Arabs to seek full Palestine upgrade at U.N. ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Reuters July 14, 2011 - 12:00am The Arab League will apply to upgrade the Palestinians to full member status at the United Nations, according to a draft statement from a league meeting in Qatar on Thursday. "It was decided to go to the United Nations to request the recognition of the state of Palestine with East Jerusalem as its capital and to move ahead and request a full membership," said the communique, a copy of which was obtained by Reuters.

Palestine Lost ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Foreign Policy by Rachel Shabi - (Opinion) July 13, 2011 - 12:00am Promises were made, and it looks like they'll be broken. U.S. President Barack Obama said he believed a Palestinian state could be created by September 2011. Speaking to the U.N. General Assembly in September 2010, he laid down a challenge to formulate an agreement that would make it a reality. That same deadline was set by Palestinian Prime Minister Salam Fayyad for his state-building plan, which was intended to create the institutions for a viable Palestinian state. » Read more

Palestinian leaders weigh U.N. options ATFP World Press Roundup Article from United Press International (UPI) by Rema Rahman - July 13, 2011 - 12:00am A PLO leader said Palestinians will consider bypassing the U.N. Security Council and going directly to the General Assembly when it requests admission to the United Nations in September. The option, if accepted, would allow the Palestinians to become a non-member state in the United Nations. For full recognition, leaders are also considering acceptance by the Security Council first, which could postpone the process. » Read more

Quartet reset? International peacemakers seemingly stumped on Middle East ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Yahoo News by Laura Rozen - (Opinion) July 14, 2011 - 12:00am For the small clique that comprises the world's most senior statesmen and -women, the Monday night meal hosted by Hillary Clinton to review efforts to get the Israelis and Palestinians back to the peace table might have been expected to follow the usual script: familiar colleagues, familiar talking points, followed by the expected issuing of a joint statement expressing international consensus on the urgent need for resumed negotiations. Blah blah blah blah. Or so one might have thought. » Read more

Jordan crossing heats up ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Jordan Times by Daoud Kuttab - (Opinion) July 14, 2011 - 12:00am The religious men and women patiently clutching their water jugs on July 10, waiting in line at the Israeli border crossing looked like the average Palestinian. They had been to Mecca for Umra, the lesser pilgrimage to the Muslim holy places. What was different in this group of Palestinians was that they were holding Israeli passports. The individuals, mostly from the Naqab area, looked tired and exhausted. They had arrived the day before at about 9:00pm, but were denied entry by the Israelis. » Read more

Palestinians more determined to approach UN for vote ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Xinhua by Fares Akram and Emad Drimly - July 13, 2011 - 12:00am Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas reiterated Wednesday that the Palestinians will seek recognition of their state at the United Nations if international efforts failed to resume peace talks with Israel. Abbas said when meeting United Arab Emirates' (UAE) ambassador in the West Bank city of Ramallah that Israel refuses to commit itself to the references of the peace process or stop building Jewish settlements in the West Bank and East Jerusalem. » Read more

Palestine is a reality ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Gulf News by George S. Hishmeh - (Opinion) July 14, 2011 - 12:00am Poor Michele Bachmann! The US Republican representative and presidential hopeful has been the target of merciless criticism and ridicule for her slip-up in explaining her sponsorship of a controversial pro-Israel Congressional resolution. The slip-up, a seemingly ‘pro-Palestinian tweet’, was caught by Salon.com, the popular news website, when Bachmann wrote explaining her adoption of the House measure, saying, “I’m proud to co-sponsor HRes 268, coming to the floor [last Thursday] night,’ stressing, “The resolution supports peace negotiations between Israel and Palestine [italics added].” » Read more

Israel gives go-ahead to museum opposed by Muslims ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Statesman by Amy Teibel - July 13, 2011 - 12:00am The Israeli government has approved a Jewish group's plan to build a museum over a centuries-old Muslim graveyard in Jerusalem, an official confirmed Wednesday, in the final go-ahead for a project delayed for years by Muslim opposition. The bitter wrangle over construction of the Museum of Tolerance reflects the explosive potential of religion-based disputes in Jerusalem, where Jews and Muslims often play down the other side's historical ties to the city. The museum, which is meant to promote coexistence, is a project of a U.S.-based Jewish group, the Simon Wiesenthal Center. » Read more

Two Revolutions and the Crises They Created ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Forward by J.J. Goldberg - (Editorial) July 14, 2011 - 12:00am If it feels as though we’re living through strange, frightening times, that’s because we are. The planet is experiencing a wrenching atmospheric change, what with biblical-scale storms and droughts, disappearing polar ice caps, rising oceans and endangered crop cycles. The nations, particularly in the 1.5 billion-strong Muslim world, are undergoing a collective nervous breakdown that spills over into the West and strains the moorings of the democratic Enlightenment. The economy teeters like a table that’s lost a leg. » Read more

Genuine solidarity vs. stale promises ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Jerusalem Post by Eitan Grossman - (Opinion) July 14, 2011 - 12:00am Thousands of Palestinians and Israelis will march together on Friday in support of the Palestinian declaration of independence, under the banner ‘First independence, then negotiations.’ The march, organized by the Solidarity Sheikh Jarrah movement and a coalition of Palestinian popular committees, will set out from Jaffa Gate and proceed through East Jerusalem, ending up in Sheikh Jarrah, the neighborhood that has come to symbolize Israeli-Palestinian cooperation against occupation and discrimination. » Read more