The Stakes At Mideast Summit ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Boston Globe (Editorial) October 8, 2007 - 1:44pm THERE ARE many reasons to be skeptical about next month's Mideast peace conference in Annapolis, Md. The political frailty of Prime Minister Ehud Olmert's government, the fractured condition of the Palestinian Authority, the six years President Bush wasted refusing to emulate Bill Clinton's attempts to broker an Israel-Palestinian agreement - these are only some of the most obvious grounds for doubting that anything of value will come from the conference. » Read more

Israel May Ok Division Of Jerusalem ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Associated Press October 8, 2007 - 1:38pm Senior Israeli officials expressed support Monday for the transfer of Arab parts of Jerusalem to Palestinian control, offering a concession on one of the most contentious issues in the Mideast conflict. The offer appeared to fall short of Palestinian calls for a full Israeli withdrawal from key areas of the holy city. The officials spoke as Israeli and Palestinian negotiators were to begin talks in Jerusalem to work out a joint document they hope to issue at a U.S.-sponsored peace conference next month. The meetings were closed. » Read more

As Lebanon Goes . . . ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Washington Post by Jackson Diehl - (Opinion) October 8, 2007 - 1:37pm Lebanon has long been described as a theater where the larger tensions and conflicts of the Middle East are played out in miniature, and in the past three years its drama has seemed particularly representative. When the Bush administration's push for democracy appeared to be gaining momentum in 2005, Lebanese responded to the assassination of their prime minister with a classic "people power" revolution, and a relatively democratic election installed a pro-Western government. » Read more

Palestinians See Rifts With Israel On Peace Draft ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Reuters by Wafa Amr - October 8, 2007 - 1:33pm Israeli and Palestinian negotiators are deeply divided over the content of a joint document they are drafting for next month's U.S.-sponsored statehood conference, Palestinian officials said on Sunday. Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert and Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas, both weakened by internal crises, have avoided formal discussion of agenda issues in a series of pre-conference summits. They appointed top aides to find common ground instead. » Read more

Neocons Converge Around Giuliani Campaign ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Newsweek by Michael Hirsch - October 8, 2007 - 1:26pm Neocons can't help but slink around Washington, D.C. The Iraq War has given the neoconservatives—who favor the assertive use of American power abroad to spread American values—something of a bad name, and several of the Republican candidates seem less than eager to hire them as advisers. But Rudy Giuliani apparently never got that memo. One of the top foreign-policy consultants to the leading GOP candidate is Norman Podhoretz, a founding father of the neocon movement. » Read more