November 10th

Netanyahu defends construction in East Jerusalem ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Washington Post by Joel Greenberg - November 10, 2010 - 1:00am JERUSALEM -- The office of Israeli Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu on Tuesday issued a sharp defense of Israeli building in contested parts of Jerusalem, after President Obama said that new construction plans in East Jerusalem were not helpful to peace negotiations. "Jerusalem is not a settlement - Jerusalem is the capital of the State of Israel," a statement from Netanyahu's office said. "Israel never took upon itself any limits on building in Jerusalem, where 800,000 residents live, including during the 10 months of suspension of building in Judea and Samaria." » Read more

In Curt Exchange, U.S. Faults Israel on Housing ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The New York Times by Mark Landler - November 9, 2010 - 1:00am WASHINGTON — President Obama’s criticism of new Israeli housing plans for East Jerusalem, and Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s even sharper retort, have thrown the Middle East peace talks into jeopardy, with the dispute over Jewish settlements looming as a seemingly insuperable hurdle. » Read more

November 9th

Israel to build more homes in East Jerusalem ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Los Angeles Times by Edmund Sanders - November 8, 2010 - 1:00am Reporting from Jerusalem — Setting the stage for another potential clash with the Obama administration, Israel said Monday that it would build an additional 1,300 homes on disputed land in East Jerusalem. » Read more

After U.S. chides Netanyahu over East Jerusalem construction, more settlement plans unveiled ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Haaretz by Nir Hasson, Chaim Levinson - November 9, 2010 - 1:00am Israel published two major new settlement plans on Tuesday, threatening to undermine Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's latest trip to Washington. More than 1,000 Jewish homes were approved for construction beyond the Green Line in East Jerusalem, along with a second plan to build 800 homes in the West Bank settlement of Ariel. The U.S. administration had been trying to persuade Netanyahu to declare a second settlement freeze in the territories. The State Department said it was very unhappy when it learned of the plans to build in East Jerusalem. » Read more

PA: Shin Bet officers met with top Hamas officials 'over coffee' ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Haaretz by Avi Issacharoff - November 9, 2010 - 1:00am The Palestinian Authority complained to Israel recently that Shin Bet officers were in contact with high-level Hamas members around Jenin, senior Palestinian sources told Haaretz. The Palestinian sources said that 10 days ago a number of low ranking Shin Bet officers met with senior figures of Hamas and Islamic Jihad. » Read more

Netanyahu to Ban: 'Don’t erase 4,000 years of history' ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Jerusalem Post by Tovah Lazaroff - November 9, 2010 - 1:00am The United Nations should not erase 4,000 years of historic Jewish connection to the Cave of the Patriarchs and Rachel’s Tomb just to score a political point, Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu told the organization's Secretary General Ban Ki-moon when the two men met Monday evening in New York. » Read more

UN chief calls for efforts to revive stalled Israeli-Palestinian talks ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Xinhua November 8, 2010 - 1:00am UNITED NATIONS, Nov. 8 (Xinhua) -- UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon said Monday that it was vital to break the current diplomatic stalemate, resume the Israeli-Palestinian peace talks and produce results. The UN chief made the statement in his meeting with visiting Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Natanyahu against a backdrop of the stalled direct peace talks between Israelis and Palestinians. » Read more

Hamas nixes Arafat commemoration in Gaza Strip ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Jerusalem Post by Khaled Abu Toameh - November 8, 2010 - 1:00am As it has every year since taking control of the Gaza Strip in the summer of 2007, on Monday Hamas announced its decision to ban Fatah supporters from holding a rally in the Gaza Strip to mark the anniversary of Yasser Arafat’s death. Zakariya al-Agha, member of the Fatah Central Committee, said the Hamas government had informed him formally of the decision to ban the rally, which was scheduled to be held on November 11. He said the rally, which had been planned by Fatah, was supposed to be held in Gaza City’s Katibeh Square. » Read more

Israel's own citizens are the new target of extremist settlers ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The National by Jesse Rosenfeld - November 9, 2010 - 1:00am West Bank settlers entered the Arab city under the cover of an armed escort. As they proceeded, security forces chased Palestinian youth down alleys, firing tear gas, stun grenades and foam-covered bullets. Masked in keffiyahs, local high school students who had been striking against the settlers' provocations reorganised, throwing stones at the Israeli forces from behind makeshift barricades. » Read more

Peace process diplomacy continues in US ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Ma'an News Agency November 9, 2010 - 1:00am WASHINGTON (Ma'an) -- US officials expressed deep disappointment Monday following the announcement of advanced planning for new housing units in occupied East Jerusalem. "It is counterproductive to our efforts to resume direct negotiations between the parties. We have long urged both parties to avoid actions which could undermine trust, including in Jerusalem, and we will continue to work to resume direct negotiations to address this and other final status issues," US State Department spokesman Phillip Crowley said at a DC news meeting with reporters. » Read more