The Inevitable Bi-national Regime ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Haaretz by Meron Benvenisti - (Opinion) January 22, 2010 - 1:00am Translated by Zalman Amit and Daphna Levitt. The occupation of the territories in 1967 resulted from military action, but the military element quickly became secondary, while the “civilian” component,-settlements,-became the dominant factor, subjugating the military to its needs and turning the security forces into a militia in the service of the Jewish ethnic group. Eventually, settlements themselves were no longer as meaningful as they once had been. » Read more

Outlook for peace process grim ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The National by Omar Karmi - January 24, 2010 - 1:00am Samer Arar, 26, was not impressed with the visit on Friday of George Mitchell, the US Middle East envoy. Mr Mitchell was in Ramallah for talks with Mahmoud Abbas, the PLO leader, in a renewed, and so far fruitless, US effort to get a peace process between Palestinians and Israelis going again. A waiter in a restaurant in central Ramallah, Mr Arar said Mr Mitchell’s efforts were “for nothing”. » Read more

The Obama Administration and Verbal Backtracking ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Dar Al-Hayat by Walid Choucair - (Opinion) January 25, 2010 - 1:00am Not a day goes by without US efforts to revive the Palestinian-Israeli peace negotiations track appearing to be serious and possibly headed for producing a result, without the issue appearing difficult and nearly impossible to achieve the following day. Ever since US President Barack Obama tasked special envoy George Mitchell with responsibility for advancing peace negotiations, the region has appeared to be stuck in this cycle, which, as time goes on, increases the complications related to resuming the negotiations. » Read more

Palestinians: Netanyahu's claim to West Bank destroys peace efforts ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Haaretz by Avi Issacharoff, Barak Ravid - January 24, 2010 - 1:00am The Palestinian Authority has condemned Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu for laying Israel's claim to certain West Bank land during a tree planting ceremony in a settlement bloc earlier Sunday, saying the move undermined efforts to return to the negotiating table. "This is an unacceptable act that destroys all the efforts being exerted by Senator [George] Mitchell in order to bring the parties back to the negotiating table," Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas' aide Nabil Abu Rudeineh said, referring to U.S. President Barack Obama's special Middle East envoy. » Read more

Threatening posturing ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Jordan Times (Opinion) January 25, 2010 - 1:00am Israel is not only talking down peace prospects in the Middle East, it is also behaving aggressively towards Lebanon, Syria and Gaza, and has made clear its intention to strike at Iranian nuclear capabilities. A few days ago, an Israeli minister said that the battle against Hizbollah, in southern Lebanon, is not over. He was clear in describing the Israel war against Lebanon in the summer of 2006 as unfinished business, saying that it is only a matter of time before his country will wage war again on Lebanon. » Read more

Olmert's negotiator: Full Mideast peace impossible ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Haaretz by Aluf Benn, Barak Ravid - January 25, 2010 - 1:00am "I do not believe that in the foreseeable future there is a possibility of an agreement with the Palestinians on all the issues, especially on the problematic core issues," says Udi Dekel, who headed the negotiations task force in the previous government. Dekel spoke on Thursday at a conference on the unofficial "Geneva Initiative" peace plan. Other participants included many members of the diplomatic corps. » Read more

Where next for Israeli-Palestinian peace? ATFP World Press Roundup Article from China View by David Harris - January 25, 2010 - 1:00am JERUSALEM, Jan. 24 (Xinhua) -- U.S. special envoy to the Middle East George Mitchell is in the region once again in a bid to persuade Israelis and Palestinians back to the negotiating table. Despite the fact that Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said on Sunday that Mitchell has brought with him some interesting ideas, Israeli and Palestinian analysts said they do not hold out much hope for talks resuming any time soon. ONE YEAR ON » Read more

Editorial: Obama and Mideast ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Arab News (Editorial) January 25, 2010 - 1:00am US President Barack Obama hit the mark when he acknowledged that the Middle East peace process has not moved forward; that “we overestimated our ability to persuade” the Palestinians and Israelis “to start engaging in a meaningful conversation;” and that “what we did this year didn’t produce the kind of breakthrough that we wanted.” But in the Time magazine interview marking the first anniversary of his inauguration, Obama’s next comment was odd: “If we had anticipated some of these political problems on both sides earlier, we might not have raised expectations as high.” » Read more

U.S. fully committed to Middle East peace: Mitchell ATFP World Press Roundup Article from China View January 25, 2010 - 1:00am AMMAN, Jan. 24 (Xinhua) -- The United States is committed to comprehensive Middle East peace and the two-state solution which stipulates the establishment of an independent and viable Palestinian state, U.S. Middle East envoy George Mitchell said on Sunday. "President Barack Obama, Secretary of State Hillary Clinton and the U.S. are fully committed to a comprehensive peace in the Middle East," Mitchell told reporters following a meeting with Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas in the Jordanian capital of Amman. » Read more

Long the glue of Gaza, clans say Hamas is undermining tribal justice ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Christian Science Monitor by Erin Cunningham - January 22, 2010 - 1:00am The residents of Gaza have a name for the period of tribal lawlessness that plagued their impoverished territory between Israel’s withdrawal in 2005 and the Hamas takeover of 2007. Marred by rampant tit-for-tat murders, kidnappings, theft, and checkpoints run by armed clans, Gazans call these years ayam al-fowda, or the “days of chaos.” Those days are gone, however, after 2-1/2 years of strong Hamas rule successfully disarmed the territory’s rival clans – made up of just one or sometimes several extended families – and restored order again to Gaza’s streets. » Read more