January 3rd

Down Payment On A State
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Israel Policy Forum
by Sadie Goldman With Jason Proetorius And Ipf Staff - January 3, 2008 - 5:23pm

Every Israeli-Palestinian negotiating process comes with a price tag. The current process, which was re-launched in Annapolis, Maryland, and continued at the Paris Donor’s conference, is no exception.  It was in Paris that donors examined Prime Minister Salam Fayyad’s three-year reform plan and then pledged 7.4 billion dollars to help implement it.

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Jewish Pols Backing Clinton, But Also Obama, Mccain
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Jewish Telegraphic Agency (JTA)
by Ben Harris - January 3, 2008 - 5:22pm

As the nation trains its spotlight on New Hampshire, two Jewish politicians have become central players in the Granite State's political drama that may well determine who secures the Democratic and Republican nominations.

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Peace Brokers
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Christian Century
by James M. Wall - (Opinion) January 3, 2008 - 5:19pm

The local public library asked me to introduce and discuss the 1962 movie Lawrence of Arabia. The screening happened to coincide with the day of the multinational Annapolis Conference on the Mideast, so I could not resist showing a segment from the final moments of the film. The parallel between Lawrence of Arabia, which ends in 1918 in Damascus, and the 2007 gathering of peacemakers at Annapolis, Maryland, is this: in both situations there is a deep imbalance of power and a pervasive distrust.

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Former "dateline" Reporter Blasts Nbc
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Reuters
by Paul J. Gough - January 3, 2008 - 5:16pm

A former "Dateline NBC" correspondent claims that in the aftermath of September 11, the network diverted him from reporting on al Qaeda and instead wanted him to ride along with the country's "forgotten heroes," firefighters.

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The Fence Failure
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The American Prospect
by Gershom Gorenberg - January 3, 2008 - 5:14pm

When George W. Bush visits Israel next week, he's reportedly planning to take time off for a visit to the ruins of Capernaum on the Sea of Galilee, where Jesus is said to have lived and preached. I shouldn't begrudge someone shlepping across the world a couple hours for a private pilgrimage. But if Bush wants to pry time free from meetings in Jerusalem, it would be better spent on a tour of the Israeli separation barrier, a.k.a. fence, a.k.a. wall. Plenty of human rights activists who speak good English (maybe too good for W.) would be happy to guide him.

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Voting Our Hopes, Voting Our Fears
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Jewish Daily Forward
(Editorial) January 3, 2008 - 5:10pm

Maybe it’s the weakness of the candidate field. Maybe it’s old habits dying hard, or unfamiliar threats flaring up. Whatever the cause, there seems to be a sharp increase in talk among Jews, some in the most unaccustomed circles, who plan to cast their votes this year on the basis of Israel’s security needs.

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Bush's Gordian Knot
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Middle East Times
by Claude Salhani - (Analysis) January 3, 2008 - 5:02pm

U.S. President George W. Bush is about to embark on a tour of several Middle Eastern countries starting next week as his presidency rounds the corner heading for the final stretch of its second and final term at the White House. The president will travel to Israel, the West Bank, Kuwait, Bahrain, the United Arab Emirates, Saudi Arabia, and Egypt over a period of eight days starting Jan. 8.

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January 2nd

In the Middle East Times, editor Claude Salhani examines the challenges facing President Bush as he attempts to bring about a resolution to the Israeli Palestinian conflict in the final year of his presidency (1.) In American Prospect, Israeli author and former editor Gershom Gorenberg uses the example of Israel's separation barrier in the occupied West Bank to illustrate that the solution to Israel's security issues is political rather than military (3.) In christian Century, senior contributing editor James Wall draws parallels with the Annapolis meeting and the Middle East in 1918 (5.) In Israel Policy Forum, Sadie Goldman details how an effective use of the funds pledged to the Palestinians at the Paris donor conference coupled with U.S. and Quartet engagement can lay the foundations of a future Palestinian state and address Israeli security needs (7.) Inter Press Service analyzes the implications of the fundraising partnership between the Jewish Agency and the Christian Zionist group the International Fellowship of Christians and Jews (8.) A Daily Star (Lebanon) opinion by Rami Khouri takes issue with how Arab and Asian elites as well as U.S. presidential candidates are manipulating the issue of terrorism for political ends (10.) A Gulf News (UAE) opinion by editor-at -large Frances Matthew urges Arab leadership to address the three major Mideast trouble spots of Palestine, Iraq and Lebanon (11.) Haaretz (Israel) reports on the return of Palestinian Authority control over the West Bank city of Nablus (13.) Also in Haaretz, an editorial calls on President Bush to make a concerted push to bridge Israeli and Palestinian positions in the last year of his presidency (14.)

Words Won't Stop The Construction
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Haaretz
(Editorial) January 2, 2008 - 2:44pm

The announcement that the prime minister has directed cabinet ministers not to build in the territories behind his back sounds like a sleight of hand. The prime minister should not instruct his ministers to "increase awareness" of their ministries' actions that might impair negotiations with the Palestinians, but rather he should once and for all bring the Sasson report to the cabinet for approval. The report states clearly how to monitor settlement expansion.

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Here's To The '67 Borders, The New Middle Of The Road
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Haaretz
by Bradley Burston - January 2, 2008 - 2:42pm

There was a time, not long past, that the mere mention of the 1967 borders was seen by many in the Jewish community as an expression of disloyalty, of sacrilege, of foolhardy risk, almost of profanity. Gradually, remarkably, there are signs that the route of the middle of the road has shifted. That we've come a long, long way. At this point, for many on the Israeli side and, in fact, on the Palestinian side as well, the middle of the road passes very, very close to the Green Line, the post-1948 war, pre-1967 war boundary between the West Bank and Israel.

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