Palestinians raise flag at Washington diplomatic mission
Media Mention of Ghaith al-Omari In The Associated Press - January 19, 2011 - 1:00am

The Palestine Liberation Organization for the first time hoisted its flag above its Washington mission Tuesday, saying the symbolic step shows progress in the US-Palestinian relationship. “It’s about time that this flag that symbolizes the struggle of the Palestinian people for self-determination and statehood be raised in the United States,” said PLO chief of mission Maen Areikat. “I think it indicates the willingness of the American administration to deal with the realities on the ground.”

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Pres. Medvedev visits the West Bank, reaffirms Russian commitment to Palestinian statehood, and demands an end to Israeli settlement activity. An Israeli citizen has been arrested in connection with the Srebrenica massacre.The Arab League praises Palestinian diplomatic efforts for more recognition. A Palestinian man is killed by Israeli forces in Gaza. PM Fayyad says Palestinian tax revenues must increase to offset dependence on foreign aid. The Middle East Quartet will meet in Munich in February. The Israeli military is digging in for future conflicts. Aluf Benn says Israel cannot stop Palestinian independence. Recognition of Palestine by Spain and Caribbean islands may be in the offing. The Palestinian flag is raised at the PLO Mission in Washington for the first time. Hammas announces a rebuilding program in Gaza. A strike by Israeli Foreign Ministry workers is severely hampering Israel's diplomacy. Pres. Abbas urges the Quartet to pressure Israel. PM Netanyahu will attend the AIPAC conference in Washington in May. Arab states have formally submitted a draft resolution on settlements to the UN Security Council. Daniel Levy says the Labor Party and its political traditions are finally dead. Hussein Ibish says the Hariri assassination Tribunal report may give Hezbollah a similar experience Israel had with the Goldstone Report.

Arabs submit settlement resolution to Security Council
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from BBC News
January 18, 2011 - 1:00am

Arab nations have formally submitted a resolution to the UN Security Council condemning Jewish settlement building in the occupied West Bank. They did so despite objections from the US, which many expect would veto the resolution if it was brought to a vote. The Palestinians say they are turning to the Security Council because US attempts to get a settlement building freeze have so far failed. They pulled out of direct talks with Israel over the issue in October.

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Palestinians raise flag at Washington diplomatic mission
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Associated Press
January 18, 2011 - 1:00am

The Palestine Liberation Organization for the first time hoisted its flag above its Washington mission Tuesday, saying the symbolic step shows progress in the US-Palestinian relationship. “It’s about time that this flag that symbolizes the struggle of the Palestinian people for self-determination and statehood be raised in the United States,” said PLO chief of mission Maen Areikat. “I think it indicates the willingness of the American administration to deal with the realities on the ground.”

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Palestinian bid to take Israeli settlement row to UN
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from BBC News
by Barbara Plett - January 18, 2011 - 1:00am

Arab nations have formally submitted a resolution to the UN Security Council that condemns Israeli settlement building in the occupied West Bank and East Jerusalem, which the United States will almost certainly veto if it is brought to a vote. The initiative starkly illustrates not only the failure of America's Mid-East policy, but the Palestinian dilemma over which strategy to pursue in the quest for statehood.

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Netanyahu to attend AIPAC conference in DC this May
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Jerusalem Post
by Hilary Leila Krieger - January 18, 2011 - 1:00am

Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu will attend this year’s American Israel Public Affairs Committee conference in May, his office confirmed on Tuesday. Netanyahu conveyed his acceptance of the annual invitation to the Israeli premier during a meeting he had with the organization in Israel on Monday, according to the Prime Minister’s Office. He will be making his second straight in-person appearance at the AIPAC policy conference, set to take place in Washington from May 22 through 24.

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Abbas urges Quartet to put pressure on Israel
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Jerusalem Post
by Khaled Abu Toameh - January 18, 2011 - 1:00am

Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas on Tuesday urged the Quartet members, who are scheduled to meet in Munich next month, to issue decisions that would oblige Israel to return to the negotiating table with the Palestinians. Abbas, who was speaking during a joint press conference in Jericho with visiting Russian President Dmitry Medvedev, said there were only two options: Negotiations or violence and terrorism.

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A requiem for Israel’s Labor Party
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Foreign Policy
by Daniel Levy - (Opinion) January 17, 2011 - 1:00am

The parliamentary faction representing the party that founded and built the state of Israel and that dominated its governments for decades was today reduced to mere single digits -- Israel's Labor Party now has eight members in the Knesset. This latest dilution resulted from a move that took everyone by surprise, enacted by its now-erstwhile leader, still the country's defense minister, Ehud Barak.

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Foreign Ministry talks break down; sanctions to intensify
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Jerusalem Post
by Herb Keinon - January 19, 2011 - 1:00am

Talks between the Finance Ministry representatives and Foreign Ministry workers broke down in a late night session Tuesday. The Foreign Ministry workers were expected to announce an intensification of sanctions as part of the labor dispute, Channel 10 reported. The meeting convened Tuesday night focused on trying to put an end to the workers sanctions that claimed another victim – cancellation of a large UN meeting planned for Israel in March. Representatives of the ministry’s workers were meeting for the third time in as many days with Ilan Levin, the Treasury’s wages director.

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Hamas launches Gaza rebuilding program
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Ynetnews
January 18, 2011 - 1:00am

Hamas launched a program on Tuesday to rebuild 1,000 homes in the Gaza Strip destroyed during an Israeli offensive two years ago, a project that could boost the Islamist group's standing in the enclave it controls. Hamas, shunned by the West for refusing to renounce violence, declined to disclose the project's cost or the source of its funding. International donations towards reconstruction in Gaza have been held up by Hamas' split with the Palestinian Authority controlling the West Bank.

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