November 19th

Palestinian state-building is the only game left in town ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Daily Star by David Ignatius - (Opinion) November 19, 2009 - 1:00am Looking at the city of Ramallah, you can imagine what a Palestinian state could someday be like if folks got serious: The streets are clean, there’s new construction in every direction, and Palestinian soldiers line the roads. A visitor sees new apartment buildings, banks, brokerage firms, luxury car dealerships, and even health clubs. » Read more

A disregard for law, and for peace ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Daily Star (Editorial) November 19, 2009 - 1:00am The news this week that the Israeli government has approved a further 900 new buildings in an East Jeru­salem settlement deals another hammer blow to the already waning peace process. Not only does the expansion of the Gilo settlement show a complete disregard for international law, it shows once again a preference for expansion over peace on the part of the Israel. In a speech to the Jewish Federation of North America a couple of weeks ago, Benjamin Netanyahu spoke of the achievements of the Jewish people. » Read more

CIA launches TV campaign to recruit Arab-Americans ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Associated Press November 19, 2009 - 1:00am There's a swirl of activity in a spacious, modern kitchen as final meal preparations are made. An older man tries to swipe a felafel off an appetizer plate but instead gets a loving hand slap from a woman. The happy, well-dressed guests move to a table full of food in a dining room adorned with Middle Eastern wall-hangings. » Read more

Few options left ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Jordan Times by Michael Jansen - (Opinion) November 19, 2009 - 1:00am The declaration by Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas that he does not wish to run for a second term if and when elections are held has shocked both Israel and the US. His presence at the top of the Palestinian Authority provided them with the cover they needed to pursue their own selfish policies: Israel to continue its colonisation enterprise in the West Bank and East Jerusalem, the US to carry on with its longstanding capitulation to the demands of the powerful hardline Zionist lobby, which marches in lockstep with the right-wing Israeli government. » Read more

Moves against peace ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Jordan Times November 19, 2009 - 1:00am It seems Israel is taking full advantage of the crisis in the peace process to push its anti-peace agenda. Razing houses in East Jerusalem and issuing tenders for another 900 settlement units in illegal settlements, these ones in Gilo, a particularly ugly housing estate near Bethlehem, the Israeli government is continuing to send the kind of unmistakable signals that really ought to leave this country exposed as the pariah state it is. » Read more

Obama: Settlement expansion could be ‘dangerous’ ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Jewish Telegraphic Agency (JTA) November 19, 2009 - 1:00am President Obama said additional Israeli settlement building "embitters the Palestinians in a way that could end up being very dangerous." In an interview Wednesday with Fox News in China, Obama said Israel's decision to approve the construction of 900 new apartments on the outskirts of the eastern Jerusalem neighborhood of Gilo was not helpful to peace talks. » Read more

A wheelless cart before a lame horse ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Jerusalem Post by Zalman Shoval - (Opinion) November 18, 2009 - 1:00am One should never underestimate the propensity of the Palestinians for shooting themselves in the foot, to wit, the situation Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas has put himself in with regard to the peace process. True, this may not have been entirely his fault - mixed signals from abroad also had something to do with it, but Abbas seems to be bent on doing everything to get himself into an even deeper hole by adopting ever more intransigent positions. Then there was his zigzagging on the Goldstone Report, after first having asked Israel during the Gaza war to "smash" Hamas. » Read more

Israel building Jewish homes with one hand, destroying Arab homes with the other ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Haaretz by Nir Hasson - November 19, 2009 - 1:00am The World Likud movement held a cornerstone-laying ceremony yesterday for the expansion of the neighborhood of Nof Zion, despite - or possibly because of - American pressure against building in East Jerusalem. The Jewish settlement is in the middle of the Arab village of Jabal Mukkaber. Meanwhile, the Jerusalem municipality razed two Palestinian homes in East Jerusalem yesterday. » Read more

US-Israel relations: Is there a crisis? ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Ynetnews by Naama Lanir - November 19, 2009 - 1:00am The charged relationship between US President Barack Obama and Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has been topped with open outrage by the US administration over construction plans in Jerusalem's Gilo neighborhood. Does this unprecedented protest point to a serious crisis with Washington? » Read more

Analysis / Will Netanyahu's behavior push Obama into Abbas' arms? ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Haaretz by Akiva Eldar - (Analysis) November 19, 2009 - 1:00am The crisis surrounding the expansion of Jerusalem's Gilo neighborhood is making waves all the way to China now. U.S. President Barack Obama, an amazing orator in his own right, was able to easily duck a question from a reporter from the conservative Fox network on the Jerusalem issue. But Obama did not want to hide his anger in diplomatic phrasings this time. There are at least three reasons for Obama to take out his anger on Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu over the Gilo affair. » Read more