The UN Human Rights Council endorses a report on the Gaza flotilla attack accusing Israeli troops of summary executions. Japan calls for a settlement freeze. The PA vows to support olive farmers. Baroness Ashton will join Mideast peace efforts. Palestinians reiterate their position on settlements. Analysts think another intifada is unlikely even if talks fail. Yossi Verter calls FM Lieberman's UN speech “petty politics.” Shlomo Sand says insecurity about identity is the heart of PM Netanyahu's demands on Palestinians to recognize Israel as a Jewish state. The US is pushing for a two-month moratorium extension. Netanyahu affirms that he is in charge of Israeli policy. Palestinians say Israel will be to blame if talks collapse over settlements. Jewish activists on a Gaza a boat claim they were abused by Israeli troops. Abdul Rahman Al-Rashid calls Pres. Abbas "the world's worst negotiator." Randa Takieddine looks at the French role in negotiations. Daoud Kuttab says international “disappointment” with Israel's policies is not enough.

ATFP Advocacy Director Ghaith Al-Omari discusses negotiations on PBS' Newshour. The international onus is now on Pres. Abbas not to leave negotiations, but he is under heavy regional and domestic pressure to do so. Construction has resumed in many settlements, to a barrage of international and American criticism. Richard Cohen says all parties have miscalculated on the settlement issue. Some Palestinian refugees in Lebanon continue to support armed struggle, and the Lebanese government hopes recent reforms will stem radicalism. A Fatah official claims serious progress in reconciliation talks with Hamas. Three Palestinians are killed in Israeli air strikes in Gaza. Gaza's tunnel economy is collapsing. Israel's navy seizes a Gaza-bound boat without violence. Dror Etkes points out that settlement construction barely slowed during the moratorium. Dozens of Palestinian families are threatened with eviction in occupied East Jerusalem. Special Envoy Mitchell is returning to the region. Gershon Baskin says Israel should stop wasting resources on settlements. Gabrielle Rifkind says there are many ways of dealing with the settler issue. Many Israelis have a financial stake in the settlement project.

Negotiations are in question as Israel's settlement moratorium expires, and settlers begin new construction projects. Palestinians have not quit the talks. The Washington Post says Pres. Abbas has the most to lose from a breakdown, but he says with settlement activity talks are futile. The CSM says Abbas and PM Netanyahu should match Pres. Obama's risk-taking. An Israeli settler is injured in another drive-by shooting. Reuters looks at occupied Hebron. Settlers claim God gave them the West Bank. An AP photographer is injured by Israeli troops. PLO officials say they believe Israel will restrain settlement activity. Sec. Clinton asks Arab leaders to support Abbas. Nahum Barnea says all three leaders have miscalculated on the settlement issue. B'tselem says 6,371 Palestinians and 1,083 Israelis have died in armed conflict in the past 10 years. Israelis are still being induced to become settlers with heavy subsidies. Asharq Al-Awsat interviews Deputy PM Meridor. Raghida Dergham analyzes Palestinian state building.

Roger Cohen says a settlement freeze is a test of Israel's character. A majority of Palestinians support peace talks. Pres. Obama tells the UN Palestine can be a new member state, Arab governments should support the PA and Israel should extend the settlement moratorium. The Israeli delegation is not present. Jordan's King Abdullah warns about the dangers of not achieving a peace agreement. Parts of Jerusalem are closed in anticipation of protests. Pres. Abbas speaks to Palestinian Americans in New York. The Israeli Navy kills a Gaza fisherman. Settlers say they are ready for a burst of construction, but the Israeli government says it will be restrained. Israelis condemn remarks by Bill Clinton about Russian immigrants. Ha'aretz says the Israeli government should stop funding zealots in Jerusalem. Libby Lenkinski Friedlander praises Palestinian nonviolent protests. Former PM Olmert urges international trusteeship for holy places in Jerusalem. A Likud minister says Israel should give the PA control of more of the West Bank. The Independent interviews Gideon Levy. The National says now is the time for peace.

Roger Cohen says a settlement freeze is a test of Israel's character. A majority of Palestinians support peace talks. Pres. Obama tells the UN Palestine can be a new member state, Arab governments should support the PA and Israel should extend the settlement moratorium. The Israeli delegation is not present. Jordan's King Abdullah warns about the dangers of not achieving a peace agreement. Parts of Jerusalem are closed in anticipation of protests. Pres. Abbas speaks to Palestinian Americans in New York. The Israeli Navy kills a Gaza fisherman. Settlers say they are ready for a burst of construction, but the Israeli government says it will be restrained. Israelis condemn remarks by Bill Clinton about Russian immigrants. Ha'aretz says the Israeli government should stop funding zealots in Jerusalem. Libby Lenkinski Friedlander praises Palestinian nonviolent protests. Former PM Olmert urges international trusteeship for holy places in Jerusalem. A Likud minister says Israel should give the PA control of more of the West Bank. The Independent interviews Gideon Levy. The National says now is the time for peace.

