May 12th

Abbas, Obama agreed to top proximity talks with borders, security issues ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Xinhua May 12, 2010 - 12:00am Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas and U.S. President Barack Obama have agreed that the U.S.-proposed indirect Israeli-Palestinian proximity talks would focus on the issues of security and borders, Palestinian news agency Wafa reported Tuesday. In a phone conversation, the two leaders have also emphasized that neither the Palestinians nor the Israelis should make any " provocative" action "that could destroy the confidence" during the talks, according to Wafa. » Read more

Jerusalem Old City Initiative Releases New Peace Plan ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Voice of America by Meredith Buel - May 12, 2010 - 12:00am Israel and the Palestinians have resumed peace talks following a 17-month break in negotiations. Possibly the most difficult issue on the table in the conflict is the future of Jerusalem's Old City - an area sacred to Muslims, Christians and Jews. A group of Israelis, Palestinians, Canadians and Americans has released a new initiative designed to help the parties resolve this thorny problem. » Read more

What Do Israelis Think of Obama? ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The New York Review Of Books May 12, 2010 - 12:00am “PRES OBAMA: SAVE ISRAEL FROM ITSELF.” So proclaimed a sign at a demonstration in late March in Sheik Jarrah, a neighborhood in East Jerusalem where activists gather every Friday to protest the eviction of Palestinian residents from their homes. Among the demonstrators was the Israeli novelist David Grossman, with whom I struck up a conversation about Barack Obama, who is not generally regarded as a popular figure in Israel these days, not least because of his public call for a halt to Israeli settlement activity. » Read more

May 11th

Gold stones, glass houses ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Foreign Policy by Sasha Polakow-Suransky - (Opinion) May 10, 2010 - 12:00am The Israeli government has it in for Richard Goldstone. Ever since Goldstone, a Jewish South African judge, issued a report in September charging Israel (and Hamas) with war crimes during the January 2009 invasion of Gaza, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has attacked him -- and his report -- as a grave threat to Israel's legitimacy. On Thursday, leading Israeli government officials escalated their campaign against Goldstone, accusing him of sending 28 black South Africans to their deaths while serving as a judge during the apartheid years. » Read more

Main obstacle to peace psychological ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Arab News by Uri Avnery - May 11, 2010 - 12:00am I admire Professor John Mearsheimer. His rigorous logic. His lucid presentation. His rare moral courage. A few days ago, he delivered an impressive lecture in Washington DC. He presented a profound analysis of the chances of Israel surviving in the long term. Every Israeli who is concerned about the future of his state should grapple with this analysis. The professor himself sums up his conclusions as follows: » Read more

Just plain lucky ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Bitterlemons by Yossi Alpher - (Opinion) May 10, 2010 - 12:00am The Israeli-Palestinian proximity talks beginning now will almost certainly end in failure. There is little room for optimism regarding these talks or any other form of peace process that brings together the political camps of PM Binyamin Netanyahu and President Mahmoud Abbas. » Read more

How to bolster a delicate situation ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Bitterlemons by Ghassan Khatib - (Opinion) May 10, 2010 - 12:00am George Mitchell, the US special envoy to the peace process, seems to have succeeded for a second time in getting both Palestinians and Israelis to agree to start proximity talks. The first time around, the talks were sabotaged by an Israeli decision to build 1,600 settlement units in occupied East Jerusalem during a visit by Joe Biden, the US vice-president. This time, the situation remains equally delicate. » Read more

Work toward Middle East peace by any means available ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Daily Star by Daoud Kuttab - (Opinion) May 11, 2010 - 12:00am Middle East conflict, but it is hard to say what. A breakthrough appears to be at hand, though all the parties still seem to be clinging to their traditional positions. The Arab League has given the go-ahead to indirect Palestinian-Israeli talks, and the various Palestinian leadership forums have approved the resumption of talks. Even the usually boisterous Palestinian negotiator Saeb Erakat has toned down his rhetoric, and Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas has given an optimistic interview to Israel TV. » Read more

Two Israeli-Arab activists held for suspected espionage ATFP World Press Roundup Article from BBC News May 10, 2010 - 12:00am Two Israeli-Arab political activists have been arrested and accused of spying and contact with "agents from Hezbollah", Israeli police say. Omar Sayid, a member of the Israeli-Arab political party Balad was arrested on 24 April. Amir Makhoul, head of a group of Arab organisations, was arrested on 6 May. A gag order was lifted on the case on Monday, as Israeli-Arab organisations planned a protest against what they are calling political persecution. » Read more

Optimism is also an option ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Jerusalem Post by Gershon Baskin - (Opinion) May 11, 2010 - 12:00am I am convinced that it is possible to make real progress through proximity talks, and given the level of mutual mistrust, I even believe it is the preferred means. I am told by diplomats that I am the only optimist in the Middle East. There are certainly reasons to be pessimistic about the chances for peace, but I will not be dissuaded just because we have failed to reach peace so far. The difficulty in restarting negotiations is, of course, a result of many years of failed talks, an intifada, a war in Gaza and the election of a right-wing religious government in Israel. » Read more