J Street poll: Obama's Jewish support tops Republicans ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Jerusalem Post by Hilary Leila Krieger - July 21, 2011 - 12:00am WASHINGTON – US President Barack Obama handily defeats his current Republican presidential opponents among Jewish voters, according to a poll put out by J Street Thursday. At the same time, the majority of American Jews disapproves of his handling of the Arab-Israeli conflict, the poll found. Obama currently enjoys 63 percent of the American Jewish vote, compared to 24% for Mitt Romney and 67% when facing-off against Michele Bachmann, who received 19% support,according to the poll. » Read more

The blunders of Palestinian leader Abbas ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Washington Post by Jackson Diehl - (Opinion) July 21, 2011 - 12:00am Back in May, Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas adopted a new and radically different political strategy. Turning his back on the United States and peace talks with Israel, he signed a ”reconciliation” agreement with the Hamas movement and announced his intention to appeal to the United Nations in September for recognition of Palestinian statehood. September is still six weeks away, but already it’s becoming clear that Abbas committed a monumental blunder, one that will leave his movement at a dead end — and possibly lead to an eruption of violence in the West Bank and Gaza. » Read more

Palestinians face a dangerous U.N. clash on statehood ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Washington Post by Ziad Asali - (Opinion) July 21, 2011 - 12:00am A potentially dangerous confrontation looms in September over the question of Palestinian statehood, one that threatens significant negative consequences for all parties. It is in the interests of all constructive actors to find a compromise that avoids such a confrontation. » Read more

Palestinians face a dangerous U.N. clash on statehood ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Washington Post by Ziad Asali - (Opinion) July 21, 2011 - 12:00am A potentially dangerous confrontation looms in September over the question of Palestinian statehood, one that threatens significant negative consequences for all parties. It is in the interests of all constructive actors to find a compromise that avoids such a confrontation. » Read more