Palestinians looking to U.S.-style suburban housing, financing
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Washington Post
by Howard Schneider - November 23, 2009 - 1:00am

The hills around this city have seen plenty of construction, often the distinctive red-roofed homes favored by Israeli settlers. But the bulldozers and laborers active here recently are laying foundations and building roads for a different type of development -- planned communities targeted to middle-income Palestinians, including one billed as the first "new city" for Palestinians in modern memory.

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Encountering Peace: Getting serious about 'economic peace'
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Jerusalem Post
by Gershon Baskin - (Opinion) November 23, 2009 - 1:00am

More than 10 months have passed since President Barack Obama entered the White House and seven months since Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu took over the reins in Jerusalem and there is still no peace process worth mentioning. Netanyahu campaigned on the slogan of "economic peace" and boasted that he would help the Palestinians build their state from the bottom up by strengthening their economy and thereby "giving them something to lose," so that they will not revert back to violence.

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Rattling the Cage: Go for it, Abbas!
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Jerusalem Post
by Larry Derfner - (Opinion) November 19, 2009 - 1:00am

What we're seeing now in the West Bank is something the democratic world has been awaiting for a very, very long time: a non-violent Palestinian independence movement.

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Plans for new Palestinian city in West Bank raise hopes
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Jewish Telegraphic Agency (JTA)
by Dina Kraft - November 16, 2009 - 1:00am

Dusk has fallen on a terraced hillside and workers clearing the red earth hurry to finish planting trees in the twilight, their labor the initial step in the construction of the first-ever planned Palestinian city. The city, with a construction price tag of some $350 million, already has its city limits registered, a name -- Rawabi, Arabic for hills -- and funding from the government of Qatar. It’s located about five miles north of Ramallah.

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Blair Hails Economic Steps in West Bank
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The New York Times
by Ethan Bronner - November 10, 2009 - 1:00am

Palestinians marked two significant economic breakthroughs on Tuesday, counterpoints to the growing crisis in peace negotiations with Israel: a second cellphone company opened, with a planned investment of hundreds of millions of dollars; and a long-closed crossing point from Israel opened to limited motor traffic.

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BUILDING IN THE WEST BANK: An Interview with Bashar Masri
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Re-Think the Middle East
by Michael Lame - (Interview) November 3, 2009 - 1:00am

Bashar Masri is a Palestinian, born and raised in Nablus, educated in Egypt and the United States. Trained as a chemical engineer and with a background in management consulting, Bashar moved back to the West Bank from the Washington DC area in the mid-1990s, establishing himself in Ramallah. He was the founder and first publisher of the Palestinian daily newspaper Al Ayyam. A successful businessman, Bashar is CEO of Massar International, which engages in a variety of business activities across the Middle East, North Africa, and Eastern Europe.

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‘Fayyad’s Two Year Plan is a Very Smart Move’
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Media Line
by Felice Friedson - (Interview) November 2, 2009 - 1:00am

James L. Wolfensohn, a former head of The World Bank, served as the first Mideast envoy of the Quartet, the entities sponsoring the Road Map peace plan: the United States, United Nations, European Union and Russia. While Mr. Wolfensohn’s experience and reputation in world finance is unparalleled, his service as the Quartet’s first envoy provides an expertise very few can match. He speaks with Felice Friedson, President and CEO of The Media Line.

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Palestinians must prepare for statehood
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Guardian
by Hussein Ibish - (Opinion) November 2, 2009 - 1:00am

In an article last week, Ahmad Samhi Khalidi derisively dismissed the plan of the Palestinian Authority (PA) to build the infrastructural, administrative and economic framework of a Palestinian state in spite of the occupation.

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Fayyad: Occupation must end
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Ma'an News Agency
October 21, 2009 - 12:00am

Israel must end its occupation of the West Bank, caretaker Prime minister Salam Fayyad said on Tuesday. Fayyad added that Israel must stop building settlements on Palestinian land, especially in Jerusalem, and must stop invading Palestinian-held territory and closing Palestinian institutions in Jerusalem. He was speaking in the West Bank town of Beit Sahour, at the opening ceremony of a “heritage handcrafts village” at the YMCA.

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Palestinians launch $220 million housing project
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Reuters
by Mohammed Assadi - October 12, 2009 - 12:00am

The Palestine Investment Fund (PIF) on Monday announced the establishment of the Palestinian territories' most ambitious real estate project to date, with initial capital of $220 million. The goal is to create 30,000 new housing units in the next five to 10 years, PIF Chairman Mohammad Mustafa said. "We want to see projects on the hilltops other than (Jewish) settlements," Mustafa told reporters. "The aim is to participate in building Palestine in the coming period, to create jobs and economic opportunities."

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