Fears of third intifada as tension grows in Israel
Media Mention of Ghaith al-Omari In The Telegraph - October 8, 2009 - 12:00am

fter two weeks of mounting tension and sporadic clashes between Israeli security forces and Palestinian protesters, a showdown is expected when Friday prayers are called at the al-Aqsa mosque in Jerusalem's old city. Thousands of Israeli soldiers and policemen are being deployed around the site after the Palestinian Authority called a one-day general strike and a leading Islamic cleric in Egypt urged the Arab world to rise up in "a day of anger".

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Palestinians should trust Obama
In Print by Ziad Asali - Arab News (Opinion) - October 4, 2009 - 12:00am

THINGS have changed over the past decade between Palestinians and the United States, and much for the better. Yasser Arafat was enticed to attend the Camp David meeting in 2000 with the promise that he would not be blamed if it failed. It did, and he was. Last week Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas was invited to attend the New York meeting without any such promise. He was not blamed, and the meeting was not a failure. The meeting dealt with both an immediate crisis and a long-term strategic goal.

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President Obama enters the Mideast fray
Media Mention of Ziad Asali In The Los Angeles Times - September 23, 2009 - 12:00am

President Obama, exasperated by the disappointing course of Mideast peace efforts, urged Israelis and Palestinians on Tuesday to reapply themselves, even though eight months of intensive American engagement has failed to return the parties to the negotiating table. Obama met with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas at a New York hotel ahead of a United Nations session, stepping personally into the process and offering an unusually blunt message.

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White House Pivots in Mideast Peace Bid
Media Mention of Ziad Asali In The New York Times - September 23, 2009 - 12:00am

President Obama, who has met immovable resistance from Israel over his demand for a full freeze on settlements in the West Bank, is largely setting that issue aside as a first step toward restarting Middle East peace talks.

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ATFP Welcomes UN Meeting, Supports Pres. Obama’s Peace Efforts
Press Release - Contact Information: Hussein Ibish - September 22, 2009 - 12:00am

Washington, DC, Sept. 22 – The American Task Force on Palestine (ATFP) welcomed today’s trilateral meeting at the UN General Assembly between President Barack Obama, Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. ATFP reiterated its strong support for President Obama’s Middle East peace initiative, and urged the administration to continue to spare no effort in pressing for an Israeli settlement freeze in the occupied territories and the resumption of permanent status negotiations.


ATFP Joins Letter of Support for Obama Peace Initiative
Press Release - Contact Information: Hussein Ibish - September 22, 2009 - 12:00am

Washington, DC, Sept. 22 – Ziad J. Asali, President of the American Task Force on Palestine (ATFP), joined over 30 ethnic and religious leaders in a statement supporting President Obama’s initiative to secure a peace agreement between Israel and the Palestinians. The full text of the statement is reproduced below: Letter in Support of a Comprehensive Middle East Peace: An American National Interest Imperative


Talks go on despite W. Bank construction
Media Mention of Ghaith al-Omari In The Jerusalem Post - September 9, 2009 - 12:00am

Despite angry statements from the Palestinians and the Arab world, and condemnations from the US and the EU, Israel's announcement Monday of new housing starts in the settlements did not derail the diplomatic process; US envoy George Mitchell is expected here Saturday night, and Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu is scheduled to fly to Egypt for talks on Sunday. "The settlements aren't the be-all, end-all" of American policy efforts, one State Department official told The Jerusalem Post on Tuesday. "Our ultimate goal [is] to create the conditions for negotiations."

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The hollowness of the one-state agenda
In Print by Hussein Ibish - ATFP (Opinion) - September 8, 2009 - 12:00am

On college campuses in the United States and the United Kingdom, and increasingly among grassroots activists in the West generally, the cause of ending the Israeli occupation and securing independence for a Palestinian state is being abandoned in favor of a much more far-reaching goal of replacing Israel with a single, democratic state for all Israelis and Palestinians, including all of the refugees. Until now, this rhetoric has been largely unchallenged from a pro-Palestinian perspective, which has probably been a significant factor in its appeal.

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ATFP Welcomes White House Statement on Israeli Settlement Activity
Press Release - Contact Information: Hussein Ibish - September 4, 2009 - 12:00am

Washington, DC, Sept. 4 -- The American Task Force on Palestine (ATFP) welcomed today's statement issued by the office of the White House Press Secretary stating the United States government's position that Israeli settlement activity should stop. The White House states that, "We regret the reports of Israel's plans to approve additional settlement construction," which importantly allows for the possibility that news reports that Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is planning to approve several hundred new settler homes in the occupied West Bank may be inaccurate.


If you build it, the state will come
In Print by Ziad Asali - The Guardian (Opinion) - September 4, 2009 - 12:00am

Palestinian prime minister Salam Fayyad's blueprint for what he has called "de facto Palestinian statehood" offers a new and important element to the quest for peace in the Middle East.

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