Abbas urges U.S., world to pressure Netanyahu on peace ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Haaretz April 1, 2009 - 12:00am Palestinian president Mahmud Abbas on Wednesday urged the international community to pressure Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's coalition government, saying the newly sworn-in leader "does not believe in peace," AFP reported. "Benjamin Netanyahu never believed in a two-state solution or accepted signed agreements and does not want to stop settlement activity. This is obvious," AFP quoted Abbas as telling the official Palestinian news agency. » Read more

Indecision causes Palestine to suffer ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The National April 1, 2009 - 12:00am ‘For I have known them all already, known them all/ Have known the evenings, mornings, afternoons/ I have measured out my life with coffee spoons.” Ennui as perhaps only TS Eliot can paint it; disappointment as perhaps only Palestinians can feel it. If anyone had hoped that the Arab League summit in Doha might have started to bridge the distance between the various sides in the Arab community over the Palestinian conflict, it didn’t. » Read more

Netanyahu Offers Conciliation, but Not Concessions ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The New York Times by Isabel Kershner - March 31, 2009 - 12:00am JERUSALEM — Taking over as Israel’s prime minister, Benjamin Netanyahu struck a somewhat conciliatory tone toward the Palestinians in an address Tuesday to Parliament, promising negotiations toward a permanent accord. But Mr. Netanyahu, the leader of the hawkish Likud Party, stopped short of endorsing a two-state solution for the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, a potential point of friction with the United States. » Read more

Obama has hit the ground running in the Mideast ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Daily Star by Abdel-Moneim Said - April 1, 2009 - 12:00am The Obama administration has hit the ground running in the Middle East by virtually reversing all the traditional positions of the Bush administration: from neglect to activism, from clash of civilizations to dialogue of civilizations, from believing that the Arab-Israel conflict cannot be resolved to believing that despite difficulties the hope is there. » Read more

Fasten your Seat Belts, Bibi is Back ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Asharq Alawsat by Abdul Rahman Al-Rashed - March 31, 2009 - 12:00am [The news of] Bibi Netanyahu's election to the position of Prime Minister of Israel was a piece of bad news, but something that nevertheless must be dealt with. Netanyahu's victory has aroused fear and disappointment that even US President Barack Obama has not hesitated to express. And now the question is; where will the man with the most notorious reputation in modern Israel lead the region? Will he change, in the same way that the Butcher [of Beirut] Ariel Sharon, and before him the extremist Menachem Begin, changed? » Read more