October 19th

The Missing Link ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Jordan Times by George Hishmeh - (Opinion) October 19, 2007 - 4:46pm The continued give-and-take over the predawn Israeli air strike at an unmanned Syrian site, reportedly a nascent nuclear facility close to the Turkish border, remains a mystery several weeks after it happened. Even the United Nations watchdog organisation handling nuclear issues, the International Atomic Energy Agency, has pleaded ignorance on the subject. » Read more

When It Comes To Diplomatic Contests, Israel Tends To Win By Default ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Daily Star (Editorial) October 19, 2007 - 4:42pm Israel offered a free lesson to its Arab and Islamic neighbors on Thursday, launching a diplomatic offensive designed to gain Russian and Chinese acquiescence in new UN sanctions against Iran over that country's nuclear program. Immediately following Russian President Vladimir Putin's visit to Tehran for a summit of Caspian Sea littoral states, Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert headed for Moscow, and Foreign Minister Tzipi Livni reportedly will travel to Beijing on Saturday. » Read more

Progress Eludes Condoleezza Rice In Middle East Talks ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Times by Richard Beeston - (Editorial) October 19, 2007 - 4:41pm After five days of shuttle diplomacy, Condoleezza Rice, the US Secretary of State, returned home empty-handed yesterday, having failed to pin down participants, an agenda or a firm date for a planned Middle East peace conference. At the end of a punishing round of talks with Israeli, Palestinian and Arab leaders, Dr Rice said that she was “encouraged” by her mission, but admitted that serious obstacles remained. » Read more

Palestinians Pessimistic On Peace Talks ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Financial Times by Sharmila Devi - October 19, 2007 - 4:40pm As a series of high-profile international visitors, including Condoleezza Rice and Tony Blair, traipse through the Holy Land, Palestinians are looking on with a mixture of indifference and despair. The US secretary of state and former British prime minister are spear-heading efforts to prod Israel and the Palestinians towards meaningful peace talks and reform of Palestinian institutions and economy. » Read more

Gaza Absent In Conference Build-up ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Bbc News by Martin Patience - October 19, 2007 - 4:38pm US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice has been in the Middle East working to try and bring the Israeli and Palestinian negotiating teams closer together ahead of a planned Middle East conference in the US next month. Her current trip includes meetings with the Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert and Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas, as well as trips to Egypt and a meeting in with Jordan's King Abdullah in London. » Read more

Jerusalem: “sharing” Not “dividing” ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Israel Policy Forum by M.J. Rosenberg - (Opinion) October 19, 2007 - 4:34pm Here is the only thing you need to know about Prime Minister Ehud Olmert’s plan to divide Jerusalem: there is no such plan. There never was one and it is safe to say that there will never be one. Nor is there a plan by any other Israeli leader to divide Jerusalem. Additionally, neither Mahmoud Abbas nor the Palestinian Authority he heads favors the division of Jerusalem. From Olmert to Ramon to Beilin to Abbas and Fayyad, there is not a single proposal to divide the city. So what is all the yelling about? » Read more

Arab Neighbors May Hold Key ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Jewish Telegraphic Agency (JTA) by Leslie Susser - October 19, 2007 - 4:33pm As the Annapolis peace parley rapidly approaches, some of the Arab and Muslim players expected to play a key role in creating conditions for a favorable outcome are proving to be more of an obstacle than an asset. Egypt, Syria and Turkey have been complicating efforts to hold what function changefontSize(id,size,line) { document.getElementById(id).style.fontSize = size; document.getElementById(id).style.lineHeight = line; } the United States envisions to be a tipping point in the long-dormant peace process. » Read more

How Israel Thinks ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Jewish Daily Forward (Editorial) October 19, 2007 - 4:32pm Israel’s foreign intelligence service, the Mossad, recently concluded that Syria is sincere in its offers to make peace with Israel in exchange for Israeli withdrawal from the Golan Heights. The assessment was reported last week in the mass-circulation Israeli daily Yediot Aharonot, based on sources within the Mossad. » Read more

Burns Echoes Rice: Time Is Right For Palestinian State ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Middle East Times by Claude Salhani - October 19, 2007 - 4:31pm "Establishing a Palestinian State is the "right thing to do," said U.S. Undersecretary of State Nicholas Burns. "The time for a Palestinian state," said U.S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice, "is now." "Israel should halt the settlements' expansion, and reduce its footprint in the West Bank," said Burns, the keynote speaker at the second annual gala of the American Task Force on Palestine in Washington Wednesday night. » Read more

The Roadblocks To Another Mideast Summit ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Christian Science Monitor by Joshua Mitnick, Dan Murphy - October 19, 2007 - 4:29pm Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice spent four days in the Middle East this week to drum up support for an international summit that the US hopes will push the moribund Israeli-Palestinian peace process forward. » Read more