March 12th, 2009

What is to be done?
Speech by Ziad Asali at Newark, New Jersey - October 18, 2004 - 12:00am

A consensus, that is, nearly a consensus, about the contours of the final agreement for a genuine and lasting peace is known. It is a variation of the themes of Clinton’s Taba proposal, The Geneva Initiative, Nusseibeh- Ayalon, One Voice and most importantly, the Road Map. Polls and surveys of Palestinians, Israelis, American Jews and Arabs, as well as the general American public, indicate support for a Two-State solution based on what has come to be called the Historic Compromise.

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Palestine and Israel: Unkind History, Uncertain Future
Speech by Ziad Asali at Cornell University - September 3, 2003 - 12:00am

For a conflict that has been described as intractable, insoluble and “centuries old”, the most dramatic feature about the Palestine/ Israel conflict is the near unanimous agreement about the contours of its final resolution. Think about that. The majority of the Palestinians, Israelis, Arabs, Jews, Americans, Europeans, and people all over the world as well as global institutions and bodies are in support of an outline that goes as follows:

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In Pursuit of Peace
Speech by Ziad Asali at Tikkun Conference - June 2, 2003 - 12:00am

The march of events of humankind that we call history has been unkind to the Jews and Palestinians this past century. Europe, the seat of the pinnacle of world culture and western civilization, was seized with convulsive fits of hatred and barbarism that culminated in the Holocaust and made the defeat of Nazism the highest moral order of the time. The Palestinians, caught in the ensuing whirlwind, were eviscerated, displaced, denigrated and driven to desperation. Israel was established on 78% of the land of Palestine in 1948, and occupied the rest in 1967.

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Dr. Asali Addresses the World Affairs Council
Speech by Ziad Asali at Carnegie Endowment, Washington DC - December 8, 2004 - 1:00am

The very intractability of the Palestinian Israeli conflict over the past several decades makes it wiser to analyze it rather than to prognosticate about it. However, the long- standing deadlock and the sense of helpless shrugging of the shoulders with despair it generates, have recently been broken by several developments that call for a reassessment.

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Hamas calls for Islamic Jihad to halt rocket fire into Israel from the Gaza strip (1) (8). Palestinian national accord government talks continue in Cairo, as Egypt applies pressure for a swift resolution (2) (3) (4). After withdrawing from his appointment to head the National Intelligence Council, Charles Freeman blames the "pro-Israel lobby" (5) (14). Secretary of State Clinton warns that the pledged $900 million in American reconstruction aid for Gaza is contingent upon the new Palestinian government's recognition of Israel (9). A Wall Street Journal op-ed urges Palestinian economic growth as a key foundation for a lasting peace (12).

Hamas conditions dim unity gov’t prospects
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Jordan Times
March 12, 2009 - 12:00am

Hamas said on Wednesday it would demand the right to choose the next Palestinian prime minister and a majority of Cabinet seats in any unity government with Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas' secular Fateh faction. Hamas' opening position in Egyptian-mediated reconciliation talks in Cairo appeared to dim chances of a deal on a unity government acceptable to the United States and other Western powers, which shun the Islamist group for refusing to recognise Israel and renounce violence.

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Israel Stance Was Undoing of Nominee for Intelligence Post
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The New York Times
by Helene Cooper, Mark Mazzetti - March 11, 2009 - 12:00am

WASHINGTON — When Dennis C. Blair, the director of national intelligence, announced that he would install Charles W. Freeman Jr. in a top intelligence post, the decision surprised some in the White House who worried that the selection could be controversial and an unnecessary distraction, according to administration officials.

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Dramatic Shift In Diplomacy Draws Muted React, So Far
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Jewish Daily Forward
by J.J. Goldberg - (Analysis) March 11, 2009 - 12:00am

It is an Obama revolution that has gone by virtually unremarked. In the space of one week, President Obama and Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton have knocked down no fewer than five long-standing pillars of American foreign policy from the Bush years and earlier, leaving Israel and other countries affected to confront a transformed world of diplomacy. Between March 2 and March 7, the Obama administration: • Sent two senior envoys to Damascus for high-level negotiations with Syria, ending Washington’s years-long effort to isolate the country.

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Dramatic Shift In Diplomacy Draws Muted React, So Far
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Jewish Daily Forward
by J.J. Goldberg - (Analysis) March 11, 2009 - 12:00am

t is an Obama revolution that has gone by virtually unremarked. In the space of one week, President Obama and Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton have knocked down no fewer than five long-standing pillars of American foreign policy from the Bush years and earlier, leaving Israel and other countries affected to confront a transformed world of diplomacy. Between March 2 and March 7, the Obama administration: • Sent two senior envoys to Damascus for high-level negotiations with Syria, ending Washington’s years-long effort to isolate the country.

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Mideast Peace Can Start With Economic Growth
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Wall Street Journal
by Daniel Doron - March 12, 2009 - 12:00am

Last week, Secretary of State Hillary Clinton told Israeli Prime Minister-designate Benjamin Netanyahu that the U.S. does not want to be restricted by "old formulas" when it comes to the peace process. As she works on a new approach, she may want to ask why costly diplomatic efforts have not led to Israeli-Palestinian peace but to ongoing war.

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