March 10th

Biden: Palestinians deserve 'viable' state ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Associated Press by Karin Laub - March 10, 2010 - 1:00am RAMALLAH, West Bank — Vice President Joe Biden's displeasure over an Israeli plan to enlarge an east Jerusalem settlement was on display Wednesday as he warned against actions that "inflame tensions" and reassured his Palestinian hosts that they deserve a sustainable, independent state. » Read more

An Eviction Stirs Old Ghosts in a Contested City ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The New York Times by Isabel Kershner - March 9, 2010 - 1:00am ERUSALEM — Having been removed in favor of Israeli nationalist Jews, members of the Palestinian Ghawi family have been sheltering this winter in a tent on the sidewalk opposite their home of more than five decades in the East Jerusalem neighborhood of Sheikh Jarrah. For those who want to see a peaceful resolution of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, the eviction of the Ghawis has touched on two sensitive nerves: the fate of East Jerusalem, where Israel and the Palestinians vie for control, and the abiding grievances of Palestinian refugees from the 1948 war. » Read more

With Biden in West Bank, Settlements Cloud Talks ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The New York Times by Ethan Bronner - March 10, 2010 - 1:00am RAMALLAH, West Bank— Vice President Joseph R. Biden Jr. arrived here on Wednesday to meet with Palestinian leaders as the Palestinian prime minister, Salam Fayyad, expressed dismay at Israel’s announcement a day earlier that it planned to build 1,600 new housing units for Jews in East Jerusalem » Read more

Palestinian leader joins Biden in condemning Israeli housing decision ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Washington Post by Janine Zacharia - March 10, 2010 - 1:00am RAMALLAH, West Bank -- Palestinian Prime Minister Salam Fayyad, meeting with Vice President Biden on Wednesday, said Israel's decision to approve 1,600 housing units in east Jerusalem would undercut U.S. efforts to revive a dormant Israeli-Palestinian peace process. "It's damaging for sure," Fayyad said in his office in Ramallah after greeting Biden. "This is a moment of great challenge to the effort led by the United States to get the political process going again." » Read more

Biden's Israel visit takes a rocky turn ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Los Angeles Times by Paul Richter - March 9, 2010 - 1:00am Reporting from Jerusalem - In the midst of a high-profile trip by Vice President Joe Biden, Israel unveiled plans for new housing in disputed Jerusalem on Tuesday, a surprise step that embarrassed and angered the highest ranking Obama administration official yet to visit the country. Biden, who had come to try to smooth relations with a longtime ally and promote new peace talks, denounced Israel's plans to build 1,600 housing units in traditionally Arab East Jerusalem as a threat to the search for peace. » Read more

Why Israel jailed me for 'talking too much' ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Christian Science Monitor by Jamal Juma' - (Opinion) March 9, 2010 - 1:00am East Jerusalem The Palestinian elected leadership is weak. And even with Vice President Joe Biden’s visit to Israel, the West Bank and Jordan this week, the renewed Middle East peace process appears to be little more than a charade. Israel has taken this opportunity to crack down on Palestinians who advocate nonviolent protests against the Israeli West Bank segregation barrier and charged them based on questionable or false evidence. I know: I was arrested for talking too much. All we Palestinians want is a life free from racial discrimination. » Read more

Peaceful protest in Israel can lead to arrest ATFP World Press Roundup Article from New Haven Register by Mazin Qumsiyeh - (Opinion) March 9, 2010 - 1:00am THIS week, when I return to my village in the occupied West Bank, I face possible arrest by Israel for engaging in nonviolent protests against abusive Israeli policies opposed by our own government. This prospect is difficult after 29 years of living in the United States, where such activities are fully protected. It was this openness that attracted me to the U.S. I became a proud citizen and pursued work not only in my profession but also as a human rights advocate. » Read more

Israel: End Crackdown on Anti-Wall Activists ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Human Rights Watch March 5, 2010 - 1:00am (Jerusalem) - Israel should immediately end its arbitrary detention of Palestinians protesting the separation barrier, Human Rights Watch said today. Israel is building most of the barrier inside the West Bank rather than along the Green Line, in violation of international humanitarian law. In recent months, Israeli military authorities have arbitrarily arrested and denied due process rights to several dozen Palestinian anti-wall protesters. » Read more

Palestinians postpone commemoration of militant ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Reuters by Ali Sawafta - March 10, 2010 - 1:00am RAMALLAH, West Bank, March 10 (Reuters) - The Palestinian Authority ordered on Wednesday the cancellation of a ceremony to honour a woman who led a 1978 hijacking of a civilian bus in Israel in which 35 people were killed. The cancellation of Thursday's ceremony coincided with a visit to the occupied West Bank by U.S. Vice President Joe Biden, who met with Palestinian leaders as part of Washington's efforts to revive the moribund Middle East peace process. » Read more

Biden says Palestinians deserve 'viable' state ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Statesman by Karin Laub - March 10, 2010 - 1:00am RAMALLAH, West Bank — Vice President Joe Biden said Wednesday the Palestinians deserve a "viable" independent state with contiguous territory, seeking to reassure them of U.S. support after Israel announced plans to expand a Jewish neighborhood in disputed east Jerusalem. The Israeli move has overshadowed Biden's visit, meant to promote a new round of U.S.-led negotiations, and drawn Palestinian accusations that Israel is not serious about peace. Israel apologized for embarrassing Biden with the timing of its announcement, but made clear it has no intention of reversing its plan. » Read more