April 7th

Israeli FM warns Palestinians not to declare state
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Associated Press
by Matti Friedman - April 6, 2010 - 12:00am


Israel's hard-line foreign minister warned Palestinians against plans to unilaterally declare independence next year, saying in an interview Tuesday that such a move could prompt Israel to annex parts of the West Bank and annul past peace agreements. Avigdor Lieberman also made harsh comments about Turkey, Israel's increasingly alienated ally, saying the Turkish prime minister was coming to resemble Libyan ruler Moammar Gadhafi. Lieberman, who heads an ultranationalist party, has become known for a belligerent tone that has earned him critics abroad and inside Israel.


Palestinian fears U.S. Mideast push in trouble
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Reuters
by Ali Sawafta - April 7, 2010 - 12:00am


The United States appears to have hit a dead end in its attempts to revive Middle East peace talks, a senior Palestinian official said on Tuesday, urging Israel to halt settlement building on occupied land to give U.S. diplomacy a chance of success. The West Bank-based Palestinian Authority has demanded a full halt to Israeli settlement building in East Jerusalem and the West Bank before any resumption of negotiations suspended since December 2008.


OCHA: Land requisitioned for new checkpoint on 443
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Ma'an News Agency
April 7, 2010 - 12:00am


Israeli forces will confiscate 173.2 dunums of Palestinian land to construct a military checkpoint on highway 443, ordered open for Palestinian traffic by an Israeli court judge in December 2009. Previously a Jewish-only road, highway 443 extends 25 kilometers north from Jerusalem through the West Bank's Ramallah district and exits the area south of Ni'lin.


PA: Third mobile provider in works
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Ma'an News Agency
April 7, 2010 - 12:00am


A third mobile provider will be licensed to operate in Palestinian areas by 2013, Palestinian Minister of Telecommunications and Information Technology Mashhur Abu Daka announced Wednesday. The minister said the initiative was out of the "interest of the ministry to free Palestinian frequencies and mobile users from the control of the Israeli occupation," and came only days after the ministry announced a ban on the sale of Israeli phone cards and SIM chips in the West Bank under a government ban on settlement goods.


Misfired projectile injures 5 in north Gaza
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Ma'an News Agency
April 7, 2010 - 12:00am


Five Palestinians were injured when a misfired projectile landed in the northern Gaza town of Beit Hanoun, witnesses said Tuesday. The misfiring proceeded after Israeli officials announced six projectiles landing in open areas of the western Negev, with no injuries reported. Eyewitnesses said projectiles were being launched from areas in the north of the Strip, when a sudden explosion was heard in the Beit Hanoun area. Neighbors said it hit a residential area and injured five.


Erekat: US efforts to jumpstart Israeli-Palestinian talks hit 'dead end'
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Christian Science Monitor
by Ilene Prusher - April 6, 2010 - 12:00am


The White House has hit a wall in its attempts to revive Israeli-Palestinian peace talks, a senior Palestinian official said Tuesday. Saeb Erekat, the chief Palestinian negotiator, said that recent US efforts to get the two sides back to the negotiating table – or at least nearby tables as part of proximity talks – had reached a "dead end."


Palestinians Try a Less Violent Path to Resistance
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The New York Times
by Ethan Bronner - April 6, 2010 - 12:00am


Senior Palestinian leaders — men who once commanded militias — are joining unarmed protest marches against Israeli policies and are being arrested. Goods produced in Israeli settlements have been burned in public demonstrations. The Palestinian prime minister has entered West Bank areas officially off limits to his authority, to plant trees and declare the land part of a future state The Palestinian prime minister, Salam Fayyad, said he planted trees in the West Bank last month “to establish our presence on our land and keep our people on it.”


April 6th

Israeli human rights groups say they're under siege. A Saudi cleric vows to visit Jerusalem. David Francis says the US can pressure Israel without cutting aid. An aide to Pres. Abbas is fired for misconduct, but cleared of corruption. Settlers attack protesters in occupied East Jerusalem. Two Israeli military investigations fault soldiers in Palestinian deaths. Gandhi's grandson criticizes settlements, praises nonviolent protests. The EU provides €21 million to the PA to pay salaries. The PLO says Israel planned 3,226 new settler housing units in Jerusalem in March, and PM Netanyahu vows to continue building. King Abdullah of Jordan says Israel's long-term future is threatened by the lack of a peace agreement. Gaza factions announce an end to rocket fire aimed at Israel. Israeli officials compare Turkish PM Erdogan to Gaddafi and Chavez. The Israeli military denies a Palestinian man died because he was held at a checkpoint. Israel is constructing another barrier along its Egyptian border to keep out African migrants. Some Jews and Arabs in Israel seek recognition of a non-ethnic "Israeli" nationality. Martin Indyk says an interim solution is needed for Jerusalem. Blogger Anne Selden Annab recounts a visit to ATFP's offices.

Netanyahu at Mimouna: We will continue developing in Jerusalem
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Haaretz
by Nir Hasson - April 6, 2010 - 12:00am


Some two million Israeli Jews will participate today in Mimouna, the traditional Moroccan festival marking the end of Passover, according to the World Federation of Moroccan Jewry. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and his wife Sara celebrated Mimouna with the Fahima family in Or Akiva, where Netanyahu said "We will continue developing in the north and the south, and certainly in Jerusalem." Federation chairman Sam Sheetrit said the group would like to see less of a focus on food as the central aspect of the holiday.


Blogger Visits ATFP Office
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from
(Blog) April 5, 2010 - 12:00am


This past Saturday my husband Jaffar and I had a delightful visit with Dr. Ziad Asali the founder of the American Task Force on Palestine, his fascinating wife Naila, and the brilliant Hussein Ibish, having arranged to stop by to see their 7th floor offices in Washington DC and to have a chat.



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