Abbas ‘absolutely’ still our partner, Peres tells ‘Post’ ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Jerusalem Post by Greer Fay Cashman, David Horovitz - May 9, 2011 - 12:00am PA President Mahmoud Abbas is “absolutely” still a peace partner for Israel, despite his signing of a reconciliation agreement with Hamas, President Shimon Peres has told The Jerusalem Post. In an interview conducted to mark Israel’s 63rd Independence Day, the president described the Fatah-Hamas accord signed last week as “a temporary bridge.” Peres said he “criticized” Abbas over it, but “that doesn’t free me of the need to talk with him.... I have no intention of turning my back on the Palestinian peace camp, even if I criticize it.” » Read more

Livni: Settlement freeze could have stopped PA deal ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Jerusalem Post by Gil Hoffman - May 7, 2011 - 12:00am Fatah and Hamas would not have reached a reconciliation agreement had Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu immediately agreed to a Palestinian request to extend the 10-month settlement housing start freeze that ended in September 2010, opposition leader Tzipi Livni said on Saturday. Speaking on the Channel 2 program Meet the Press, Livni said Israel needed a prime minister who could persuade the world not to allow a Palestinian state to be declared unilaterally at the UN General Assembly in September, but that Netanyahu did not fit the bill. » Read more

Abbas meets J Street reps in Ramallah ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Ynetnews by Elior Levy - May 8, 2011 - 12:00am Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas met with a J Street delegation in Ramallah on Sunday and addressed various political issues. Abbas said that the two-state solution can not be achieved without first securing Palestinian national unity. The Palestinian president stressed that the Palestinian Authority is willing to immediately resume peace talks with Israel as long as Israel freezes settlement construction in the West Bank and east Jerusalem. » Read more

'Hamas signed unity pact from position of weakness' ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Ynetnews by Ilana Curiel - May 7, 2011 - 12:00am Minister for Strategic Affairs Moshe Ya'alon commented Saturday on an interview published by the Wall Street Journal, in which Hamas politburo Chief Khaled Mashaal said his organization will determine the nature of the resistance against Israel – including the use of violence – in coordination with the Fatah. "I've heard plenty of statements like this; particularly those said in English and addressed to western audiences," Ya'alon said. » Read more

Report: Abbas wants Fayyad to head unity gov't ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Ynetnews by Elior Levy - May 8, 2011 - 12:00am Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas is interested in keeping Palestinian Prime Minister Salam Fayyad as the head of the Hamas- Fatah unity government despite recent reports to the contrary, the Asharq Al-Awsat newspaper reported Sunday. It was recently said that Abbas, like Hamas leaders, is not among Fayyad's supporters. The relationship between the two has been strained for years; loyalists of the president accuse the prime minister of stealing the spotlight by gaining international popularity. » Read more

Report: Abbas wants Fayyad to head unity gov't ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Ynetnews by Elior Levy - May 8, 2011 - 12:00am Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas is interested in keeping Palestinian Prime Minister Salam Fayyad as the head of the Hamas- Fatah unity government despite recent reports to the contrary, the Asharq Al-Awsat newspaper reported Sunday. It was recently said that Abbas, like Hamas leaders, is not among Fayyad's supporters. The relationship between the two has been strained for years; loyalists of the president accuse the prime minister of stealing the spotlight by gaining international popularity. » Read more

Report: Abbas wants Fayyad to head unity gov't ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Ynetnews by Elior Levy - May 8, 2011 - 12:00am Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas is interested in keeping Palestinian Prime Minister Salam Fayyad as the head of the Hamas- Fatah unity government despite recent reports to the contrary, the Asharq Al-Awsat newspaper reported Sunday. It was recently said that Abbas, like Hamas leaders, is not among Fayyad's supporters. The relationship between the two has been strained for years; loyalists of the president accuse the prime minister of stealing the spotlight by gaining international popularity. » Read more