November 17th

The return of the illusionist ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Haaretz by Yoel Marcus - (Opinion) November 17, 2009 - 1:00am Let's say Benjamin Netanyahu was prime minister in 1977 instead of Menachem Begin. Would he have gone the same way? Made a peace agreement with Egypt via Camp David? Renounced all the Pithat Rafiah settlements? Withdrawn to the last millimeter in Sinai? Signed an agreement affirming the legitimate rights of the Palestinian people? » Read more

EU rejects Palestinian bid for unilateral declaration of state ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Haaretz November 17, 2009 - 1:00am The European Union has rejected the Palestinian Authority's request to back its plan for gaining recognition as an independent state at the United Nations Security Council without Israeli consent. Swedish Foreign Minister Carl Bildt, whose country holds the EU presidency, explained that the EU does not believe conditions are ripe yet for such a move. The EU is not on the Security Council, but EU members France and Britain are permanent council members that wield veto power. » Read more

Palestinians under world pressure not to declare state unilaterally ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Haaretz by Natasha Mozgovaya - November 17, 2009 - 1:00am The Palestinian Authority is coming under increasing pressure ­ from Israel and the international community ­to back down from its threat to unilaterally declare a state without first concluding a peace agreement with Israel. On Monday evening, The United States on Monday reaffirmed its support for the resolution of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict through negotiations, in its first official response to the Palestinian plan. » Read more

US backs Palestinian state through talks - not UN ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Ma'an News Agency November 17, 2009 - 1:00am The United States backs Palestinian efforts to achieve an independent state, but only through negotiations with Israel, State Department spokesman Ian Kelly told reporters on Monday. "We support the creation of a Palestinian state that is contiguous," he said. "We are convinced that has to be achieved through negotiations between two parties. We support a Palestinian state that arrives as a result of negotiations between two parties." Kelly also said he was unaware if the PLO had sought America's opinion, according to Agence France-Presse.

Israeli ministers threaten to annex West Bank ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Ma'an News Agency November 17, 2009 - 1:00am Israeli ministers continued threatening to take unilateral measures if the Palestinian Authority (PA) declares statehood without a negotiated peace agreement. According to Israeli sources, Benjamin Netanyahu's administration may even consider withdrawing from the Oslo Accords. Israeli Minister of Environment Gilad Erian on Monday threatened to stop delivering taxes collected on behalf of the PA. He also threatened to erect more military checkpoints in the West Bank. "We will not allow the Palestinians to declare a state unilaterally." » Read more

US envoy demands halt to settlement growth in E. Jerusalem ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Ma'an News Agency November 17, 2009 - 1:00am US Special Envoy George Mitchell called on Israel to stop construction in the Israeli settlement of Gilo, in east Jerusalem, according to Israeli media on Tuesday. The demand was made during a meeting on Monday between George Mitchell and Yitzhak Molcho, an Israeli official with the country's envoy to Washington, concerning plans to build a new residential complex in Gilo that are currently awaiting authorization from Jerusalem municipality officials, according to the Israeli daily Ynet. » Read more

Would Palestinian Security Forces Survive if Abbas Quits? ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Time by Tim McGirk - November 17, 2009 - 1:00am Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas' decision not to stand for re-election in January casts a pall over U.S. hopes to broker a two-state peace agreement with Israel. But it could also have dire consequences for the security situation in the West Bank. That's because Abbas' possible resignation threatens the future of the U.S.-funded Palestinian security forces that have begun to play a key role in preventing militants from launching attacks on Israel. » Read more

Q&A: No Unilateral Declaration of Palestinian State, Says Erekat ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Inter Press Service (IPS) (Editorial) November 17, 2009 - 1:00am The Palestinian Authority has embarked on a new strategic drive to get renewed international recognition for the borders of the future Palestinian state. Last Thursday it gained backing for this approach from the Arab League. Going into a meeting with European representatives in Ramallah on the West Bank to explain the Palestinian strategy, and hours before embarking with Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas on a three-nation tour of Latin America, the chief Palestinian peace negotiator, Saeb Erekat, spoke exclusively Monday morning to IPS's Jerrold Kessel and Pierre Klochendler. » Read more

ISRAEL: Specter of Meir Kahane continues to haunt politics ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Los Angeles Times by Batsheva Sobelman - November 16, 2009 - 1:00am Two decades after his party was banned from running for seats in the parliament, Rabbi Meir Kahane and his ideas are once more on its agenda. » Read more

To two faiths, a holy patch of land; to the world, a powder keg ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Washington Post by Howard Schneider - November 17, 2009 - 1:00am It is one of the most watched pieces of real estate in the world, 35 acres where an under-the-breath prayer or a whiff of a rumor can rouse warnings of war. In both Judaism and Islam, the area known respectively as the Temple Mount and the Noble Sanctuary is considered a formative location. Jews believe it to be the site of Solomon's Temple and key biblical events. Muslims regard it as the spot where Muhammad was brought by the angel Gabriel before embarking on a trip to heaven to visit the other prophets. » Read more