Israel faces tougher line from EU after former heads call for Palestinian state
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Guardian
by Chris McGreal, Harriet Sherwood - December 10, 2010 - 1:00am

Twenty-six European grandees have urged the EU to adopt a tougher stance towards Israel including taking "concrete measures" and exacting "consequences" over continued settlement building on occupied land, which they say is illegal under international law.

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Peeking into the abyss
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Bitterlemons
by Ghassan Khatib - (Blog) December 6, 2010 - 1:00am

There have been contradicting reports about the outcome of ongoing American efforts to resume the peace process, which was launched by the administration in Washington at the beginning of last September and then was undermined by the resumption of full-scale Israeli settlement activities. Since then, two parallel sets of political activities have been underway. First are American contacts with Israel to try to bring about another settlement freeze that might allow talks to continue between Israel and Palestinians.

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Beyond Green Line: Apartments instead of hotel
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Ynetnews
by Ronen Medzini - November 29, 2010 - 1:00am

The Jerusalem Local Planning and Building Committee on Monday gave its approval to build 130 housing units in an area located beyond the Green Line, between the neighborhoods of Gilo and Beit Safafa. The area was previously designated for the construction of hotels.

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Likud MKs: PM doing what he fancies
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Ynetnews
by Yair Altman - November 29, 2010 - 1:00am

As talks between Israel and the United States on a new settlement construction freeze continue, the Likud party's hawkish camp clarified Monday that it was not going to make life easy for Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. Some 200 Central Committee members and heads of the party's offices across the country took part in the conference at the Knesset, calling on the prime minister not to resume the building freeze.

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Palestinians evicted from East Jerusalem home claimed by Israelis
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Haaretz
by Nir Hasson - November 23, 2010 - 1:00am

Israel Police forces on Tuesday evacuated a Palestinian family from their home in the East Jerusalem neighborhood of Jabel Mukaber, after right-wing activists claimed to have purchased the building. The non-profit group Elad, which intervened on behalf of the settlers, said that the family had agreed to evacuate after selling their home. East Jerusalem. The 16 residents of the home say that the sale was illicit as the name of the landlord written on the deal is no longer alive. They also claim that the landlord left the house to the family in his will.

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Netanyahu has no choice but to freeze East Jerusalem building
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Haaretz
by Akiva Eldar - (Opinion) November 23, 2010 - 1:00am

"There is no way we will give Bibi [Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu] a license to build in East Jerusalem," the American official said with unconcealed anger. "Our letter will not mention, or even hint at, the explicit word 'Jerusalem.'"

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Encountering Peace: Five minutes to midnight
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Jerusalem Post
by Gershon Baskin - (Opinion) November 22, 2010 - 1:00am

Israel is facing the most severe crisis in its history. Surprisingly, most of its citizens choose to ignore this reality. The growing movement to delegitimize our right to exist cannot simply be dismissed by calling it anti- Semitism. The reasons are more complex than that.

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Israel approves millions of dollars for Western Wall facelift
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Xinhua
November 22, 2010 - 1:00am

JERUSALEM, Nov. 21 (Xinhua) -- Israel on Sunday approved a plan to develop Jerusalem's Western Wall plaza which will cost 85 million shekels (about 23 million U.S. dollars), citing preservation of archaeological sites and the need to upgrade aging infrastructure as its main goals. The plan, slated to stretch from 2011 to 2015, is a "direct continuation of a plan that was approved in 2004," the Israeli Prime Minister's Office said in a statement following the cabinet' s weekly meeting on Sunday.

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The Palestinian President's Gifts
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Asharq Alawsat
by Abdul Rahman Al-Rashed - (Opinion) November 22, 2010 - 1:00am

In return for a 90-day settlement freeze, Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas has gifted Israel with 20 fighter jets and 20 billion dollars, in addition to increasing the appetite of Jewish contributors around the world in supporting the construction of more houses and flats in the West Bank and occupied Jerusalem.

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With settlement deal, U.S. will be rewarding Israel's bad behavior
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Washington Post
by Daniel Kurtzer - (Opinion) November 21, 2010 - 1:00am

It was only a little over a year and a half ago that the Obama administration demanded a freeze on Israeli settlements in the occupied territories, including even the "natural growth" of existing settlements. At the time, the administration called settlement activity "illegitimate" and appeared ready to go to the mat with Israel to show just how strongly the United States believed that settlements impede peace.

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