Palestinians: Not enough UN support for state
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Statesman
by Mohammed Daraghmeh - November 8, 2011 - 1:00am

RAMALLAH, West Bank — The Palestinian foreign minister admits for the first time there is not enough support in the U.N. Security Council for recognition of a Palestinian state, This comes as the Security Council receives a report saying there's no consensus among the 15 members. Nine votes would be needed for approval, and any of the five permanent members could cast a veto. The U.S. and Israel insist that a Palestinian state must result from negotiations.

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U.S. renews financial aid to Palestinians after UN statehood row
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Haaretz
by Associated Press - (Analysis) November 7, 2011 - 1:00am

The Palestinians are slated to receive some 200 million dollars in U.S. security assistance after a top House Republican ended her hold on the money. Rep. Ileana Ros-Lehtinen, the chairwoman of the House Foreign Affairs Committee, informed the Obama administration in recent weeks that she no longer would block 50 million dollars in economic support funds for the Palestinian Security Forces and 148 million dollars in other assistance.

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It’s about time
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Daily Star
(Editorial) November 1, 2011 - 12:00am

The state of Palestine finally exists – in the eyes of UNESCO, the United Nations body responsible for science, education and culture. Anyone with knowledge of how the U.N. works could remark that in procedural terms, the move is not particularly significant Representatives of Palestine regularly attend such bodies’ meetings. The website of the U.N. organization ESCWA, for example, lists Palestine as one of the “country” members.

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UNESCO: Boycott For Boycott?
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Talking Points Memo
by Bernard Avishai - (Blog) November 1, 2011 - 12:00am

The admission of the Palestinian Authority into UNESCO has occasioned a fuss about the American response, the automatic cutting of $70 million in funding to the organization, triggered by existing, AIPAC-inspired Congressional legislation. (M.J. Rosenberg's good column on the subject here.) But the thing nobody seems able to explain is what possible interest Israel, or even the Netanyahu government, has in keeping Palestinians out of an organization that focuses on the the sharing of scientific information and universal artistic and cultural values?

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Remarks by Palestinian Prime Minister Salam Fayyad at the Sixth Annual Gala on October 19, 2011
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from American Task Force on Palestine
October 31, 2011 - 12:00am

Thank you. Thank you so very much. This gives a whole new meaning to what Woody Allen must have had in mind about the importance of showing up. Let me see what I can do with the ten percent.

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Bosnia presidents 'cannot agree' on UN bid
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Ma'an News Agency
(Analysis) October 28, 2011 - 12:00am

Bosnia's trio of presidents said on Thursday they could not agree on whether to support a Palestinian bid for full UN membership, with Sarajevo potentially holding a key vote in the UN Security Council. Bosnia's presidency has been shared by leaders of its Muslim, Croat and Serb communities since its 1992-95 war. In a statement after meeting Israeli Foreign Minister Avigdor Lieberman in Sarajevo, the triumvirate said it had so far been unable to reach a joint position on the Palestinian application, reflecting the country's own ethnic divisions.

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Envoy complains to UN over Lieberman 'incitement'
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Ma'an News Agency
(Analysis) October 28, 2011 - 12:00am

The Palestinian envoy to the United Nations has complained to the Security Council that the Israeli foreign minister's call for President Mahmoud Abbas's removal constitutes "incitement" and undermines the peace process. Avigdor Lieberman called the president "the greatest obstacle to peace" and his resignation a "blessing", in remarks to reporters on Monday. After outcry from Palestinian ministers and a UN spokesman warning the comments were "deeply troubling" and an attempt to delegitimize the president, Lieberman repeated his comments to Israel's army radio on Wednesday.

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Ziad Asali of the American Task For on Palestine on Palestinian Activism and a Palestinian State
Interview with Ziad Asali - Radio Baladi - October 28, 2011 - 12:00am

Listen to Ray Hanania interview ATFP President, Dr. Ziad Asali on Palestinian activism and Palestinian statehood. http://rayhanania.podomatic.com/entry/2011-10-28T06_09_59-07_00


Palestine faces US 'pressure' ahead of UNESCO vote
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Ma'an News Agency
October 27, 2011 - 12:00am

BETHLEHEM (Ma’an) -- The Palestinians are in battle with the United States in two United Nations bodies, the Palestinian Authority foreign minister said Wednesday ahead of a vote in Paris. Riyad al-Malki said the vote to admit Palestine as a member of UNESCO was a "small battle leading to the big battle in the Security Council", which will soon vote on Palestine's statehood bid. "We are working hard to counter American pressure on poor countries to discourage them from voting for us”, al-Malki explained in an interview. He hoped more powerful countries would back the smaller ones.

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UNESCO Becomes a New Battleground
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Inter Press Service (IPS)
by A.D. McKenzie - (Analysis) October 27, 2011 - 12:00am

Palestine’s bid to become a member of the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organisation (UNESCO) has created a tense atmosphere here, as the United States threatens to cut financing if the application is approved. Delegates to the agency’s 36th General Conference, which began this week, faced heightened security and a barrage of international media attention, as UNESCO’s 193 member states prepare to vote on the Palestinian request.

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