May 8th

For Some Palestinians, One State With Israel Is Better Than None
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Los Angeles Times
by Richard Boudreaux And Ashraf Khali - (Opinion) May 8, 2008 - 5:37pm


Frustrated by years of on-and-off peace talks with Israel, Palestinians are losing hope for an independent homeland, and some are proposing a radically different cause: a shared state with equal rights for Palestinians and Jews.


Bush Plans No Peace Talks On Mideast Trip
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from United Press International (UPI)
May 8, 2008 - 5:36pm


The White House says now isn't the time for a peace conference between U.S. President George Bush and leaders of Israel and the Palestinians. Bush will be in Israel next week to help the Jewish state mark the 60th anniversary of its founding. He also plans to visit Egypt and Saudi Arabia. National security adviser Stephen Hadley told reporters that next week "did not seem the time for a big high-level, three-way event " with the president, Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert and Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas.


Israel At 60
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Prospectsforpeace.com
by Daniel Levy - (Blog) May 8, 2008 - 5:35pm


I don’t often, or ever really, write about my own relationship to Israel or how I ended up there, but I’ll make an exception for the 60th anniversary. It happened for me at the time of the ‘good’ Iraq war, you remember – the one whose ambitions were limited to ensuring continued access to Kuwaiti oil – not the contemporary Iraq tri-fecta effort – own the oil, change the regime, and transform the region.


Israel's Half A Step Forward
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Middle East Times
by George S. Hishmeh - May 8, 2008 - 5:34pm


The May cover of The Atlantic magazine, a respected monthly, was daring. The headline was unbelievable for an American publication: "Is Israel Finished?" The Star of David was larger than the characters on the cover which was adorned by the four colors of the Palestinian flag –– red, white, black and green.


Middle East Peace Process Needs To Move Faster, Blair
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Kuwait News Agency (kuna)
May 8, 2008 - 5:33pm


Former British Prime Minister Tony Blair said Thursday the Middle East peace process needs to move faster if there is to be any chance of an agreement this year. In an exclusive interview with the satellite TV station 'Sky News' in the West Bank town of Jenin, Blair also said Israel must do more to lift restrictions on the Palestinians to improve their economy.


Fatah Wins Key W. Bank Student Election
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Associated Press
May 8, 2008 - 5:32pm


Hebron University officials say Fatah has won student council elections in a former Hamas stronghold. Fatah activists loyal to Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas won 21 seats Wednesday, compared to 20 for Hamas. Fatah supporters honked car horns and fired guns in the air when the results were announced. Islamists controlled the university's student council since 1986.


Arabs Say Racism On Rise As Israel Turns 60
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Associated Press
by Mohammed Assadi - May 8, 2008 - 5:31pm


Salwa Abu Jaber believes her story shows Israel discriminating against its Arab citizens, 60 years after the state was established as a haven for Jews. The 32-year-old mother of four from northern Israel said her five-year-old daughter has never seen her father, who lives in the Israeli-occupied West Bank. Separated from the man for five years, she says she has been forced to divorce him.


Let There Be Justice For All
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Economist
May 8, 2008 - 5:29pm


ONE of the thorniest questions in an Israeli-Palestinian peace deal, if it ever happens, will be what recompense to give the 4.5m Palestinian refugees and their descendants, of whom only a tiny minority, if any, are likely to be allowed to return to what is now Israel. But now a coalition of Jewish organisations has managed to get a no less thorny problem onto the agenda: compensation for Jews who fled the Arab world.


May 7th

The Economist looks at recent legislation concerning Jewish refugees from their April edition. (1) The Associated Press reports on a Fatah victory in Hebron (3). Tony Blair calls on Israel to work to improve Palestinian lives(4)as Daniel Levy discusses checkpoints (6). Former President Jimmy Carter speaks out against conditions in Gaza in a Daily Star Op-Ed (9).

Israel Is Stronger Than Its Ills
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Haaretz
(Editorial) May 7, 2008 - 7:01pm


In the weeks preceding the publication of the new suspicions against the prime minister, it seemed as though Israel was progressing toward a peace agreement with the Palestinians and perhaps even with Syria. Now it is very hard to believe that a government in the process of being dismantled can carry this load on its shoulders. The country's intensive and welcome preoccupation with government corruption is determining the national mood on this Independence Day more than any ceremony and celebration.



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