August 7th

Israeli envoy: Obama row causes strategic damage ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Haaretz August 7, 2009 - 12:00am Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's attitude toward the Obama administration is causing Israel strategic damage, in the view of a senior Israeli diplomat in Boston, Channel 10 television reported yesterday. Consul General Nadav Tamir's reported comment is a rare internal rebuke, highlighting the growing tension between Washington and Jerusalem. Tamir is a highly regarded veteran diplomat whose opinions on foreign policy matters carry considerable weight. Such blunt, pointed criticism of a prime minister's policies by a professional diplomat is considered unusual. » Read more

Poll: More Israelis would prefer Livni as prime minister ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Haaretz August 7, 2009 - 12:00am For the first time since taking office, the public considers Benjamin Netanyahu less suitable to serve as prime minister than opposition leader MK Tzipi Livni, a new Channel 10 poll said Thursday. According to the poll, when asked, "Who would you rather see as the next prime minister?" Tzipi Livni was named most qualified, with 36 percent of respondents. Only 23 percent of those polled said Netanyahu was fit to serve as prime minister. » Read more

PA officials: U.S. wants borders to top peace talks ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Haaretz by Avi Issacharoff - August 7, 2009 - 12:00am The U.S. administration will demand that Israel and the Palestinians address the issue of borders as the first step in the Middle East peace plan, senior Palestinian officials said Thursday. Defense Minister Ehud Barak said Wednesday that Washington will present its new plan for a comprehensive Middle East peace soon. The Americans will also outline proposals for an Israeli peace with Syria and Lebanon, the Palestinian officials said Thursday. » Read more

Locals Pessimistic Over Conference ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Media Line by Rachelle Kliger - August 6, 2009 - 12:00am Residents of Bethlehem, where a key Fatah conference is taking place, are not optimistic that the outcome of the conference will bring them prosperity and improve their economic situation. Many harbor resentment towards Fatah, accusing the movement of nepotism, corruption, and neglecting their fellow Palestinians. In this West Bank town just south of Jerusalem whose economy relies largely on tourism by Christian pilgrims, locals complain of soaring unemployment and lack of prospects. They are pinning little hope on the Fatah conference. » Read more

Erekat: Fatah conference to define a future program ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Xinhua by Hua Chunyu, Qi Xianghui - August 7, 2009 - 12:00am The major task of the on-going Palestinian Fatah party's Six General Conference is to make up the main stream Palestinian faction's future strategy, senior Palestinian negotiator Saeb Erekat told Xinhua. The long-awaited general conference of President Mahmoud Abbas's Fatah party started Tuesday in the West Bank city of Bethlehem, and extended to Friday, due to "stormy" discussions and argument between the members and internal election requirement. » Read more

Fatah’s summit fails to heal ills ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The National by Omar Karmi - August 7, 2009 - 12:00am Far from being the unifying panacea to Fatah’s ills that it was meant to be, the Palestinian national movement’s Sixth General Conference has proven an ill-tempered and divisive affair, much, say some, in keeping with the party’s record. Indeed, so contentious has the conference been that organisers have been forced to extend policy discussions and delay voting to the two main bodies in the movement, the ruling Central Committee and the Revolutionary Council, until at least tonight, possibly tomorrow. The conference was supposed to end yesterday. » Read more

New Israeli Plan to Warn of Impending Attacks ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Inter Press Service (IPS) by Eli Clifton - August 6, 2009 - 12:00am The Israeli Defence Force (IDF) is taking new measures to warn Palestinian civilians about impending aerial attacks. This comes in response to questions raised over whether Israel had complied with international laws during its 2006 war in Lebanon and the Gaza offensive earlier this year. » Read more

Jewish Groups Say Obama’s Pick for Medal Has Anti-Israel Bias ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The New York Times by Mark Landler - August 6, 2009 - 12:00am President Obama’s decision to bestow one of the nation’s highest honors on Mary Robinson, the first woman to serve as Ireland’s president, has touched off protests by Jewish groups and lawmakers, who claim she has shown a persistent anti-Israel bias in her work as a human rights advocate. Mr. Obama plans to award the Presidential Medal of Freedom, the nation’s highest civilian honor, to Mrs. Robinson and 15 others at a ceremony next week at the White House. » Read more

Fatah Postpones Elections, but Extends Conference ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The New York Times by Isabel Kershner - August 6, 2009 - 12:00am Amid stormy meetings and acrimonious disagreements over voting procedures, leaders of Fatah, the mainstream Palestinian nationalist movement, postponed elections for its decision-making bodies that were scheduled for Thursday. They said the landmark party conference taking place here would go on for at least two more days. » Read more

August 6th

New guard replaces old in Fateh ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Jordan Times by Daoud Kuttab - (Opinion) August 6, 2009 - 12:00am It has taken 20 years, but the Palestinian Liberation Movement (Fateh) has finally held its sixth general conference allowing for a much-needed influx of new blood into the movement. The conference, which opened in Bethlehem on August 4, registers many historic firsts. It is the first conference of a liberation movement to be held within an area it is hoping to liberate from a foreign occupying force. It is also the first time that Fateh holds a conference on Palestinian territory. » Read more