Murdoch, Son Differ Sharply Over Israel ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The New York Sun by Josh Gerstein - October 22, 2007 - 9:40am The pro-Israel outlook of the Wall Street Journal and many News Corp. outlets could waver if one of Rupert Murdoch's sons, James Murdoch, takes the helm of the publishing and broadcasting company, a new book suggests. » Read more

Secretary Rice's Mideast Mission: Contain Iran ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Christian Science Monitor by Rasheed Abou-alsamh, Dan Murphy - October 22, 2007 - 9:36am US secretaries of Defense and State are using their high-profile meetings this week with Arab and Israeli leaders, in part to herald a new Bush administration strategy toward Iran: cold war-style containment. The trip comes on the heels of a US proposal to offer $20 billion in military aid to Arab Gulf states (mostly Saudi Arabia) and a $30 billion package for Israel. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice did not mask the purpose of the deal when she called Iran “the single most important single-country challenge to ... US interests in the Middle East.” » Read more

Rice: Israel Ready For Palestinian Talks ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Associated Press by Anne Gearan - October 22, 2007 - 9:33am Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice said Thursday that Israel is ready to discuss "fundamental issues" with Palestinians who are now governed by leaders accepted by the Jewish state and the West. Still, she left the agenda for any peace talks vague. The top U.S. diplomat, making her first visit to Israel and the occupied West Bank since Palestinian leadership was cleaved into rival governments, also promised that a proposed U.S.-sponsored Mideast conference this fall would be a serious push toward a peace agreement. » Read more

Saudi Arabia Says It May Meet Israel ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The New York Times by David S. Cloud, Helene Cooper - October 22, 2007 - 9:31am Saudi Arabia’s foreign minister said Wednesday that his country would consider attending President Bush’s planned Israeli-Palestinian peace conference in the fall, which would put Saudi officials publicly at the same table as their Israeli counterparts for the first time since 1991. » Read more