August 12th

Peace Now: Halt illegal construction north of Jerusalem
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Ynetnews
by Erfat Weiss - August 12, 2009 - 12:00am

The left-wing Peace Now organization claims that construction works are being carried out to expand the settlement of Kochav Yaakov, located north of Jerusalem, eastward. A neighborhood with some 15 caravans has reportedly been established as part of the construction works. According to Peace Now, some of the caravans have already been connected to the water and sewage infrastructures, and a children's playground has been set up in the area.

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Abbas emerges stronger from Fatah conference
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Christian Science Monitor
by Joshua Mitnick - August 11, 2009 - 12:00am

As the Fatah party convention wrapped up Tuesday, Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas emerged stronger, signaling a comeback for the US-backed peace proponent after his party was trounced by Hamas. His success in shepherding the long-anticipated congress, which updated Fatah's political platform and ushered in a new guard of leaders in the first party elections since 1989, enabled him at last to come out from under the long shadow of Yasser Arafat – the late party founder and icon of Palestinian nationalism.

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Fatah showed Palestinians democracy is more than just a slogan
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Haaretz
by Avi Issacharoff - (Opinion) August 12, 2009 - 12:00am

A week after the Sixth Fatah Convention opened, its chairman Mahmoud Abbas could finally sit back, relax and smile. The rais is beginning to shine through as the undisputed winner. Not only did he manage to convene the conference, an achievement that eluded his legendary predecessor Yasser Arafat, the huge event went through almost without incident (barring a brief shootout between the Presidential Guard and their general intelligence colleagues, in a fight over a parking spot).

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Livni: Barghouti is a murderer - he cannot be released
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Haaretz
August 12, 2009 - 12:00am

Kadima chairwoman Tzipi Livni declared her opposition Wednesday to releasing jailed Fatah leader Marwan Barghouti from an Israeli prison. Barghouti, who recently won a spot on the Fatah central committee in a party convention that was held in Bethlehem earlier this week, is serving numerous life sentences for masterminding attacks against Israeli civilians.

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Fatah Party Election Brings in a New Generation
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The New York Times
by Isabel Kershner - August 12, 2009 - 12:00am

Fatah, the mainstream Palestinian nationalist party, elected a mostly new leadership committee, ushering in a younger generation and ousting some prominent veterans, according to preliminary results released here on Tuesday.

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Israel Is Wary of Calm Days That May End in Turmoil
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The New York Times
by Ethan Bronner - August 11, 2009 - 12:00am

Rocket fire from Gaza has markedly declined. The Lebanese border is quiet. Terrorist attacks from the West Bank are rare. The national airport processed a record number of travelers in the first week of August. The currency is so strong that the central bank has bought billions of dollars to keep the exchange rate down.

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August 11th

Palestinian Prime Minister Salam Fayyad announces that Saudi Arabia will deliver $200 million to the Palestinian Authority. Fatah prepares for what is scheduled to be the final day of their party congress, after electing jailed leader Marwan Barghouti to a top post among the new generation of leadership. A letter to President Obama from 71 US Senators urges him to pressure Arab states to normalize relations with Israel. US Jewish leaders express their support for Boston-based Israeli consul general Nadav Tamir, who has been summoned to Israel following his leaked warnings about deteriorating US-Israel relations.Israeli Defense Minister Ehud Barak express his optimism regarding peace negotiations, while Mohammed Dahlan reportedly says no negations will take place unless a deadline for peace is announced in advance.

Fear breeds distrust, but it is also the underrated enabler
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Daily Star
by Paul Scham - (Opinion) August 11, 2009 - 12:00am

In 1997, at a time when I travelled frequently from Israel, where I was living, to Jordan, I was invited to give a talk to the Amman World Affairs Council, composed of distinguished, educated and cosmopolitan retired judges, ambassadors and other prominent Jordanians. I chose as my topic “Israeli fears,” because then, as now, I was convinced that fear is the most important underlying – and underrated – reason for the intractability of the Middle Eastern conflict. The audience was not pleased. One member told me angrily, “You’re equating the oppressors with the oppressed!”

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Concept of ‘partner’ revisited
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Jordan Times
by Hassan Barari - August 11, 2009 - 12:00am

It is clear that Israel has succeeded casting doubt on the existence of a Palestinian partner with whom it can make peace. Implicit in Israel’s argument is the fact that it has been anxiously awaiting for a Palestinian leader who would lead the people on the road to peace. Yet the irony is that Israel has failed miserably to elect leaders who can effectively lead Israel down the road of historical reconciliation with the Palestinians and with the Arab world, even while genuine peace initiatives have been presented - to which Israel failed to respond.

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Fatah between its Past and its Present
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Dar Al-Hayat
by Abdullah Iskandar - (Opinion) August 11, 2009 - 12:00am

The “National Palestinian Liberation Movement” (Fatah) has since its establishment distinguished itself from the remaining organizations and factions due to two essential and interrelated characteristics: the first is that it has represented and reflected the aspirations of the Palestinian people as a whole, with its diverse social groups and political tendencies, thus reflecting the image of this people, equally in the occupied interior and in lands of exile.

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