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December 19, 2012

Middle East News: World Press Roundup

NEWS: The State Department accuses Israel of "a pattern of provocative action" regarding planned settlement expansions. EU UN Security Council members also issue an unusually harsh statement. Israel says it's pressing forward with one of its most controversial settlement projects, Givat Hamatos. Some extreme Zionists believe settlements is ushering in a messianic era. Some American evangelical Christians also see a somewhat different messianic context. The Israeli Embassy in Ireland temporarily takes down its Facebook page after a "Christmas message" suggesting Palestinians would have lynched Jesus. Israel's former military chief Amnon Lipkin-Shahak passes away. Pres. Abbas says Palestinian refugees fleeing Syria are welcome in the West Bank, as conditions for them worsen. Further evidence emerges of how unenthusiastic Israel's Palestinian citizens are about the upcoming election. Israel formally charges suspects in a recent Tel Aviv bus bombing. Palestinians call for an Arab summit on aid to the cash-strapped PA as public sector employees strike due to nonpayment of salaries. The PLO's Washington mission strongly criticizes congressional efforts to close it down. Israel agrees not to interfere with a planned visit by the Emir of Qatar to the West Bank. Israel says it will allow Palestinian Christians in Gaza to visit the West Bank for Christmas. Some Jewish Americans are expressing fears that the upcoming Israeli election will push the country even further to the right. COMMENTARY: Crispian Balmer says Israeli policies hold the key to whether or not there will be another Palestinian uprising in the near future. The LA Times harshly criticizes Hamas leader Meshaal's Gaza speech as "outrageous, irresponsible and depressing." Gideon Levy and Alex Levac look at the killing of a Palestinian youth with a toy gun by Israeli occupation forces near Hebron. Carlo Strenger says PM Netanyahu can emulate his predecessors Menachem Begin, which could set the stage for positive developments, or Yitzhak Shamir, which would be a disaster. Avi Shilon argues Netanyahu is already acting like Shamir. Ron Kampeas asks if Pres. Obama is really planning to put the Israeli-Palestinian issue on the back burner in his second term. Abdulrahman Al-Saeed argues that the recent conflict between Israel and militants in Gaza could set the stage for a lasting peace. Azzaman interviews Hamas leader Zahar, who claims Iranian weapons only come to Hamas with no strings attached. Alan Elsner says almost all of Israel's diplomatic problems can be summed up in a single word: settlements. Shlomi Eldar says a third Palestinian intifada has already begun, but so far only on paper.


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State Department Rebukes Israel Over Settlement Activity

Media Outlet: 
Associated Press
Date: 
December 18, 2012
Source Link(s): 
http://www.nytimes.com/2012/12/19/world/middleeast/state-department-rebukes-isra... [6]

 



UN security council's EU members to condemn Israeli settlements expansion

Article Author(s): 
Harriet Sherwood
Media Outlet: 
The Guardian
Date: 
December 19, 2012
Source Link(s): 
http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2012/dec/19/security-council-condemn-israeli-set... [7]

 



Israel approves new east Jerusalem settlement

Article Author(s): 
Tia Goldenberg
Media Outlet: 
Associated Press
Date: 
December 19, 2012
Source Link(s): 
http://www.statesman.com/ap/ap/top-news/israel-approves-new-east-jerusalem-settl... [8]

 

 



How some Israelis see the sacred in settlements

Article Author(s): 
Christa Case Bryant
Media Outlet: 
The Christian Science Monitor
Date: 
December 19, 2012
Source Link(s): 
http://www.csmonitor.com/World/Middle-East/2012/1218/How-some-Israelis-see-the-s... [9]

 



Why some Christians back Israeli settlers in the West Bank

Article Author(s): 
Christa Case Bryant
Media Outlet: 
The Christian Science Monitor
Date: 
December 18, 2012
Source Link(s): 
http://www.csmonitor.com/World/Middle-East/2012/1218/Why-some-Christians-back-Is... [10]

 



Controversial Israeli Embassy Facebook Page Taken Down ‘for Maintenance’

