Proximity talks off to rocky start
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Jerusalem Post
by Herb Keinon - May 21, 2010 - 12:00am

US envoy George Mitchell left Israel on Thursday afternoon, ending the second round of proximity talks, with each side claiming their contacts with the American mediator focused on something completely different. Following a three-hour meeting with Mitchell, Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu issued a statement saying the second part of their meeting focused on water issues, while the first part of the talks dealt with a number of issues, including gestures Israel might make to the Palestinians.

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Palestinian official denies secret contacts to bring NATO forces
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Xinhua
May 20, 2010 - 12:00am

A senior Palestinian official on Thursday denied reports that the Palestinian National Authority ( PNA) was holding secret talks to persuade the NATO to monitor the borders of the future Palestinian state. "There are in-depth contacts with Jordan and all other Arab countries to brief them on the situation in the region, but there are no secret contacts with international forces," chief Palestinian negotiator Saeb Erekat said.

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Resources on the American National Security Interest in Israeli-Palestinian Peace
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Huffington Post
by Ziad Asali - May 20, 2010 - 12:00am

My colleagues and I founded the American Task Force on Palestine in 2003 with a clear, focused mission: to advocate that a negotiated end of conflict agreement that allows for two states, Israel and Palestine, to live side-by-side in peace and security is in the American national interest. Over the past seven years, we have been gratified by the development of the understanding that this is a vital national interest for our country into a clear policy focus for our government and a growing consensus within the foreign policy establishment.

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US donates $1.4 million to UNRWA
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Ma'an News Agency
May 20, 2010 - 12:00am

US Embassy officials in Damascus, the Syrian government, and UNRWA inaugurated a newly constructed community centre that will benefit some 144,000 Palestinian refugees living in the Syrian capital's Yarmouk refugee camp on Wednesday. A statement issued by the US State Department said America contributed 1.4 million US dollars for the community centre's construction.

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The US may have no Plan B, but the Palestinians do
Media Mention of Hussein Ibish In The Daily Star - May 20, 2010 - 12:00am

The Obama administration was successful in arranging for the resumption of Palestinian-Israeli negotiations through “proximity talks,” which began recently. However, expectations in all quarters are understandably low for any near-term breakthrough. Consequently, Palestinians have been systematically developing a new set of peaceful strategies to achieve independence and advance a resolution to the conflict.

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Peace or poison
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Jordan Times
by A.B. Yehoshua - May 19, 2010 - 12:00am

Contrary to the hopes of many, the end of World War II and the shock of the Nazi atrocities did not mean the end of war and genocide. Indeed, the decades following it have been rife with bloody conflicts in which entire population groups have been murdered. Remember Angola’s civil war, the Khmer Rouge’s massacre of millions of Cambodians, Rwanda’s tribal wars, the bloody disintegration of Yugoslavia, and the extermination of Christians in Southern Sudan.

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To promote Arab-Israeli peace, Arabs and Israelis argue against it
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Christian Science Monitor
by Nicholas Blanford - May 19, 2010 - 12:00am

Most grassroots peace efforts in the Middle East try to build on areas of mutual agreement, but one group of Israelis and Arabs has taken a different tack – looking for arguments against peace between Israel and Syria.

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Palestinian girls win award for sensor cane at Intel fair
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Ma'an News Agency
May 18, 2010 - 12:00am

Three Palestinian teenagers from the UNWRA school in the Askar refugee camp in Nablus were the first Palestinians to win an award on Monday at the Intel Science and Engineering Fair in San Jose in California. Aseel Abu Aleil, Noor Alarada and Aseel Alshaar picked up a special award in applied electronics, having competed against 15,000 finalists from around the world, a statement read.

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Israel rejects Qatar bid to restore diplomatic ties
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Haaretz
by Barak Ravid - May 18, 2010 - 12:00am

Israel has rejected two proposals from Qatar to restore diplomatic relations and let Israel reopen its office in the capital of Doha. A senior source in Jerusalem said that in return for renewed diplomatic relations, the Qataris demanded that they be allowed to carry out a series of reconstruction projects in the Gaza Strip and to import the necessary construction materials. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Foreign Minister Avigdor Lieberman were unwilling to agree to this, he said.

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A country with no bosses: What we don't do ourselves, our foes will force from us
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Haaretz
by Yoel Marcus - May 18, 2010 - 12:00am

Industry, Trade and Labor Minister Benjamin Ben-Eliezer, who has never lost his sense of humor or his optimism, returned last week from a short visit to Europe. And what do you think he discovered there? That Israel is in the worst situation it has ever been in. They despise Israel in Europe, and for the first time are questioning its very right to exist. Europe hates us, Ben-Eliezer found.

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