Palestinians call local elections for October 20
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Agence France Presse (AFP)
by Nasser Abu Bakr - July 10, 2012 - 12:00am

The Palestinian government in the West Bank on Tuesday said it would hold local elections in October across the Palestinian territories, sparking anger from Gaza's Hamas rulers. "The Palestinian cabinet approved during its meeting today, chaired by prime minister Salam Fayyad, conducting local elections on October 20, 2012 in all local councils in the homeland," a statement said after the meeting.

»

The mystery of Arafat's death affects friend and foe alike
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The National
by Alan Philps - (Opinion) July 6, 2012 - 12:00am

Followers of the career of Yasser Arafat, who died in Paris almost eight years ago, will not be surprised that his ghost has now returned to haunt his successors at the head of the Palestinian Authority. Al Jazeera dropped a bombshell this week with an investigation into the still-unexplained causes of his death: a Swiss laboratory has found traces of polonium, the radioactive isotope used to assassinate the former KGB agent Alexander Litvinenko in London in 2006, on Arafat's toothbrush and clothing.

»

Rewriting the Arafat story
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Ynetnews
by Alex Fishman - (Opinion) July 5, 2012 - 12:00am

Fatah’s old guard, and especially Arafat’s family, has a great task: Arranging a dignified death for the father of the Palestinian nation. The fact that Arafat left the stage while afflicted with a disease that one does not speak about openly, far away from his people, at a French hospital, is incommensurate with the national ethos.

»

President Abbas, if you don't want to fight, negotiate
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Ma'an News Agency
by Nasser Laham - (Analysis) July 4, 2012 - 12:00am

I cannot work out an explanation for the state of "no peace, but no war" which has prevailed in Palestine in the last two years. We Palestinians neither want to fight the Israeli occupation, nor to negotiate with them. We use the term "steadfastness" to describe this stalemate, as if doing nothing at all and remaining motionless has become steadfastness. Palestinian intellectuals have long criticized the Arab regimes because they neither want to fight Israel, nor accept reconciliation with the occupying country.

»

Palestinians' enforcers work together 'to crush dissent'
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The National
by Hugh Naylor - June 27, 2012 - 12:00am

RAMALLAH // One is a longtime friend of the Palestinian president and stalwart of the powerful Fatah political faction. The other is a high-profile lawyer who once was officially rebuked for corruption. Together, Rafiq Alnatsheh and Ahmad Al Mughani are the face of Palestinian Authority (PA) justice.

»

Fatah leader in Gaza resigns over new appointments
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Ma'an News Agency
June 23, 2012 - 12:00am

GAZA CITY (Ma’an) -- A top Fatah leader and several other officials in the Gaza Strip submitted their resignations on Friday following the appointment of new officials within the party, Fatah sources said. Yazid al-Huweihi tendered his resignation because he objected to changes within the Fatah movement in Gaza, sources said.

»

Lally Weymouth interviews Palestinian Prime Minister Salam Fayyad
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Wall Street Journal
by Lally Weymouth - (Interview) June 22, 2012 - 12:00am

“If only we could clone him,” a senior U.S. official said to me recently, speaking about Palestinian Prime Minister Salam Fayyad. Held in great respect by foreigners, Fayyad may soon find himself out of a job if Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas (also called Abu Mazen) forges a national unity government with Hamas. This past week, Fayyad sat down in the West Bank city of Ramallah with The Washington Post’s Lally Weymouth. Excerpts:

»

Encountering Peace: Unity, disunity and peace
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Jerusalem Post
by Gershon Baskin - (Opinion) June 18, 2012 - 12:00am

From what I hear around the area, once again the reconciliation talks between Fatah and Hamas have re-entered the freezer. Just last week the parties announced that on June 20, Palestinian Authority chairman Mahmoud Abbas and Hamas leader Khaled Mashaal would be announcing a new transitional government supported by both movements without any direct or representatives of either. The task of the transitional government was to prepare new elections for president of the Palestinian Authority, the PA Legislative Council and the Palestinian National Council of the PLO.

»

Gaza Five Years On: Hamas Settles In
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Carnegie Endowment for International Peace
by Nathan J. Brown - (Analysis) June 14, 2012 - 12:00am

As political upheavals spread over much of the Middle East and North Africa in 2011, regimes throughout the region were shaken and a few fell. But in both the West Bank and Gaza, a soft authoritarianism that has provoked uprisings elsewhere has only been further entrenching itself.

»

Fatah official: Israeli govt's settler push renews UN option
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Ma'an News Agency
June 13, 2012 - 12:00am

A Fatah official warned on Tuesday that the Israeli government is working for the interests of settlers, leaving the Palestinian Authority in an impasse that pushes UN membership to the fore again. Fatah Central Committee member Mahmoud al-Aloul told Ma'an that the cabinet led by Israeli premier Benjamin Netanyahu did not show any interest in negotiations, but is dominated by pushing settlement activities.

»


American Task Force on Palestine - 1634 Eye St. NW, Suite 725, Washington DC 20006 - Telephone: 202-262-0017