Domestic Politics Produce Three-Way Collision at United Nations ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Bloomberg by Calev Ben-David, Indira A.R. Lakshmanan - (Analysis) September 22, 2011 - 12:00am The collision this week over Palestinian statehood at the United Nations has been coming since Israel and the Palestinian Authority hit an impasse in negotiations a year ago and U.S. President Barack Obama was unable to get them back to the bargaining table. » Read more

Miracle, muddle or mess possible for Mideast ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Alertnet by Arshad Mohammed - (Analysis) September 23, 2011 - 12:00am NEW YORK, Sept 23 (Reuters) - There appear to be three possible outcomes to the Palestinian plan on Friday to seek full U.N. membership: a miracle, a muddle, and a mess. The miracle would be if diplomats dream up a document that may persuade the Israelis and Palestinians to talk peace after nearly a year of impasse and acrimony. The muddle would be if the Palestinian letter requesting full membership simply sits in the U.N. Security Council's inbox, ushering in a period of limbo while diplomats try to coax the parties into negotiations. » Read more

Uncertainty clouds Palestinian bid for UN membership ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Ma'an News Agency by Jared Malsin - September 23, 2011 - 12:00am UNITED NATIONS (Ma’an) -- President Mahmoud Abbas will submit Palestine's application for membership to the Security Council on Friday, but uncertainty surrounds the fate of the UN campaign. Palestinian officials say Abbas’ current strategy means that the membership bid will remain in the arena of the Security Council for some time, without a climactic vote that many Palestinians had come to expect. » Read more