Article Author(s): 
Robert Mackey
Media Outlet: 
The New York Times
Date: 
December 18, 2012
Source Link(s): 
http://thelede.blogs.nytimes.com/2012/12/18/controversial-israeli-embassy-facebo... [11]



Ex-Israeli military chief and minister dies at 68

Article Author(s): 
Aron Heller
Media Outlet: 
Associated Press
Date: 
December 19, 2012
Source Link(s): 
http://www.statesman.com/ap/ap/obituaries/ex-israeli-military-chief-and-minister... [12]

 

Amnon Lipkin-Shahak, a former Israeli military chief who later became a Cabinet minister, died Wednesday after a long battle with cancer. He was 68.



Palestinian president offers aid to Syria refugees

Media Outlet: 
Associated Press
Date: 
December 19, 2012
Source Link(s): 
http://www.statesman.com/ap/ap/international/palestinian-president-offers-aid-to... [13]

 

The Palestinian president says he is ready to take in Palestinian refugees fleeing Syria [14]'s civil war.



Syria's Palestinians sleep rough in wintry Damascus

Media Outlet: 
Reuters
Date: 
December 19, 2012
Source Link(s): 
http://www.trust.org/alertnet/news/syrias-palestinians-sleep-rough-in-wintry-dam... [15]

 

The amber light of the street lamp illuminates the boy, wrapped in a thin blanket, his legs exposed to the December cold as he sleeps by a kerbside in a wealthy district of Damascus.



Israeli Arabs unenthusiastic about Jan. 22 vote

Article Author(s): 
Lauren E. Bohn
Media Outlet: 
Associated Press
Date: 
December 19, 2012
Source Link(s): 
http://www.statesman.com/ap/ap/international/israeli-arabs-unenthusiastic-about-... [16]

 

 



Israel charges Tel Aviv bus bomb suspect

Media Outlet: 
Reuters
Date: 
December 19, 2012
Source Link(s): 
http://www.trust.org/alertnet/news/israel-charges-tel-aviv-bus-bomb-suspect/ [17]

 

Israel charged an Israeli Arab citizen on Wednesday over a bomb explosion on a Tel Aviv bus during Israel's November military offensive in the Palestinian Gaza Strip, the Justice Ministry said.



Palestinians call for Arab summit to save cash-strapped PNA

Media Outlet: 
Xinhua
Date: 
December 18, 2012
Source Link(s): 
http://news.xinhuanet.com/english/world/2012-12/18/c_124114389.htm [18]

 

The Palestinian government on Tuesday called for an urgent Arab summit to secure its cash supplies after Israel withheld Palestinian tax revenues.

In a statement following its weekly meeting, the government said Israel works on undermining the Palestinian National Authority (PNA).



West Bank Palestinians strike as Israeli sanctions bite

Media Outlet: 
Reuters
Date: 
December 19, 2012
Source Link(s): 
http://www.maannews.net/eng/ViewDetails.aspx?ID=549343 [19]

Palestinian government employees in the West Bank began a two-day general strike on Wednesday to protest against a delay in the payment of their wages because of Israeli economic sanctions.

Media Outlet: 
Ma'an News Agency
Date: 
December 14, 2012
Source Link(s): 
http://www.maannews.net/eng/ViewDetails.aspx?ID=547818 [20]

The Palestinian ambassador to Washington DC said Thursday that a congressional petition to shut down their delegation's office could harm American interests in the Middle East.

Article Author(s): 
Amos Harel
Media Outlet: 
Haaretz
Date: 
December 19, 2012
Source Link(s): 
http://www.haaretz.com/news/diplomacy-defense/israel-approves-qatar-emir-s-visit... [21]

 

The emir of Qatar will visit the West Bank at the end of the month, on an official trip coordinated between the Palestinian Authority and Israel.

Israel approved the visit as Sheikh Hamad bin Khalifa al-Thani expected to offer financial aid to alleviate the Palestinian Authority's financial crisis.



