American Elections | The American Task Force on Palestine

Analysis: Another goal pared back: Mideast peace
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Washington Post
by Steven R. Hurst - January 27, 2010 - 1:00am

WASHINGTON -- The bleak domestic realities washing over President Barack Obama's White House cloak equally dismal prospects for quickly shepherding Israel and the Palestinians back to peace talks. As the politically beleaguered president prepared to deliver his first State of the Union address Wednesday night - the symbolic start of his second year in office - Obama was forced to acknowledge he got ahead of himself when he raised hopes of early success by making Mideast peacemaking a top priority of his new administration.

Mitchell’s futile diplomacy
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Jordan Times
by Hassan Barari - (Opinion) January 26, 2010 - 1:00am

The long-awaited tour of American envoy to the Middle East George Mitchell consisted of much fanfare but yielded no tangible results to speak of. Both parties to the conflict refused to budge: the Palestinian leader, Mahmoud Abbas, refuses to join the peace process until Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu agrees to freeze settlement activity, and the Israeli government refuses to meet this Palestinian demand, considering it an unacceptable precondition.

Why Palin and Huckabee Dig Settlements
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Jewish Daily Forward
by Noam Neusner - (Opinion) December 16, 2009 - 1:00am

The Republican field for 2012 is beginning to stretch its legs. Not surprisingly, presidential hopefuls have started to define themselves by what they are not: Barack Obama.

The US cash behind extremist settlers
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from
by Andrew Kadi, Aaron Levitt - (Opinion) December 8, 2009 - 1:00am

Last month, a Brooklyn-based non-profit organisation called the Hebron Fund, which supports Jewish settlers in the Israeli-occupied city of Hebron, held a fundraiser at the New York Mets' stadium, Citi Field.

Farouk Shami: Palestinian Immigrant, Entrepreneur and Texas Gubernatorial Candidate
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Media Line
by Felice Friedson - (Interview) November 8, 2009 - 1:00am

FAROUK SHAMI is Palestinian-American immigrant who invented an ammonia-free line of hair care products which he parlayed into a fortune. Passionate about his adopted United States, Shami recently made news by turning his Farouk Systems into an all-American operation, building a state-of-the-art manufacturing plant in Houston, Texas, creating thousands of jobs for the local community. Shami is running for the office of Governor of the State of Texas. He was interviewed by The Media Line’s Felice Friedson. ***

100 days on
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Jordan Times
(Opinion) April 30, 2009 - 12:00am

Yesterday marked President Barack Obama’s first 100 days in office. An entirely arbitrary construct to evaluate a leader’s performance, it is nevertheless irresistible when it comes to Obama, of whom expectations are so high. His first priority was always going to be the global financial crisis. The massive stimulus package has yet to work its way down and out and it is impossible to say anything other than that Obama has tackled the crisis immediately and with enthusiasm.

So many words, but so little action
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Arab News
by Linda Heard - (Opinion) April 14, 2009 - 12:00am

President Barack Obama definitely talks a good talk but when it comes to implementing his stated foreign policy goals, he appears to be dragging his heels. He's certainly been decisive on the economy and has upset many in the process. But three months into his presidency, his Middle East policy is still vague and he has yet to officially approach Iran to hold what he terms mutually respectful talks.

Ghaith Al-Omari - Al Arabiya - Apr 7 2009
On the Air - Ghaith al-Omari - Al-Arabiya - April 7, 2009 - 12:00am

ATFP Advocacy Director discusses the dynamic between new Israeli Prime Minister Banjamin Netanyahu and US President Barack Obama.

ATFP Co-hosts Event with PLO Negotiators on Future of the Peace Process
Press Release - Contact Information: Omar Tuffaha - December 4, 2008 - 1:00am

Washington, DC, Dec. 4 – On Dec. 4 the American Task Force on Palestine (ATFP), the Foundation for Middle East Peace and the Middle East Institute hosted a group of officials from the PLO Negotiation Affairs Department (NAD) for a discussion of The Future of the Peace Process: A Palestinian Perspective, at the Middle East Institute’s headquarters in Washington, DC. Maen Areikat, Rami Dajani and Khaled Elgindy discussed the Palestinian positions and negotiating strategy, and answered numerous questions from the attendees.

Quartet in Final Push Before Bush Term Ends
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Media Line
November 5, 2008 - 8:00pm

Representatives of the Quartet, the four international players trying to outline a solution to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, are meeting in Sharm A-Sheikh on Sunday in a bid to push forward the peace process before U.S. President George W. Bush’s term ends in January. Officials from the United States, the European Union, the United Nations and Russia will meet in the Egyptian resort to assess their progress up until now. They also want to ensure that talks will continue after general elections take place in Israel in February.