Hamas steals Abbas thunder with prisoner deal
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Reuters
by Tom Perry - (Analysis) October 12, 2011 - 12:00am

Hamas has jumped back into the Middle East spotlight with a prisoner swap deal with Israel that will score points over President Mahmoud Abbas and steal some of the thunder he generated by pushing for Palestinian statehood at the United Nations. But the deal hailed by the Islamist group which governs Gaza as a national victory was dimmed by Israel's refusal to free some prominent prisoners from rival factions, chief among them Marwan Barghouti -- a leading figure in Abbas' Fatah movement.

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Israeli-Hamas Agreement to Trade Prisoners May Reshape Politics in Region
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The New York Times
by Ethan Bronner - October 12, 2011 - 12:00am

The prisoner exchange between Hamas and Israel that is expected to begin next week could reshape regional relationships, strengthening Egypt, Hamas and Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu of Israel while posing an acute challenge to the Palestinian Authority in the West Bank. One result might be a more confrontational — and Hamas-imbued — Palestinian movement that could, in the long run, increase Israel’s difficulties, drawing inspiration from and invigorating popular protests across the Middle East. It could also tighten the relationship between Hamas, Egypt and Turkey.

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Netanyahu tells Ashton happy to meet Abbas
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Alertnet
by Maayan Lubell - October 11, 2011 - 12:00am

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu told the European Union's foreign policy chief Catherine Ashton on Monday that he was willing to meet Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas in an effort to restart peace talks, his office said. Netanyahu told Ashton in a telephone conversation that he was "happy to meet Mahmoud Abbas at any time," the statement from his office said. Ashton on Sunday announced plans to invite Israeli and Palestinian representatives to meet "in the coming days" to discuss resuming peace negotiations, frozen for the past year.

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Palestine ready to negotiate with Israel: Abbas
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Xinhua
October 11, 2011 - 12:00am

Palestinian National Authority President Mahmoud Abbas said Monday that he was ready to start negotiations with Israel to reach peace in the Middle East. "We are going to finish the wars, and Israel is going to live in peace not only with us but also with all the Islamic countries," Abbas told the press. Abbas said relations with Colombia would continue to be friendly although Bogota kept its decision to reject Palestine's statehood bid in the upcoming vote at the UN Security Council.

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Why Cutting U.S. Aid to Abbas Could Hurt Israel More Than it Hurts Palestinians
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Time
by Tony Karon - (Opinion) October 11, 2011 - 12:00am

"This is going to hurt me a lot more than it's going to hurt you" may be a cliche once tossed out by parents about to spank their children, but it could well prove to be the case if Congress proceeds with plans to punish the Palestinians for seeking U.N. recognition by cutting off U.S. aid to the Palestinian Authority (PA).

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No simple solutions for Jerusalem, PBS correspondent Ray Suarez tells Philadelphia forum
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Episcopal News Service
by Mary Frances Schjonberg - (Opinion) October 11, 2011 - 12:00am

Just inside the door of the Church of the Holy Sepulchre in Jerusalem is the Stone of Anointing on which tradition says Jesus was prepared for burial. Watching pilgrims from all over the world fall to their knees to kiss the stone "makes you reconsider what it all means to them to you, to the people who live there, to the people who live far away," according to Public Broadcasting Service Senior Correspondent Ray Suarez.

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Israel and Hamas Agree to Swap Prisoners for Soldier
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The New York Times
by Ethan Bronner - (Analysis) October 11, 2011 - 12:00am

Israel and Hamas announced an agreement on Tuesday to exchange more than 1,000 Palestinian prisoners for an Israeli soldier held captive in Gaza for five years, a deal brokered by Egypt that seemed likely to shake up Middle East politics at a time when the region is immersed in turmoil. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu of Israel told his nation in a live address on television that the soldier, Staff Sgt. Gilad Shalit, who was captured in June 2006 at the age of 19, could be home “within days,” ending what has been widely seen in Israel as a national trauma.

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Gilad Shalit release: Why Israel and Hamas agreed to a prisoner swap
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Christian Science Monitor
by Joshua Mitnick - (Analysis) October 11, 2011 - 12:00am

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu announced tonight that Israel and Hamas have agreed to an historic prisoner swap deal that will release Sgt. Gilad Shalit, who has been held for five years in the Gaza Strip, in return for some 1,000 Palestinian prisoners. After thanking the Egyptian government for mediating the deal, Mr. Netanyahu said that if everything goes according to plan, Mr. Shalit would return home in the coming days. "Today I am bringing the cabinet a proposal that will bring Gilad home healthy and in one piece," he said.

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Palestinian leader in Latin America to advance statehood cause
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Los Angeles Times
by Tracy Wilkinson - October 10, 2011 - 12:00am

Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas was touring Latin America this week, his second visit to the region in less than a year as part of a worldwide lobbying effort to gain recognition for a Palestinian state. Abbas met officials in the Colombian capital of Bogota on Monday, a day after announcing with President Mauricio Funes of El Salvador plans to establish diplomatic ties there. Until recently, El Salvador was one of Israel's closest allies in Latin America.

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Abbas arrives in Colombia for official visit
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Ma'an News Agency
October 10, 2011 - 12:00am

President Mahmoud Abbas arrived in Bogota for an official visit on Sunday. He is scheduled to meet with Colombian president Juan Manuel Santos on Tuesday. The leader traveled to Colombia after meeting with Salvadoran president Mauricio Funes. He is touring Latin America to follow up on support for a Palestinian bid for full membership in the United Nations as a state. Colombia, which has a seat on the UN Security Council, has argued that recognition of a Palestinian state should come through negotiations with Israel.

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