February 14th

ATFP President, Ziad Asali speaks at the University of Oxford about the State-Building Program. Israel seems more relaxed about Egypt's future and Tom Freidman says it should be happy with the outcome though it does not seem to be. The head Palestinian negotiator resigns. The PLO announces elections by September, but Hamas denounces the plan. The PA cabinet will resign in preparation for a reshuffle. Pres. Abbas calls for an end to attacks on Qatar. Israel still has major input on Palestinian security measures. Calls are issued to investigate an extremist rabbi's possible ties to the assassin of PM Rabin. Shlomo Avineri says peace with Egypt is essential for Israel. The Jerusalem Post says Palestinians can learn lessons from the Egyptian experience. PM Fayyad says he does not know of any state that opposes Palestinian independence. Patrick Seale says Egypt's relationship with Israel will become more distant.

February 11th

The Forward profiles ATFP. Israeli trade with Egypt may buffer strains. UN officials meet prisoner families in Gaza. Israel demolishes a Bedouin village for the 16th time, and six are wounded in the incident. Unrest in Egypt impacts peace talks. Palestinians deny negotiations are being resumed. Israeli intelligence talks of a security "earthquake" in 2011. Anshel Pfeffer says the Israeli religious right is like the Muslim Brotherhood. Israel is removing a checkpoint between Nablus and Ramallah. Israelis are warned not to travel internationally. Nechama Duek says Arab democracy would be good for Israel. 70 rabbis rally behind an extremist colleague. Deputy PM Meridor says Israel seeks alliances beyond the US. Harriet Sherwood recounts the ordeal of entering Gaza from Israel. George Hishmeh says despite complicating factors, Israel won't find a more forthcoming Palestinian leadership to deal with.

February 10th

Sallai Meridor looks at Israeli concerns about unrest in Egypt. Gazans rally in support of the protests. NATO says it would provide peacekeepers if Israel and the Palestinians want that. Pres. Peres inaugurates a hi-tech recruitment program for Palestinian citizens of Israel. Pres. Abbas calls Israel's policies "dangerous." FM Lieberman says he may leave the Netanyahu coalition. A Jewish Israeli woman gives birth in a Palestinian hospital. Occupation forces demolish both settler and Palestinian structures in the West Bank. US officials reaffirm the American commitment to Israel's security. Local elections may deepen the Palestinian divide. FM Hauge says the peace process is at risk. Daoud Kuttab asks why Americans seem to be boycotting Bethlehem's mayor. Michael Young says Israel's fears about Egypt are the consequences of its own short-sightedness. George Hishmeh says PM Netanyahu should worry about peace with the Palestinians, not events in Egypt.

February 9th

The CSM says Israel has a stake in the emergence of a democratic Egypt, but analysts say Israel fears an Islamist takeover. 10 Palestinians in Gaza are injured by Israeli airstrikes. Aaron David Miller says now is not the time for major diplomacy, but Leonard Fein says it is. Israel's military spokesman visited the UK incognito. The Knesset moves forward a bill to strip Azmi Bishara of his pension. Israelis worry about not having a UN ambassador. Israeli occupation forces in Hebron close a station to settlers. The head of NATO says the organization has a role to play in peace. Criminal charges are filed against UC Irvine students who heckled Israeli Amb. Oren, and the LA Times calls this "overkill." The New York City transit system is now host of competing ad campaigns. Ghassan Khatib looks at Palestinian views of unrest in Egypt. Smadar Perry says Israel needs to move fast on peace with the Palestinians.

February 8th

The PA says local elections will be held on July 9, but Hamas rejects the plan. PM Fayyad calls for international pressure to end settler violence. Hebron seeks UNESCO recognition. Bernard Avishai says Israeli-Palestinian peace is still possible. Jonah Goldberg says Middle Eastern politicians are exploiting the conflict. PM Netanyahu says peace treaties can be canceled. Palestinians launch their first private equity fund.Spain's FM visits Hebron and settlers call her a "Nazi" and "anti-Semite." Israeli soldiers shoot a Palestinian man in the Gaza border area. Ha'aretz says Netanyahu must advance peace if he wants a stable Middle East. An extremist rabbi insists he's not a racist. Four projectiles land in southern Israel. Hamas is working with disgruntled bedouin tribes in Sinai. Gaza is facing a fuel crisis due to unrest in Egypt. Abdulateef al-Mulhim says Arabs believe in non-existent Israeli conspiracies. Hussein Ibish says Jewish and Arab Americans need to find common ground on peace.

