November 19th

Mideast Conference Nears, With Few Plans ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Washington Post by Glenn Kessler - November 19, 2007 - 4:21pm A few days after Thanksgiving, President Bush and Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice plan to open a meeting in Annapolis to launch the first round of substantive Israeli-Palestinian peace talks during Bush's presidency. But no conference date has been set. No invitations have been issued. And no one really agrees on what the participants will actually talk about once they arrive at the Naval Academy for the meeting, which is intended to relaunch Bush's stillborn "road map" plan to create a Palestinian state. » Read more

Israel, Palestine, Crab Cakes ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The New York Times by Roger Cohen - (Opinion) November 19, 2007 - 4:20pm I would like to invest hope in the Annapolis Middle East peace conference, or meeting, or parley, or whatever the term is. Really, I would. The 59-year battle for the same land of Zionist and Palestinian national movements has not been good for anyone. » Read more

U.s. Pushes For Turnout At Middle East Conference ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The New York Times by Steven Erlanger - November 19, 2007 - 4:18pm By pushing Israel to accept immediate negotiations with the Palestinians on the thorny “final status” issues, with the aim to conclude a peace settlement within a year, the Bush administration is trying to attract a significant Arab presence at the peace conference in Annapolis, Md. The meeting in Annapolis, now penciled in to start Nov. 26 and last less than 24 hours, is meant to begin — and bless — negotiations between Israeli and Palestinian leaders on a final peace agreement between them, ostensibly to be completed by the end of the Bush presidency. » Read more

Under Siege, Life In Gaza Just Shrinks ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The New York Times by Steven Erlanger - November 19, 2007 - 4:18pm IT’S a miserable time to be a Gazan. EMPTY STREETS Gaza City can feel like a ghost town on a Friday morning, with its factories closed, jobs scarce and gas too expensive for many people to use. SCRIMPING Majid Ajour used to sell pigeons for $3 apiece. With the principal border crossings to Israel and Egypt closed, the price of imported feed has risen. Now he tries to sell his pigeons for nearly $4 each. » Read more

November 16th

Crafting The Invitation To Annapolis ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Haaretz by Yonatan Touval - (Opinion) November 16, 2007 - 4:32pm As the date for the Annapolis summit nears and doubts increase over the ability of Israel and the Palestinians to agree on a joint document outlining how they intend to resolve the core issues of the conflict, the time has come for the United States to step in and draft a letter of invitation. » Read more

Deserting A Sinking Ship ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Haaretz by Danny Rubenstein - (Opinion) November 16, 2007 - 4:30pm In the summer of 1971, Prof. Yehoshua Porat of the Hebrew University of Jerusalem published his important book "The Emergence of the Arab- Palestinian National Movement, 1918-1929." In a preface to the book, veteran teacher and researcher Gabriel Baer praised "the pioneering work in the field, in which the scientific approach has been neglected." The best scholars associated with this research field, including Arabs, praised Porat's work. » Read more

Israel Exhibits Its True Colours ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Gulf News (Editorial) November 16, 2007 - 4:28pm Since 1967, when Israel occupied the eastern part of Jerusalem, there has been a silent movement by Israeli politicians and consecutive prime ministers to ensure that talk on the fate of occupied East Jerusalem is always pushed to "later stages" of any "negotiations" with the Palestinians or even the international community. In fact, the first time occupied Jerusalem was put on the negotiating table was during the Camp David meetings in 2000. Then-Israeli prime minister Ehud Barak received heavy criticism from many Israelis for even discussing it. » Read more

Judging Hamas's Actions ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Asharq Alawsat (Editorial) November 16, 2007 - 4:27pm Hamas broke away from the Palestinian Authority and took over Gaza by force. Some of its members threw a defenseless Fatah employee from the rooftop of a 15-story apartment building to his death. Hamas’ security forces killed peaceful demonstrators in the streets and prevented people from praying in public squares; all this in just under five months. Hamas openly abused the political system that brought it to power and in the process ruined intra-Palestinian relations. Therefore we wonder, why the reckless behavior and why all this violence? » Read more

From Payer To Player In The Mideast ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Jordan Times by El-hassan Bin Talal - (Opinion) November 16, 2007 - 4:25pm The European Union’s policy in the Middle East is the litmus test of its common foreign and security policy. Many Europeans share this belief, but, as the EU considers entering the fray of Middle East peace talks, it must respond to former Israeli prime minister Ariel Sharon’s jibe that in the region “you are payers, not players”. » Read more

The Palestinian Path To Peace Does Not Go Via Annapolis ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Guardian by Jonathan Steele - (Opinion) November 16, 2007 - 4:22pm As the United States-sponsored Israeli-Palestinian meeting in Annapolis, Maryland, approaches, the key question is what follows when it fails. Fiasco is looming, so what do the Palestinians do next? In their decades-long bid for justice, they have already tried everything. » Read more