September 19th, 2011

Prosor: Security Council vote on PA state bid unclear ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Jerusalem Post by Herb Keinon - (Analysis) September 19, 2011 - 12:00am Israeli envoy to UN says Portugal undecided on resolution vote, key to US efforts to vote down bid without using veto. Israeli ambassador to the United Nations Ron Prosor on Monday said that it was still unclear if the UN Security Council would vote to recognize a Palestinian state because Portugal remained undecided on the issue. » Read more

U.S. to Netanyahu: Don't sanction Palestinians following statehood bid at UN ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Haaretz by Barak Ravid - (Analysis) September 19, 2011 - 12:00am The United States and several European countries have been urging Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu not to take drastic punitive measures against the Palestinians after they ask the United Nations to recognize their state. Netanyahu, who is under heavy pressure from Foreign Minister Avigdor Lieberman, Finance Minister Yuval Steinitz and Deputy Prime Minister Moshe Ya'alon to respond strongly to the Palestinian Authority, has decided at this point to wait until the significance of the Palestinian move becomes clearer to commit to any course of action. » Read more

Palestinians build state, but restricted by Israel ATFP World Press Roundup Article from (Analysis) September 18, 2011 - 12:00am HEBRON, WEST BANK — The Palestinians will be able to make a strong case that they have built the foundations of a nation when they ask the U.N. this week to recognize an independent Palestine in the West Bank, Gaza and east Jerusalem, the lands Israel occupied in 1967. » Read more

High-stakes diplomacy to avoid UN showdown ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Ma'an News Agency (Analysis) September 19, 2011 - 12:00am UNITED NATIONS (AFP) -- Top Palestinian and Israeli leaders held talks in New York amid frantic diplomatic efforts to avoid a showdown over a Palestinian bid to seek full UN membership as a state. Palestinian Authority Prime Minister Salam Fayyad and Israel's Defense Minister Ehud Barak held an unannounced meeting a day ahead of the UN General Assembly, which is being dominated by a Palestinian bid for UN recognition that the United States has threatened to veto. » Read more

WEST BANK: U.S. envoys' paper emboldens Abbas to go before U.N. ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Los Angeles Times by Maher Abukhater - (Analysis) September 17, 2011 - 12:00am A paper special U.S. peace envoys David Hale and Dennis Ross presented to Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas on Thursday that was supposed to sway him away from going to the United Nations was what caused Abbas to take a final stand in favor of going, according to Nabil Shaath, a member of Abbas’ Fatah Central Committee. Abbas told the Palestinian people on Friday that he is going to the Security Council to ask for membership in spite of strong U.S. objections and attempts to have him change his mind. » Read more

U.N. Palestine vote: Time to exhale ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Politico by Ambassador Wendy Chamberlin - (Opinion) September 19, 2011 - 12:00am Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas early this week will likely fulfill his longstanding vow to introduce in the U.N. Security Council a resolution to recognize Palestine as the 194th member state. No one should be the least bit surprised. » Read more

Cowards and liars ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Daily Star (Editorial) September 19, 2011 - 12:00am The bid for Palestinian statehood, due to be presented this week at the United Nations General Assembly in New York, seems to have taken some world leaders by surprise. It is difficult to see how. For more than a decade, successive United States presidents have voiced their keenness on a two-state solution to the Israel-Palestinian conflict. Bill Clinton, then George W. Bush, then finally Barack Obama have taken turns delaying a formal application for statehood under the guise of wanting to gain more favorable conditions through a continuation of peace talks. » Read more

Palestine at the United Nations: Sidestepped by both Friends and the World's Major Players ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Dar Al-Hayat by Raghida Dergham - (Opinion) September 16, 2011 - 12:00am No party is in an enviable position in the current battle over the Palestinian state at the United Nations. Everyone is embarrassed, and some even find themselves caught up in a costly dilemma. » Read more

UN vote adds little to 20 years of failure in Middle East peace ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The National (Opinion) September 19, 2011 - 12:00am Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas's momentous decision to seek statehood at the United Nations has been interpreted in many ways: a bold, decisive move to force Israel's hand and level the playing field in future negotiations; a risky diplomatic gambit that will achieve little in the face of a certain US veto and will fuel tensions in an already volatile environment; a watershed moment in the Palestinian struggle for self-determination. Mostly, however, the move is an acknowledgement of failure. » Read more

Playing a dangerous game ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Jerusalem Post by Jeff Barak - (Opinion) September 18, 2011 - 12:00am When Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu makes his speech to the United Nations General Assembly at the end of the week in New York, he will be facing a much tougher audience than he experienced when addressing the Houses of Congress in Washington on his last trip to the United States. » Read more