Defiant Abbas Reiterates Conditions Before Talks
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Washington Times
by Howard Schneider - October 11, 2009 - 12:00am

Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas on Sunday seemed to distance himself from U.S. efforts to restart peace talks and defended his recent handling of a report on war crimes in the Gaza Strip in a defiant televised address meant to boost his political standing amid growing criticism.

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Abbas reverses course on Goldstone report
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Ma'an News Agency
October 11, 2009 - 12:00am

President Mahmoud Abbas said on Sunday evening that he has instructed his envoy to the United Nations in Geneva to seek a new debate in the Human Rights Council on the Goldstone report on alleged war crimes in Gaza. During a televised speech, Abbas confirmed reports from Friday that his government had completely reversed course on the 575-page report. “I instructed the ambassador to call for another exceptional meeting of the Human Rights Council to vote on the report, seeking to punish all who committed the most grotesque crimes against women and children in Gaza,” Abbas said.

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UN envoy visits Al-Aqsa compound, urges calm
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Ma'an News Agency
October 9, 2009 - 12:00am

The UN's special Mideast coordinator, Robert Serry, went to the Al-Aqsa compound on Thursday as a guest of the Waqf, in a visit facilitated by the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan, his office said. "[UN] Secretary-General Ban Ki Moon has been very concerned at the recent clashes in Jerusalem, and I have been in contact with all sides in an effort to defuse tensions," he said in a statement that followed his visit.

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'U.S. furious over Israeli incitement against Obama'
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Haaretz
by Akiva Eldar - October 9, 2009 - 12:00am

The U.S. administration is furious over Israeli incitement against President Barack Obama, Democratic congressmen close to Obama told an Israeli source who returned from a visit to Washington this week. The congressmen even hinted that Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has been personally involved.

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ANALYSIS / Third intifada unlikely, despite Jerusalem tensions
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Haaretz
by Avi Issacharoff - (Analysis) October 9, 2009 - 12:00am

Nine years and 10 days after the outbreak of the Al-Aqsa intifada, tensions gripping the Temple Mount could once again lead to the eruption of violent clashes between Palestinians and Israelis. Yet a third intifada would seem inconceivable now, for several reasons - West Bank Palestinians are tired, their economy has been improving, and the Palestinian Authority itself has no stomach for a worsening situation.

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Barak to Mitchell: Time to move peace process forward
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Haaretz
by Barak Ravid - October 9, 2009 - 12:00am

Defense Minister Ehud Barak on Thursday told the visiting U.S. envoy to the Middle East, George Mitchell, that the time had come to advance the Israeli-Palestinian peace process. "The time has come to move forward to start the process and pass all of the obstacles, because this will help everyone," Barak said at the start of the meeting, according to a statement he released. "No obstacle is impassable."

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Lose-lose situation
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Haaretz
by Avi Issacharoff - (Opinion) October 9, 2009 - 12:00am

Two weeks of continuous incitement by the Islamic Movement's northern branch, members of the Palestinian Authority and Palestinian clerics has generated a particularly volatile mixture. The escalation in Jerusalem surrounding the Temple Mount and its Al-Aqsa Mosque has led the world's most important Sunni cleric, Sheikh Yusuf al-Qaradawi, to declare today "Al-Aqsa Day." In addition, there are no diplomatic negotiations under way with Israel.

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Palestinian FM urges UN to ease Jerusalem tension
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Agence France Presse (AFP)
October 9, 2009 - 12:00am

Palestinian foreign minister Riyad al-Malki called on UN chief Ban Ki-moon Thursday to intervene to prevent further escalation in Jerusalem. He said he asked for Ban's "immediate intervention to prevent Israel from escalating the situation in Jerusalem." Also Thursday, the High Court of Justice rejected a petition filed by the Temple Mount Human Rights group, headed by Yehuda Glick, who demanded that Jews receive access to the holy site on Friday and Saturday. IThe judge said police were responsible for making the decision and that the court could not become involved.

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Arab from the North? You can't enter Jerusalem
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Jerusalem Post
October 9, 2009 - 12:00am

The heavy security around Jerusalem in the wake of the recent Arab riots appeared to get a little bit out of hand on Thursday when Al-Jazeera's bureau chief in Israel, Walid al-Omari, and two of his crew members were initially denied entrance to Jerusalem, because "Arabs from the North aren't allowed into the capital."

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Jerusalem's grand mufti: Israel wrong to block Al-Aqsa Mosque
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Christian Science Monitor
by Ilene Prusher - October 8, 2009 - 12:00am

As grand mufti of Jerusalem and orator of the Al-Aqsa Mosque, Sheikh Mohammed Ahmad Hussein has the power to sway millions of Muslims. But in his three years since being appointed mufti – a title that dates to the British Mandate and bestows guardianship over the Islamic holy places here – Sheikh Hussein has been relatively reserved. He chooses his words carefully, stays above the political fray, and, despite his ability to issue fatwas, has not made any Islamic rulings that have engendered controversy.

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