October 15th

Editorial: Positive Signs ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Arab News (Editorial) October 15, 2007 - 3:22pm The two biggest problems straddling the Palestinian fence today — Israel on one side and the Palestinian divisions on the other — are currently undergoing treatment with possible remedy in sight. For one, Hamas has said it is ready to hold reconciliation talks with the rival Fatah group of President Mahmoud Abbas, hinting it might be willing to relinquish control of Gaza. » Read more

Colonization And A Mediator's Bias Remain The Death Knells Of Peace ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Daily Star (Editorial) October 15, 2007 - 3:20pm US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice arrived in the Middle East over the weekend to try and prod the parties into attending the planned Arab-Israeli gathering in Annapolis next month. Her arrival coincided with the 13th anniversary of the Nobel Peace Prize that was awarded to the late Yasser Arafat and Yitzhak Rabin, and to Shimon Peres. The Oslo Accords that Arafat, Rabin and Peres signed in 1993 were a breakthrough in their day; but they never achieved their promise. » Read more

Blair Admits He Is Shocked By Discrimination On The West Bank ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Independent by Donald Macintyre - October 15, 2007 - 3:19pm While his aides munched tuna bagels thoughtfully provided by the Israeli military, a shirt-sleeved Tony Blair peered intently at a map showing the two main cargo crossing-points that will function between the West Bank and Israel once the 450-mile separation barrier between them is complete. Why, Mr Blair wanted to know from his host, an Israeli general in civvies, couldn't goods also be moved directly across the border from the nearby Palestinian industrial park that he is pressing Israel to approve? » Read more

Condoleezza Rice Warns Israelis Over Land Grab ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Times by Carolynne Wheeler - October 15, 2007 - 3:15pm Condoleezza Rice gave a warning yesterday that progress would be slow as the US Secretary of State embarked on a round of shuttle diplomacy in the Middle East in advance of a peace conference next month. Progress on a joint statement on Palestinian statehood, the framework of the US-hosted conference in Annapolis, Maryland, is still so limited that invitations have yet to be issued, and Dr Rice conceded yesterday that the coming days were unlikely to produce any significant breakthroughs. » Read more

Israel Signals Readiness To Cede Parts Of Jerusalem To Palestinians ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Guardian by Mark Tran - (Special Report) October 15, 2007 - 3:13pm The Israeli prime minister, Ehud Olmert, today signalled his readiness to give up parts of Jerusalem to the Palestinians in an apparent concession ahead of a US-sponsored peace conference. Mr Olmert noted that Israel had built a series of thriving Jewish neighbourhoods in east Jerusalem, but signalled that Israel's control of Arab areas was not necessary. » Read more

Rice Treads Carefully Towards Peace Deal ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Financial Times by Jan Mcgirk, Roulaf Khalaf, Daniel Dombey - October 15, 2007 - 3:09pm Condoleezza Rice arrived in the Middle East on Sunday to lay the ground for a showpiece meeting to be held this year in the US that is designed to advance Palestinian statehood and lift the fortunes of the beleaguered US administration. But as the clock starts ticking on the meeting, provisionally scheduled for late November in Annapolis, near Washington, the US secretary of state was confronted with the conflicting expectations of the Israelis and Palestinians on a document setting out the parameters of a final peace deal. » Read more

Uphill Climb For Rice On Mideast Peace ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Christian Science Monitor by Howard Lafranchi - October 15, 2007 - 3:04pm As the Bush administration moves to revive the long-dormant Middle East peace process – most notably by calling Israeli and Palestinian leaders to an international conference to be held next month outside Washington – pressure is building for a White House to deliver on its new quest for peace. » Read more

Palestinians Prepare To Stand Up For What Matters ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Inter Press Service (IPS) by Ramsey Ben-achour - October 15, 2007 - 3:02pm Hundreds of thousands of Palestinians are expected to take part in demonstrations highlighting poverty and inequality in the Occupied Palestinian Territories (OPT). Palestinians in the territories number three to four million. Oct. 17 has been picked as the United Nations-recognised International Day for the Eradication of Poverty. » Read more

Over The Line ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The New York Times by Adam Lebor - October 15, 2007 - 2:58pm There are two Israels: one inside the Green Line, the 1967 border, the other an occupying power extending beyond it. The first is a vibrant democracy, with Arab members of Parliament, university professors and lawyers, beauty queens and soldiers, and even a Muslim cabinet minister. » Read more

Rice Pushes Israelis, Palestinians Toward Middle ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Reuters by Arshad Mohammed - October 15, 2007 - 2:47pm Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice tried on Monday to push Palestinians and Israelis toward a middle ground in drafting a joint document seen as key to the success of a U.S.-hosted peace conference this year. After meeting Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas, Rice said the document should "seriously and substantively" address the core issues of the conflict -- a sharp contrast with Israeli hopes to keep it as vague as possible. » Read more