Credit where it's due
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Bitterlemons
by Joharah Baker - November 9, 2009 - 1:00am

With all the talk about Palestinian elections, President Mahmoud Abbas refusing to run and a possible unilateral declaration of a Palestinian state on the 1967 borders, one thing remains constant--the undeterred growth of Jewish settlements in the West Bank and East Jerusalem. Unfortunately, it is these settlements that will render all of the above completely irrelevant if they are not stopped and dismantled in line with what they are: illegal.

»

Abbas wants Obama guarantee for East Jerusalem freeze
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Haaretz
by Akiva Eldar - November 9, 2009 - 1:00am

If Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas makes good on his declaration that he won't run in the upcoming Palestinian presidential election, Palestinian Prime Minister Salam Fayyad and his entire cabinet would resign, top Palestinian officials predicted yesterday.

»

The partner who had no partner
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Haaretz
by Ephraim Sneh - (Opinion) November 9, 2009 - 1:00am

In announcing last week that he would not run for reelection as president of the Palestinian Authority, in effect Mahmoud Abbas is also stepping down from his unofficial position as leader of the dialogue with Israel-"our partner" as we say here.

»

Stepping Down in Overtime
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Dar Al-Hayat
by Abdullah Iskandar - (Opinion) November 9, 2009 - 1:00am

When Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas announced he would not run for a new term in elections early next year, he justified his decision by focusing on his frustration with the stance by the US and the Arabs on the Israeli settlement issue. Irrespective of the ultimate consequences of this declaration and the chance that Abbas will go back on it, his justification reveals the depth of the predicament that the peace process is now in, along with the plan to establish a Palestinian state. It also reveals the depth of the predicament of Palestinian political action.

»

New Jewish neighbors raise spectre of eviction for Sheikh Jarrah residents
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Jerusalem Post
by Abe Selig - November 5, 2009 - 1:00am

Nearly two-dozen neighbors gathered inside a home on Othman Bin Afan Street in the east Jerusalem neighborhood of Sheikh Jarrah Wednesday afternoon, some 24 hours after a group of Jews had entered the front section of the home to carry out renovations. The property - the back section of which is home to 13 members of the al-Kurd family - was thrust into the spotlight on Tuesday as the latest in a series of Sheikh Jarrah properties embroiled in legal battles over ownership claims, and neighborhood residents who had gathered there on Wednesday had little else on their mind.

»

U.S. Eases Pressure on Israel, Leans On Palestinians
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Jewish Daily Forward
by Nathan Guttman - November 5, 2009 - 1:00am

Relations between Washington and Jerusalem are warming, as months-long tensions over West Bank settlements and other issues have gradually eased. Israeli officials and Jewish communal leaders point to a series of events, including Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton’s praise of Israel’s movement on the settlement issue, and President Obama’s upcoming speech at the General Assembly of Jewish Federations of North America, as signs of softening in the administration’s approach toward the government of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.

»

Conflicting, wavering positions that do not help peace
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Jordan Times
by Daoud Kuttab - (Opinion) November 5, 2009 - 1:00am

As first lady of the United States, Hillary Clinton was the darling of Palestinians and Arabs when late in Bill Clinton’s term she uttered the hot button word: Palestine. Since then, she has been swinging depending on the political winds. As a senator for the state of New York, she became a staunch Israeli supporter, standing by Israel whether justifiably or not. To win the US presidency, she continued this pro-Israel stance, but as secretary of state in the Obama administration, she flipped back.

»

'Totally divorced from reality'
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Jordan Times
by Michael Jansen - (Opinion) November 5, 2009 - 1:00am

The most outrageous thing about US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton’s statement that Israel is making an “unprecedented” commitment to restrict colonisation activity in the West Bank is its total divorce from reality.

»

Administration missteps hamper Mideast efforts
Media Mention of Ghaith al-Omari In The Washington Post - November 5, 2009 - 1:00am

President Obama came into office insisting that his administration would press hard and fast to resolve the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. But after nine months, analysts and diplomats say, the administration's efforts have faltered in part because of its own missteps. As Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton made clear during her Middle East trip, which ended Wednesday, U.S. officials are now promoting new tactics -- what they called the "baby steps" of lower-level talks -- to bring the Israeli and Palestinian leaders together for direct talks.

»

U.S. Eases Pressure on Israel, Leans On Palestinians
Media Mention of Ghaith al-Omari In The Jewish Daily Forward - November 5, 2009 - 1:00am

Washington — Relations between Washington and Jerusalem are warming, as months-long tensions over West Bank settlements and other issues have gradually eased.

»


American Task Force on Palestine - 1634 Eye St. NW, Suite 725, Washington DC 20006 - Telephone: 202-262-0017