Arab writers return from Gaza, overshadow literature festival with anti-Hamas testimonies ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Ahram Online by Mohammed Saad - May 13, 2012 - 12:00am The closing ceremony of the fifth Palestine Festival of Literature (aka Palfest) was overshadowed by politics as writers who returned from a trip to the Gaza Strip gave their testimony on the situation there and described Hamas’s “repressive rule.” At the Palfest closing ceremony, which was held in Cairo on Friday at the Rawabet Theatre, writer Ahdaf Soueif presented the Egyptian and Arab guest writers, including Khaled El-Khamisi, Sahar El-Mougy, poet Amin Haddad, Tunisian writer Khaled Najjar and Palestinian Poet Tariq Hamdan. » Read more

EU Palestinian aid projects destroyed by Israel: NGOs ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Agence France Presse (AFP) May 14, 2012 - 12:00am JERUSALEM — Israel demolished dozens of Palestinian homes, water cisterns and farm buildings built with European funds in 2011, and over 100 such structures are at risk, aid groups said in a report on Monday. The figures, compiled by a group of local and international NGOs chaired by the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA), were published just ahead of a meeting of EU foreign ministers in Brussels. » Read more

Lebanon’s Palestinians wary of Nakba march ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Daily Star by Mohammed Zaatari - May 12, 2012 - 12:00am AIN AL-HILWEH, Lebanon: In the run-up to next week’s annual commemoration of the Nakba – the Palestinian catastrophe of 1948 – the enthusiasm of refugees is mixed about heading to the border and staging a protest on the edge of their homeland. This year, the event will be marked north of the Litani River, as with the commemoration of Land Day at the end of March – no angry gatherings are expected to take place next to the border fence. » Read more

Netanyahu ordered evacuation of Hebron home over fears of war crimes suits ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Haaretz by Chaim Levinson - May 13, 2012 - 12:00am Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu ordered the evacuation of a Hebron home taken by settlers last month after being informed that the expropriation of Palestinian homes and lands could complicate Israeli officials in war crimes litigation, Haaretz learned on Sunday. » Read more

IDF closes Palestinian school to make way for West Bank training zone ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Haaretz by Akiva Eldar - May 14, 2012 - 12:00am A Palestinian elementary school was shut down last week after Israel's Civil Administration confiscated the vehicle used to transport teachers to it. Teachers initially tried coming to the school, located in the Jinba cave village in the southern Hebron hills, by donkey, but this proved disruptive since they were often late. » Read more

PLO officials: Netanyahu letter on peace a non-starter ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Ma'an News Agency by Ali Sawafta - May 14, 2012 - 12:00am RAMALLAH (Reuters) -- The formal response of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to Palestinian grievances over frozen peace negotiations contains nothing that could revive the talks, Palestinian officials said on Sunday. Netanyahu's reply on Saturday to a letter he received last month from Mahmoud Abbas rejected the Palestinian president's demand to halt Jewish settlement building in occupied territories and repeated a call for an unconditional return to talks that collapsed in 2010, according to the officials. » Read more

Israel's military looks to the sea ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Los Angeles Times by Edmund Sanders - (Analysis) May 11, 2012 - 12:00am TEL AVIV — With the acquisition this month of a sixth German-made submarine, Israel is seeking to position itself as the region's undisputed naval powerhouse. From spying on enemies to intercepting illegal arms shipments to blockading the Gaza Strip, Israel's naval capabilities are playing a more prominent role in the nation's security. The latest advanced German sub, with a price tag of more than $500 million, is Israel's most expensive piece of military equipment. » Read more

Palestinian forces seize ex-fighter in West Bank ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Associated Press by Mohammed Ballas - May 13, 2012 - 12:00am JENIN, West Bank — Palestinian security forces detained a prominent ex-fighter Sunday, stepping up a campaign of arrests following the death of the governor of the northern West Bank district of Jenin, residents said. Masked security men seized Zakariya Zubeidi in Jenin after halting his car, blindfolding him and shackling him before bundling him into another car and speeding away, residents said. » Read more

Palestinian prisoners portraits underscore absence ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Associated Press by Dusan Vranic - May 13, 2012 - 12:00am KUFR RAI, West Bank — For the thousands of Palestinian families who have a relative in Israeli detention, a photograph is the only real contact with their loved ones. In homes, the images are usually decked in elaborate frames alongside the portraits of dead ancestors, marking the conspicuous absence of the prisoners. » Read more

Deal looks near to end Palestianian hunger strike ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Associated Press by Ian Deitch - May 13, 2012 - 12:00am JERUSALEM — Egyptian and Palestinian officials said Sunday they were close to reaching a deal with Israel that would end a mass hunger strike by Palestinians in Israeli jails. Some 1,600 Palestinian prisoners are on strike, most for a month, but three have refused food for more than 70 days. They launched the strike to press their demands for better conditions and an end to detention without trial. » Read more