Israel has broken another promise
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Gulf News
by George S. Hishmeh - (Opinion) May 13, 2010 - 12:00am

As Palestinians and Israelis take their first steps in resuming much-delayed peace negotiations, there is strong evidence emerging that the hawkish government of Benjamin Netanyahu is about to break its promise to hold off on its illegal expansionist plans in the Occupied Territories.

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Israeli ministers squabble over East Jerusalem construction
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Xinhua
May 13, 2010 - 12:00am

Israeli Deputy Prime Minister and Interior Minister Eli Yishai said on Thursday that he would continue approving construction plans in contested areas of Jerusalem, including the Ramat Shlomo neighborhood. "There is not and never has been a freeze on construction in Jerusalem, nor will there ever be," Yishai told his Shas Party newspaper, "day by day." Concerning the Israeli-Palestinian proximity talks, American officials on Thursday asked both sides to refrain from what they termed "provocative" moves, but Yishai said that Israel would not accede to U.S. demands.

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Abbas, Obama agreed to top proximity talks with borders, security issues
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Xinhua
May 12, 2010 - 12:00am

Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas and U.S. President Barack Obama have agreed that the U.S.-proposed indirect Israeli-Palestinian proximity talks would focus on the issues of security and borders, Palestinian news agency Wafa reported Tuesday. In a phone conversation, the two leaders have also emphasized that neither the Palestinians nor the Israelis should make any " provocative" action "that could destroy the confidence" during the talks, according to Wafa.

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Olmert speaks out against proximity talks
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Ynetnews
by Atilla Somfalvi - May 11, 2010 - 12:00am

While under investigation over his alleged involvement in the Holyland affair, Former Prime Minster Ehud Olmert on Tuesday questioned the effectiveness of proximity talks with the Palestinians and said that "anything less than direct talks – is not as good." During a speech at the Social Economic Forum named after Benny Gaon in Tel Aviv, Olmert said that "there was no need for a referee between us and the Palestinians.

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Obama to Abbas: I am committed to creation of Palestinian state
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Haaretz
by Natasha Mozgovaya - May 11, 2010 - 12:00am

U.S. President Barack Obama on Tuesday pledged commitment to the establishment of a sovereign Palestinian state and vowed to hold both Israel and the Palestinians accountable if either side takes actions that "undermine trust" during U.S.-mediated talks launched this week. In a telephone conversation with Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas, Obama welcomed the beginning of indirect Israeli-Palestinian peace negotiations and reiterated his strong support for the two-state solution.

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Jerusalem: Still Relevant After 2000 Years
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Huffington Post
by Ed Koch - (Opinion) May 11, 2010 - 12:00am

Here's my advice on how Israel and the Palestinian Authority should proceed with their so-called "proximity" talks mediated by George Mitchell. Instead of putting the hot-button issue of Jerusalem last on the agenda, the issue should be addressed first. If the Jerusalem question is solved, everything else should fall into place more easily. I believe there is a way to keep Jerusalem unified. I am talking not only of the old walled city, which is a very small part of the city of Jerusalem, but the whole city, east, west, north and south.

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A PALESTINIAN VIEW: The price of indirect talks
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Bitterlemons
by Mkhaimar Abusada - May 10, 2010 - 12:00am

The PLO Executive Committee's decision to approve so-called proximity talks between the Palestinians and Israelis marked a shift in Palestinian politics. Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas had previously stated that there would be no talks with Israel until it halts all settlement expansion, including in East Jerusalem. Israeli Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu, on the other hand, has not veered from his vow that building in Jerusalem is just like building in Tel Aviv.

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AN ISRAELI VIEW: The best of a bad lot?
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Bitterlemons
by Gilead Sher - May 10, 2010 - 12:00am

The good news first: after more than a year wasted over trial and error in United States foreign policy, President Barack Obama has set the Israeli-Palestinian process back on track. The bad news is that for the first time in close to two decades, Israelis and Palestinians will be talking indirectly to one another.

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The lesser known settlement freeze deal
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Foreign Policy
by Michael Sfard - May 10, 2010 - 12:00am

Proximity talks between the Israeli government and the Palestinian leadership have just begun. It took Barack Obama's administration almost 15 months to obtain the consent of the parties to talk to each other indirectly, through George Mitchell's team. For the 19-year-old peace process (if counted from the Madrid summit) it is doubtful whether this new phase deserves even the modest "small step" label.

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ISRAEL: Netanyahu's government reaches out in Arabic
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Los Angeles Times
by Batsheva Sobelman - May 10, 2010 - 12:00am

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's bureau is upgrading its public diplomacy efforts with the appointment of an Arabic-language spokesman. Ofir Gendelman, formerly the Arabic media spokesman for the Ministry of Foreign affairs, will from now on be entrusted with getting Israel's message out in Arabic too. A news release from the prime minister's office last week said the appointment was important in order to deal with "recent media developments in the Arab world and especially in light of global developments regarding Arabic language television stations."

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