September 3, 2009

Middle East News: World Press Roundup

US Middle East Envoy George Mitchell reportedly holds constructive talks with Israeli diplomats while US officials say US-Israel relations depend on a settlement agreement, and there is a growing confidence about the resumption of Israeli-Palestinian negotiations. The PA has established a committee to look into allegations of "organ harvesting" by Israeli troops. Reports suggest a steep drop in Israeli settlement construction, but Ha'aretz reports that the Israeli government is considered recognizing the legality of some unauthorized settlement activity. Israel is attempting to rebuild its diplomatic ties to a number of African states. Former Prime Minister Olmert stands accused of swindling Jewish Americans. On the Israel Policy Forum blog, Hussein Ibish explains why he wrote ATFP's new book on the one-state agenda.

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U.S., Israel Grow More Confident of Talks with Palestinians

Optimism is growing within the U.S. and Israeli governments that direct peace talks between Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's government and the Palestinian Authority could begin as early as this fall, said diplomats involved in the process.

Negotiations between the U.S. and Israel over freezing Israel's settlements in Palestinian territories remain contentious, and it isn't certain a compromise will emerge that will allow the three parties and Israel's Arab neighbors to move forward on other issues.

Low Expectations May Be Helpful for Mideast Talks

For a process that evokes little optimism on either side, there is an awful lot of diplomatic activity just now aimed at restarting Israeli-Palestinian peace talks. Two high-level Israeli officials are in Washington trying to finalize a modified settlement freeze with the American Mideast envoy George Mitchell. The Israeli national security adviser just visited the Jordanian capital to meet with King Abdullah. Hamas officials are in Cairo talking about what they want to release an Israeli soldier they are holding.

Israelis and Palestinians talking again after months-long freeze

Reporting from Jerusalem - In a limited thaw of a frosty relationship, Israeli and Palestinian officials held their first high-level meeting in months Wednesday and discussed ways to bolster a promising economic recovery in the West Bank.

The encounter was part of a shift by the West Bank-based Palestinian leadership, which previously shunned contact with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's government. That position was out of step with the Obama administration, which is seeking to bring the sides together.

In Israel's Sderot, a reprieve from rockets, but not fear

During nearly a decade of intermittent attacks from Gaza, Mivtzah Kadesh Street became infamous in this battered town as a frequent target for rockets as well as a bombed-out backdrop for visits from foreign VIPs expressing solidarity.

Now, eight months after Israel's Gaza offensive to punish Hamas for attacks, Sderot's wrecked homes have been largely rebuilt. But after eight years of being on constant alert for unpredictable rocket attacks, it has not been as easy for Sderot's 19,000 residents to restore their peace of mind.

High level PA panel to investigate "organ theft" claims

The Palestinian Authority (PA) is forming a high-level panel to investigate allegations that the Israeli military “stole organs” from Palestinian detainees, officials said on Thursday.

The secretary general of the PA Council of Ministers, Dr Hassan Abu Libdeh, said that the committee has already started work by collecting all available information about the issue. He said the PA will take a sharp position on this issue, because, if true, the alleged events would constitute violations of human rights.

Israeli soldiers raid West Bank towns, seizing five Palestinians

Israeli forces raided several Palestinians communities and seized five people in the West Bank on Wednesday night, Palestinian and Israeli sources said.

In the Jenin area in the northern West Bank, Israeli forces detained three young men. According to Palestinian security sources, Israeli forces raided several houses in the eastern neighborhood of Jenin and seized Aybak Allam Abu Ali, 20.

In neighboring Birqin village, Israeli soldiers detained Muhammad Basem Khalouf, 19, during a raid on his house, the security sources said.

Israel building in West Bank settlements has dropped, new study finds

New figures from the Central Bureau of Statistics show that Israel's construction of new homes in West Bank settlements fell by one-third in the first half of 2009, compared to the same period in 2008.

The numbers bolster settlers' claims that Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has partially frozen settlement construction under U.S. pressure.

The Central Bureau of Statistics said Thursday that housing starts dropped 34 percent to 672 housing units compared to 1,015 for the same period in 2008.