The UN says both Israel's and Hamas' accounts of the Gaza war are unacceptable. Sec. Clinton pressures Arab states to aid the PA. Controversy surrounds the assassination of a Hamas operative by Israel in the West Bank. At least one Palestinian is killed by Israelis in the Silwan area of occupied East Jerusalem. The PA announces a boycott against Israeli shops selling settlement goods. Israel's flotilla inquiry is wrapping up. Hamas' hunt for collaborators spreads panic in Gaza. Pres. Abbas hints at a compromise on settlements. Palestinians continue to work on Israeli settlement construction. A meeting between PM Fayyad and Deputy FM Ayalon reportedly ends badly. Aluf Benn says PM Netanyahu should freeze settlements. Settlers complain about the moratorium. The Israeli government is preparing for the aftermath of failed talks. Omar Rahman says it's unreasonable to ask Palestinians to recognize Israel as a Jewish state. Ali Ibrahim says Hamas has no credibility. Rami Khouri says the Palestinians need to regroup. Hussein Ibish analyzes Netanyahu's demand Palestinians recognize Israel as “the nation-state of the Jewish people.” Hussein Ibish analyzes Netanyahu's demand Palestinians recognize Israel as “the nation-state of the Jewish people,” and rejects both optimism and pessimism about the negotiations.

The Israeli NGO Peace Now highlights settlements with West Bank flights and its American affiliate APN issues an iPhone settlements app. Israeli officials reportedly offer to exchange a settlement freeze for Jonathan Pollard. John Hughes says Syria may be the key to peace. Pres. Abbas meets with Pres. Peres. The EU contributes €3.5 million to Gaza reconstruction. PM Netanyahu says Israel wants to keep troops on the eastern border of a Palestinian state. A Palestinian citizen of Israel accused of espionage accepts a plea agreement. The Quartet urges Israel to extend its partial settlement moratorium. US officials are concerned talks may collapse over the issue. Hanan Ashrawi says Hamas is trying to replace the PLO. Interior Minister Yishai calls negotiations “completely pointless.” Israeli and Palestinian chief negotiators will meet soon. Abbas says Israel is free to define itself. The controversy over a book authorizing the killing of non-Jews continues. A Gaza water park temporarily shut by Hamas is torched. Linda Heard says Arabs must get involved in the negotiations.

Sec. Clinton leads US Middle East peace efforts. Palestinian youth campaign for good governance. Israel allows the importation of 20 cars into Gaza. FM Lieberman again proposes stripping Israeli citizenship from some Palestinians. Former PM Olmert describes peace offers he claims to have made. A senior Hamas official is arrested in Egypt, and others arrested by the PA. A PA court suggests Palestinians who sell land to Israelis may face the death penalty, and Hamas imposes it on drug dealers. Hamas says it told the US it would accept a state on the 1967 borders. Ha'aretz describes the Palestinian plight in the face of settler violence and the occupation. Manuel Hassassian and Edward Edy Kaufman say Israeli-Palestinian peace may be a key to dealing with Iran's nuclear ambitions. Jacqueline Rose reviews a new book by David Grossman. The Netherlands cancels a visit by Israeli mayors because some are settlement leaders. Adel Safty says peace must do justice to the Palestinians. Joel Beinin looks at the struggle over Silwan. Nathan Thrall looks at Palestinian state building and the new security forces.

NPR profiles the new Palestinian security services. Sec. Clinton wraps up the latest round of negotiations and Pres. Abbas says talks will continue. There is no indication of an agreement on settlements. Jackson Diehl says the Middle East is not Northern Ireland. The CSM asks what happens next without a deal on settlements and whether Syria can help contain Hamas. Jon Haber says boycotts against Israel are ineffective and unhelpful. Israeli troops assassinate a Hamas leader in the West Bank. The PA may be seeking to gain control of a Gaza crossing. Settlers continue to try to seize a Palestinian home in occupied East Jerusalem. The World Bank says Palestinians are well positioned to establish a state, but need foreign investment. UNRWA asks for more aid from Arab states. DM Barak may use legal loopholes to restrict settlement activity. Yoel Marcus says the settlement issue is up to the United States. Ehud Yaari says peace talks have exposed divisions within Hamas. Israeli and Palestinian women illegally visit the beach together. Jacob Savage compares the Israeli occupation with French rule in Algeria. Michael Weiss says analogies between the Middle East and Northern Ireland, and especially between Hamas and Sinn Fein, are deeply flawed.

Negotiations proceed despite violence but have not made any obvious progress. Special Envoy Mitchell says the parties are tackling tough issues, that the goal is full normalization in the region and that the US is actively pursuing Israeli-Syrian negotiations. The struggle over Silwan highlights tensions in Jerusalem. Israel bombs targets in Gaza. Pres. Abbas meets with Sec. Clinton and says there is no alternative to the talks. Ari Shavit says division of the land may precede a final status agreement. The US reportedly wants borders set in three months. PM Netanyahu reportedly tells Abbas his policy on settlements is unchanged. Yaakov Katz says Hamas is trapped between wanting to disrupt the negotiations but avoid major Israeli retaliation. Jeremy Bowen warns against excessive optimism. Jewish Americans are divided over Israeli artists' boycott of settlements. Zuheir Kseibati takes a dim view of negotiations. The Jordan Times says settlement building may kill the talks. John Whitbeck proposes an alternative model for two states. Ghaith Al-Omari explains his reasons for hopefulness.