February 4th

Between the hammer and the anvil ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Bitterlemons by Oraib Al-Rantawi - February 3, 2011 - 1:00am Over the last decade, Jordan's policies have centered on a single assumption: that the creation of a viable Palestinian state is a major pillar of Jordan's security and stability. Even more so, it is vital to Jordan's existence and identity. Based on this assumption, Jordan stood firm behind the peace process and was a strong supporter of the two-state solution. In that light, Jordan supported the Arab Peace Initiative and US President George W. Bush's vision for resolving the Israeli-Palestinian dispute. Equally, Jordan called for the implementation of the roadmap and signed agreements. » Read more

Intriguing alliance ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Jordan Times by George S. Hishmeh - February 4, 2011 - 1:00am The surprising determined refusal of Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak, who has been in office for nearly 30 years, to step down immediately has probably stunned many worldwide, and especially the hundreds of thousands of his ever-increasing opponents who have been demonstrating for days against his regime in Egypt’s main cities. Equally alarming were Mubarak’s brief televised remarks, broadcast late Tuesday night, that he would not seek reelection but promises an orderly transition before his term expires in September. » Read more

Three Years Old, J Street Still Struggles For Acceptance ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Jewish Daily Forward by Nathan Guttman - February 2, 2011 - 1:00am Several recent setbacks for J Street are refocusing attention on the dovish Israel lobby’s ongoing struggle to gain acceptance both in Washington and within the broader Jewish community. » Read more

Who is Uri Avnery, and Why Does He Matter? ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Jewish Ideas Daily by Aryeh Tepper - February 3, 2011 - 1:00am Jerusalem's decision in the early 1990's to admit Yasir Arafat and his fellow thugs into the heart of the land of Israel proved to be one of the country's major political blunders, paid for in the coin of a five-year terror war that traumatized Israeli society and transformed the dream of Israeli-Palestinian peace into an extended nightmare. How did it happen? » Read more

Louis Theroux: My time among the 'ultra-Zionists' ATFP World Press Roundup Article from BBC News by Louis Charbonneau - February 3, 2011 - 1:00am On a hilltop in the Northern West Bank, not far from the large Palestinian city of Nablus, I met 17-year-old Yair Lieberman. A part-time labourer and student, Yair's home was a makeshift canvas-covered structure, only slightly more solid than a tent, which he shared with three other young men. The bed was a tangled mess of sheets, in the style of a conventional teenager's, and hung around the dwelling were posters - though not of pop groups, but of favourite rabbis. Outside, in the neighbouring lots, was a scattering of fifteen or so caravans and trailers - the outpost of Havat Gilad. » Read more

Israeli or Palestinian? Umm Al-Fahm Residents Are Divided ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Media Line by David Miller, Arieh O'Sullivan - February 2, 2011 - 1:00am The narrow streets of Umm Al-Fahm, one of the largest Arab towns in Israel, are steep as they wind up the hillside of the town that sits in a topographical bowl overlooking the biblical Plain of Jezreel. The 50,000 residents of this town of cinderblock houses and large golden-domed mosques are on the literal edge of the Western democratic state of Israel an hour’s drive from Tel Aviv, rubbing shoulders with what may be the future Palestinian state in the West Bank on the other side of the nearby fence. » Read more

Analysis: The Quartet’s changing perspective ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Jerusalem Post by Herb Keinon - February 4, 2011 - 1:00am The Middle East that the Quartet representatives will be discussing Saturday in Munich is a vastly different region than the one they discussed at their last meeting in September in New York. Then, the major issue facing the Quartet officials – US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, EU foreign policy chief Catherine Ashton, Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov and UN Secretary-General Ban Kimoon – was whether or not Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu would renew the 10-month settlement moratorium. » Read more

Suddenly, Israel sees peace asset? ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Haaretz by Gideon Levy - February 3, 2011 - 1:00am Suddenly peace has become an asset for Israel, and suddenly Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak has become Israel's best friend. Like a man about to lose the woman he abused for years, and only then recognizes her value - far too late - Israel is now hunkering down, frightened of what the future will bring. What if the new government in Egypt revokes the peace treaty? » Read more

Israel Police brace for possible Temple Mount unrest amid Egypt turmoil ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Haaretz by Nir Hasson - February 4, 2011 - 1:00am Jerusalem police said on Friday that they were increasing the state of preparedness surrounding the Temple Mount in the Old City due to a fear of riots that they suspect may occur as a result of the uprising in Egypt. Police said that entrance to the Temple Mount will be open on Friday only to men 50 years of age and older who have a blue identity card, signifying that they are Israeli citizens, and to women of all ages. » Read more

Netanyahu to offer gestures to Palestinians in effort to deflect Quartet criticism ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Haaretz by Barak Ravid - February 4, 2011 - 1:00am Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu met with Quartet of Mideast peace mediators' envoy Tony Blair on Friday, ahead of the Quartet meet in Munich on Saturday. At the end of the meeting Netanyahu is expected to present Blair with a package of confidence-building measures that Israel will propose to the Palestinian Authority in a bid to moderate a Quartet statement castigating Israel. » Read more