IDF to allow Gazans to visit W. Bank for Christmas

Article Author(s): 
Yaakov Lappin
Media Outlet: 
The Jerusalem Post
Date: 
December 18, 2012
Source Link(s): 
http://www.jpost.com/Defense/Article.aspx?id=296500 [22]

The IDF is set to issue permits to some 500 Palestinian Christians residing in Gaza allowing them to travel to the West Bank, specifically Bethlehem, for Christmas.



Israel's Rightward Shift Sparks Worries

Article Author(s): 
Nathan Guttman
Media Outlet: 
The Jewish Daily Forward
Date: 
December 19, 2012
Source Link(s): 
http://forward.com/articles/167659/israels-rightward-shift-sparks-worries/ [23]

 

Election fever in Israel has Americans playing catch-up in an attempt to grasp the country’s political shifts and realignments.

 



Rattled Israel holds key to Palestinian uprising

Media Outlet: 
Reuters
Article Type: 
Opinion
Date: 
December 18, 2012
Source Link(s): 
http://www.trust.org/alertnet/news/insight-rattled-israel-holds-key-to-palestini... [24]

 

Mohammad Salaymeh was killed on his 17th birthday after going to buy a cake for the family celebration, shot dead by an Israeli paramilitary policewoman just two years older than him.



Hamas' hard line

Media Outlet: 
The Los Angeles Times
Article Type: 
Editorial
Date: 
December 19, 2012
Source Link(s): 
http://www.latimes.com/news/opinion/editorials/la-ed-palestinians-20121219,0,170... [25]

 



The life and death of a toy terrorist

Article Author(s): 
Gideon Levy
Media Outlet: 
Haaretz
Article Type: 
Opinion
Date: 
December 19, 2012
Source Link(s): 
http://www.haaretz.com/news/diplomacy-defense/the-life-and-death-of-a-toy-terror... [26]

 



Will Netanyahu choose Shamir or Begin as a model?

Article Author(s): 
Carlo Strenger
Media Outlet: 
Haaretz
Article Type: 
Opinion
Date: 
December 19, 2012
Source Link(s): 
http://www.haaretz.com/blogs/strenger-than-fiction/will-netanyahu-choose-shamir-... [27]

 



Shamir's successor

Media Outlet: 
Haaretz
Article Type: 
Opinion
Date: 
December 19, 2012
Source Link(s): 
http://www.haaretz.com/opinion/shamir-s-successor.premium-1.485728 [28]

 



How prominent will Israeli-Palestinian peacemaking be in Obama’s second term?

Article Author(s): 
Ron Kampeas
Media Outlet: 
Jewish Telegraphic Agency (JTA)
Article Type: 
Opinion
Date: 
December 19, 2012
Source Link(s): 
http://www.jta.org/news/article/2012/12/17/3114766/in-obamas-second-term-will-is... [29]

 

 Is history about to repeat itself?



Gaza stalemate could lead to lasting peace

Media Outlet: 
Arab News
Article Type: 
Opinion
Date: 
December 19, 2012
Source Link(s): 
http://arabnews.com/gaza-stalemate-could-lead-lasting-peace [30]

Rarely, if ever, in the difficult and sordid history of the Arab-Israeli conflict have we seen a moment when the stars have been so perfectly aligned.



Hamas Leader: Iranian Arms Come Without Conditions

Media Outlet: 
Al-Monitor
Article Type: 
Interview
Date: 
December 19, 2012
Source Link(s): 
http://www.al-monitor.com/pulse/politics/2012/12/hamas-leader-iranian-arms-come-... [31]

 

Gaza captured the world's attention when [Hamas] launched rockets on Israel and inflicted huge economic losses on it.

 



Israel’s diplomatic problem in one word: Settlements

Article Author(s): 
Alan Elsner
Media Outlet: 
The Times of Israel
Article Type: 
Opinion
Date: 
December 16, 2012
Source Link(s): 
http://blogs.timesofisrael.com/israels-diplomatic-problem-settlements/ [32]

In the world of Israel advocacy, there is always much anguished discussion on why Israel always seems to be losing the public relations war.



Is The Third Intifada Already Here?

