October 18th, 2007

Gop Candidates Use Jewish Forum To Knock Bush’s Push For Peace
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Jewish Daily Forward
by Nathan Guttman - October 18, 2007 - 5:24pm

In an appearance before Jewish voters Tuesday, all five Republican presidential candidates expressed skepticism about the Bush administration’s current push for peace between the Israelis and Palestinians. The event, hosted by the Republican Jewish Coalition, featured the leading contenders for the GOP nomination: Rudy Giuliani, Sam Brownback, John McCain, Mitt Romney and Fred Thompson.

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Bush Optimistic On Mideast Peace Despite Discord
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The New York Times
by Steven Lee Myers - October 18, 2007 - 5:16pm

President Bush expressed optimism on Wednesday that the Israelis and Palestinians could negotiate a peace agreement as Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice ended four days of talks here with a spasm of discord between the sides. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice, right, ducked to enter the Church of the Nativity in Bethlehem during a visit Wednesday.

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Rice 'encouraged' By Mideast Trip
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Associated Press
by Matthew Lee - October 18, 2007 - 5:15pm

Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice said Thursday she was encouraged by a round of furious Mideast diplomacy to prepare a U.S.-hosted peace conference in the fall despite divisions between Israel and the Palestinians that could derail it. With tensions running high and time running out to plan the meeting, a senior U.S. official said Rice would return to the region at the end of October or early November after National Security Adviser Stephen Hadley goes there next week to press the two sides to launch formal peace talks.

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Rice Hears Palestinians' Grievances
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Washington Post
by Michael Abramowitz - October 18, 2007 - 5:13pm

Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice paid an emotional visit Wednesday to the church revered as marking the birthplace of Jesus, before hearing from prominent Palestinians that failure of her new peace initiative could worsen their conflict with Israel.

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October 17th

The Washington Post reports on the visit by Secretary Rice to the occupied Palestinian territories and her listening to the grievances of Palestinians (1.) The Forward looks at skepticism voiced about the current Bush administration push for Israeli-Palestinian peace by all five GOP presidential candidates at an event hosted by the Republican Jewish Coalition (4.) AlertNet features an interview with 'The Israel Lobby' authors Walt and Mearshiemer on why they decided to speak out about the special U.S.-Israeli relationship (5.) In his LobeLog blog, journalist Jim Lobe looks at the speech by Secretary of Defense Gates at his Jewish Institute for National Security Affairs award dinner in which he placed a higher priority as a U.S. objective for achieving a two-state solution than containing Iran (7.) A Financial Times (UK) opinion by former Israeli negotiator Moshe Amirav draws lessons for the fall Mideast meeting from the failed Camp David conference in 2001 (10.) A Jordan Times (Jordan) editorial urges the U.S. to use its influence with Israel to freeze Israeli settlement activity in the occupied territories (12.) Haaretz (Israel) reports on Israeli willingness to commit to a joint document at the fall meeting addressing the core issues of Jerusalem, refugees and permanent borders (13.)

One Mistake In The Fall
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Haaretz
by Shmuel Rosner - October 17, 2007 - 10:56am

We can start from the end: It was a mistake. Not necessarily the decision to convene an Israeli-Palestinian peace summit in Annapolis or a "meeting," as the Americans insist on calling the event, but the early announcement of the planned timetable.

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Id Al-fitr Lost Amid Gaza Strip Closure
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Haaretz
by Amira Hass - October 17, 2007 - 10:55am

UNRWA, the UN organization that helps Palestinian refugees, was unable to keep its promise to give students at its schools in the Gaza Strip NIS 100 each with which to buy clothes for the Id al-Fitr holiday. Why? Because Israel would not allow it to bring the cash into the strip.

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Editorial: A Mountain To Climb
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Arab News
(Editorial) October 17, 2007 - 10:53am

The Palestinians have longed for a state for nearly 60 years. Arabs and Muslims have also wanted one. So has most of the world. And now suddenly, so do the Americans. At least that is what they say. US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice says that it is time to establish a Palestinian state and that it is not only in the interest of Palestinians and Israelis, but in US interest as well.

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A Us Peace Rabbit That Is Likely To Fail
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Daily Star
by Rami Khouri - (Opinion) October 17, 2007 - 10:52am

What does it mean when US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice says it is time to establish a Palestinian state within a year, for the sake of Palestinian, Israeli and US national interests, and that, "We are not going to tire until I have given my last ounce of energy and my last moment in office" to working for a two-state solution?

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Jerusalem Is Ours, Warns Likud
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Independent
by Donald Macintyre - October 17, 2007 - 10:48am

The right wing Israeli opposition party Likud led by Benjamin Netanyahu yesterday warned the government against compromising on the status of Jerusalem in current talks with Palestinian negotiators. Zalman Shoval, head of the foreign affairs department of Likud, said yesterday that the issue of Jerusalem should "not be on the table in any way" at the planned international conference in Annapolis, Maryland later in the yea—the basis of which he sharply criticized.

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