February 7th

Time examines PA concerns about events in Egypt. Aaron David Miller looks at Israeli anxieties. Palestinians rally in Ramallah, but PA security forces are accused of suppressing demonstrations. Pres. Abbas meets with Jordan's King Abdullah. Contractors say the PA owes them money. The UK says a peace agreement is essential to curbing Iranian influence. A former Israeli official says talks with Syria in 2008 were very close. Palestinians welcome the Quartet's role. A Hamas militant escapes prison in Egypt and returns to Gaza. Israeli authorities in occupied East Jerusalem go forward with plans that will lead to more Palestinian evictions. Pres. Peres says unrest in Egypt shows how urgently peace with the Palestinians is needed. Jessica Brandt says both Israeli and Palestinian leaders need to do more to prepare their peoples for peace. Israel rejects an Egyptian request to increase its forces in Sinai. Uri Avnery looks at implications of a new Egypt for Israel.

February 4th

The CSM looks at implications of Egyptian unrest for Hamas. PM Fayyad says the Israeli occupation is a source of regional instability. Rights groups say the PA is blocking freedom of expression. A donor conference for Palestine is scheduled for June. Palestinians wrangle over local elections. PM Netanyahu says he will offer "gestures" to the Palestinians. Israel blocks access to Jerusalem. Gideon Levy says Israel now sees how much of an asset its treaty with Egypt is. Chaos in Egypt complicates calculations by the Quartet. Palestinians in a border town face divided identities. The BBC looks at extremist Jewish settlers. The JTA profiles Israeli activist Uri Avnery. The Forward profiles J Street. George Hishmeh looks at implications for Israel of unrest in Egypt. Oraib al-Rantawi stresses the importance to Jordan of Palestinian-Israeli peace.

February 3rd

Palestinian leaders and media are largely quiet about events in Egypt. A Fatah official calls for a revolt in Gaza. Police in Ramallah suppress a rally. The PA insists it will set a date for local elections soon, but Hamas rejects the idea. Unrest in Egypt may pose new challenges to the peace process. Israel conducts military maneuvers in the occupied Golan Heights. Pres. Abbas repeats he will run for re-election. Ha'aretz looks at the remains of a Palestinian village from 1948. Arye Carmon, Mordechai Kremnitzer and Yedidia Stern say Israel's democracy is under threat. Asher Susser says shared fears about Palestinian demographics are driving Israel and Jordan apart. Mohammad K. Shiyyab says peace is essential for Jordan.

February 2nd

Thomas Friedman says events in Egypt make Israeli-Palestinian peace more urgent than ever. Yossi Klein Halevi says Israelis fear a Muslim Brotherhood take-over of Egypt. Michael Weiss criticizes the Guardian’s handling of the “Palestine papers.” Palestinians are not allowed to rally on Egypt anywhere as Hamas brakes up a pro-Egyptian protesters rally in Gaza. The PA says it intends to hold local elections soon. Palestinians urge the Quartet to back statehood. Mike Huckabee says there should be no Palestinian state. The Arab League postpones a conference on Jerusalem due to unrest in Arab states. Israel urges the West to ensure that any new Egyptian government honors the peace treaty. Hamas is worried unrest will spill over into Gaza. Muslim leaders visit Auschwitz. The Knesset decides to investigate NGOs. An Israeli soldier criticizes his country’s occupation policies. American supporters of Israel face a dilemma on Egyptian protests. Guyana and Suriname are the latest South American states to recognize Palestine in its 1967 borders.

February 1st

Ziad Asali applauds the Arab citizen standing up for his dignity and says that as Egypt goes, so will most of the rest of the Arab world. The New York Times hosts a debate on Pres. Mubarak’s role in the peace process. Palestinian groups and media are largely silent on events in Egypt. Roger Cohen says the Palestinian-Israeli conflict is no longer an excuse for lack of Arab reform. Israel approves the first military deployment in Sinai since 1979. Israelis wonder if the US position on Egypt is a warning to Israel. The PA accuses Hamas of selling donated medicine, and says Israel’s destruction of water resources must stop. The PA says it will hold local elections as soon as possible. Two rockets fired from Gaza land in Israel. Palestinian citizens of Israel use dance in quest for tolerance. Israel denies sending riot control equipment to Egypt. Janan Abdu says her husband and other Palestinian prisoners are being abused by Israel. The Chronicle of Higher Education profiles Sari Nusseibeh.

American Task Force on Palestine - 1634 Eye St. NW, Suite 725, Washington DC 20006 - Telephone: 202-262-0017