Israel backs aid to Palestinian Authority
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Politico
by Ben Smith - December 21, 2011 - 1:00am

In a dramatic public shift that appears to lower the intensity of the simmering diplomatic conflict between Israel and the Palestinian Authority, the Israeli government is backing a strings-attached compromise that would restore American aid to the Palestinian Authority.

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ACP delivers $10,000 to support the work of the Four Homes of Mercy in Palestine
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from American Charities for Palestine
December 21, 2011 - 1:00am

ACP is pleased to announce its recently established partnership with The Four Homes of Mercy (FHOM), Al Malj’ Alkhairy Al Orthodoxy Al Araby in Arabic, a clinical residence for severely disabled Palestinian men and women. ACP has facilitated a donation of $10,000 to FHOM to provide permanent residency and clinical care to 78 patients, including 25 children and 53 adult men and women.

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UNESCO suspends projects after US funding cut
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Agence France Presse (AFP)
November 11, 2011 - 1:00am

PARIS (AFP) -- United Nations cultural agency UNESCO has been forced to suspend all its spending programs until the end of the year after the United States withdrew its funding, its director general said Thursday. In an address to UNESCO diplomats, Irina Bokova said the agency faces a $65 million funding shortfall and would have to halt all of its activities, following a row with Washington over Palestinian membership.

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U.S. renews financial aid to Palestinians after UN statehood row
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Haaretz
by Associated Press - (Analysis) November 7, 2011 - 1:00am

The Palestinians are slated to receive some 200 million dollars in U.S. security assistance after a top House Republican ended her hold on the money. Rep. Ileana Ros-Lehtinen, the chairwoman of the House Foreign Affairs Committee, informed the Obama administration in recent weeks that she no longer would block 50 million dollars in economic support funds for the Palestinian Security Forces and 148 million dollars in other assistance.

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A new friend for Unesco in the UAE
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The National
(Editorial) November 4, 2011 - 12:00am

The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization says that it exists "to contribute to the building of peace, the eradication of poverty, sustainable development and intercultural dialogue through education, the sciences, culture, communication and information".

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An Ill-Timed Move
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Jewish Daily Forward
(Editorial) November 4, 2011 - 12:00am

What were they thinking? The Palestinians, we mean. While there may be heart-thrumming symbolic value to achieving full membership in the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization as they did October 31, it comes at great cost to all concerned, including the very people the agency aims to help.

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The UNESCO cuts: What’s next on the U.S. chopping block?
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Foreign Policy
by Colum Lynch - (Blog) November 3, 2011 - 12:00am

The U.N. Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) has admitted the Palestinians as a full member, prompting the Obama administration to impose millions of dollars in congressionally mandated cuts. Meanwhile, the Palestinian U.N. envoy in Geneva, Ibrahim Khraishi, said the Palestinians were now studying the prospects of joining 16 other U.N. agencies, raising the possibility of further U.S. funding cuts.

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World Bank agency insures Palestinian investors
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Ma'an News Agency
October 25, 2011 - 12:00am

BETHLEHEM (Ma'an) -- A World Bank fund announced on Monday it will give investment guarantees to a Palestinian consortium to help inject $15 million into date palm farms in Jericho. The Multilateral Investment Guarantee Agency -- established 14 years ago to attract investment into the West Bank and Gaza -- will provide $4.8 million in investment guarantees to support Palestinian contributors to the Nakheel Palestine for Agricultural Investment Company's date farms.

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Fayyad: PA won't collapse without donor aid
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Ma'an News Agency
October 13, 2011 - 12:00am

Palestinian Authority Prime Minister Salam Fayyad on Monday downplayed fears his government would collapse without donor aid. The Ramallah premier said the PA's efforts to build state institutions over the last three years had contributed to significantly reducing the government's dependence on foreign aid. "We have become a state that is capable of providing services to citizens with higher and and more advanced quality than independent states do. This has been admitted by all," Fayyad said at a ceremony to honor staff of the Ministry of Public Works.

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IDF commander opposes cutting PA funds
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Ynetnews
by Yitzhak Benhorin - October 13, 2011 - 12:00am

Judea and Samaria Division Commander Brigadier-General Nitzan Alon, cautioned it would be a mistake to cut off financial aid to the Palestinian Authority over its push for statehood, in an interview to the New York Times on Wednesday. Alon believes the United States Congress' decision to halt all funding to the PA due to their bid for recognition at the United Nations will lead to regional instability.

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