November 12th, 2007

Israel, U.s. Jews Intensify
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Jewish Telegraphic Agency (JTA)
by Ron Kampeas - November 12, 2007 - 1:36pm

A renewed push from Jewish organizations for tougher sanctions against Iran is facing tough obstacles in Washington and capitals throughout the world. American Jewish groups are aggressively attempting to rally support for isolating Iran until it ends its suspected nuclear weapons program. They are lobbying Congress, reaching out to friendly nations overseas and seeking allies in the United States.

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A Glimpse At A Life In Line
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Chicago Tribune
by Robert Cotton Fite - (Opinion) November 12, 2007 - 1:35pm

Waiting in line at a West Bank border checkpoint, intimidated by the prisonlike atmosphere and frustrated by the Israeli soldier denying me passage back into Israel, I got my first real taste of what it's like most days for thousands of Palestinians. There I was, having just enjoyed visits to several Palestinian towns, looking very much the harmless, middle-class American tourist, with what I was sure were the right stamps in my passport, being told I could not re-enter Israel nor continue my trip to Nazareth.

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The Spy Who Wants Israel To Talk
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Washington Post
by David Ignatius - November 12, 2007 - 1:34pm

Efraim Halevy, the former head of the Israeli intelligence agency Mossad, titled his memoirs "Man in the Shadows." But now that he's out in the sunlight, the 72-year-old retired spy chief has some surprisingly contrarian things to say about Iran and Syria. The gist of his message is that rather than constantly ratcheting up the rhetoric of confrontation, the United States and Israel should be looking for ways to establish a creative dialogue with these adversaries.

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Gaza’s Isolation Takes Toll On Students And Prices
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The New York Times
by Steven Erlanger - November 12, 2007 - 1:31pm

Miriam Ashour will turn 18 in November and speaks English with only the slightest of accents. She has a scholarship to study for a college degree in business administration at Columbia College, affiliated with the United Methodist Church, in Columbia, S.C. But she will miss at least the first semester. She is among some 670 Gazans enrolled in schools abroad who have been denied permission to leave the territory.

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U.s. And Israel Play Down Hopes For Peace Talks
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The New York Times
by Steven Erlanger - November 12, 2007 - 1:30pm

The American-sponsored Middle East peace conference expected by the end of the month looks to be thin on content, mostly serving as a stage to begin formal negotiations on a peace treaty between Israel and the Palestinian president, Mahmoud Abbas. Israeli and American officials have been so busy dampening expectations that they are not even calling the event a conference anymore, instead referring to it merely as a “meeting.”

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November 11th

The New York Times reports on how the continuing blockade of Gaza is preventing students from reaching their schools outside the territory (2.) A Chicago Tribune opinion by Episcopal priest and clinical psychologist Robert Fite recounts experiences the challenges of getting through Israeli checkpoints in the occupied West Bank (4.) An Economist (UK) editorial concludes the the very democratic nature of Israel is at stake if inner tensions over withdrawing from the occupied Palestinian territories are not resolved (8.) BitterLemons (Israel/Palestine) features an interview with Gaza Community Mental Health Project's Eyad Sarraj on the options facing Palestinians today (10.) A Haaretz (Israel) opinion by Gideon Levy urges the Israeli government to break out of the mentality of negotiating an end to the occupation as a result of violence (12.)

November 9th

Israel, Pa Agree Future Deals Hinge On Implementing Road Map
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Haaretz
by Barak Ravid And Mazal Mualem - November 9, 2007 - 6:33pm

Israel and the Palestinian Authority agreed on Thursday that any future agreement between them will be conditional to the implementation of the first stage of the road map, which includes Palestinian counter-terrorism operations and a freeze on construction in the settlements. The agreement, which follows two weeks of stalemate in the negotiations between the two sides, may pave the way to the drafting of a shared declaration that will be presented at an upcoming peace summit in Annapolis, Maryland, that aims to set terms for relaunching peace talks.

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The Skeptic And The Believer
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Haaretz
by Aluf Benn - (Opinion) November 9, 2007 - 6:30pm

Defense Minister Ehud Barak rose to speak at the annual conference of the Saban Forum in Jerusalem, on Monday of this week. Unlike Prime Minister Ehud Olmert, Quartet envoy and former British prime minister Tony Blair and U.S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice, who had delivered their speeches the previous evening directly into the cameras transmitting directly into the news broadcasts, Barak maintained ambiguity and his remarks were ostensibly intended only for closed discussion.

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Time For Modesty In The Middle East Peace Process
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Daily Star
by Richard Naass - (Opinion) November 9, 2007 - 6:29pm

"Ripeness is all," concludes Edgar in King Lear. I will leave it to Shakespeare scholars to decipher what he had in mind. But for diplomats and historians, understanding the concept of ripeness is central to their jobs: it refers to how ready a negotiation or conflict is to be resolved.

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What’s Good For The Goose...
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Jordan Times
by George Hishmeh - (Opinion) November 9, 2007 - 6:17pm

As the expectations for a serious movement towards a Palestinian-Israeli settlement seem to be growing by the day, a little-known group, Justice for Jews from Arab Countries (JJAC), is trying to ride the coattails of the upcoming US-sponsored Mideast peace “meeting” in Annapolis later this month.

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