Erdogan and Nasrallah…And Pulling the Rug? ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Asharq Alawsat by Tariq Alhomayed - June 6, 2010 - 12:00am A while ago my father asked me about the role of Iran and Turkey in the region, and the Iranian nuclear file, and I began to explain this in detail, however my father interrupted me saying "the issue is simpler than this, my son!" I asked him "how?" He answered "for years the game has been the same game, however the ability of the two players is in decline." » Read more

The Ballgame and the Sideshow ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The New York Times by Thomas L. Friedman - (Opinion) June 7, 2010 - 12:00am When I covered the 1982 Lebanon war, I learned something surprising about wars: they attract all kinds of spectators, meddlers, do-gooders and do-badders. They use the conflict and the attention it generates to play out their own identity issues, passions and biases. My favorite in Beirut was a gentleman who showed up in August 1982 as the Palestinian guerrillas were sailing out of Beirut harbor. » Read more

Israel must clarify Palestine's status ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Guardian by Hussein Ibish - June 7, 2010 - 12:00am While world attention has been heavily focused on efforts to break the siege of Gaza, Palestinians in the West Bank are pursuing a series of new, nonviolent, strategies challenging the Israeli occupation. What they are primarily seeking, and what the Israeli government is desperately trying to avoid, is clarity about the status of the occupied territories. » Read more

Washington Asks: What to Do About Israel? ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The New York Times by Helene Cooper - June 7, 2010 - 12:00am Some topics are so inflammatory that they are never discussed without first inserting a number of caveats. And so, when Anthony Cordesman, a foreign policy dignitary in this town’s think tank circuit, dropped an article on Wednesday headlined “Israel as a Strategic Liability,” he made sure to open with a plethora of qualifications. » Read more

Israel Ambassador Rejects Flotilla Clash Inquiry ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The New York Times by Isabel Kershner - June 7, 2010 - 12:00am Israel’s ambassador to Washington said Sunday that his country would reject an international inquiry into last week’s deadly raid on a Turkish ship, but there was still no formal announcement from Jerusalem on the matter. “We are rejecting the idea of an international commission,” Michael B. Oren, the ambassador, told Fox News Sunday. “We are discussing with the Obama administration the way in which our inquiry will take place.” He added, “At the end of the day, Israel has the right, the duty, as a democracy to investigate any military activity.” » Read more