January 24th

Best Mideast option: Muddle through ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Politico by Aaron David Miller - (Opinion) January 21, 2011 - 1:00am The Obama administration’s options on a major foreign policy issue, the Arab-Israeli peace process, range from bad to worse. Those options mirror the choices contained in a semi-mythic State Department memo, which lives on in the hearts of all of us who served the interests of the Republic there: option #1 go for the breakthrough; option #2 disengage, and the infamous option #3 – muddle through. » Read more

President Barack Obama’s efforts in the Middle East hit deep freeze ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Politico by Ben Smith - January 24, 2011 - 1:00am For two years, the Obama White House has tried to give Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu the benefit of the doubt as a prospective peace partner — viewing him as a leader who shared U.S. goals but faced tough domestic political constraints that Washington felt obliged to help counter. That’s over. » Read more

The Palestine Papers - Risks for peace ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Al-Jazeera Arabic by Robert Grenier - January 24, 2011 - 1:00am The overwhelming conclusion one draws from this record is that the process for a two-state solution is essentially over. » Read more

How leaked Palestinian documents will affect Abbas, peace process ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Christian Science Monitor by Joshua Mitnick - January 24, 2011 - 1:00am A trove of secret documents obtained by Al Jazeera shows that Palestinian negotiators offered far-reaching concessions on borders and Jerusalem in 2008, but that their Israeli counterparts balked. » Read more

Israeli intolerance shows up on Internet, in Knesset, on the street ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Los Angeles Times by Edmund Sanders - January 23, 2011 - 1:00am The intent of the anonymous Internet video was unambiguous: "This person should be killed — and soon," read a message underneath a photo of Israel's deputy state prosecutor, Shai Nitzan. His alleged offense? "Betraying" his Jewish roots by opening a criminal inquiry into racist threats and hate speech expressed on two Israel-based Facebook pages with statements in Hebrew such as "Death to Arabs." It was the latest, and most overtly violent, sign of what many here are calling a wave of intolerance toward people of different races, religions, orientations and viewpoints. » Read more

Palestinian leaders deny offering major concessions to Israel ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Los Angeles Times by Edmund Sanders - January 23, 2011 - 1:00am Palestinian leaders Sunday rejected a report by Al Jazeera television network that they had agreed in 2008 to cede most of disputed East Jerusalem and to make other major concessions in an unsuccessful bid to win statehood. Citing documents that it called the "Palestine Papers," the Arab television outlet quoted minutes from a Jan. 15, 2008, meeting involving then-U.S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice, Israeli Foreign Minister Tzipi Livni and Palestinian Authority Prime Minister Ahmed Korei. » Read more

Word of Palestinian Concession in 2008 Roils Mideast Debate ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The New York Times by Ethan Bronner - January 23, 2011 - 1:00am Despite longstanding protests against the construction of Jewish developments in contested areas, Palestinian negotiators agreed to cede large tracts of Jerusalem to Israel during peace negotiations in recent years, according to a set of documents Al Jazeera says it has obtained. The materials suggest that the chief Palestinian negotiator at the time, Ahmed Qurei, “proposed that Israel annexes all settlements in Jerusalem,” except for the Jewish district known as Har Homa. » Read more

January 21st

PM: Israel will work to disconnect Gaza from power grid ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Jerusalem Post January 20, 2011 - 1:00am The Palestinian Authority’s insistence on confronting Israel in international forums at every opportunity cannot go on forever, and will lead to a breakdown in ties between Israel and the PA, Foreign Minister Avigdor Lieberman said in a meeting Thursday with new French Foreign Minister Michele Alliot- Marie. He told his French counterpart that there was a “dangerous gap” in relations between Israel and the PA. » Read more

Israel's top soldier faces 'land grab' investigation ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Independent by Aron Heller - January 20, 2011 - 1:00am Government watchdog investigation into an alleged land grab by Israel's incoming military chief could threaten the appointment of the decorated general, a justice official said. After winning an internal battle to become Israel's top soldier, Maj Gen Yoav Galant must answer the state comptroller's inquiry into how he expanded his large property in northern Israel. A hearing is scheduled for next week. » Read more

Obama must call Israeli settlements illegal ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Guardian (Opinion) January 20, 2011 - 1:00am "To veto or not to veto?" That is the agonising question that has President Barack Obama pacing the battlements of the White House waiting to dodge the slings and arrows of outraged Aipac. Provoked by the latest demolition in East Jerusalem, no fewer than 120 countries have sponsored a UN resolution condemning Israeli settlement activity. Hillary Clinton has also condemned it as "illegitimate", but the resolution introduces precision by terming the settlements as "illegal". » Read more