October 5, 2007

Middle East News: World Press Roundup

The Christian Science Monitor looks at how a theatrical production involving a series of monologues called 'Jerusalem Stories' is being performed in both Wast and West Jerusalem in an attempt to get Israelis and Palestinians to empathize with each other (2.) The Forward poses questions concerning the opportunities and challenges associated with the current peace momentum to a group of Israeli, American and Palestinian experts in the field (4.) In Slate, founder Michael Kinsley explores the paradox of how right-wing pro-Israel organizations in the U.S. perpetuate the very anti-Semitic stereotypes they object to by touting their own political influence publicly (6.) In his 'Prospects For Peace' blog, New America and Century Foundation's Daniel Levy reviews the Walt/Mearsheimer book on the Israel lobby and finds that it contributes positively to a rethink about the U.S.-Israeli relationship and that the authors are not driven by prejudice (7.) BBC (UK) examines how the Palestinian economy has 'de-developed' over the past few years due to international sanction and Israel's closure policy (9.) Haaretz (Israel) looks at reports that the fall Mideast meeting joint statement will refer to core issues but in a non-committal and only on those already agree upon (12.) A Haaretz editorial offers six reasons why reaching an agreement at the fall meeting will be more difficult than at Camp David in 2000 (13.)

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Bush Says 'very Optimistic' On Mideast Peace

President George W. Bush said in comments aired on Friday he was "very optimistic" a Palestinian state could be set up alongside Israel and that next month's Middle East conference could lead towards peace in the region.

The U.S.-sponsored conference is due to take place in the Washington area in mid to late November, although there are doubts over how far it will go towards ending decades of conflict and uncertainty over which Arab states will attend.

Here We Go Again: Making Much Noise But Very Little Sense

The US government announced a few days ago that anyone invited to a planned Middle East peace conference next month will have to abide by a set of conditions (without stating that those rules are largely written by the United States and Israel). A few days later, a Syrian government daily, Tishrin, charged that Washington seeks to destabilize the Middle East and said a US-sponsored conference was unlikely to make any progress toward peace.

Order Of Things

The Syrian president said that his country will not attend the November peace conference on the Palestinian question, called for by US President George Bush, unless the occupation of the Golan Heights is also an item on the agenda.

On the one hand this is understandable, since an end to the Arab-Israeli conflicts cannot be reached as long as peace efforts are not comprehensive; in other words, talks must be extended to the occupied Syrian territory for any regional peace agreement to be lasting.

Pre-summit Accord To Cover Only Points Of Clear Agreement

The joint statement to be formulated by Israel and the Palestinians ahead of the regional meeting in Annapolis next month may include references to the core issues of the final-status agreement. However, such references would be non-committal, and the statement will deal only with issues that enjoy clear agreement.

Israeli sources say the conference has been set for November 26. Sources in Jerusalem said the joint statement will be "significant enough but general enough to avoid a blow-up and a crisis."

All's Quiet On The Golan Heights, For Now

 

Deep, freshly carved military trenches cut through rocky pastures filled with Israeli cows. Green Israeli army jeeps zip along the narrow mountain roads that parallel the Syrian border. United Nations patrols in white SUVs rumble along uneven dirt roads that run among empty Israeli tank positions and rolling fields stretching northeast toward Damascus.

For decades, this 45-mile border has been one of Israel's quieter ones. These days, however, many Israelis are wondering if this is where the next war will start.

Hate Week Comes To Campus

If you wanted to know what Sen. Joe McCarthy would sound like if he came back from the dead, read David Horowitz's explanation for "Islamofascism Awareness Week," an event he is sponsoring on college campuses across the country from October 22-26:

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