September 15th

EU's Ashton extends mediation trip to Middle East
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Alertnet
by Justyna Pawlak - September 14, 2011 - 12:00am

European Union foreign policy chief Catherine Ashton extended a Middle East trip on Wednesday to hold more talks aimed at averting a Palestinian bid for statehood at the United Nations, officials said. Ashton is in the region to meet Israeli and Palestinian leaders as well as diplomats from Arab countries, part of an intense international effort to revive peace talks.

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Palestinians express doubts and fear over UN statehood bid
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The National
by Hugh Naylor - September 15, 2011 - 12:00am

If you think all West Bank Palestinians are enthusiastic about next week's vote at the United Nations for Palestinian statehood, just ask Hurriyah Ziada. Ms Ziada, a 22-year-old sociology student at Birzeit University in the West Bank, insists UN recognition of a Palestinian state is a mistake because it also represents a tacit acknowledgement of Israel's permanence as a Jewish state.

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Anxieties mount over Palestinian statehood bid
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Washington Post
by Joel Greenberg - September 15, 2011 - 12:00am

The countdown to a Palestinian bid next week for membership and recognition as a state in the United Nations brought a stark warning from Israel on Wednesday that approval would result in “harsh and grave consequences” for the Palestinians. The threat by Foreign Minister Avigdor Lieberman was the sharpest yet in an escalating cycle of rhetoric on all sides of the conflict. While the Palestinians say they will go ahead with the move, the Obama administration dispatched two senior envoys to the region Wednesday to restate the American case against the statehood bid.

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Palestinians Say a U.N. Gamble on Statehood Is Worth the Risks
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The New York Times
by Isabel Kershner - September 15, 2011 - 12:00am

It is far from clear what will happen when the Palestinians go to the United Nations next week to seek recognition of statehood. But the initiative is engaging a Palestinian public that had become deeply cynical after 20 years of intermittent Israeli-Palestinian peace talks.

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Palestinians Say a U.N. Gamble on Statehood Is Worth the Risks
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The New York Times
by Isabel Kershner - September 15, 2011 - 12:00am

It is far from clear what will happen when the Palestinians go to the United Nations next week to seek recognition of statehood. But the initiative is engaging a Palestinian public that had become deeply cynical after 20 years of intermittent Israeli-Palestinian peace talks.

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September 14th

Ten reasons Palestine is right to bring its case to the UN
Media Mention of Hussein Ibish In Haaretz - September 14, 2011 - 12:00am

There's a certain implied danger in the idea of playing darts in the dark. Particularly when there are numerous players in a crowded room, and not one has a well-defined target. For Mahmoud Abbas' Palestine, for Benjamin Netanyahu's Israel, and no less, for the Obama administration, the effort to bring Palestinian statehood to the United Nations for endorsement has raised profound fears, prompting internal debates fully as bitter as they have been largely fruitless, with no dependably favorable outcome in sight – for anyone.

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NEWS: Palestinian villagers say they are interested in the realities of life on the ground, not votes at the UN. The US is still scrambling to avert a showdown at the UN. Palestinians say they're being pressured by both Arab and European states to go to the UN General Assembly rather than the Security Council. Palestinians say it is the failure of 18 years of the Oslo process that is leading them to the UN. FM Lieberman again warns of “harsh consequences” from Israel. A senior PLO official questions the wisdom of a UN initiative.Some Jewish-American groups are supporting continued funding for the PA no matter what happens in September. Gazans express mixed feelings about the initiative. Palestinians are still asking the US for reasons not to go forward. A key member of Congress is trying to defund Palestinian and international institutions in the event of an initiative. Palestinians reiterate their conditions for resuming negotiations with Israel. Israeli authorities are worried about the rising Jewish extremism, particularly among settlers. COMMENTARY: David Ignatius says Israel will be more secure in a world of Arab democracies, but will have to make more compromises. Chuck Freilich says Egypt has an important role to play in shaping a compromise at the UN. Bradley Burston lists 10 reasons why Palestinians are right to approach the UN. Jonathan Freedland says both Britain and Israel should support Palestinian statehood. Tony Karon says the PA may lose control after a UN vote. Husam Itani says Israel is being influenced by the “Arab Spring” both internationally and at home. Jameel Theyab says he can understand why Hezbollah continues to support the Assad regime, but not Hamas' silence about its brutality. Mohammad Salah says that the attack on the Israeli Embassy in Cairo was part of a generalized culture of vengeance Egypt must move beyond. Rebecca Vilkomerson says many US liberals are progressive on everything except Israel. Marwan Muasher answers questions about Middle East peace and the Palestinian UN initiative.

Progressive except on Palestine
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Hill
by Rebecca Vilkomerson - (Blog) September 12, 2011 - 12:00am

Tomorrow’s special election for New York’s 9th district to replace Rep. Anthony Weiner is a disturbing example of the limited range of acceptable political discourse on Israel in American politics.

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A Secular State with a…“Football” Frame of Reference
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Dar Al-Hayat
by Mohammad Salah - (Opinion) September 12, 2011 - 12:00am

It is not difficult to explain what happened with the Israeli embassy in Cairo. Indeed, despite it being unanimously recognized as unlawful action contrary to Egyptian and international law, as well as to all conventions, and despite the fact that all Egyptian political forces have rejected the attack on the embassy, as well as of course the confrontations with security personnel that followed, we must understand that there is in Egypt a major social issue called “vengeance”, for which the search to find a solution never stops, and which is well entrenched especially in Upper Egypt.

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Hamas’s Silence and Hezbollah’s Voice
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Dar Al-Hayat
by Jameel Theyabi - (Opinion) September 12, 2011 - 12:00am

Many do not trust the movements of political Islam that raise flashy slogans, frighten people with threats of grief and destruction, announce their resistance and rejectionism but at the same time remain silent vis-à-vis the actions of the tyrants and the rifles of the dictators that are pointed toward the heads of the “peaceful” demonstrators. I wanted to go over Hamas’s position in comparison with Hezbollah’s stand. Hamas, its Politburo Chief Khaled Meshaal, and Haniyeh and Al-Zahhar from behind him are all utterly “silent” toward the developments in Syria!

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