June 5th

Analysts See Growing US-Israeli Rift Over Settlements Issue
Media Mention of Ghaith al-Omari In Voice of America - June 5, 2009 - 12:00am

U.S. President Barack Obama is calling on Israel to stop construction of Jewish settlements in the West Bank. In a speech at Cairo University, Mr. Obama says the building of settlements is undermining efforts to achieve peace between Israel and the Palestinians. Mr. Obama's latest remarks highlight a growing rift between Israel and the United States. President Obama used unusually blunt language in calling on the Israeli government to stop expanding Jewish settlements in the West Bank.

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Obama tells Israel to halt expansion
Media Mention of Ghaith al-Omari In The Boston Globe - June 5, 2009 - 12:00am

President Obama received Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas at the White House yesterday with an invaluable welcoming gift: a toughly worded, categorical US demand for Israel to stop expanding settlements in the West Bank. But hours before the two men met, the Israeli government flatly rejected the demand. Spokesman Mark Regev said that "normal life in those communities must be allowed to continue," including some construction.

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Muslims in U.S.: Speech hit 'right notes'
Media Mention of Ziad Asali In USA Today - June 5, 2009 - 12:00am

President Obama's call for Arabs, Israelis and Americans to abandon their suspicions and work together for a more secure future was welcomed more enthusiastically by Muslims on this side of the world than by Jews who expressed concerns about his support for the Palestinian cause. "He hit the right notes with the right tone," said Ziad Asali, president of the American Task Force on Palestine. "He gave the big picture in a speech that takes the high moral ground. It takes courage to say the things that are not exactly what your audience wants to hear."

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President Obama's historic speech from Cairo yesterday elicits varied responses (1) (2) (3) (4) (9) (11) (13). Tensions surrounding efforts to secure an Israeli settlement freeze continue (5) (12) (18). After meeting in Dresden, President Obama and German Chancellor Merkel vow to "redouble" their efforts towards Mideast peace (6). The UN team investigating alleged war crimes during the Gaza war announces that it will hold public hearings with victims later this month (7).

Using New Language, President Shows Understanding for Both Sides in Middle East
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Washington Post
by Jacqueline Salmon - June 5, 2009 - 12:00am

There was no mention of "terrorists" or "terrorism," just "violent extremists." There was the suggestion that Israeli settlements are illegitimate and the assertion that the Palestinians "have suffered in pursuit of a homeland." There were frequent references to the "Holy Koran" and echoes of Muslim phrases.

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Varying Responses to Speech in Mideast Highlight Divisions
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The New York Times
by Michael Slackman - June 4, 2009 - 12:00am

On one level, President Obama’s speech succeeded in reaching out to Muslims across the Middle East, winning widespread praise for his respectful approach, his quotations from the Koran and his forthright references to highly fraught political conflicts.

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Addressing Muslims, Obama Pushes Mideast Peace
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The New York Times
by Alan Cowell, Jeff Zeleny - June 4, 2009 - 12:00am

In opening a bold overture to the Islamic world on Thursday, President Obama confronted frictions between Muslims and the West, but he reserved some of his bluntest words for Israel, as he expressed sympathy for the Palestinians and what he called the “daily humiliations, large and small, that come with occupation.”

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Analysts See Growing US-Israeli Rift Over Settlements Issue
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Voice of America
by Meredith Buel - June 4, 2009 - 12:00am

U.S. President Barack Obama is calling on Israel to stop construction of Jewish settlements in the West Bank. In a speech at Cairo University, Mr. Obama says the building of settlements is undermining efforts to achieve peace between Israel and the Palestinians. Mr. Obama's latest remarks highlight a growing rift between Israel and the United States. President Obama used unusually blunt language in calling on the Israeli government to stop expanding Jewish settlements in the West Bank.

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Muslims in U.S.: Speech hit 'right notes'
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from USA Today
by Marisol Bello - June 5, 2009 - 12:00am

President Obama's call for Arabs, Israelis and Americans to abandon their suspicions and work together for a more secure future was welcomed more enthusiastically by Muslims on this side of the world than by Jews who expressed concerns about his support for the Palestinian cause. "He hit the right notes with the right tone," said Ziad Asali, president of the American Task Force on Palestine. "He gave the big picture in a speech that takes the high moral ground. It takes courage to say the things that are not exactly what your audience wants to hear."

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US official: Settlement deal possible
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Jerusalem Post
by Herb Keinon - June 5, 2009 - 12:00am

Washington feels "an arrangement that works" can be hammered out with Israel on the settlement issue, a senior administration official told The Jerusalem Post on Thursday, indicating the US recognizes some wiggle room in defining a "settlement freeze." "There's a professional, constructive dialogue on this issue," the official said, shortly after US President Barack Obama delivered his speech in Cairo. "We have differences, but believe we can find an arrangement that works."

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American Task Force on Palestine - 1634 Eye St. NW, Suite 725, Washington DC 20006 - Telephone: 202-262-0017