Israel hints it may retroactively legalize settlement construction

The state prosecutor's representative twice hinted that construction in West Bank settlements might be retroactively legalized Wednesday, seemingly representing a major policy turnaround.

The two responses are a departure from the state's usual response that the structures are illegal and are expected to be demolished.

Tell the settlers the truth

At a time when the Obama administration is seeking a way to impose a construction freeze in the settlements that will be acceptable to both Israelis and Palestinians, in order to pave the way for the resumption of the political process, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is seeking common ground with the settlers.

According to the minutes distributed by the Prime Minister's Office after Netanyahu's meeting with the heads of the Yesha Council of settlements last month, the prime minister stated that, "We are all interested in the same thing," and then added, "But we must act wisely."

Blair: Israel thinks its time for talks

Mideast Quartet envoy Tony Blair expressed optimism on a settlement freeze agreement in the near future, that will pave the way for renewed regional peace talks.

Followings talks with Israeli officials in recent days, Blair told the British Independent: "I hope and believe... we can get a political negotiation launched on satisfactory terms."

US officials: Netanyahu at pivotal moment

WASHINGTON – Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's envoys to US talks on the freezing of construction in settlements, Attorney Yitzhak Molcho and Brig. Gen. Mike Herzog, met US special envoy to the Middle East, George Mitchell, on Wednesday.

The US State Department reported that it was a "good meeting," and that Mitchell will visit the region in the second half of next week.

Beware Palestinian plot

The “two-state vision” is no longer only endorsed by the Left or Center, but rather, it is backed by the Zionist consensus – ranging from Meretz to Likud.

Israel rekindles its African ties

Avigdor Liberman begins his trip in Ethiopia, where he will be accompanied by 20 business people.

Officials say the trip is about building business links with Africa and also countering the influence of Iran on the continent.

Israel hopes closer ties with Africa will help at the UN where African countries often vote in blocks.

Ethiopia has strong links with Israel. During the 1980s and 90s tens of thousands of Ethiopian Jews were airlifted to Israel to resettle in what they considered to be their homeland.

Israeli moves give Blair hope of rebuilding political trust

Tony Blair expressed optimism yesterday that Israel and the US would agree on a settlement moratorium sufficient to pave the way for the first political negotiations between Benjamin Netanyahu's government and the moderate Palestinian leadership.

The international community's Middle East envoy was speaking after three days of talks with Israeli leaders including Prime Minister Netanyahu.

Hidden in Olmert Indictment Are Charges That He Swindled U.S. Jews

Washington — The indictment against former Israeli prime minister Ehud Olmert has riveted Israelis with its allegations that the ex-prime minister took envelopes of cash from supporters for his personal use. But another aspect of the August 30 indictment, one directly relevant to American Jews, has been all but lost amid the fallout:

The Israeli leader, prosecutors charge, bilked 17 prominent North American Jewish charities and pro-Israel advocacy groups for his own benefit.

Israeli Obstacles to the International Conference

The importance of the visit by the president of the Palestinian Authority, Mahmoud Abbas, to France on Thursday and Friday to meet French President Nicolas Sarkozy and Foreign Minister Bernard Kouchner lies in the timing.

The visit comes before Sarkozy takes part in the General Assembly of the United Nations on 12 September, and his meeting with the heads of the G-20 in Pittsburgh on the 24th and 25th of the same month.

At the expense of peace

Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas has put the Obama administration in an awkward position by demanding a total halt to Israeli settlement construction and expansion in the West Bank and East Jerusalem. He is simply echoing Secretary of State Hillary Clinton who initially called for a complete suspension of settlement activity, including completing, to accommodate “natural growth”, the 2,500 units under construction, and housing in East Jerusalem.

Why I Wrote "What's Wrong with the One-State Agenda?"

Israel Policy Forum has very kindly asked me to contribute a blog posting about my new book, published by the American Task Force on Palestine, "What's Wrong with the One-State Agenda? Why Ending the Occupation and Peace with Israel is Still the Palestinian National Goal." It is now available for free download or hardcopy purchase from the ATFP website.

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