April 7th

Justice for Gaza conflict victims: a response to Richard Goldstone ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Guardian April 7, 2011 - 12:00am Dear Richard Goldstone As Palestinian human rights organisations, we were surprised by your op-ed, Reconsidering the Goldstone report on Israel and war crimes. Your conclusions that "civilians were not intentionally targeted [by Israel] as a matter of policy? and that Israel has "to a significant degree? sufficiently self-investigated incidents potentially amounting to war crimes in Operation Cast Lead are of particular concern. » Read more

Ford Foundation, Big Funder of Israeli NGOs, Pulling Out ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Jewish Daily Forward by Nathan Guttman - April 6, 2011 - 12:00am After being a target for political attacks during the past year, progressive nongovernmental organizations in Israel are now bracing for another hit: the loss of one of their largest donors. The Ford Foundation, which has provided $40 million to civil society NGOs in Israel since 2003, will not resume its funding for programs in Israel once its current grant round ends in two years. The reason, the organization explains, has to do with changing priorities, not with politics. » Read more

Arab revolutions and the Israeli role ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Asharq Alawsat by Osman Mirghani - (Opinion) April 7, 2011 - 12:00am Responding to the ongoing demonstrations that are taking place in a number of cities, Syrian officials spoke of a conspiracy against the country, hinting that Israel were behind this, due to Syria's "national role." The intimations of a conspiracy were mentioned several times by President Bashar al-Assad in his recent speech in which he said that there is significance in the city of Deraa being chosen as the starting point for anti-governmental demonstrations. » Read more

Haaretz WikiLeaks exclusive / Israel's Peace Now updates U.S. on West Bank construction ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Haaretz by Ofer Aderet - April 7, 2011 - 12:00am Israeli left-wing non-government organization Peace Now has urged the U.S. to pressure Israel into evacuating West Bank outposts, according to an American diplomatic cable released by WikiLeaks, adding that the group regularly updated both Washington and the Defense Ministry on ongoing settlement construction. » Read more

Goldstone’s about-face ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Jordan Times by Daoud Kuttab - (Opinion) April 7, 2011 - 12:00am Whenever anything happens in the world, Jews and Israelis ask the question: Is this good for Jews? But when a South African Jew who also insists that he is a Zionist was appointed to a human rights commission, the Jewish answer was a strong no. It was clear that the usual character assassination and political spin aimed at delegitmising anyone asked to investigate Israel’s war crimes would be much more difficult if the person is a Jewish judge. » Read more

Israeli settlement activities impede peace efforts: Jordanian FM ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Xinhua April 6, 2011 - 12:00am Jordanian Foreign Minister Nasser Judeh on Wednesday condemned Israel's settlement activities for impeding the peace efforts, state-run Petra news agency reported. At a meeting with David Hale, deputy envoy of the United States for Middle East peace, the Jordanian official condemned Israel's unilateral, illegal and provocative measures in the occupied Palestinian territories, especially in East Jerusalem. Judeh said the Israeli settlement activities obstruct the peace efforts, calling for freezing these activities immediately. » Read more

Building a Stage for Mideast Peace Before the Final Curtain ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The New York Times by Isabel Kershner - April 6, 2011 - 12:00am Juliano Mer Khamis lived a paradox. The internationally renowned actor, director and political activist, who was killed here this week, was both an Israeli and a Palestinian, born to a Jewish mother and an Arab Christian father in the Israeli Arab town of Nazareth. Mr. Mer Khamis embodied the Israeli-Arab conflict and embraced its complexities in a way that few could. He was regarded as an Arab by many Israelis, and by some in this West Bank city, his adopted home, first and foremost as a Jew. » Read more

Hamas militants nabbed for planning to abduct Israeli soldier ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Xinhua April 6, 2011 - 12:00am Israel revealed Wednesday evening that its security apparatuses had nabbed three militants of the Islamic Hamas movement who planned to kidnap a Israeli soldier. The Israeli Radio reported that the internal security apparatus, better known as the Shabak, arrested a group of three Hamas members in January in cooperation with the Israeli army. The group planned to kidnap an Israeli soldier as a hostage and then reach a deal to exchange Palestinians imprisoned in Israeli jails, according to the radio. » Read more

World Bank praises Palestinian state building drive ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Reuters by Crispian Balmer - April 7, 2011 - 12:00am The World Bank gave a strong endorsement on Thursday to Palestinian efforts to set up an independent state, saying core Palestinian institutions compared favourably with those in established nations. The World Bank report followed a similar vote of confidence this week from the International Monetary Fund, with both Washington-based bodies praising the Palestinian Authority for creating the structures needed to maintain a sovereign state. » Read more

Sudan Says Israel Launched a Missile Strike on a Car, Killing 2 ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The New York Times by Josh Kron - April 6, 2011 - 12:00am The government of Sudan accused Israel on Wednesday of carrying out a fatal airstrike on a car traveling from the Red Sea city of Port Sudan. Sudan is considered a transit point in the weapons route to Hamas, the Palestinian faction that runs Gaza. Israel has not yet responded to the accusation. Sudanese officials said a missile struck the car around 10 p.m. on Tuesday, obliterating the vehicle and killing two people who were inside. » Read more