am As Palestinian leader Mahmoud Abbas ramps up his campaign for a United Nations vote on statehood in September, the Gaza Strip is buzzing with speculation that Israel and radical Palestinian elements could derail the effort with cross-border violence. Militants in the Hamas-run territory recently launched Qassam rockets into Israel for the first time in three months, breaking a tenuous cease-fire and drawing retaliatory attacks from Israel. Israel said yesterday that 24 rockets have been fired on its territory so far this month. » Read more

Israel struggles with free-speech rights ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Los Angeles Times by Edmund Sanders - July 31, 2011 - 12:00am A string of new laws passed this year by Israel's right-leaning Knesset has triggered an unusually rancorous debate here over where to draw the line on free speech, exposing shifting sentiments about a core democratic ideal. The latest battle erupted with the approval this month of a law that created civil and financial penalties against those who voice support for boycott campaigns targeting Israel or its institutions, including West Bank settlements that many in Israel and around the world oppose as an obstacle to peace. » Read more

July 29th

The costs and benefits of Palestinian UN options ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Ibishblog by Hussein Ibish - (Blog) July 29, 2011 - 12:00am I’m going to look at what looms ahead potentially at the United Nations in September, because that seems to be the most immediate diplomatic and political context, from a Palestinian perspective anyway, and has huge repercussions. First of all, I’d like to put this whole conversation in its context, at least the way that as I understand it, and also the way the Palestinian leadership and a lot of Palestinians who are talking about some kind of U.N. initiative in September, understand it. » Read more

Gaza’s economic mirage ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Foreign Policy by Wasseem El Sarraj - (Opinion) July 28, 2011 - 12:00am GAZA CITY — A predominant, if misguided, narrative holds Gaza to be a Mediterranean secret, where food is plentiful and joy is unabated. Such statements are not exactly false. As a Gazan, I can say I have laughed, dined out (not just falafel), and been able to embrace my proclivity for consumption -- recently purchasing a 37" flat-screen TV. But this has been a product of the stubbornness and creativity of capitalism under an enforced closure (where goods flow into Gaza, but what goes out is very limited). » Read more

Hebron (Walzer) ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Utopian by Michael Walzer - (Blog) July 20, 2011 - 12:00am Last week, with a few friends, I visited Hebron, taken there by one of the leaders of Breaking the Silence, the organization of ex-soldiers that aims to educate Israelis about the meaning and character of the Occupation. (Its collection of “testimonies” about IDF conduct in the territories has recently been published.) Toward the end of the visit, while my friends took a quick look at the Tomb of the Patriarchs—I have an aversion to religious shrines—I sat with our guide, drinking coffee in an Arab shop. Settler kids warned us not to sit there; the owner wasn’t a Jew. » Read more

The Palestinian Statehood Strategy ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Al-Arabiya by Ali Younes - (Opinion) July 29, 2011 - 12:00am From the Palestinian perspective, the absence of any meaningful effort to restart the Palestinian-Israeli negotiations that will eventually lead to the establishment of a Palestinian state within the 1967 borders is the driving force behind the current efforts to submit an application to the UN to recognize Palestine as a state. » Read more

Last roll of the dice for Palestinians at the UN ATFP World Press Roundup Article from swissinfo.ch by Frédéric Burnand - (Opinion) July 28, 2011 - 12:00am The Swiss government has yet to publicly state its position on formal recognition of a Palestinian state. “We are going to the Security Council to obtain full membership of the United Nations and the recognition of Palestine according to the 1967 borders,” affirmed Abbas during a meeting of the central council of the Palestinian Liberation Organization (PLO) in Ramallah on Wednesday. But such a move goes against the wishes of supporters of a Palestinian state such as the United States, which argues that peace negotiations are the correct format for such debates. » Read more