Hamas wing threatens PA leadership
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Ma'an News Agency
October 6, 2010 - 12:00am

Hamas' military wing on Wednesday threatened to target Palestinian Authority officials "if PA security forces continue to detain and sue resistance activists in the West Bank." Al-Qassam Brigades spokesman Abu Ubayda read a statement on behalf of 12 military groups in the Gaza Strip saying "we are fed up with the PA security's behavior in the West Bank. Over the past period, we have preferred to give reconciliation efforts all the time needed, however, we hereby say we will not remain silent for long."

»

Ministry fails to reimburse West Bank farmers
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Ma'an News Agency
October 6, 2010 - 12:00am

West Bank farmers say they feel betrayed by the Palestinian Authority finance and agriculture ministries, after failing to meet promises of support for farmers whose land lies close to Israel's separation wall. Speaking to Ma'an, farmers from different West Bank areas slated for confiscation for the separation wall said they signed an agreement with the Ministry of Finance, which would reimburse farmers for building water wells for irrigation at their own expense.

»

Can Palestinian police get respect through soccer clinics?
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Christian Science Monitor
by Joshua Mitnick - October 5, 2010 - 12:00am

For years, the Palestinian police force has been considered by many in the West Bank and Gaza to be weak, corrupt, disconnected from the people – not to mention in cahoots with Israel. But, in an effort to win the hearts and minds of the Palestinian grassroots, the West Bank police force has embarked on a community outreach campaign, organizing soccer clinics, town meetings, and antidrug information chats for kids.

»

Poll: Most Palestinians back dropping talks if Israel builds settlements
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Haaretz
October 4, 2010 - 12:00am

A majority of Palestinians would want to withdraw from Middle East peace negotiations if Israel continues to build settlements in the West Bank, according to a public opinion poll published Monday. The poll, conducted by the Ramallah-based Palestinian Centre for Policy and Survey Research, found that 66 per cent of participants supported that position.

»

Palestinians: Peace talks hinge on Israeli settlement construction
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Washington Post
by Joel Greenberg - October 3, 2010 - 12:00am

JERUSALEM - The Palestinian leadership said on Saturday that there would be no resumption of peace talks without a halt to Israeli settlement building in the West Bank, backing Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas in a dispute that has imperiled recently renewed negotiations.

»

Five myths about Middle East peace
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Washington Post
by Aaron David Miller - October 3, 2010 - 12:00am

Yet again, Israelis and Palestinians are negotiating (or trying to), and yet again, a U.S. administration is in the middle of the muddle. We've seen this movie many times before, and I've watched it up close as a negotiator and adviser for both Democratic and Republican secretaries of state. Is there any reason to believe that this time around, there will be a happy ending? Mutual suspicions, domestic political constraints and substantive differences between the parties are hampering the talks.

»

14 justices sue PA over vehicle restrictions
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Ma'an News Agency
September 29, 2010 - 12:00am

Fourteen Palestinian supreme court justices have filed a lawsuit against the Palestinian Authority, prime minister and finance minister Salam Fayyad, and transportation minister Sa’di Al-Krunz. The plaintiffs complain that the Ramallah-based Palestinian government’s decision to reduce the number of government cars used by civil servants has inflicted social and financial harm on them.

»

Negotiating Until the End
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Asharq Alawsat
by Ali Ibrahim - (Opinion) September 29, 2010 - 12:00am

Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas is in a difficult position. The Palestinian negotiators linked the continuation of direction negotiations with Israel – which were launched with great difficulty and are still at an early stage – with an extension to the partial freeze on settlement construction; something that has not materialized from the Israeli side, despite international pressure, in particular from Washington, who are sponsoring the current negotiations.

»

PA to support olive oil farmers
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Ma'an News Agency
September 25, 2010 - 12:00am

BETHLEHEM (Ma’an) -- The Palestinian Authority's Ministry of Agriculture will not fix olive oil prices ahead of the 2010 harvest season, the minister said, announcing a new mechanism of support for farmers. Minister Isma’il D’eiq told Ma’an on Saturday that rather than fix prices, the ministry would offer loans to organizations with tenders to purchase the oil for less than 20 shekels ($5.41) per kilo.

»

Time for the Palestinians to regroup
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Daily Star
by Rami Khouri - (Opinion) September 22, 2010 - 12:00am

I was in Amman last week on the same day that US Secretary of State Hilary Clinton passed through for lunch with the king of Jordan and stressed how all the negotiators on the Palestinian-Israeli track were very serious about reaching an agreement. I was also in the Jordan Valley gazing across at some of the Israeli settlements as Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas pledged not to negotiate for a moment more if the Israelis continued building settlements after their partial freeze ended this month.

»


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