Israel's tent protests transition to next stage: political fight
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Christian Science Monitor
by Joshua Mitnick - October 4, 2011 - 12:00am

Some two months after sparking mass demonstrations across Israel, the social protest movement that rattled Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu faces an uncertain future as it transitions from the street to the political realm. The symbol of the protest movement, the tent encampment on Tel Aviv Rothschild Boulevard, was dismantled yesterday by police. Hours later, Mr. Netanyahu tried but failed to convince cabinet ministers to support a package of economic reforms inspired by the protestors.

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Israelis Happy at Home but Glum About Peace
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The New York Times
by Ethan Bronner - September 29, 2011 - 12:00am

With the start of the Jewish New Year at sunset on Wednesday, a traditional time for stock-taking in Israel, the public mood seemed paradoxical: a growing disillusionment with the prospect of Middle East peace yet a marked sense of satisfaction with life here. That gap, reflected and discussed in news media commentaries, was evident in a survey of Israeli Jews published on Wednesday in the newspaper Yediot Aharonot. Two-thirds of the respondents said there was no chance — ever — of achieving peace with the Palestinians. But asked if Israel was a good place to live, 88 percent said yes.

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There was no political tsunami for Israel after all
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Haaretz
by Moshe Arens - (Opinion) September 29, 2011 - 12:00am

The month of September is almost gone and Israel does not lie devastated like north-eastern Japan after the tsunami that hit that region in the wake of a 9.0 magnitude earthquake last March. Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas submitted an application to the United Nations that Palestine be recognized as a state and admitted to the UN. Hamas, as was expected, objected to this move, and President Barack Obama said what any sensible person should have known - that bypassing direct negotiations by applying to the UN was not going to advance peace between Israel and the Palestinians.

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Israel Hands Ancient Site to Ideologues
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Jewish Daily Forward
by Sarah Kreimer - (Opinion) September 29, 2011 - 12:00am

Imagine stepping off the ferry to find that the Statue of Liberty monument is not run by the U.S. National Park Service, but that an evangelical Christian group has a special concession to operate this historic site. Also imagine that the film shown at the Ellis Island museum no longer emphasizes America’s multi-cultural history of immigration, but instead focuses almost exclusively on the contribution of white Anglo-Saxon Protestants. Sounds absurd?

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Israeli stalling hints at real agenda
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The National
(Editorial) September 29, 2011 - 12:00am

On Wednesday, the Israeli cabinet rejected a formula proposed by the Quartet of mediators - the US, UN, EU, and Russia - in a bid to bring Israelis and Palestinian back to the negotiating table. This followed by a day Israel's latest step toward building 1,100 more homes in the Gilo district of East Jerusalem. In grand understatement, Hillary Clinton, the US secretary of state, labelled the settlement expansion "counterproductive to our efforts to resume direct negotiations between the parties."

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Israel's cabinet fails to reach consensus on Quartet plan for talks with Palestinians
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Haaretz
by Nir Hasson, Avi Issacharoff, Jonathan Lis, Natasha Mozgovaya, Shlomo Shamir - (Analysis) September 28, 2011 - 12:00am

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and the eight senior cabinet members were unable to reach an agreement regarding the Quartet's initiative for renewed talks between Israel and the Palestinians, despite prolonged discussions lasting until 2:00 A.M. on Wednesday. Netanyahu was expected to support the Quartet's proposal; however, due to a lack of consensus with the senior cabinet members, no decision was reached.

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Border Control / Mideast peace can provide all the security Israel needs
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Haaretz
by Akiva Eldar - (Opinion) September 27, 2011 - 12:00am

The main, if not the only, innovation in the prime minister's address at the UN General Assembly was the demand that the Palestinians house military bases inside their new state. This, of course, in addition to the need for "defensible borders," that is a result of Israel's narrow middle. In order to illustrate the sensitivity of this shape, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu "disclosed" to the world that a fighter jet could cross the width of the country in just three seconds.

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Actions, not slogans, for the New Year
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Jerusalem Post
by David Newman - (Opinion) September 27, 2011 - 12:00am

Unlike most other countries’ New Years, Rosh Hashana is not simply about festivities and parties. It is, for most of us, a period of introspection, personal and collective, a period when we sit down with ourselves, weigh up our deeds and actions of the past year and, hopefully, resolve to do some things differently in the coming year.

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Netanyahu's popularity rises locally after UN speech
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Xinhua
by Mu Xuequan - September 26, 2011 - 12:00am

JERUSALEM, Sep. 26 (Xinhua) -- Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's popularity got a boost after his speech at the United Nations last Friday, a poll showed on Monday, following his ratings plunged in the wake of social protests across the country during the summer. The survey showed that Netanyahu's approval spiked upwards when he rejected the Palestinians' statehood bid on the grounds that such a state could only come through negotiations with Israel, and not as a unilateral step.

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A dangerous erosion of Israel’s international standing
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Haaretz
by Carlo Strenger - (Blog) September 23, 2011 - 12:00am

In 1955 Ben-Gurion coined his saying “Um-Shmum”, the expression of disdain against the UN that was followed by: “It doesn’t matter what the Goyim say, but what the Jews do”. This may have been charming when Israel was a young country, and when Dayan’s not wearing a tie was seen as refreshing chutzpah. The disdain for the international community is now turning into Israel’s tragedy and failure with the Palestinian bid for UN recognition.

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