March 9th

PA condemns authorization of Bethlehem settlements ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Ma'an News Agency March 9, 2010 - 1:00am The Palestinian government in Ramallah condemned Israel's authorization on Monday of dozens of new housing units for a settlement near Bethlehem just hours before US envoy George Mitchell arrived in the region. The Israeli government will allow the building of 112 new homes in the illegal West Bank settlement of Beitar Illit settlement, in spite of a declared halt to settlement expansion in November, Israeli media reported on Monday. » Read more

In Hebron, renovation of holy site sets off strife ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Washington Post by Janine Zacharia - March 8, 2010 - 1:00am The Tomb of the Patriarchs -- a site revered by Jews, Muslims and Christians as the burial place of their common forefather, Abraham -- needed bathrooms and a new roof over an outdoor prayer area. To the spokesman for Hebron's Jewish settler community, that should not have been grounds for international scandal. "In any normal country, people would take a site like that and turn it into a nationally recognized monument," David Wilder said. » Read more

Biden visits Middle East; Israel and Palestinians agree to indirect talks ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Washington Post by Janine Zacharia - March 9, 2010 - 1:00am Vice President Biden arrived in Israel on Monday to boost U.S. efforts to mediate talks between Israelis and Palestinians amid criticism that the Obama administration has set back the peace process. » Read more

Biden Calls Ties Between U.S. and Israel ‘Unshakable’ ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The New York Times by Ethan Bronner - March 9, 2010 - 1:00am Calling Washington’s ties to Israel “unshakable,” Vice President Joseph R. Biden Jr. opened talks with Israeli leaders on Tuesday, part of a concerted American effort to restart Israeli-Palestinian peace talks and keep Israel focused on sanctions against Iran’s nuclear program rather than unilateral military action. Vice President Joseph R. Biden Jr. spoke in Jerusalem on Tuesday. » Read more

New talks may be Mitchell's moment ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Politico by Laura Rozen - March 8, 2010 - 1:00am For much of the past year as he has shuttled dozens of times to the Middle East and Europe quietly trying to persuade Israelis and Palestinians back to the peace table, U.S. Special Envoy George Mitchell has borne the brunt of criticism of both those offended by the Obama administration’s early pressure on Israel to halt new settlements on the West Bank and East Jerusalem, and others disappointed that Obama failed to follow through when Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu refused to stop the new construction as a precondition for negotiations. » Read more

March 8th

Netanyahu: No peace deal until Palestinians accept Israel as Jewish ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Haaretz March 8, 2010 - 1:00am Prime Minister Benjamin Netanuahu on Monday welcomed the Palestinians' approval of indirect peace negotiations mediated by the U.S., but reiterated that any permanent settlement would require recognition of Israel as a Jewish state and a long-term guarantee of Israel's security. The United States announced earlier Monday that Israel and the Palestinians have formally agreed to indirect peace negotiations brokered by its special envoy to the Middle East, George Mitchell. » Read more

Time for the international community to show its hand ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Bitterlemons by Ghassan Khatib - (Opinion) March 8, 2010 - 1:00am With the PLO deciding to accept the American invitation to proximity talks, helped in no small measure by the Arab League's backing, the stage is set for another round of negotiations between Israelis and Palestinians under US auspices. The question remains, however, about the extent to which the Israeli government headed by Binyamin Netanyahu is ready and serious regarding this new phase and to what extent Israel's stated keenness to hold negotiations without conditions is merely a public relations exercise. » Read more

History as tool of occupation ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Arab News by Uri Avnery - (Opinion) March 7, 2010 - 1:00am History as tool of occupation During the first years of the State of Israel, an official of the Ministry of Religions (as it was then called), a certain Shmuel Zanwill Kahana, toured the country and discovered holy sites right and left. He found graves of Muslim sheikhs and announced that they were, actually, the tombs of our forefathers. They were declared holy places and taken over by his ministry. » Read more

Pointless move ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Jordan Times (Opinion) March 8, 2010 - 1:00am Hamas is reportedly banning male hairdressers from styling women’s hair in Gaza. If true, it is a sad indictment of the Islamist movement’s rule today that it has come to this. Indeed, it sometimes is very hard to recollect that Palestinians voted for Hamas not out of any sense of growing religiosity, but because the movement promised change and reform and seemed to mean it. » Read more

PA moves to ban Palestinians from working in settlements ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Associated Press March 7, 2010 - 1:00am The Palestinian Authority is moving to prevent Palestinian workers from taking jobs in settlements, as officials Ramallah repeatedly declare their refusal to resume direct negotiations until all Israeli construction in the West Bank is halted. Palestinians vehemently oppose the settlements Israel has built on land they want for a future state. But with unemployment high in the West Bank, thousands of Palestinians work in settlements. Palestinians have been key to building homes for settlers and also work in factories. » Read more