Arab-American Perceptions of U.S. Policy Toward the Middle East
Speech by Ziad Asali at U.S. Dept. of State - March 26, 2002 - 1:00am

The tragic events of September 11th have had a profound impact on the relationship between the United States and the Arab and Islamic Worlds. The war on terrorism in Afghanistan is the first phase of a long, opaque and complex engagement that will define international relations for decades to come. Arab Americans, both Christians and Muslims, have had the unique experience of being doubly impacted by this tragedy: first as Americans, and secondly as people of Arab heritage. We will be in this unique position, filled with dangers and opportunities, for the foreseeable future.

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The Past, the Present and a Better Future
Speech by Ziad Asali at Carnegie Mellon University - October 18, 2004 - 12:00am

This is my first visit to Pittsburgh and it is quite a pleasure to be here. In the mid-seventies my son, barely four years at the time, became a big fan of the Steelers and Bradshaw, so I became one too. I watched more football games with him than I would by temperament, past the glory days of his beloved Steelers, to shift my loyalty, after my son’s, to our home team, the Chicago Bears, through their short lived glory in 1985, but we stuck with them. We still support a struggling team.

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On the Historic Compromise
Speech by Ziad Asali at Cornell University - November 4, 2004 - 1:00am

Last year, my wife and I had the pleasure of visiting Ithaca and enjoyed the hospitality of Watermargin. The idyllic surroundings, which I assume most of you take for granted, and the kind and inquisitive reception by your students as I addressed them, has created in my mind an association of Cornell with pleasant and soothing memories. So when Professor Michelle Campos asked me to come to Cornell, all we needed to discuss was when, because I could not resist visiting these gorges again.

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What is to be done?
Speech by Ziad Asali at Newark, New Jersey - October 18, 2004 - 12:00am

A consensus, that is, nearly a consensus, about the contours of the final agreement for a genuine and lasting peace is known. It is a variation of the themes of Clinton’s Taba proposal, The Geneva Initiative, Nusseibeh- Ayalon, One Voice and most importantly, the Road Map. Polls and surveys of Palestinians, Israelis, American Jews and Arabs, as well as the general American public, indicate support for a Two-State solution based on what has come to be called the Historic Compromise.

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Palestine and Israel: Unkind History, Uncertain Future
Speech by Ziad Asali at Cornell University - September 3, 2003 - 12:00am

For a conflict that has been described as intractable, insoluble and “centuries old”, the most dramatic feature about the Palestine/ Israel conflict is the near unanimous agreement about the contours of its final resolution. Think about that. The majority of the Palestinians, Israelis, Arabs, Jews, Americans, Europeans, and people all over the world as well as global institutions and bodies are in support of an outline that goes as follows:

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In Pursuit of Peace
Speech by Ziad Asali at Tikkun Conference - June 2, 2003 - 12:00am

The march of events of humankind that we call history has been unkind to the Jews and Palestinians this past century. Europe, the seat of the pinnacle of world culture and western civilization, was seized with convulsive fits of hatred and barbarism that culminated in the Holocaust and made the defeat of Nazism the highest moral order of the time. The Palestinians, caught in the ensuing whirlwind, were eviscerated, displaced, denigrated and driven to desperation. Israel was established on 78% of the land of Palestine in 1948, and occupied the rest in 1967.

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Dr. Asali Addresses the World Affairs Council
Speech by Ziad Asali at Carnegie Endowment, Washington DC - December 8, 2004 - 1:00am

The very intractability of the Palestinian Israeli conflict over the past several decades makes it wiser to analyze it rather than to prognosticate about it. However, the long- standing deadlock and the sense of helpless shrugging of the shoulders with despair it generates, have recently been broken by several developments that call for a reassessment.

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Hamas calls for Islamic Jihad to halt rocket fire into Israel from the Gaza strip (1) (8). Palestinian national accord government talks continue in Cairo, as Egypt applies pressure for a swift resolution (2) (3) (4). After withdrawing from his appointment to head the National Intelligence Council, Charles Freeman blames the "pro-Israel lobby" (5) (14). Secretary of State Clinton warns that the pledged $900 million in American reconstruction aid for Gaza is contingent upon the new Palestinian government's recognition of Israel (9). A Wall Street Journal op-ed urges Palestinian economic growth as a key foundation for a lasting peace (12).

Hamas conditions dim unity gov’t prospects
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Jordan Times
March 12, 2009 - 12:00am

Hamas said on Wednesday it would demand the right to choose the next Palestinian prime minister and a majority of Cabinet seats in any unity government with Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas' secular Fateh faction. Hamas' opening position in Egyptian-mediated reconciliation talks in Cairo appeared to dim chances of a deal on a unity government acceptable to the United States and other Western powers, which shun the Islamist group for refusing to recognise Israel and renounce violence.

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Israel Stance Was Undoing of Nominee for Intelligence Post
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The New York Times
by Helene Cooper, Mark Mazzetti - March 11, 2009 - 12:00am

WASHINGTON — When Dennis C. Blair, the director of national intelligence, announced that he would install Charles W. Freeman Jr. in a top intelligence post, the decision surprised some in the White House who worried that the selection could be controversial and an unnecessary distraction, according to administration officials.

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