February 25th

Clinton sounds upbeat on Israeli-Palestinian talks
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Reuters
by Arshad Mohammed, Andrew Quinn - February 25, 2010 - 1:00am

Secretary of State Hillary Clinton said on Wednesday she hoped Israeli-Palestinian peace talks would resume "shortly," sounding more upbeat than usual for a U.S. official. Separately, Israel's ambassador to the United States told Reuters if negotiations resumed after being frozen for more than a year they would start as indirect "proximity talks," with U.S. envoy George Mitchell shuttling between the sides.

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Clinton: US hopes talks will start soon
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Ma'an News Agency
February 25, 2010 - 1:00am

US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton told US lawmakers on Wednesday that she hoped Israelis and Palestinians could resume negotiations toward a peace settlement “soon.” A year of US efforts to bring the two sides back to the negotiating table have failed so far, but Clinton struck an upbeat tone in testimony to the Senate Foreign Relations Committee.

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PLO: If Netanyahu wants our holy sites, he can't have peace talks
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Ma'an News Agency
February 25, 2010 - 1:00am

The Executive Committee of the PLO will not support talks with Israel's Benjamin Netanyahu government in light of its decision to declare sites in Palestinian areas "Israeli heritage sites," the body announced after a meeting Wednesday. "We will reject any kind of negotiations, even indirect talks," Secretary General of the PLO body Yasser Abed Rabbo said after the meeting in Ramallah.

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Israeli: Mossad hit didn't upset intel ties
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Washington Times
by Eli Lake - February 25, 2010 - 1:00am

The embarrassing trail left by a suspected Israeli hit team — a trail that began with doctored European passports, led to the assassination of a Palestinian terrorist in a Dubai hotel room, and ended on the front pages of world papers — has not worsened the country's intelligence cooperation with Western countries, a senior Israeli official insists.

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GOP Senate race grows heated over Israel
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Los Angeles Times
by Seema Mehta - February 25, 2010 - 1:00am

In a dispute that commingles foreign policy and a quest for political advantage, U.S.-Israel relations have taken an unexpectedly central role in the California race for Senate. Rivals in the race for the Republican nomination are questioning whether former Rep. Tom Campbell is sufficiently supportive of Israel. They base their criticisms on his voting record, statements about a Palestinian homeland and capital, and some of his past associates.

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Dubai names more suspects in Hamas assassination
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Los Angeles Times
by Borzou Daragahi - February 24, 2010 - 1:00am

Adam Korman loves to travel. According to police in Dubai, an Australian passport holder by that name visited the United Arab Emirates city-state three times in 10 months. The last time the muscular young man visited, police said Wednesday, he allegedly joined 25 other European and Australian passport holders and a pair of Palestinians who allegedly made up the hit team that killed suspected Hamas weapons procurer Mahmoud Mabhouh.

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Son of Hamas founder says he served Israel as an informant
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Associated Press
February 25, 2010 - 1:00am

The son of one of Hamas's founders says in a new book that he served as a top informant for Israel for more than a decade, providing top-secret intelligence that helped prevent dozens of suicide bombings and other attacks against Israelis.

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February 24th

Jerome Segal says Palestinians should declare statehood. A new Israeli missile defense system sparks controversy. Mark LeVine says student protesters at UC Irvine should not face harsh punishment. Pres. Abbas says Israel's claims upon sites in the occupied territories could spark religious war, and Islamic Jihad says it may resume attacks against Israel. The Gaza fishing industry continues to struggle. With Mideast peace talks stalled, alternative scenarios proliferate. A Hamas leader suggests Israel may have infiltrated the organization. Israeli forces invade parts of Gaza. The son of one of Hamas' founders reportedly served as an Israeli agent for many years. Aluf Benn says Israel faces opposition from both settlers and Palestinians. Gabi Sheffer asks why Israel is so resistant to US peace efforts. Israel is moving olive trees to the east of the separation barrier. An aide to an assassinated Hamas operative is arrested in Damascus. The parents of killed US peace activist Rachel Corrie sue the Israeli military. US Jewish leaders press PM Fayyad on incitement. ATFP President Ziad Asali analyzes the Palestinian state and institution building project.

Palestinian Prime Minister to Israeli Leaders: We are Building a State While Under Occupation to End the Occupation
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Huffington Post
by Ziad Asali - (Opinion) February 23, 2010 - 1:00am

Palestinian Prime Minister Salam Fayyad forthrightly brought his case for building a Palestinian state to Israeli political and military leaders, and they applauded. The new Palestinian attitude towards how to end the occupation that began in 1967 was on full display during Fayyad's speech at the Herzliya conference in Israel earlier this month, and it has had a considerable impact on its Israeli audience. With reports that "proximity talks" between Israelis and Palestinians will begin soon, attention must be paid to Fayyad's remarks and their reception.

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U.S. Jewish leaders press incitement issue
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Jewish Telegraphic Agency (JTA)
by Ben Harris - February 23, 2010 - 1:00am

U.S. Jewish leaders pressed Palestinian Authority Prime Minister Salam Fayyad on incitement and the need to keep Israel a Jewish state. At a meeting Feb. 18 in Jenin between Fayyad and a visiting delegation from the Conference of Presidents of Major American Jewish Organizations, Alan Solow, the chairman of the Jewish umbrella group, said the actions of the Palestinian leadership set back the cause of peace.

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