Standoff over settlement construction bogs down Mideast talks
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Los Angeles Times by Paul Richter, Edmund Sanders - September 15, 2010 - 12:00am Despite prodding by Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton, Israelis and Palestinians made little progress Tuesday toward resolving their standoff over Jewish settlement construction in the West Bank. The dispute will continue to loom over U.S.-brokered peace talks as they resume Wednesday in Jerusalem. For the third time in a week, American officials called upon Israel to extend its partial moratorium on construction, which is to expire toward the end of the month. Palestinians have threatened to quit the talks unless the moratorium continues. |
Netanyahu, Abbas to meet again in Jerusalem
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Washington Post by Glenn Kessler - September 15, 2010 - 12:00am Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton prepared Wednesday to convene a second set of peace talks between Israeli and Palestinian leaders, with no resolution of a conflict over Jewish settlements in sight. |
Mitchell: Settlement freeze must continue
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Ynetnews by Atilla Somfalvi - (Analysis) September 14, 2010 - 12:00am SHARM EL-SHEIKH – US special envoy George Mitchell said Tuesday that the West Bank settlement construction freeze must continue, despite being a sensitive political issue in Israel. Speaking at a press conference in Sharm el-Sheikh, Mitchell said the new round of Israeli-Palestinian negotiations was moving in the right direction, but offered no evidence of progress on the hard issue of Jewish settlements. He clarified that the parties must continue the negotiations, which would remain discreet, adding that the direct talks were crucial for both sides. |
Hillary Clinton headed to Mideast for talks
Media Mention of ATFP In Politico - September 14, 2010 - 12:00am Secretary of State Hillary Clinton launches an intense week of Middle East diplomacy in Egypt Tuesday, joining Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas for their next round of face-to-face peace talks. She begins in the Egyptian resort of Sharm el-Sheikh, then plans to move on to Jerusalem on Wednesday and the West Bank and Jordan on Thursday. |
Risky business of making peace in the Middle East
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Gulf News by Osama Al-Sharif<br /> - September 14, 2010 - 12:00am The risky business of forging peace between Israel and the Palestinians through a negotiated settlement has resumed after almost three years of forced interruption. But few on either side are hopeful. The one-year process of direct negotiations under United States auspices aimed at concluding a final status agreement and the birth of a Palestinian state has its critics, and sceptics, on both sides of the divide and beyond. In fact few believe that this latest round of talks will lead to an historic deal. The chasm is simply too wide. |
Encountering Peace: Two rights don’t make a wrong
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Jerusalem Post by Gershon Baskin<br /> - (Opinion) September 14, 2010 - 12:00am Yes, Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu is right – why should Israel continue the settlement freeze; after all, everyone knows Gilo will never be Palestinian. Ramot Eshkol will not be part of the Palestinian capital of al-Kuds, nor will Pisgat Ze’ev? Palestinians should understand that there are certain facts that will not be undone. The Jewish Quarter of the Old City and the Western Wall will remain under Israeli sovereignty in any peace agreement; without this, there can be no peace and certainly the Palestinians should realize this by now. |
IDF: 2 Gazans killed at border Sunday were not terrorists
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Jerusalem Post by Yaakov Katz<br /> - September 14, 2010 - 12:00am Two Palestinians killed on Sunday by IDF fire along the Gaza border were not engaged in terrorist activity but were standing next to a Palestinian who was pointing a loaded RPG at the Israeli military force, an investigation of the incident has revealed. The incident took place Sunday evening when troops deployed along the security fence spotted a man pointing a loaded RPG in their direction. Earlier in the day, the IDF detected a number of people who had also approached the security fence in the area, and soldiers fired several warning shots. |
PM, Clinton and Abbas discuss freeze in Sharm e-Sheikh
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Jerusalem Post by Herb Keinon<br /> - September 14, 2010 - 12:00am US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton on Tuesday sat down with Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu and Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas in Sharm e-Sheikh, Egypt to tackle the most immediate dispute between the two sides: a soon-to-expire curb on new construction for Israeli settlements in the West Bank. No press conference was held prior to the beginning of the meeting. A determination to make the peace talks work was expressed by Israeli officials accompanying Netanyahu on Tuesday to the second round of direct peace talks with Abbas. |
Netanyahu and the freeze
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Ynetnews by Nahum Barnea<br /> - (Opinion) September 13, 2010 - 12:00am You screwed up, Netanyahu can say to Barack Obama following the president’s call over the weekend to extend the settlement construction freeze. The construction was frozen for a limited period of time – 10 months. The American Administration chose to accept this timeframe. It cannot show regret as this period draws to an end and ask for more. It’s not serious or credible. |