May 25th

FACT CHECK: Netanyahu speech ignores rival claims ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Associated Press by Josef Federman - May 24, 2011 - 12:00am Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu gave an impassioned defense of his approach to peace during a speech to Congress on Tuesday. But the address reflected the world view of Israel's nationalistic right wing, one of several conflicting narratives that divide Israelis and Palestinians. Here is a sampling of Netanyahu's claims along with what he did not mention. ___ NETANYAHU: "You don't need to send American troops to Israel. We defend ourselves." THE FACTS: Israel is a leading recipient of American foreign aid, including more than $1 billion in military assistance each year. » Read more

Palestinians say Netanyahu speech obstacle to peace ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Reuters May 24, 2011 - 12:00am Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's vision for ending conflict with Palestinians put "more obstacles" in front of the Middle East peace process, the spokesman for the Palestinian president said. "There was nothing new in Netanyahu's speech other than more obstacles in front of the peace process," Nabil Abu Rdainah, the spokesman for President Mahmoud Abbas, told Reuters following Israeli leader's address to the U.S. Congress on Wednesday. » Read more

Hamas' top leader challenged by Gaza strongman ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Associated Press May 24, 2011 - 12:00am Gaza's Hamas strongman on Tuesday was quoted as challenging the Islamic militant movement's top leader because of his tacit backing of Palestinian negotiations with Israel. The comments by Mahmoud Zahar were carried by the Lebanese newspaper al-Akhbar on Tuesday and signaled a rare public dispute among Hamas leaders. A Hamas statement in Gaza claimed the comments were fabricated, but did not explain. » Read more

Hamas: Unity does not mean we take on Fatah's platform ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Ma'an News Agency May 25, 2011 - 12:00am In an interview with the Lebanese newspaper Al-Akhbar, senior Hamas leader Mahmoud Zahhar set out the compromises the party was willing to make for a unity deal with Fatah, and made clear that unity would not change the party's platform. "Reconciliation does not mean Hamas has changed its agenda," the leader was quoted as saying in the Tuesday report, adding that nor was Fatah bending its own goals to those of Hamas when it signed the document. » Read more

Congress applause of Netanyahu 'pathetic' ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Ma'an News Agency May 25, 2011 - 12:00am The warm reception of the Israeli prime Minister at the US Congress was "pathetic," President Abbas' secretary-general At-Tayyib Abdul-Rahim said Wednesday. Benjamin Netanyahu entered Congress to applause the day before, and received more than 25 standing ovations during a speech in which he ruled out international demands to return to the 1967 borders or share Jerusalem, and called on Mahmoud Abbas to "tear up" the reconciliation agreement his Fatah party signed two weeks ago with rival faction Hamas. » Read more

PA: UN still goal for September ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Agence France Presse (AFP) May 25, 2011 - 12:00am The Palestinian leadership reaffirmed its goal to take the issue of statehood to the United Nations after a speech by the Israeli premier which failed to offer any new incentive to talk peace. In a 45-minute address to the US Congress, Benjamin Netanyahu laid out his vision of peace in a speech which pundits said contained nothing to deter the Palestinians from plans to seek UN recognition for their state later this year or to revive the moribund peace process. » Read more

Obama and Netanyahu: The scorecard ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Washington Post by Jackson Diehl - (Opinion) May 24, 2011 - 12:00am Barack Obama and Binyamin Netanyahu have now spent six days lecturing each other about the “realities” of the Middle East, either face-to-face or with Congress, the State Department or the AIPAC lobbying group as an audience. They have managed to focus the attention of Washington and much of the world on their differences over Palestinian statehood, and their evident animosity toward each other. So it’s worth asking: Did either of them accomplish anything positive? » Read more

Lessons From Tahrir Sq. ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The New York Times by Thomas L. Friedman - (Opinion) May 24, 2011 - 12:00am Being back in Cairo reminds me that there are two parties in this region that have been untouched by the Arab Spring: the Israelis and the Palestinians. Too bad, because when it comes to ossified, unimaginative, oxygen-deprived governments, the Israelis and Palestinians are right up there with pre-revolutionary Egypt and Tunisia. I mean, is there anything less relevant than the prime minister of Israel going to the U.S. Congress for applause and the leader of the Palestinians going to the U.N. — instead of to each other? » Read more

In speech to Congress, Israel's Netanyahu offers few concessions ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Los Angeles Times by Paul Richter - May 25, 2011 - 12:00am Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu told a joint session of Congress he was prepared to make "painful compromises" for peace but he offered few of the concessions that President Obama has sought as a way to revive moribund Israeli-Palestinian negotiations. Ending a tumultuous five-day visit to Washington, Netanyahu said Tuesday he was willing to give up "parts of the ancestral Jewish homeland" in negotiations to create a separate Palestinian state. But he set requirements that varied only slightly from his previous views, and he did not address many specific Palestinian demands. » Read more

Goldberg: Why Palestinians Have Time on Their Side ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Bloomberg by Jeffrey Goldberg - (Opinion) May 24, 2011 - 12:00am If I were a Palestinian (and, should there be any confusion on this point, I am not), and if I were the sort of Palestinian who believed that Israel should be wiped off the map, then I would be quite pleased with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s performance before Congress this morning. I would applaud Netanyahu for including no bold initiatives that would have suggested to the world that Israel is alive to the threat posed by its seemingly eternal occupation of the West Bank. » Read more