May 12th

US General Builds A Palestinian Army ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Nation by Robert Dreyfuss - (Blog) May 10, 2009 - 12:00am Last Thursday, in what was billed as his very first on-the-record address, Lt. Gen. Keith Dayton, U.S. security coordinator for Israel and the Palestinian Authority, spoke to the 2009 Soref Symposium organized by the Washington Institute for Near East Policy. WINEP, of course, is the chief thinktank for the Washington-based Israel lobby. And in his talk, Gen. Dayton delivered an important warning. » Read more

An Agenda for Mr. Netanyahu ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The New York Times (Editorial) May 11, 2009 - 12:00am President Obama has set clear and appropriate priorities ahead of the visit to Washington on May 18 by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu of Israel. Speaking to Jewish-American activists last week, Vice President Joseph Biden conceded, “You’re not going to like my saying this,” and then he laid out the administration’s list. » Read more

On His Tour, Pope Runs Into Politics of Middle East and Holocaust ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The New York Times by Rachel Donadio - May 12, 2009 - 12:00am Pope Benedict XVI said he came to the Middle East as “a pilgrim of peace,” but on Monday, his first day in Israel seemed to underscore the tensions in the region rather than ease them. After the pope visited the Yad Vashem Holocaust memorial and offered the “deep compassion” of the Roman Catholic Church for Hitler’s victims, Jewish leaders expressed disappointment that the pontiff, who is German, had not mentioned Germany or the Nazis. » Read more

Israel Closes Media Center, Upsetting Palestinians ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The New York Times by Isabel Kershner - May 11, 2009 - 12:00am The Israeli police on Monday closed down an official Palestinian media center that had been set up in East Jerusalem for the visit of Pope Benedict XVI, as Israel and the Palestinians competed to exercise authority in the contested part of the city. As the pope arrived in Jerusalem, each side accused the other of exploiting his visit for political gain. Though the pope’s movements have been carefully choreographed to avoid obvious political minefields, every step and word was bound to be closely scrutinized. » Read more

May 11th

PA says in charge of pope's east J'lem visit ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Ynetnews by Erfat Weiss - May 11, 2009 - 12:00am Several hours before the pope's visit, the question of east Jerusalem's status has been put to the test once again: The Jerusalem Police on Monday morning sealed off a conference hall at the Ambassador Hotel in the Sheikh Jarrah neighborhood following the Palestinian Authority's plan to hold a briefing for foreign and Palestinian journalists ahead of Pope Benedict XVI's visit to Israel. A senior PA official told Ynet in response that "when the pope arrives in east Jerusalem, he and his visit are our responsibility." » Read more

To gain a true affinity for Arab Jerusalem, visit it ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The National by Sultan Al Qasemi - (Opinion) May 10, 2009 - 12:00am This year Jerusalem was chosen as the Unesco Arab capital of culture. What Unesco doesn’t understand is that Arabs only honour Jerusalem in their minds and with their rhetoric, and that there is no real support for the Holy City. » Read more

Barack Obama’s promising push for peace ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The National (Editorial) May 10, 2009 - 12:00am Quietly, momentum has been building in the long-running Israeli-Palestinian peace process. You could be forgiven for missing it amid the diplomatic flurry that defined Barack Obama’s first 100 days in office. But given the signs, Mr Obama appears to be planning a major push to get peace efforts back onto a productive path. The most encouraging development is that after seven years, the Saudi-authored Arab Peace Initiative appears to be gaining traction in Washington. » Read more

Netanyahu to meet Egyptian leader ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The National by Vita Bekker - May 11, 2009 - 12:00am Benjamin Netanyahu will meet Hosni Mubarak, the Egyptian president today, for the first time since being re-elected Israel’s prime minister amid differences between the two countries on the Israeli-Palestinian conflict and tensions stirred by Israel’s ultranationalist foreign minister. The Israeli leader will meet Mr Mubarak in the Red Sea resort of Sharm el Sheikh. The trip marks Mr Netanyahu’s first official visit abroad since being sworn in on March 31, and comes just a week before he holds a key meeting with Barack Obama, the US president, in Washington. » Read more

A Papal Visit and Then It's Over! ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Dar Al-Hayat by Elias Harfoush - (Opinion) May 10, 2009 - 12:00am I read a comment made by a reporter for an American Catholic newspaper about the visit of Pope Benedict XVI's to Jordan, Israel and the Palestinian territories, saying: "If he simply manages to get back to Rome without starting a war, some might declare the trip a success!" » Read more

Between Egypt and Hizbullah, a crisis just waiting to happen ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Bitterlemons by Gamal A. G. Soltan - (Opinion) May 11, 2009 - 12:00am The current tension between Egypt and Hizbullah is a crisis that has been waiting to happen for years. The causes of tension between the two sides are multifaceted. This is a conflict between nationalism and supra-nationalism, between Egypt and Iran, between moderation and radicalism, between Sunnis and Shiites and between status quo and revisionist forces in the Middle East. Hizbullah's ideology, its nature as a non-state armed actor and its strong alliance with Iran are sufficient to generate heavy doubts and concerns among mainstream Arab states regarding the movement. » Read more