Caterpillar Caught in Web Of Middle East Politics
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Jewish Daily Forward
by Josh Nathan-Kazis - July 21, 2010 - 12:00am

At first glance, the contention that a construction equipment company in Peoria, Ill., is implicated in the Israeli-Palestinian conflict seems strange. But earlier in July, the largest Presbyterian denomination in the United States adopted a resolution that strongly criticized Caterpillar Inc., the manufacturer whose tractors, bulldozers and mining equipment help build and farm America, for its role in Israel’s occupation of Palestinian lands.

»

Abbas: Specific US assurances on borders needed
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Associated Press
by Mohammed Daraghmeh - July 21, 2010 - 12:00am

Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas told his Fatah movement he wants a more specific U.S. commitment on the borders of a future Palestinian state before agreeing to direct talks with Israel, an adviser said Wednesday. Abbas told Fatah leaders in a closed-door meeting late Tuesday that President Barack Obama's assurances so far aren't clear enough. Obama has urged Abbas to resume direct talks that broke off in December 2008.

»

Palestinian official denies Abbas' secret letter to Obama
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Xinhua
July 20, 2010 - 12:00am

A Palestinian official on Tuesday denied reports that President Mahmoud Abbas had sent a secret document to the U.S. administration stating the Palestinian view of a final solution with Israel. "The Palestinian side did not offer any secret papers different than our known and declared position," said Yasser Abed Rabbo, member of the Executive Committee of the Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO).

»

Fatah urges no direct Mideast talks for now
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Reuters
by Tom Perry - July 15, 2010 - 12:00am

The Palestinian president's Fatah party said on Thursday there should be no move to face-to-face Middle East peace talks sought by the United States without progress in the indirect talks it is mediating. Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas, due to meet U.S. President Barack Obama's Middle East envoy on Saturday, is facing pressure from Washington to agree to direct negotiations with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu -- who says he is ready to start talks with the Palestinian leader right away.

»

Cheer, Then Gloom, on Talks for Peace Deal in Mideast
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The New York Times
by Isabel Kershner - July 14, 2010 - 12:00am

In the upbeat atmosphere after their recent meeting in Washington, the prime minister of Israel, Benjamin Netanyahu, and President Obama expressed hopes of an imminent resumption of direct Israeli-Palestinian peace talks and of achieving a peace deal — within a year, according to Mr. Netanyahu, or in Mr. Obama’s case, before the end of his term. There has been vague talk in Washington about a narrowing of gaps in the weeks since the indirect, American-brokered negotiations started in May.

»

U.S. conservatives form new pro-Israel lobby group
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Haaretz
July 13, 2010 - 12:00am

Washington observers may feel there is no obvious shortage of pro-Israel lobbyists in the city – but a group of leading American conservatives thinks otherwise and has set up a new campaign group to attack President Obama over his "anti-Israel" stance, U.S. website Politico reports.

»

U.S. asks Syria to support Palestinian-Israeli direct talks
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Xinhua
July 12, 2010 - 12:00am

The U.S. administration demanded Syria not to hinder the Palestinian National Authority's (PNA) tendency towards direct negotiations with Israel, local news website Syria Now reported on Monday. A well-informed source confirmed that Washington asks Damascus, through U.S. Senator Arlen Specter, not to hinder the PNA tendency towards direct negotiation at a time when the Palestinian side showed hesitation over the results of the indirect talks and Arab League chief Amr Moussa declared that those talks have failed.

»

The Israel-Turkey Imbroglio
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The New York Times
by Roger Cohen - (Opinion) July 9, 2010 - 12:00am

NEW YORK — Here’s an intriguing nugget, given Turkey’s recent decision to close its airspace to Israeli military planes: When Israel attacked a covert Syrian nuclear reactor on Sept. 6, 2007, its bombers overflew Turkey. A former senior U.S. official who was intimately involved in handling the fallout from the raid told me Turkish officials raised the issue with Israel, were invited to discuss the matter, but in the end let it drop. Those were different times, before Turkish-Israeli ties entered their current poisonous phase.

»

The US Shift in Peace
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Dar Al-Hayat
by Raghida Dergham - July 9, 2010 - 12:00am

It would be appropriate to resume direct negotiations between the Palestinian Authority and the Israeli government within “a few weeks” as long as President Barack Obama has a clear vision of what the role of the US should be in the negotiations, from the strategic perspective as well as from the perspective of the structure of opinions and how to implement them.

»

What do Palestinians expect from Obama-Netanyahu meeting?
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Xinhua
by Emad Drimly - July 6, 2010 - 12:00am

On the eve of the scheduled meeting between U.S. President Barack Obama and Israeli Premier Benjamin Netanyahu at the White House on Tuesday, the Middle East peace process and lifting Gaza Strip blockade are the two major issues of deep concerns for the Palestinians. They are seeking an active U.S. intervention in both tracks, while officials and observers see that the White House is standing before a real examination at this moment to achieve a serious progress in the political process and respond to the Palestinian demands.

»


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