Shapiro: US opposes preconditions to peace talks ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Jerusalem Post (Analysis) September 27, 2011 - 12:00am Washington does not agree that a settlement building freeze should be a precondition to the renewal of Israeli-Palestinian negotiations, United States Ambassador to Israel Dan Shapiro said Tuesday morning in an interview with Army Radio. He said that "the US has had the same policy for the past 40 years - against building settlements in the West Bank." However, he stressed that the US believes that direct talks between Israel and the Palestinian Authority, without preconditions, are the only way to resolve the conflict. » Read more

Reciprocity, mutuality – key to Mid-East peacemaking ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Jerusalem Post by Gershon Baskin - (Opinion) September 26, 2011 - 12:00am Dear President Abbas and Prime Minister Netanyahu, welcome home to both of you. You both did a fine job at the UN and made your peoples feel proud. You represented the cause of your peoples’ struggle for existence and peace with great honor. You can both claim victory and come home to a hero’s welcome. » Read more

Israel set to approve 1,100 new Jerusalem homes beyond the Green Line ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Haaretz by Nir Hasson - (Analysis) September 27, 2011 - 12:00am The Jerusalem District Planning Committee is set to approve 1,100 new housing units in Jerusalem's contested Gilo neighborhood on Tuesday, despite past U.S. objections concerning any construction that expanded Gilo further across the Green Line. The plan was submitted by a subsidiary to the Jewish National Fund, and must pass 60 days in which the public may oppose it before being finally approved by Jerusalem's planning authorities. » Read more

Actions, not slogans, for the New Year ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Jerusalem Post by David Newman - (Opinion) September 27, 2011 - 12:00am Unlike most other countries’ New Years, Rosh Hashana is not simply about festivities and parties. It is, for most of us, a period of introspection, personal and collective, a period when we sit down with ourselves, weigh up our deeds and actions of the past year and, hopefully, resolve to do some things differently in the coming year. » Read more

Border Control / Mideast peace can provide all the security Israel needs ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Haaretz by Akiva Eldar - (Opinion) September 27, 2011 - 12:00am The main, if not the only, innovation in the prime minister's address at the UN General Assembly was the demand that the Palestinians house military bases inside their new state. This, of course, in addition to the need for "defensible borders," that is a result of Israel's narrow middle. In order to illustrate the sensitivity of this shape, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu "disclosed" to the world that a fighter jet could cross the width of the country in just three seconds. » Read more

U.S. lawmaker: Palestinians must return to peace talks or suffer possible divestment ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Haaretz by Natasha Mozgovaya - (Analysis) September 26, 2011 - 12:00am A U.S. Congressmen said Monday that the Palestinians should think twice about their bid to gain recognition at the United Nations,urging the Palestinian Authority to "reverse course" and get back to the negotiation table. » Read more

Israel must annex West Bank settlements, right-wing MKs tell Netanyahu ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Haaretz by Jonathan Lis - (Analysis) September 27, 2011 - 12:00am Israel should legally annex West Bank settlements in response to the Palestinians' recent bid for recognition in the United Nations, the leaders of several right-wing Knesset factions said in a letter to Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Tuesday. The letter was signed by Likud chairman Ze'ev Elkin, Shas chairman Avraham Michaeli, Habayit Hayehudi chairman Uri Orbach, and the leader of the National Union faction Yaakov Katz. » Read more

Netanyahu's popularity rises locally after UN speech ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Xinhua by Mu Xuequan - September 26, 2011 - 12:00am JERUSALEM, Sep. 26 (Xinhua) -- Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's popularity got a boost after his speech at the United Nations last Friday, a poll showed on Monday, following his ratings plunged in the wake of social protests across the country during the summer. The survey showed that Netanyahu's approval spiked upwards when he rejected the Palestinians' statehood bid on the grounds that such a state could only come through negotiations with Israel, and not as a unilateral step. » Read more

UN speech gives Abbas a stronger hand ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Statesman by Karin Laub - (Analysis) September 26, 2011 - 12:00am GAZA CITY, GAZA STRIP — President Mahmoud Abbas' surge of popularity following his bid for U.N. recognition for a Palestinian state is bound to give him a stronger hand against the rival Hamas group as they prepare to resume talks on a stalled power-sharing deal next week. » Read more

Fatah official: Non-violence key to Palestinian struggle ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Ma'an News Agency (Analysis) September 27, 2011 - 12:00am BETHLEHEM (Ma’an) -- President Mahmoud Abbas' adviser said Tuesday that non-violent resistance was crucial to the Palestinian struggle against Israeli occupation and that violent confrontation was not an option. Sabri Saydam told Ma'an that the Palestinians must take "the path of non-violent popular resistance to highlight Palestinian suffering" and avoid giving Israel any pretexts to export their "internal crisis." » Read more