June 18th

After Bibi’s Speech: A Shift To Quiet Talks ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Jewish Daily Forward by Nathan Guttman - June 18, 2009 - 12:00am The Obama administration now seems poised to ease its public pressure on Israel following Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s acceptance of a two-state solution to his country’s conflict with the Palestinians. Following Netanyahu’s much awaited June 14 speech addressing America’s concerns about the policies of his new government, Israeli diplomats said they sensed a new willingness within the administration to “find creative solutions” to the issue of Jewish settlement activity in the Israeli occupied West Bank that would allow some limited building to continue. » Read more

Rights groups decry restrictions on Gaza trade ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Jerusalem Post by Tovah Lazaroff - June 18, 2009 - 12:00am A can of humous from Gaza is a rarity anywhere in the world, Oxfam spokesman Mike Bailey said as he added his voice to a group of 36 aid organizations, who along with the UN on Wednesday protested Israel's two-year-old "blockade" of the Strip. "I was in Gaza," Bailey said at a press conference which was symbolically held in a UN Relief and Works Agency (UNRWA) warehouse in Jerusalem that supplies Palestinian refugees. As he held up a small can of humous from Gaza, he added, "I brought you something that only someone with an international passport can carry out." » Read more

Israel: Markets without borders ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Christian Science Monitor by Ilene Prusher - June 17, 2009 - 12:00am “Buying local” can help reduce a shopper’s carbon footprint. It can also unify warring neighbors – such as Israelis and Palestinians now working under the radar of big business and government officials to form organic-food co-ops. The goal: Avoid pesticides and circumvent the military closures, which keep most Palestinian produce from getting to Israeli markets. To do so, groups of Israelis buy produce directly from Palestinian organic farmers in West Bank villages and then sell it to a network of people in Israel who are interested in buying “green market.” » Read more

US, Israel still butting heads on settlements ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Associated Press by Matthew Lee - June 18, 2009 - 12:00am The Obama administration and Israel gave no ground Wednesday in their opposing views over Jewish settlements in Palestinian territory despite speculation the two sides might be nearing compromise. After talks in Washington, Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton and Israeli Foreign Minister Avigdor Lieberman held to long-standing positions ahead of a meeting next week between U.S. special Mideast peace envoy George Mitchell and Israel's Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. The settlement question is expected to dominate those talks. » Read more

Facts on Israeli Settlements ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Washington Post by Daniel Kurtzer - June 18, 2009 - 12:00am Faulty analysis of the Israeli settlement issue is being passed off as fact. Charles Krauthammer’s column “The Settlements Myth,” which ran June 5 in The Washington Post, is one example. Here are the facts: In 2003, the Israeli government accepted, with some reservations, the “road map” for peace, which imposed two requirements on Israel regarding settlements: “GOI (Government of Israel) immediately dismantles settlement outposts erected since March 2001. Consistent with the Mitchell Report, GOI freezes all settlement activity (including natural growth of settlements).” » Read more

Remarks With Israeli Foreign Minister Avigdor Lieberman ATFP World Press Roundup Article from United States State Department June 17, 2009 - 12:00am SECRETARY CLINTON: Good afternoon. It is my pleasure to welcome Foreign Minister Lieberman to the State Department today for his first official visit to Washington in his new role. Minister Lieberman’s visit gave me the opportunity to reaffirm the United States deep, unshakable friendship and bond with Israel. Our commitment to Israel’s security is and will remain a cornerstone of our foreign policy, and I was pleased to have this chance to express that personally to the foreign minister. The United States has no greater ally in the Middle East and no greater friend than Israel. » Read more

U.S. ups pressure on Israel to end Gaza blockade ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Haaretz by Barak Ravid - June 18, 2009 - 12:00am The United States has stepped up pressure on Israel regarding the Gaza Strip: Three weeks ago it sent Jerusalem a diplomatic note officially protesting Gaza policy and demanding a more liberal opening of the border crossings to facilitate reconstruction. U.S. and Israeli sources say the note was followed by a verbal communication clarifying that the Obama administration thinks Israel's linkage of the case of abducted soldier Gilad Shalit and the opening of the crossings was not constructive. » Read more

June 17th

Haaretz poll: 64 percent of Israelis back two-state solution ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Haaretz by Akiva Eldar - (Analysis) June 17, 2009 - 12:00am Figures close politically to Benjamin Netanyahu, and even Labor Party leaders, were worried that the prime minister's fear of U.S. President Barack Obama would overcome his terror of the settlers and force the words "settlement freeze" from his mouth. Here is what senior labor figure Social Affairs Minister Isaac Herzog said two weeks ago at a Knesset hearing on the illegal outposts: "There are components that certainly can be authorized or for which a solution can be found through negotiations," adding, "I absolutely believe in the need for natural growth." » Read more

Netanyahu Feels the Heat ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Washington Post by Harold Meyerson - (Opinion) June 17, 2009 - 12:00am Israeli Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu has at last acknowledged, with caveats, the need to establish a Palestinian state. Actually, Netanyahu's Palestine is primarily caveats, with a dash of state thrown in for appearances' sake. In his speech last Sunday, the prime minister failed to address the continual growth of Israeli settlements on the occupied West Bank, where close to 300,000 Israeli settlers live. The Palestine that Netanyahu envisions must steadily shrink to accommodate the growing number of Israeli settlers in its midst. It would be a collection of barely contiguous cantons. » Read more

America's Vague Praise for Netanyahu ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Dar Al-Hayat by Randa Takieddine - (Opinion) June 17, 2009 - 12:00am Some believe that the description by US President Barack Obama of Netanyahu’s speech as a step forward is because no one in the West confronts Israel openly. It is the state of Holocaust victims and everyone applauds a bad speech with nothing new in it except the position of Benjamin Netanyahu and his extremist, right-wing government. Others believe that Obama’s description of Netanyahu’s speech as a step forward represents an American welcome that precedes real pressure on Israel to enter negotiations. » Read more