Israeli police deems Palestinians' report on price tag attack " fabrication"
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Xinhua
February 28, 2013 - 1:00am


In an unusual step, the Israeli police said Thursday that despite claims Jewish settlers set fire to six Palestinian cars last week, the case was fabricated by the Palestinians themselves. Last Thursday, the villagers of Qusra in the West Bank told media and the police that Jewish settlers came in and set fire to six residents' car.


Exclusive: Hamas Official Predicts Third Intifada
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Al-Monitor
by Abeer Ayyoub - February 28, 2013 - 1:00am


The Palestinian Authority is “dragging its feet” on reconciliation due to US President Barack Obama’s scheduled visit in March, senior Hamas leader and Gaza parliamentarian Salah Bardawil told Al-Monitor in an exclusive interview. Bardawil touched on this along with the latest disputes between Hamas and Fatah and said that little progress is expected until after the Obama trip. 


More Arab Israelis Volunteer for National Service
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Media Line
by Linda Gradstein - February 28, 2013 - 1:00am


When Nasim Awadallah finished high school two years ago, he didn’t have many prospects. His grades were not good enough to get into university. He worked at a minimum wage job for a few months but was not satisfied. So he volunteered for Israel’s national service, an alternative to army service, which is under the control of the Ministry of Defense. He works at the same school he attended in his village. In the mornings, he helps the physical education teachers and in the afternoons he coaches three separate soccer teams.


It’s Not an Intifada
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Foreign Policy
by Jonathan Schanzer - (Opinion) February 28, 2013 - 1:00am


Don't call it an intifada. Not yet, anyway.


Eight hundred thousand
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Haaretz
by Gideon Levy - (Opinion) February 28, 2013 - 1:00am


Eight hundred thousand. That is the number of Palestinian residents arrested and imprisoned in Israeli jails since the beginning of the occupation, according to The New York Times. Almost a million people. That estimate could be a bit high; some say it's “only” 600,000. After all, there is no exact number.  But the general picture is clear and chilling: When people say that Israel imprisons the Palestinian people, this is what they mean: the physical, concrete, overcrowded and torturous imprisonment of people in jail.


Teachers reject union decision to stop strike
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Ma'an News Agency
February 27, 2013 - 1:00am


Many West Bank teachers disagreed with the teachers’ union decision to cancel a general strike announced Saturday in protest against the government’s failure to pay salaries regularly. The teachers’ union speaker Ahmad Suhweil on Tuesday addressed about 1,000 teachers who picketed in front of office of the Palestinian Legislative Council in Ramallah telling them the union decided to end general strike after agreement has been reached with the government. Several teachers opposed the decision, saying they won’t abide by it.


Why hasn't a third intifada broken out yet among the Palestinians?
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Haaretz
by Amira Hass - (Opinion) February 27, 2013 - 1:00am


 


Israel's seventh gatekeeper
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Haaretz
by Zvi Barel - (Editorial) February 27, 2013 - 1:00am


  Shin Bet chief Yoram Cohen didn't appear in the documentary "The Gatekeepers," a fact that gives us hope for next year's Oscars. Until he retires and is discovered by a filmmaker, he continues to serve as a gatekeeper. He's responsible for making sure that the decision-makers know about a danger in time, and he's responsible for preventing it.


Abbas: No peace without freedom for prisoners
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Ma'an News Agency
February 27, 2013 - 1:00am


President Mahmoud Abbas said Tuesday that the issue of prisoners and releasing them is the central issue of the Palestinian people and its leadership. He insisted there would not be peace with Israel side without releasing prisoners. Abbas’ remarks came at a reception with prisoners advocates at his residence in Ramallah, where he affirmed that the leadership was doing its best to save the lives of hunger strikers and end their suffering. He said talks were ongoing with all factions to resolve the issue.


Israel Should Reconsider Administrative Law
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Al-Monitor
by Shlomi Eldar - (Opinion) February 27, 2013 - 1:00am


It was only after the death of Palestinian prisoner Arafat Jaradath, the violent demonstrations that erupted in its wake, and the fear that this could be the spark that ignites a Third Intifada that the Israeli media decided to expand its coverage of hunger strikes under way in Israeli prisons.



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