Gov't opposes 'borders first' approach
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Jerusalem Post
by Khaled Abu Toameh, Herb Keinon - January 5, 2010 - 1:00am

Israel's top decision-makers are against discussing the border issue first in future negotiations with the Palestinians, The Jerusalem Post has learned. PM prepared to start immediate talks with PA without preconditions Separating final borders from other core issues would allow negotiators to avoid the thorny settlement construction dispute.

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Yeshiva in Mount of Olives to get 24 more housing units
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Ynetnews
by Ronen Medzini - (Analysis) January 5, 2010 - 1:00am

Israel continues with east Jerusalem construction despite international censures. Jerusalem's Planning and Construction Committee decided Monday to authorize the establishment of a new Jewish neighborhood in the a-Tur area as an extension of the Beit Orot yeshiva which includes several caravans. According to the plan, four residential buildings are to be built on the site and accommodate 24 Jewish families.

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Almost irreversible
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Bitterlemons
by Ghassan Khatib - January 4, 2010 - 1:00am

The first decade of the twenty-first century, which ended a few days ago, witnessed the undoing of all the positive milestones and achievements that had occurred in the Palestinian-Israeli peace process in the last decade of the twentieth century. That decade started with the first international peace conference in Madrid. This was followed by the first Arab-Israel multilateral and bilateral negotiations, which ended with the signing of the first Palestinian-Israeli peace agreement, the Oslo Accords.

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Jerusalem should be at the center of peace efforts
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Bitterlemons
by Daoud Kuttab - January 4, 2010 - 1:00am

The first decade of the twenty-first century has been a disastrous one for Palestinians. Negotiations efforts were dealt a dramatic blow, historic leaders and potential leaders were killed, assassinated or imprisoned and, worst of all, the scourge of internal strife returned to Palestinians in the form of the destructive Hamas-Fateh division.

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How Israel is implementing the settlement freeze
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Jewish Telegraphic Agency (JTA)
by Marcy Oster - January 4, 2010 - 1:00am

While an Israeli magician sat in an ice cube in Tel Aviv for 64 hours in a bid to shatter a world record, settler leaders in Jerusalem prepared to smash an ice cube of a very different sort this week opposite the prime minister’s residence.

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Settlers, tell us, what do you think will happen?
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Haaretz
by Gideon Levy - (Opinion) January 3, 2010 - 1:00am

What constitutes the life of a settler? A house on the cheap; a standard of living above the national average; a job usually subsidized by the government; a fierce religious, nationalist, uncompromising conviction on the justness of his cause; a supportive, heavy-handed social environment; a highway system; transportation arrangements; socially enriching activities; and, at times, a life that comes with the risk of danger.

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Mosque arson: Suspect released
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Ynetnews
by Efrat Weiss - January 1, 2010 - 1:00am

The youth suspected of torching the mosque in the West Bank village of Yasuf was released on bail Thursday evening, after the police verified his alibi. Nevertheless, the minor's involvement in the case is still investigated. The youth, who is a relative of Kach founder Rabbi Meir Kahane, was arrested in the morning hours and interrogated for several hours. Attorney Yehuda Shushan, representing the suspect told Ynet that his client has no criminal record and that he adamantly denies all the allegations against him, adding that he was "traumatized by the arrest."

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Q&A: ''Israeli Settlements Killing Two-Nation Solution''
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Inter Press Service (IPS)
by Jerrold Kessel, Pierre Klochendler - (Interview) January 1, 2010 - 1:00am

JERUSALEM, Dec 30 (IPS) - In the absence of any progress towards peace between Israelis and Palestinians, leaders of the Palestinian Authority (PA) are adopting a reasonable approach as a way of building up international pressure on Israel to get it back to the negotiating table.

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Construction in West Bank settlements booming despite declared freeze
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Haaretz
by Akiva Eldar - January 1, 2010 - 1:00am

Despite the construction freeze, dozens of settlements in the West Bank are experiencing a building boom, even on the eve of another visit to the region by U.S. envoy George Mitchell to try to restart talks for a final settlement between the Israelis and Palestinians. Construction is being carried out mostly to the east of the separation fence; it began shortly after warrants were issued on November 26 freezing construction.

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Settlers can stay, but only as citizens of Palestine
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Haaretz
by Alexander Yakobson - (Opinion) January 1, 2010 - 1:00am

The time has come to say to the settler leaders: Okay - you've convinced us. It seems that a mass evacuation of settlers is an impractical idea. You showed us clearly that you're prepared to turn such a removal into a national trauma. It's doubtful that any Israeli politician would chance it.

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