The vision and nightmare
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Arab News
by Uri Avnery - (Opinion) November 30, 2009 - 1:00am

Thomas Friedman, the New York Times columnist, has an idea. That happens to him quite often. One might almost say — too often. It goes like this: The US will turn its back on the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. The entire world will follow. Everybody is fed up with this conflict. Let the Israelis and the Palestinians sort out their problems by themselves.

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El-Baradei and George Mitchell
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Dar Al-Hayat
by Elias Harfoush - (Opinion) November 30, 2009 - 1:00am

How can diplomacy succeed, even when managed by men like Mohamed El-Baradei or George Mitchell, when they have to deal with Benjamin Netanyahu or Mahmoud Ahmadinejad?

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Costa Rican president: Palestinians don't need army
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Ynetnews
by Netanel Shlomovich - November 30, 2009 - 1:00am

The recipe for peace between Israel and the Palestinians includes negotiations, honesty, immediate talks on the core issues, and the establishment of a demilitarized Palestinian state – this is the vision presented by Costa Rican President Oscar Arias in a special interview with Ynet. Arias, who is currently visiting Israel and the Palestinian Authority, boasts extensive experience in mediating peace agreements; his efforts prompted his Nobel Peace Prize win in 1987.

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Turkey, the Kurds and Israel
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Dar Al-Hayat
by Patrick Seale - (Opinion) November 28, 2009 - 1:00am

In launching his ‘Democratic Opening’ towards Turkey’s 15 million Kurds earlier this month, Prime Minister Tayyip Recep Erdogan has embarked on possibly the most perilous phase of his political career. His Kurdish initiative could lose him precious votes at the next election. If it misfires, it could even bring an end to the AKP’s domination of the Turkish political landscape, which began with its first electoral victory in 2002. The initiative has already aroused the fierce hostility of diehard Turkish nationalists, who condemn it as a treasonous plot to dismember the country.

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Report: Israel will release Barghouti in Shalit deal
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Haaretz
by Amos Harel, Avi Issacharoff, Jack Khoury - November 27, 2009 - 1:00am

Israel will release Fatah strongman Marwan Barghouti as part of a deal to secure the release of abducted Israeli soldier Gilad Shalit, the pan-Arab newspaper Al-Sharq al-Awsat quoted Palestinian sources as saying Thursday. Barghouti is currently serving five life sentences in Israel for his role in a series of deadly terrorist attacks during the second intifada.

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Prisoner Exchange Deal Expected Next Week – Palestinian Sources
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Asharq Alawsat
by Saad Jarous - November 26, 2009 - 1:00am

Palestinian sources in Damascus revealed that the Israeli – Hamas prisoner exchange which is being negotiated with the aid of a German mediator will likely be concluded by next week. Palestinian sources close to the Hamas movement informed Asharq Al-Awsat that a Hamas delegation from the Gaza Strip led by Mahmoud al-Zahar, and also including Khalil al-Hayya and Nizar Awdallah met with the German mediator in Cairo.

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Hamas: Israel continues to manipulate swap talks
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Ma'an News Agency
November 25, 2009 - 1:00am

Israel has exaggerated the progress of recent prisoner swap talks and manipulated the hopes and expectations of hundreds of thousands of Palestinians, Hamas leaders proclaimed late Tuesday. The proclamation followed days of reports from Palestinian and Israeli media heralding the immanent release of 1,000 Palestinian prisoners in exchange for an Israeli soldier captured in 2006. Talks have been proceeding with German mediation following the release of a video tape showing the Israeli soldier in good health.

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Hamas leader accuses Israel of holding up Shalit deal
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Haaretz
by Avi Issacharoff, Jack Khoury - November 25, 2009 - 1:00am

Prisoner swap talks between Hamas and Israel have hit a snag over some of the top militants the Islamic group wants freed in return for Israel Defense Forces soldier Gilad Shalit, and a deal is unlikely in the coming days, Hamas officials said Wednesday. Israel is objecting to some of the names put forward by Hamas, a senior official of the militant group familiar with the negotiations told The Associated Press. He said the German mediator shuttling between the sides has presented an alternative list of names provided by Israel, and Hamas leaders are studying it.

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Barghouti: Shalit abduction achieved what no dialogue could
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Haaretz
by Amos Harel, Avi Issacharoff - November 25, 2009 - 1:00am

Fatah strongman Marwan Barghouti said in an interview on Wednesday that he intends to run in the next Palestinian presidential election, and remarked that the abduction of Israel Defense Forces soldier Gilad Shalit by Gaza militants achieved what no negotiations could ever achieve.

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Israel rejects to free 40 Palestinians, delaying prisoner exchange: source
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Xinhua
November 24, 2009 - 1:00am

Israel refuses to release 40 Palestinians whom the Islamic Hamas movement demands for freedom in a prisoner exchange deal a well-informed Palestinian source said on Tuesday. The Israeli reservations on the 40 names delayed the prisoner swap deal, which German and Egyptian mediators have tried to broker, the source told Xinhua. "Accomplishing the swap within one week is unexpected, it is almost impossible," the source said.

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