September 1st

U.S.: Direct talks can achieve Mideast peace in one year ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Haaretz by Natasha Mozgovaya - September 1, 2010 - 12:00am Direct peace negotiations between Israel and the Palestinian Authority can be concluded within a year, U.S. special Mideast envoy George Mitchell said Tuesday, hours before the talks were set to begin in Washington. U.S. President Barack Obama considers the possibility of achieving peace in the Middle East a top priority, Mitchell told reporters at a briefing. » Read more

Terror attack achieved its goal - embarrassing the PA ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Haaretz by Amos Harel, Avi Issacharoff - (Blog) September 1, 2010 - 12:00am The shooting attack in the Hebron Hills on Tuesday could not have been a surprise. Palestinian opposition groups, especially Hamas, were highly motivated to embarrass the Palestinian Authority on the eve of the start of direct talks in Washington. A short conversation with the members of the Palestinian delegation to Washington Tuesday night shows that the mission was indeed accomplished. » Read more

Palestinian forces arrest dozens of Hamas activists ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Reuters by Mohammed Assadi - September 1, 2010 - 12:00am Palestinian security forces in the West Bank detained dozens of Hamas activists on Wednesday in response to a lethal attack on Jewish settlers in the occupied territory, a senior security source said. The Hamas armed wing claimed responsibility for the killing of four Jewish settlers near Hebron on Tuesday on the eve of a new round of U.S.-backed peace talks. "Dozens of Hamas members have been arrested, mainly in Hebron area and across the West Bank," the source said. "We are investigating if they have any links to the shooting attack. There will be more arrests." » Read more

Israel hints Jerusalem compromise in peace talks ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Reuters by Joseph Nasr, Matt Spetalnick - September 1, 2010 - 12:00am Israel's defence minister said on Wednesday the Jewish state would be willing to hand over parts of Jerusalem in peace talks with the Palestinians to be launched by U.S. President Barack Obama. A flare-up of violence in the occupied West Bank and a deadlock over Jewish settlements there loom as potential deal-breakers for Obama, who will host Middle East leaders for dinner at the White House in Washington. » Read more

PA condemns attack claimed by Hamas ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Ma'an News Agency September 1, 2010 - 12:00am The Palestinian Authority has condemned Tuesday's shooting attack that left four Israeli citizens dead near a settlement close to Hebron in the occupied West Bank. "What happened tonight in Hebron was timed to coincide with the PLO's decision to engage in negotiations to end the occupation and achieve freedom and independence for our people," Prime Minister Salam Fayyad said. » Read more

Israel seals off Hebron following shootings ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Ma'an News Agency September 1, 2010 - 12:00am Israeli forces on Wednesday sealed off parts of the southern West Bank district of Hebron in the wake of an attack against Israeli settlers in the area which killed four. Deputy mayor of Bani Na'im Raja Ziadat, a village close to the illegal Kiryat Arba settlement, where the attack occurred, said a curfew was imposed at dawn after troops withdrew. He added that Israeli forces were deployed heavily throughout the district. Israeli forces are denying residents access to the village and barring vehicular travel on the Route 60 bypass road, the mayor said. » Read more

Israel seals off Hebron following shootings ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Ma'an News Agency September 1, 2010 - 12:00am Israeli forces on Wednesday sealed off parts of the southern West Bank district of Hebron in the wake of an attack against Israeli settlers in the area which killed four. Deputy mayor of Bani Na'im Raja Ziadat, a village close to the illegal Kiryat Arba settlement, where the attack occurred, said a curfew was imposed at dawn after troops withdrew. He added that Israeli forces were deployed heavily throughout the district. Israeli forces are denying residents access to the village and barring vehicular travel on the Route 60 bypass road, the mayor said. » Read more

Obama Aims for Middle East Agreement to Counter Iran by Stabilizing Region ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Bloomberg by Gwen Ackerman, Nicole Gaouette - September 1, 2010 - 12:00am President Barack Obama leads Israel and the Palestinian Authority into direct talks starting tomorrow aiming for a big prize: a peace deal that will help stabilize the region and thwart Iran’s bid to expand its influence. Obama is bringing Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu together in Washington to seek agreement on security and territorial issues that lie at the heart of their dispute and have defied solution over two decades of negotiation. » Read more

Hamas targets Israeli-Palestinian talks by killing four Israelis ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Christian Science Monitor by Joshua Mitnick - August 31, 2010 - 12:00am As Middle Eastern leaders gathered in Washington to inaugurate a new round of Israeli-Palestinian talks, Hamas gunmen killed four Israeli settlers in their car outside the West Bank city of Hebron. The attack appeared to be an attempt to spark violence that could undermine the peace negotiations and was a stark reminder that the Islamist Hamas movement remains an important force in Palestinian politics, no matter how much either the Israelis or the Palestinian Authority's Mahmoud Abbas wish they would go away. » Read more

A Peace Plan Within Our Grasp ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The New York Times by Hosni Mubarak - (Opinion) August 31, 2010 - 12:00am IT’S been 10 long years since the Palestinians and Israelis last came close to establishing a permanent peace, in January 2001 at Taba in Egypt. During my career in the Egyptian Air Force, I saw the tragic toll of war between the Arabs and Israel. As president of Egypt, I have endured many ups and downs in the Israeli-Palestinian peace process. Egypt’s decision to be the first Arab state to make peace with Israel claimed the life of my predecessor, Anwar el-Sadat. » Read more