Arab world sees settlement row as test of Obama's credibility ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Haaretz by Akiva Eldar - June 19, 2009 - 12:00am The clash on the settlements between the Obama-Clinton administration and the Netanyahu-Lieberman (and Barak) government is not some petty haggling over expanding a kindergarten in Ofra or adding a balcony in Ma'aleh Adumim. It's an argument on the legal status of the West Bank settlements and East Jerusalem's Jewish neighborhoods and the sovereignty issue in the territories. » Read more

How to Achieve Israeli-Palestinian Peace ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Wall Street Journal by Hosni Mubarak - June 19, 2009 - 12:00am President Barack Obama's seminal address in Cairo marked a turning point in America's relations with the Muslim world. His message was clear and incontrovertible: It is issues of politics and policy, not a clash of values, that separate the Muslim world and America. It is the resolution of these issues that will heal the divide. The ambitious agenda outlined by President Obama must now be followed by forward-looking steps in order to chart a new course in America's relationship with the Arab and Muslim world. I look forward to working with the president to achieve that objective. » Read more

Israeli Plan to Annex Lands East of Jerusalem Stokes Palestinian Anger ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Voice of America by Luis Ramirez - June 18, 2009 - 12:00am Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu angered many Palestinians, in his recent speech, when he proclaimed Israel's intentions to keep Jerusalem as the united capital of the Jewish state. The Palestinians claim the eastern part of the city as the capital of their own future state, but Israeli plans to annex lands east of the city and expand settlements in the occupied West Bank, could preempt that possibility. Shepherd Mohamad Mussa Mashhur lives on a dry, barren hilltop, within a few meters of power lines. However, a kerosene lamp is what his family depends on for light. » Read more

American Jews and Settlements: A Divorce in Progress ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Atlantic (Opinion) June 19, 2009 - 12:00am In an op-ed piece in the Jerusalem Post, Samuel Freedman writes: With President Barack Obama's forceful, repeated calls for a total freeze on settlements, he is surely betting that he can assail a consistent policy of Israeli governments, both Labor and Likud, without alienating his substantial support among American Jewish voters. » Read more

West Bank road trip ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Haaretz by Aluf Benn - June 19, 2009 - 12:00am A visit to the West Bank two days after the prime minister's Bar-Ilan speech leads one to conclude that the ideological about-face implicit in Benjamin Netanyahu's consent to a Palestinian state has not upset the people living where this state is supposed to arise. The settlers listened to Netanyahu, but were more interested in his promise to enable them to have "a normal life." Furthermore, they wondered if this would translate into Defense Minister Ehud Barak's signature on delayed building permits. » Read more

More Israelis see Obama as 'pro-Palestinian': poll ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Agence France Presse (AFP) June 19, 2009 - 12:00am Israelis increasingly view US President Barack Obama as pro-Palestinian as Washington has begun ramping up pressure on the Jewish state to halt settlement growth, a poll found. Only six percent of Israelis view the newly elected president as pro-Israel, while 50 percent believe he is pro-Palestinian and 36 percent see him as neutral, according to the poll published in the Jerusalem Post. » Read more

The Two-state Chimera ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Washington Times June 19, 2009 - 12:00am Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu was the sixth Israeli leader to concede the expression "Palestinian state." It was a first for Mr. Netanyahu, but the caveats drained it of any significance. Besides, events in a soon-to-be nuclear-capable Iranian theocracy - some now say thugocracy - where elections were rigged in favor of a president who despises the United States and sees no room for Israel in the Middle East, dictated geopolitical prudence. » Read more