Abbas, Mitchell's deputy discuss peace process
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Xinhua
August 2, 2010 - 12:00am

Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas met on Monday with David Hale, deputy of U.S. special Middle East envoy George Mitchell, in the West Bank city of Ramallah, state-run Palestinian Wafa news agency reported. During the meeting, Abbas updated the U.S. official with the latest political developments in the region and efforts aiming to push the peace process forward, the report said.

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Abbas wants a trilateral meeting between aides before direct talks
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Haaretz
by Barak Ravid - August 2, 2010 - 12:00am

The Obama administration is attempting to win Israel's agreement to a Palestinian effort to hold a trilateral meeting next week to set the terms of reference, agenda and timetable for direct negotiations with the Palestinians. The Palestinians also want to discuss the future of Israel's freeze on settlement construction, which is scheduled to expire on September 26. If Israel agrees to the meeting, it will be the first significant direct talks with the Palestinian Authority since Benjamin Netanyahu became prime minister last year.

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For biased critics of Israel, even its defensive actions violate human rights
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Christian Science Monitor
by Jeffrey Robbins - (Opinion) July 30, 2010 - 12:00am

In 1947, when excusing Soviet totalitarianism had become quite the rage in fashionable progressive circles, George Orwell eviscerated a British politician who consistently defended totalitarians but nevertheless denied that he was a defender of totalitarianism. “But of course he does,” Orwell wrote. “What else could he say? A pickpocket does not go to the races with a label ‘pickpocket’ on his coat lapel, and a propagandist does not describe himself as a propagandist.”

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Sincerity a must for Mideast peace
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Jordan Times
by Ahmad Majdoubeh - (Opinion) July 30, 2010 - 12:00am

Recent high-level meetings in Washington and the region, and talk about the need for direct negotiations between the Palestinians and the Israelis on final status issues, indicate that something is in the offing. Peace advocates in the region and abroad always find it positive when the parties to the conflict are moving in the direction of peace, or, at least, exchanging views on how to jump-start the process. Apathy and stalemate are extremely harmful to both peace and the parties involved. As long as the momentum of peace efforts is kept, there is always hope. And hope is essential.

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Mr. President, Don’t Pray for Anything You Really Don’t Want
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Foreign Policy
by Aaron David Miller - (Opinion) July 29, 2010 - 12:00am

Barack Obama's administration has been lobbying Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas and Arab governments hard to return to direct talks with Israel for the first time in several years. That decision could be made as early as Thursday, when the Arab League meets to discuss the matter. But Obama should very careful what he wishes for. One of the most enduring myths in the lore surrounding Arab-Israeli diplomacy is that direct negotiations provide the key to successful peacemaking. They don't.

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Insufficient steps taken
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Jordan Times
by Hassan Barari - (Opinion) July 27, 2010 - 12:00am

I was not moved this week when I read that the American administration decided to upgrade its diplomatic relations with the Palestinian Authority (PA) by granting its mission in Washington a higher status, yet still less than embassy. The upgrade is not expected to put an end to the Israeli occupation nor to improve the PA’s battered imaged among the Palestinians.

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U.S. upgrades diplomatic ties with Palestinians in bid to woo Abbas
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Haaretz
by Avi Issacharoff, Natasha Mozgovaya, Barak Ravid - July 23, 2010 - 12:00am

The U.S. announced this week that it would upgrade its diplomatic relations with the PA by granting its mission in Washington - which is actually a PLO mission - the same status it enjoys in most European countries: that of a PLO "general delegation." This is still a lower status than an embassy - a status the PA mission does have in many African and Asian countries, as well as some European and South American states. But it is a major step above what the PA has had until now.

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Israel gives green light to armored vehicles for Palestinian Authority
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Haaretz
by Amos Harel, Avi Issacharoff, Barak Ravid - July 23, 2010 - 12:00am

The defense establishment has advised the government to allow the Palestinian Authority to import 50 Russian-made armored vehicles - something Israel has been refusing to do for five years now.

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Abbas signals will resist U.S. pressure for talks
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Reuters
July 22, 2010 - 12:00am

Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas has indicated he will resist U.S. pressure for face-to-face peace talks with Israel for now, saying indirect negotiations must make progress first. Abbas has said he wants the indirect negotiations to produce results on the issues of the security and borders of a future Palestinian state to be founded alongside Israel on land it occupied in 1967.

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Young Israelis and Palestinians Commit to Peace
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Americans For Peace Now
by Ori Nir - (Opinion) July 21, 2010 - 12:00am

I just came back from an inspiring event on Capitol Hill, in which young Israeli and Palestinian peace activists told their stories and urged Americans to get involved to make Middle East peace a reality. It was the first annual congressional forum of the Middle East program of New Story Leadership, a Washington-based organization that brings young adults to Washington for internships and leadership training. Participants eventually return to Israel, the West Bank or Gaza, and, hopefully, continue taking action toward peace and reconciliation.

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