1. Divided on a united Jerusalem, The Jerusalem Post, Atara Beck
2. MK Uri Ariel Unveils His 'One State' Plan, The Jewish Press, Jeremy Saltan
3. Hamas 'could get world recognition' after Mursi win, Ma'an News,
4. Putin's Mission in Israel, The Moscow Times, Andrei Kozhinov
5. A bridge across the chasm, The Jerusalem Post, Etgar Lefkovits

Dr. Jacques Gauthier, Toronto-based international jurist, human rights advocate and founder of the International Alliance for Justice in Jerusalem, a nonprofit organization with branches around the world, concluded – after 25 years of research – that “nothing has happened from a legal point of view to change the fact that the sovereignty rights under international law have been granted to the Jewish people.”

Earlier this month, the Alliance hosted a two-day conference at the King David Hotel on the status of Jerusalem under international law and future options for the city. Featuring renowned academics, educators and politicians, beginning with Mayor Nir Barkat – who declared that Israel’s capital must remain a united city with respect for all religions – the program included a debate among panelists from opposite ends of the political spectrum.

Leading up to the debate, most of the speakers agreed with Gauthier and supported a united Jerusalem, defending their positions on political, moral, historical and religious grounds. Yet Ambassador Alan Baker of the Jerusalem Center for Public Affairs, among others, pointed out that Israel had already agreed to negotiate Jerusalem.

“We should be aware of this and not delude ourselves,” he declared....

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National Union MK Uri Ariel (Photo Credit: Miriam Alster/Flash90)

National Union MK Uri Ariel’s speech during the Jerusalem Conference this week turned a few heads. Ariel unveiled his political alternative to the peace process, calling on Israel to annex 100% of Judea and Samaria. He said that under his plan all residents, Jews and Arabs, could be granted full citizenship.

Ariel said five Israeli Prime Ministers have tried to pursue a land for peace approach, and each have failed. He declared that it was time to present the alternative to the two-state solution: the one-state solution. He went on to discuss the three main concerns of the plan: demographics, democracy and apartheid.

He stated that the demographic concern – that Arabs would outnumber Jews under such a plan – is a false scare tactic and anyone who looks at the numbers knows that. He pointed out that over the last decade the Arab birth rate has been falling and the Jewish birth rate has been rising. He added that many demographic tables leave out the annual numbers of Jewish immigrants who make aliyah....

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Egypt's first democratically-elected president Muhammad Mursi. (Reuters/File)

BETHLEHEM (Ma'an) -- The victory of Muhammad Mursi in the Egyptian presidential elections could enable Hamas to secure international recognition, an official in the party said Monday.

The election of the Muslim Brotherhood candidate, the historic parent movement of Gaza-rulers Hamas, in neighboring Egypt was received with jubilation in the Gaza Strip.

Ahmad Yousef, widely regarded as a Hamas moderate, told Ma'an the Mursi presidency could help end the West's isolation of the movement, as well as ending Israel's blockade on the coastal enclave.

Mursi as president will "get the international community to recognize us and deal with us, just as it did with the Islamists in Tunisia, Egypt and Yemen," Yousef predicted.

The Hamas official said the movement would accept any condition from the international community but one, recognizing Israel, as he said it means giving up rights....

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In Israel, Russia is often seen through a Western lens and is heavily criticized for its positions on Syria and the Iranian nuclear issue. A conversation about Russian foreign policy usually ends up with raised eyebrows and an unequivocal certainty about Russia's "anti-West nature." This is true in part, but Russia should be seen as acting like any other country trying to preserve its perceived national interests.

Strange as it might seem, Israel and Russia's interests often coincide in this volatile region. Some of the reasons for this include the fact that one-sixth of Israel's population is of Russian descent, Russians are the second-largest group of tourists who vacation in Israel, and the most important holy sites of Christianity are found in Israel.

In addition, many of Russia's geopolitical interests in the region are similar to Israel's. During the past decade, Russia has been trying to establish itself as an influential player in the Middle East, particularly as a counterbalance to strong U.S. influence in the region. That is why the Kremlin values its membership in the Quartet. Along with the other Quartet members — the United Nations, the United States and the European Union — Russia plays an important role in negotiating peace between Israel and the Palestinians.

Nonetheless, Russia is trapped in a prickly situation. The Kremlin's perceived support of Iran and Syrian President Bashar Assad antagonizes the Sunni world, pushing Moscow into the midst of the Sunni-Shiite rift that divides the Middle East....

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Poland hopes to shape its future in part by learning from past through new Museum of the History of Polish Jews.

Poland Jewish Museum (Photo by: Courtesy)

WARSAW – In the heart of the demolished Warsaw Ghetto, a millennium of Jewish life in Poland is being brought back to life in a new museum, as Poland seeks to turn a page in its own emotion-laden history, and shape a future in the 21st century with a new look at its past.

The state-of-the-art Museum of the History of Polish Jews, which is expected to open its doors next year on the 70th anniversary of the Warsaw Ghetto Uprising, will showcase what was the largest Jewish community in Europe before their decimation in the Holocaust, in an effort to promote dialogue and break stereotypes among Poles as well as among Jews nearly seven decades after the Holocaust.

“Many people tend to associate Jews and Poland with death, with concentration camps, with cemeteries and nothing else,” said Agnieszka Rudzinska, the museum’s director. “Poles may be surprised to learn about the multicultural heritage of [what was] for centuries a non-homogeneous country.”

“Everyone who comes to Poland to see Auschwitz will now come to see the context of what was lost.”...

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