April 21st

Editorial: Continuing Land Grab
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Arab News
(Editorial) April 21, 2008 - 6:07pm

In case a comprehensive Palestinian-Israeli accord is reached by the end of this year, as espoused by US President George Bush, Israel is taking no chances. It is seeking whatever it can get its hands on should a peace deal that includes a Palestinian state be reached. Hence, the announcement that 100 new houses will be built in a West Bank settlement.

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Israel Mulls Gaza Crossing Curbs
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Al Jazeera English
April 21, 2008 - 6:07pm

Israel is planning to tighten controls even further over goods allowed into the Gaza Strip, Haaretz, a leading Israeli newspaper, reports.   After a series of Hamas attacks on border crossings, some of the crossings will remain shut on Monday, and may remain so for several days, the paper reported. 

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Carter: U.s. Would Not Stand In Way Of Israel-syria Peace Deal
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Haaretz
by Barak Ravid - April 21, 2008 - 6:06pm

Former U.S. president Carter clarified in a meeting last week with Syrian president Bashar Assad that the U.S. would not stand in the way of serious peace negotiations between Syria and Israel. Carter also said the U.S. would even support any agreement that is reached. He told Meretz chairman Yossi Beilin at a meeting in Jerusalem on Monday that he had made these statements to Assad.

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Obama Faults Presidents Bush, Clinton On Mideast
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Reuters
April 21, 2008 - 6:02pm

White House hopeful Barack Obama on Sunday criticized both President George W. Bush and former President Bill Clinton for waiting too long to make a big push to achieve Middle East peace. Obama, a Democratic senator from Illinois, said he would pursue an active diplomacy from the beginning to try to reach a peace accord between Israel and the Palestinians. Campaigning in Reading, Pennsylvania, Obama was asked his view on former President Jimmy Carter's meetings with leaders of the Islamist Palestinian group Hamas during a trip to the Middle East that began a week ago.

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We Can Accept Israel As Neighbour, Says Hamas
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Guardian
by Rory Mccarthy - April 21, 2008 - 6:01pm

Hamas said today it would accept a Palestinian state on land occupied in the 1967 war, but it would not explicitly recognise Israel. Khaled Meshaal, the leader of Hamas, said the group would "respect Palestinian national will even if it was against our convictions", an apparent reference to a referendum on a peace deal. His comments came at a news conference in Damascus, Syria, after a rare series of meetings between the former US president Jimmy Carter and Hamas Islamists in the West Bank, Cairo and Damascus.

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Our Reign Of Terror, By The Israeli Army
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Independent
by Donald Macintyre - (Opinion) April 21, 2008 - 6:00pm

The dark-haired 22-year-old in black T-shirt, blue jeans and red Crocs is understandably hesitant as he sits at a picnic table in the incongruous setting of a beauty spot somewhere in Israel. We know his name and if we used it he would face a criminal investigation and a probable prison sentence.

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Diplomacy, Carter-style
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Jewish Daily Forward
(Editorial) April 21, 2008 - 5:59pm

Amateur historians like to say that Jimmy Carter is much better as an ex-president than he was as president. That gets his presidency about right; he’s usually ranked near the bottom, slightly ahead of Millard Fillmore but trailing Herbert Hoover.

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Abbas Wants 'framework Agreement' Before Bush Ends Term
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Agence France Presse (AFP)
April 21, 2008 - 5:58pm

  Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas said Sunday that he was determined to achieve a "framework agreement" laying the foundations for a peace deal with Israel before the end of US President George W. Bush's term in office. "Our priority objective, which is also that of President Bush, To complete the negotiations by the end of 2008, "said Abbas, who is one an official visit to Tunis. He will be heading to Washington Tuesday. 

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April 20th

ATFP President Ziad Asali discusses how to keep the peace process on track (1). Ynet news covers Mahmoud Abbas¹ upcoming visit to the U.S. (2). In the Independent, Donald Macintyre provides a glimpse into the lives of young Israeli soldiers serving in Hebron(4). Former President Jimmy Carter speaks in Jerusalem about his meetings with HAMAS (5) while a Presidential candidate argues for focus on the region (6). Al-Jazeera (8), Ynet news (10) and the Arab News (9) highlight three different developments negatively affecting life for Palestinians.

April 18th

All Of Gaza Can't Be Razed
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Haaretz
(Editorial) April 18, 2008 - 6:27pm

Hamas can be blamed for the latest conflagration in the Gaza Strip. First came the attack on the Nahal Oz fuel depot; then came Wednesday's ambush, in which three Israel Defense Forces soldiers were killed; and then yesterday, an attempt to infiltrate Kibbutz Keren Shalom was foiled. Meanwhile, the Qassam and mortar attacks have resumed fully. Hamas clearly wants to drag Israel into an increasingly violent retaliation in Gaza, and Israel must not fall into this trap.

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