October 17th

Gop Candidates: Protect Israel
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Associated Press
by Libby Quaid - October 17, 2007 - 10:33am

Israel's security must be safeguarded in the coming talks between the Israelis and Palestinians, GOP presidential contenders told the Republican Jewish Coalition on Tuesday. Palestinians must acknowledge Israel's right to exist as a Jewish state and make a good-faith effort to stop terrorism, former New York Mayor Rudy Giuliani said.

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October 16th

The Christian Science Monitor looks at how recent more moderate statements by Hamas regarding negotiating with Israel are impacting efforts to exclude the group and increasing calls for Palestinian reconciliation (2.) The Washington Post examines the determination of Secretary Rice to achieve a breakthrough in Mideast peace efforts during the last 14 months of the Bush administration (4.) The Forward reports on the backing of Senator Brownback, a Republican presidential candidate, for an Israeli right-wing campaign to oppose the current Israeli-Palestinian peace process (6.) The Independent (UK) reports on warnings by the Israeli Likud party about returning any part of occupied East Jerusalem to the Palestinians (8.) A Daily Star (Lebanon) opinion by Rami Khouri assesses why the current peace momentum is unlikely to succeed due to its coming too late and too hastily (9.) A Haaretz (Israel) opinion by Shmuel Rosner argues that the setting of a time for the fall meeting was a mistake that will have serious consequences (12.)

A Prelude Of Niceties
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Haaretz
by Akiva Eldar - (Opinion) October 16, 2007 - 1:04pm

Ahead of Annapolis, Olmert and Abbas have agreed to disagree, while Bush is promising 'real results' Israelis and Palestinians who have met with United States Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice in recent days and have spoken with her staff have gained the impression that she does not really know what on earth her boss wants from her. It isn't that Dr. Rice has a hearing problem. Her problem is that United States President George W. Bush has apparently not yet decided what exactly he wants to achieve at the Annapolis peace conference.

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Rice's Visit / In The Shadow Of Mlk
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Haaretz
by Aluf Benn - (Opinion) October 16, 2007 - 1:02pm

When Condoleezza Rice talks about the establishment of a Palestinian state next to Israel, she sees in her mind's eye the struggle of African Americans for equal rights, which culminated in the period of her Alabama childhood. Rice is very aware of political sensitivity, and avoids making such comparisons in public speeches and interviews, where she keeps to the official list of talking points. But in private, she talks about the

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No High Hopes For Annapolis
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Haaretz
by Tamar Hermann, Ephraim Yaar - (Special Report) October 16, 2007 - 1:00pm

Some two-thirds of the Jewish public think that from Israel's standpoint it is impossible to go on indefinitely with the current state of relations between Israel and the Palestinians. A similar amount of Jewish citizens think that among the most urgent issues on Israel's agenda is the government's attempt to reach a peace agreement with the Palestinians.

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U.s. Too Often Follows Israel's Lead In Diplomatic Situations
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Arabic Media Internet Network
by Paul Findley - (Opinion) October 16, 2007 - 12:53pm

  There is an open secret in Washington. I learned it well during my 22-year tenure as a member of the U.S. House of Representatives. All members swear to serve the interests of the United States, but there is an unwritten and overwhelming exception: The interests of one small foreign country almost always trump U.S. interests. That nation of course is Israel.

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An Extraordinary Opportunity
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Bitterlemons
by Galia Golan - (Opinion) October 16, 2007 - 12:50pm

Few are particularly excited by the upcoming Israeli-Palestinian conference; most may believe it will not or should not even take place. Yet this could be the most important and promising opportunity for a genuine peace process since the ill-fated Camp David II conference in July 2000. This optimism derives from both the unique constellation of circumstances in the region and the cumulative effect of developments within the Israeli and Palestinian publics.

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Us 'wants Palestinian State Now'
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Bbc News
October 16, 2007 - 12:48pm

The US secretary of state has said it is time for a Palestinian state to be founded, and that the US will put its full weight behind such efforts. Condoleezza Rice said reaching a two-state solution was a priority for her and US President George Bush. Ms Rice was speaking from the West Bank, where she has been trying to get agreement for a peace summit in the US. Meanwhile the Israeli PM has hinted he may consider giving up Palestinian districts in Jerusalem in a peace deal.

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Us Presses Palestinians And Israel To Find Common Ground
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Guardian
by Ian Black - (Special Report) October 16, 2007 - 12:46pm

 The US yesterday urged Israel and the Palestinians to work to overcome their differences before an international conference next month even as a top UN expert lambasted the "Quartet" of Middle East peacemakers for failing to promote Palestinian rights.

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Politics: Another Mideast Envoy Fed Up With Quartet
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Inter Press Service (IPS)
by Haider Rizvi - October 16, 2007 - 12:45pm

The United Nations has come under strong criticism from one of its own top human rights officials for failing to take effective action to check the ongoing Israeli abuses in the occupied Palestinian territories. Expressing his anger and frustration at the fast-deteriorating human rights situation in Gaza and the West Bank, John Dugard, the U.N. special rapporteur on human rights for the Palestinian territories since 2001, has suggested that the world body quit the Middle East Quartet.

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