Sleiman uses Rome visit to call for Middle East peace
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Daily Star
by Hussein Abdallah - October 30, 2008 - 8:00pm

President Michel Sleiman urged the international community on Thursday to enhance its efforts to reach just and comprehensive solutions for all Middle East conflicts. "Such solutions should be based on international resolutions and on the Arab Peace Initiative, which was launched in Beirut in 2002 ... This initiative is clear on rejecting the naturalization of Palestinian refugees outside their homeland," Sleiman said after meeting Italian President Giorgio Napolitano in Rome.

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Israel needs to show it is serious about peace
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Gulf News
by George S. Hishmeh - October 29, 2008 - 8:00pm

And now it's Israel's turn to vote in a new parliament. What is good for the goose is good for the gander. The results of the elections in Israel and America are bound to affect the Middle East and, hopefully, the new leaders of the two countries will bring good tidings for traumatised Arabs and Israelis.

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Lieberman: Mubarak can 'go to hell'; Peres, Olmert apologize
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Haaretz
by Shahar Ilan, Barak Ravid, Yoav Stern - October 29, 2008 - 8:00pm

The 2009 elections will probably end with the establishment of a national unity government. The reason is political rather than geo-strategic. If Tzipi Livni wins she will not be capable of forming a stable center-left government, and therefore she will be forced to cooperate with both Labor and the Likud. If Benjamin Netanyahu wins, he will not want to form an extreme right-wing government, and therefore will choose to have both Kadima and Labor join him. If by some miracle Ehud Barak wins, his slim victory will not leave him any choice but to rely on Livni, Netanyahu and their parties.

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In the name of peace
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Haaretz
by Ari Shavit - (Editorial) October 29, 2008 - 8:00pm

The 2009 elections will probably end with the establishment of a national unity government. The reason is political rather than geo-strategic. If Tzipi Livni wins she will not be capable of forming a stable center-left government, and therefore she will be forced to cooperate with both Labor and the Likud. If Benjamin Netanyahu wins, he will not want to form an extreme right-wing government, and therefore will choose to have both Kadima and Labor join him. If by some miracle Ehud Barak wins, his slim victory will not leave him any choice but to rely on Livni, Netanyahu and their parties.

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Middle East challenges for next president
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Reuters
by Alistair Lyon - October 28, 2008 - 8:00pm

Major foreign policy challenges await the next president in the Middle East. Here are some of the intertwined issues that Democrat Barack Obama or Republican John McCain will inherit from President George W. Bush.

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Livni Abandons Effort to Form Israeli Coalition
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Washington Post
by Linda Gradstein - October 26, 2008 - 8:00pm

Israeli Foreign Minister Tzipi Livni on Sunday gave up trying to form a coalition government, paving the way for new elections in early 2009. Palestinian officials worried that her decision could also mean the end of the fragile Israeli-Palestinian peace process, which resumed just under a year ago and had been a priority of the Bush administration.

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Polls Show Even Split in Israeli Elections
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Associated Press
October 26, 2008 - 8:00pm

Israel moved closer Monday to a bruising election campaign that will decide the future of peace talks, as polls showed the moderate foreign minister, Tzipi Livni, in a surprisingly close race with hard-line opposition leader Benjamin Netanyahu. Neither of Israel's two leading political parties would have enough seats to form a government on its own, according to the surveys, which also showed an even split between the country's hawkish and center-left blocs. That signals more deadlock in peacemaking with Syria and the Palestinians.

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Three Solutions for the Palestinians
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Asharq Alawsat
by Abdul Rahman Al-Rashed - October 26, 2008 - 8:00pm

There is no comfortable solution for the Palestinians to repair their domestic affairs other than the leaders abandoning their ambitions to lead. This is a fact that has been known for a long time. However, the problem is how to convince all these leaders when it's apparent how happy Hamas is with its sovereignty over Gaza, and its readiness to give everything to preserve it; the same applies to the others.

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The amusing term ‘coexistence’
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Haaretz
by Hisham Nafa' - October 25, 2008 - 8:00pm

Many people have expressed surprise at the recent violence in Acre. Particularly amusing was the mantra that rolled off the tongues of government officials, their eyes wide open: "How could such a thing happen in a city of coexistence?"

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Next US leader should get to work on Mideast: Palestinian
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Agence France Presse (AFP)
October 23, 2008 - 8:00pm

The next US president, be it Barack Obama or John McCain, should get to work immediately to jump-start Middle East peace talks, chief Palestinian negotiator Saeb Erakat said here Thursday. Erakat was visiting Tokyo for talks with Israel's Interior Minister Meir Sheetrit, in the latest meeting arranged by leading donor Japan aimed at building confidence between the two sides. "Whoever will be the next president of the United States, whether Mr. McCain or Mr. Obama, they must immediately engage and continue their engagement and no time should be wasted," Erakat told reporters.

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