ATFP News Roundup May 27, 2013 | The American Task Force on Palestine

Daily News Issue Date:

May 27, 2013

News:

NEWS:

Sec. Kerry advances a $4 billion plan for investment in the Palestinian economy and insists the plan can work. (AFP/New York Times/AP)

Kerry and Pres. Abbas will meet today to discuss peace efforts. (Xinhua)

Some PA officials complain that Abbas is keeping them in the dark about his diplomatic strategy. (Jerusalem Post)

The lead Palestinian negotiator says Israelis want peace but PM Netanyahu must be convinced. (Jerusalem Post)

Kerry calls on Israeli and Palestinian officials to "show leadership" on peace. (New York Times)

Pres. Peres says Israelis must overcome skepticism about the possibility of peace. (New York Times)

An Israeli cabinet minister says isolated Jewish settlements in the West Bank should be evacuated. (Xinhua)

Jordan's King Abdullah says extremism has "grown fat" off of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. (AP)

Leading Israeli and Palestinian businessmen unveil a new business-led push for Israeli-Palestinian peace. (Times of Israel)

At the World Economic Forum, Abbas calls for more international investment in Palestine. (Ma'an)

80 international aid agencies urge the EU to follow through on pledges to aid Palestinians in "Area C." (Reuters/Ha'aretz)

The PA says it is raising the Palestinian VAT by 1% in June. (Ma'an)

Israeli experts say a cyber attack from Syria was thwarted. (AP)

A pregnant woman is killed in a clan dispute in Gaza. (Ma'an)

The ex-Shin Bet deputy chief says Israeli authorities are stymied in their efforts to curb right-wing Jewish violence and need new tactics. (Ha'aretz)

The Israeli Education Ministry may again consider using a book that takes a new look at the Palestinian experience and history. (Ha'aretz)

A refugee from Gaza is widely expected to win the Arab Idol TV singing contest this year. (The Guardian)

Home-visit jobs for women are growing in the occupied West Bank. (The Media Line)

A leader of Egypt's Muslim Brotherhood says a Jewish prophesy suggests Pres. Morsi will "liberate Jerusalem." (Al-Masry Al-Youm)

COMMENTARY:

J.J. Goldberg says Israel's cabinet needs to decide if it is for or against a two-state solution and peace. (The Forward)

Barak Ravid says Kerry is taking a huge gamble that will yield either stunning success or humiliating failure. (Ha'aretz)

Ethan Bronner says in prosperity and calm, most Israelis have stopped thinking in terms of a Middle East conflict. (New York Times)

Haviv Rettig Gur says the US knows the process is at least as important to it as a real conflict-ending outcome. (Times of Israel)

Chemi Shalev says Israeli policy-makers may be concerned about Pres. Obama's counter-terrorism speech. (Ha'aretz)

Yitzhak Laor says Israeli political views are defined by positions on the occupation. (Ha'aretz)

Khaled Diab says Israel's Mohammed al-Dura report is "a slanderous farce and blood libel" against Palestinians. (Ha'aretz)

AP interviews UNRWA chief Filippo Grandi about the plight of Palestinian refugees caught in the Syrian conflict. (AP)

Gideon Levy asks right-wing Israeli thugs what kind of country they want to live in. (Ha'aretz)

Emily Hauser says in its new report on the death of Muhammad al-Dura, Israel is relying on smear tactics that actually work. (Daily Beast/Open Zion)

Efraim Inbar explains what he thinks Israel's interests are in Syria. (Jerusalem Post)

Tzachi Hanegbi says Israel cannot rely on the US to act in its defense. (Jerusalem Post)

Shlomi Eldar looks at the Israel-Egypt-Hamas triangle of interested in Sinai. (Al Monitor)

Jonathan Cook says domestic disputes in Israel don't benefit the Palestinians. (The National)

The Times of Israel interviews British author William Sutcliffe on his new novel, "The Wall." (Times of Israel)

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