Palestinian trade unions divided over strike action
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Ma'an News Agency
September 17, 2012 - 12:00am

BETHLEHEM (Ma'an) -- Palestinian trade unions are divided over whether to continue strike action in protest against rising living costs, unionists said Sunday. Transport union leader Nasser Younis told Ma'an that strike action was not a goal in itself but a means to pressure the Palestinian Authority to listen to their demands.

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Islam is ready for peace with Israel, says rabbi who has met with ‘whole strata’ of radicals
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Times of Israel
by David Horovitz - (Interview) September 16, 2012 - 12:00am

For 10 years, from 1999, Rabbi Michael Melchior was a member of Knesset, elected via the dovish Meimad faction — the political face of moderate religious Zionism.

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Egyptian president meets Hamas chief
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Xinhua
July 19, 2012 - 12:00am

Egyptian President Mohamed Morsi held talks Thursday with Islamic Hamas movement's politburo chief Khaled Mashaal, official news agency MENA reported. The two talked about the latest developments in the Palestinian reconciliation, efforts exerted by Egypt supporting the Palestinian issue, and ways to get a Palestinian independent state. The meeting was attended by the deputy head of Hamas movement office and members of the political bureau, including Mahmoud al- Zahar. Morsi met visiting Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas Wednesday.

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Abbas says Hamas obstructs reconciliation
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Xinhua
July 9, 2012 - 12:00am

Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas on Sunday accused rival Hamas movement of obstructing the implementation of the Palestinian internal reconciliation agreements reached in Cairo and Doha. At a joint news conference with European Commission Chief Jose Manuel Barroso following a meeting held in Ramallah, Abbas said that he doesn't know why Hamas suddenly decided to halt the update of voters' record in Gaza.

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Hamas Takes Step Toward Palestinian Unity Government
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The New York Times
by Fares Akram - May 28, 2012 - 12:00am

Ismail Haniya, the Hamas prime minister in Gaza, made the first step on Monday toward ending his group’s disputes with the

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Palestinian irreconciliation
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Jerusalem Post
by Douglas Bloomfield - (Opinion) May 23, 2012 - 12:00am

Fatah and Hamas signed another power sharing agreement this weekend in Cairo, but if experience is any guide it is doubtful this one will be any more successful than the previous attempts at reconciliation between the rival Palestinian factions. The new pact calls for voter registration in Gaza and consultations on formation of an interim government of technocrats to begin May 27. The new cabinet, to be agreed upon within 10 days, would operate for six months, during which time it would set a date for presidential and parliamentary elections, probably sometime next year.

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The Palestinian Disunity Government
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Council On Foreign Relations
by Elliott Abrams - (Blog) May 22, 2012 - 12:00am

Last Sunday in Cairo, Hamas and Fatah signed an agreement to create the national unity government to which they agreed in principle months ago in Doha. They will meet on May 27 and have given themselves ten days to negotiate a new coalition that would then carry out elections. This announcement is interesting and potentially significant, but not in obvious ways. First, it was brokered by the Egyptian General Intelligence Service. This is a significant display of the continued vigor of that organization and its influence on the Palestinian parties.

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Abbas Seeks Support for Non-Member Palestinian State
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Xinhua
April 19, 2012 - 12:00am

RAMALLAH, April 19 (Xinhua) -- Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas' recent tour in Asia aimed to lobby for support for giving the Palestinians the status of non-member state in the United Nations, a Palestinian official said Thursday. "Abbas sought international support for the Palestinian position as peace talks with Israel are crippled," said Palestinian foreign minister Riad Al-Maliki, he also sought support "for going to the UN General Assembly" to ask for upgrading the Palestinian statue to a non-member state.

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Senior PA official: Iran is provoking region
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Ma'an News Agency
April 16, 2012 - 12:00am

RAMALLAH (Ma'an) -- The secretary-general of the Palestinian Authority on Monday accused Iran of provoking regional strife by violating the sovereignty of the UAE. Tayyeb Abdul Rahim condemned Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad's recent visit to Abu Musa, one of three Gulf islands claimed by both the UAE and Iran. The PA rejects Iranian threats to the Gulf states "as we reject the Israeli occupation and resist it," the secretary-general said in a statement.

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Abbas: 'Unity is frozen'
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Ma'an News Agency
March 29, 2012 - 12:00am

BAGHDAD (Ma'an) -- President Mahmoud Abbas said Thursday that the reconciliation deal between his Fatah party and Hamas has broken down. "Unity is frozen," said Abbas, who is in Baghdad to attend the Arab League summit. The president said he had agreed "on many points" with Hamas chief Khalid Mashaal during their meeting in Qatar in February. "We agreed on the vision and objectives and conditions in full," Abbas said. "I confirm that Mashaal was honest and we were ready (to proceed)." But some Hamas leaders rejected the agreements reached in Doha, the president said.

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