Internal Israeli Politics | The American Task Force on Palestine

Israel's isolation grows as Gaza noose tightens
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The National
(Editorial) June 5, 2011 - 12:00am

A year after Israel earned itself a public-relations disaster by killing nine civilians aboard the MV Mavi Marmara, another flotilla is fitting out in Turkey to sail to Gaza. And three weeks after last month's Nakba ("catastrophe") marches, marking the 1948 creation of Israel, ended with Palestinian deaths at border points, more marches to Israel's frontiers have been planned for today. June 5 is set aside to mark the anniversary of the Naksa ("setback"), the 1967 war, in which Israel occupied the West Bank and Gaza.

Can equality exist in the Jewish state?
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Al-Jazeera English
by Kieron Monks - (Opinion) June 4, 2011 - 12:00am

In 2005, following the arrest of several high profile Arab politicians and lobbyists living in Israel, the Shin Bet security agency made a statement justifying their actions: "The security service will thwart the activity of any group or individual seeking to harm the Jewish and democratic character of the State of Israel, even if such activity is sanctioned by the law."

Despite it all, Bibi still deserves a chance
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Haaretz
by Yoel Marcus - (Opinion) June 3, 2011 - 12:00am

Nobody has caught me saying a good word about Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. Not during his first term and not during his second one. In a "conciliatory conversation" between his two terms, mediated by his friend Dr. Gabi Picker, Bibi accused me of contributing to his downfall as prime minister.

A Former Spy Chief Questions the Judgment of Israeli Leaders
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The New York Times
by Ethan Bronner - June 3, 2011 - 12:00am

The man who ran Israel’s Mossad spy agency until January contends that Israel’s top leaders lack judgment and that the anticipated pressures of international isolation as the Palestinians campaign for statehood could lead to rash decisions — like an airstrike on Iran. The former intelligence chief, Meir Dagan, who stepped down after eight years in the post, has made several unusual public appearances and statements in recent weeks. He made headlines a few weeks ago when he asserted at a Hebrew University conference that a military attack on Iran would be “a stupid idea.”

Draft charges: Lieberman made millions in illegal business deals
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Haaretz
by Gidi Weitz - May 31, 2011 - 12:00am

Foreign Minister Avigdor Lieberman set up a company in the Virgin Islands in 2001, while he was serving as infrastructure minister, according to new details of the draft indictment against him that have been obtained by Haaretz. The draft accuses Lieberman of continuing to run a worldwide business enterprise that brought in millions, including from people with business interests in Israel, while he was serving as a minister and Knesset member. He also allegedly concealed this enterprise from the relevant authorities, first and foremost the state comptroller.

The Israeli right's refusal to accept other versions of Zionism
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Haaretz
by Carlo Strenger - (Opinion) May 31, 2011 - 12:00am

There is an old saying that when an orator hits a weak point, he generally tries to shout. Noise is always an attempt to cover up the weakness of one's position. Israel’s right-wing has lately been stepping up its attempts to cover up the fact that it has no vision for Israel's future - that all it has in store for its citizens is further isolation and misery.

Jerusalem neighborhoods to get Hebrew names
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Ynetnews
May 30, 2011 - 12:00am

The next time you visit Jerusalem you might not be able to walk around Mamilla, Talbiya or Holyland – but rather in the Hagoshrim, Komemiyut or Eretz HaTzvi. A new bill is aiming to refer to neighborhoods in the capital by Hebrew names only. MK Tzipi Hotovely (Likud) initiated the bill, which has been endorsed by many other Knesset members from both the coalition and opposition. "The purpose is to strengthen the bond to Jerusalem by enforcing the use of Hebrew names for the capital's neighborhoods where Jews reside," said Hotovely.

Misgav Residents Say They Want To Combat Urban Sprawl, Not Exclude Arabs as Neighbors
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Jewish Daily Forward
by Nathan Jeffay - (Analysis) May 30, 2011 - 12:00am

This rural, laidback municipality, spread over 44,000 acres in the Galilee hills, is home to 29 Jewish villages, six Arab Bedouin villages and one of the few mixed Jewish-Arab schools in Israel. Because of this, its residents resent being called racists. But that is just how they have been portrayed frequently in the Israeli press. Ever since the Knesset passed a law in March that gave villages such as these the right to screen who may live in them for “social suitability,” the residents of Misgav have been cited as prime examples of the law’s alleged discriminatory intent.

Netanyahu's controversial plan to divide the Negev
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Ynetnews
by Attila Somfalvi - May 29, 2011 - 12:00am

The government will discuss a wide-scale reform in Bedouin lands in the Negev next Sunday, Ynet learned. If the plan goes through, Bedouins will get extensive lands which will be recognized by the State. Ministers are slated to vote on the plan, which was first exposed by Ynet, before a special committee decides on the extent of lands the Bedouins will receive.

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