June 5th, 2009

US president and Middle East peace
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Jordan Times
by Ahmad Majdoubeh - (Opinion) June 5, 2009 - 12:00am

By appointing an envoy to push for Middle East peace, by recognising the two-state solution to the Palestinian-Israeli problem, by receiving Arab and Israeli leaders at the White House and by coming to the region to meet with more Arab leaders, US President Barack Obama is already taking significant steps to activate peace efforts. Some analysts have argued that Obama will give his utmost attention to the current economic crisis and that Middle East peace will occupy a back seat. Obama is proving these analysts wrong.

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Obama’s speech - warm and honest
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Jordan Times
by Daoud Kuttab - (Opinion) June 5, 2009 - 12:00am

President Barack Obama spoke to Arabs and Muslims from his own experiences and from his heart. Without conceding much but being honest with his audience, he clearly won over the hearts and minds of many people that have so far rejected America. By speaking honestly, even on issues that are not pleasing to hear, he succeeded in erasing the biggest blemish on all US administrations, hypocrisy when it comes to the Middle East conflict. By speaking of the need to recognise the right of Israel to exist, he highlighted the similar need to recognise the rights of a Palestinian state to exist.

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‘Preparing to put pressure on’
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The National
by Vita Bekker - June 4, 2009 - 12:00am

While Palestinians expressed cautious optimism yesterday towards the reaffirmed commitment of Barack Obama to Palestinian statehood and his rejection of Jewish settlement expansion, Israel’s new Right-wing government reacted coolly to the US president’s pledge.

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Obama must match his words with actions
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Gulf News
(Editorial) June 4, 2009 - 12:00am

The United States is aiming to take a "new way forward" in its relationship with the Muslim world. Of this there is no question. Its President Barack Obama succeeded in delivering a message of respect to Muslims across the world through his historic speech in Cairo yesterday. His familiarity with Islam and his ability to quote comfortably from the Quran (he did it four times) is bound to resonate in this part of the world.

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Eliminating the US “Scapegoat”
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Dar Al-Hayat
by Hassan Haidar - (Analysis) June 5, 2009 - 12:00am

Obama’s historical visit to the Middle East that he started in Saudi Arabia yesterday is of concern to all extremists, even those who are supposed to be staunch enemies – in theory at least. Israeli Minister of Transportation, Katz, who is close to Netanyahu, hastened to criticize the US endeavor to “win the hearts” of Iran and Al Qaeda and publicly criticize the Israeli settlement policy.

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June 4th

Hussein Ibish on WHYY-Philadelphia's Radio Times with Marty Moss-Coane
Press Release - Contact Information: Hussein Ibish - June 3, 2009 - 12:00am

Washington, DC, June 4 -- ATFP Senior Fellow Hussein Ibish joins NPR affiliate WHYY Philadelphia's Radio Times with Marty Moss-Coane to discuss US President Barack Obama's upcoming speech in Cairo and related regional issues. NPR Program Description


President Obama delivers his historic speech to the Muslim world from Cairo (1) (3) (12). Senior Israeli officials accuse Obama of breaching alleged understandings on settlement growth reached with President Bush (2), as the issue of a settlement freeze remains tense (4) (5). Four are killed in the West Bank as Palestinian security forces clash with Hamas militants (6). A report issued by the World Bank finds that Israeli restrictions are holding up many of its projects in the West Bank and impeding Palestinian development (7). A Tel Aviv University poll finds that Israeli support for settlements in the Occupied Territories is at an all-time low (8).

Obama's Cairo speech rabbis
Media Mention of ATFP In Foreign Policy - June 4, 2009 - 12:00am

Who advised President Barack Obama on the big speech? "Over the weekend, White House officials hosted a group of Muslim and other foreign policy scholars to discuss what points Mr. Obama should touch on," Politico's Mike Allen reports in Playbook. The New York Times details: Ghaith Al-Omari from the American Task Force on Palestine, Carnegie Endowment's Karim Sadjadpour, Iran expert Vali Nasr, who's been working for Holbrooke, and Brookings' Shibley Telhami, who's been all over the airwaves incidentally commenting on the speech:

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Rival Messages as Obama Lands in the Mideast
Media Mention of Ghaith al-Omari In The New York Times - June 4, 2009 - 12:00am

Aiming to repair the American relationship with the Muslim world, President Obama was greeted on Wednesday with reminders of the vast gulfs his Cairo speech must bridge, as voices as disparate as Al Qaeda’s and the Israeli government’s competed to shape how Mr. Obama’s message would be heard.

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ATFP Warmly Welcomes President Obama’s Historic Cairo Speech
Press Release - Contact Information: Hussein Ibish - June 4, 2009 - 12:00am

Washington, DC, June 4 -- The American Task Force on Palestine (ATFP) warmly welcomed the speech delivered today by President Barack Obama in Cairo. “It is time for us to act on what everyone knows to be true,” the President said, as he reaffirmed the determination of the United States government to seek a negotiated agreement between Israel and the Palestinians that allows for the creation of a Palestinian state to live in peace and security alongside Israel.



American Task Force on Palestine - 1634 Eye St. NW, Suite 725, Washington DC 20006 - Telephone: 202-262-0017