Abbas: No U.S. clarification over peace talks' resumption until now ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Xinhua February 15, 2010 - 1:00am Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas Monday said the United States has not yet presented the demanded clarification related to the resumption of the indirect peace talks with Israel. The Palestinian state-run news agency Wafa quoted Abbas as saying at the weekly meeting of the Palestinian cabinet in Ramallah on Monday that the Palestinian side has not yet received any clarifications from the United States over the resumption of the peace negotiations with Israel. » Read more

Mideast peacemaking efforts at "very critical stage": Jordanian king ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Xinhua February 15, 2010 - 1:00am Jordanian King Abdullah II Monday urged coordinated and intensified international action to resolve the Palestinian-Israeli conflict as peacemaking efforts are going through a "very critical stage", the state-run Petra news agency reported. The king made the remarks during a meeting with a delegation from J Street, which is an American-Jewish entity that supports the two-state solution and is against Israeli settlement activities. At the meeting, the king said resolving the conflicts should be in line with the two-state solution and within comprehensive peace in the region. » Read more

Israeli FM: Palestinian government smearing us ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Associated Press by Amy Teibel - February 15, 2010 - 1:00am Israel's foreign minister on Monday accused the Western-backed Palestinian government of spearheading an international smear campaign against Israel and predicted that even if negotiations between the two sides resume, they would fail. Avigdor Lieberman's tough comments could mean new trouble for U.S.-led efforts to restart peace talks, which broke down more than a year ago. U.S. envoy George Mitchell has spent months trying to bring the sides back to the negotiating table, but so far has been unable to break the deadlock. » Read more

Clash in Palestinian camp in Lebanon kills 2 ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Associated Press by Zeina Karam - February 15, 2010 - 1:00am Islamic militants clashed with Fatah gunmen in a Palestinian refugee camp in southern Lebanon on Monday, killing at least two people, Palestinian security officials said. It was not immediately clear what prompted the shootout in the Ein el-Hilweh camp, where gunfights are common between armed groups jockeying for power. Monday's confrontation involved gunmen from the militant Asbat al-Ansar group, which is on a U.S. terrorism list and which Washington has accused of being linked to al-Qaida. » Read more

Most Hamas police applicants only want jobs ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Associated Press by Ben Hubbard - February 16, 2010 - 1:00am Take this for a measure of Gaza's economic woes: When the territory's Hamas rulers announced plans to hire about 1,000 new policemen, 15,000 applied. Only a few of those reporting for fitness tests one recent afternoon expressed an interest in police work or said they belonged to the Islamic militant group. Most just wanted a job. Plagued by poverty for decades, Gaza's private sector has been all but wiped out by nearly four years of closed borders and last year's devastating Israeli offensive. In the meantime, Hamas has solidified its grip, making it Gaza's second largest employer. » Read more

Cheated: PA trade union head details permit fraud ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Ma'an News Agency February 16, 2010 - 1:00am Thousands of Palestinians hoping to gain work and higher wages in Israel were duped over the last three years by a gang of Israelis and Palestinians selling forged permits, Secretary-General of the Palestinian Trade Union Shahir Sa’d said Tuesday. The scam was routed Sunday when Israeli police detained dozens of alleged gang members. The undercover investigation was carried out over a number of months under Commander Dorit Ben-Meir, the Israeli news site Ynet reported at the time. According to the report, 23 Israelis and 11 Palestinians were involved in the scam. » Read more

Zahhar: Progress on Hamas-Fatah reconciliation imminent ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Ma'an News Agency February 16, 2010 - 1:00am A Palestinian reconciliation agreement could be signed within a few days under Egyptian supervision, senior Hamas official Mahmoud Az-Zahhar announced Monday night. Following a celebration of educational institutions in Gaza City, Zahhar told reporters, "It is obvious that Egypt understands ... that the Egyptian reconciliation document needs amendment. I expect the issue to be reconsidered and a signing to be secured." » Read more

Palestinians reverse on terror victim ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Politico by Josh Gerstein - February 15, 2010 - 1:00am In a highly unusual step likely to come as a significant relief to U.S. officials, the Palestinian Authority has quietly paid an undisclosed amount to settle a lawsuit by the widow of an American killed in Israel in 2002. » Read more

Police release photos of 11 wanted for Hamas killing, hint at Israel involvement [Updated] ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Los Angeles Times by Borzou Daragahi - (Blog) February 15, 2010 - 1:00am Dubai police have released the names and passport photos from the European identity papers of 11 suspects in the killing of a senior Hamas official last month. According to a report Monday on the website of Al Jazeera International, Dubai police also said two Palestinians had been arrested in the Jan. 20 murder of Mahmoud Mabhouh, a senior figure within the militant group Hamas, which governs the Gaza Strip. » Read more

Selling a piece of Palestinian Main Street ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Los Angeles Times by Edmund Sanders - (Interview) February 15, 2010 - 1:00am Is the West Bank ready for Wall Street? That's a question soon to be answered with the launch of the first-of-its-kind Palestinian private equity fund, which managers hope will raise $50 million to invest in businesses in the Palestinian territories. The Palestine Liberation Organization's finances have at times drawn criticism. Late PLO Chairman Yasser Arafat was accused of controlling a $1-billion investment portfolio that, Western intelligence agencies said, was funded in part through money laundering, arms dealing and diversion of international aid. » Read more