Article Author(s): 
Shlomi Eldar
Media Outlet: 
Al-Monitor
Article Type: 
Opinion
Date: 
December 19, 2012
Source Link(s): 
http://www.al-monitor.com/pulse/originals/2012/al-monitor/is-the-third-intifada-... [33]

 

The third intifada is here already. When people talk about it as a fait accompli, charting its course and voicing warnings that it will be more violent, brutal and destructive than its precursors, the conclusion is that it is already here, waiting for one tiny signal in order to burst.

 

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Source URL (retrieved on Apr 24 2024 - 2:51am): http://www.americantaskforce.org/world_press_roundup/20121219t000000

Links:
[1] http://www.americantaskforce.org/print/29490
[2] http://www.americantaskforce.org/printmail/29490
[3] http://www.americantaskforce.org/printpdf/29490
[4] http://www.americantaskforce.org/rss/wpr
[5] https://www.americantaskforce.org/civicrm/contribute/transact?reset=1&id=1
[6] http://www.nytimes.com/2012/12/19/world/middleeast/state-department-rebukes-israel-over-settlement-activity.html?ref=middleeast&_r=0
[7] http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2012/dec/19/security-council-condemn-israeli-settlements
[8] http://www.statesman.com/ap/ap/top-news/israel-approves-new-east-jerusalem-settlement/nTZtm/
[9] http://www.csmonitor.com/World/Middle-East/2012/1218/How-some-Israelis-see-the-sacred-in-settlements
[10] http://www.csmonitor.com/World/Middle-East/2012/1218/Why-some-Christians-back-Israeli-settlers-in-the-West-Bank
[11] http://thelede.blogs.nytimes.com/2012/12/18/controversial-israeli-embassy-facebook-page-taken-down-for-maintenance/?ref=middleeast
[12] http://www.statesman.com/ap/ap/obituaries/ex-israeli-military-chief-and-minister-dies-at-68/nTZp6/
[13] http://www.statesman.com/ap/ap/international/palestinian-president-offers-aid-to-syria-refugees/nTZtX/
[14] http://www.statesman.com/s/news/syrian-uprising/
[15] http://www.trust.org/alertnet/news/syrias-palestinians-sleep-rough-in-wintry-damascus/
[16] http://www.statesman.com/ap/ap/international/israeli-arabs-unenthusiastic-about-jan-22-vote/nTZqG/
[17] http://www.trust.org/alertnet/news/israel-charges-tel-aviv-bus-bomb-suspect/
[18] http://news.xinhuanet.com/english/world/2012-12/18/c_124114389.htm
[19] http://www.maannews.net/eng/ViewDetails.aspx?ID=549343
[20] http://www.maannews.net/eng/ViewDetails.aspx?ID=547818
[21] http://www.haaretz.com/news/diplomacy-defense/israel-approves-qatar-emir-s-visit-to-west-bank-in-nod-to-abbas.premium-1.485867
[22] http://www.jpost.com/Defense/Article.aspx?id=296500
[23] http://forward.com/articles/167659/israels-rightward-shift-sparks-worries/
[24] http://www.trust.org/alertnet/news/insight-rattled-israel-holds-key-to-palestinian-uprising/
[25] http://www.latimes.com/news/opinion/editorials/la-ed-palestinians-20121219,0,1700646.story
[26] http://www.haaretz.com/news/diplomacy-defense/the-life-and-death-of-a-toy-terrorist.premium-1.485704
[27] http://www.haaretz.com/blogs/strenger-than-fiction/will-netanyahu-choose-shamir-or-begin-as-a-model.premium-1.485857
[28] http://www.haaretz.com/opinion/shamir-s-successor.premium-1.485728
[29] http://www.jta.org/news/article/2012/12/17/3114766/in-obamas-second-term-will-israel-palestinian-issues-cause-sparks-or-be-on-back-burner
[30] http://arabnews.com/gaza-stalemate-could-lead-lasting-peace
[31] http://www.al-monitor.com/pulse/politics/2012/12/hamas-leader-iranian-arms-come-without-conditions.html
[32] http://blogs.timesofisrael.com/israels-diplomatic-problem-settlements/
[33] http://www.al-monitor.com/pulse/originals/2012/al-monitor/is-the-third-intifada-already-he.html