The Lessons of the Nakba
In Print by Ziad Asali - The Daily Beast (Opinion) - May 11, 2012 - 12:00am

I do not need anyone to teach me about the Palestinian Nakba. It is the defining moment of my existence. I do not need anyone to lecture me about it either.

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The Visionary
Media Mention of Ghaith al-Omari In The New Republic - May 4, 2012 - 12:00am

If you were to pinpoint one moment when it looked as if things just might work out for Salam Fayyad, the Palestinian prime minister, it would probably be February 2, 2010. That day, Fayyad addressed the annual Herzliya Conference, a sort of Israeli version of Davos featuring high-powered policymakers and intellectuals. It is not a typical speaking venue for Palestinians; yet Fayyad was warmly received.

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ATFP Expresses Grave Concern Over Condition of Hunger Striking Palestinian Prisoners, Urges Urgent Measures to Diffuse Tensions
Press Release - Contact Information: Ghaith al-Omari - May 4, 2012 - 12:00am

  The American Task Force on Palestine (ATFP) today expressed grave concern about the health of hundreds of hunger striking Palestinian prisoners in Israeli detention, and the rapidly deteriorating condition of several of the detainees. The Task Force noted that the crisis is adding to tensions in an already volatile atmosphere on the ground in the occupied Palestinian territories, and calls for urgent measures to defuse the situation.


Hamas Still Not Ready for Prime Time
In Print by Hussein Ibish - The Daily Beast (Opinion) - April 23, 2012 - 12:00am

In a wide-ranging interview with the Jewish Daily Forward, Hamas leader Mousa Abu Marzook again demonstrated the difficult position in which his organization finds itself. Due to the Arab uprisings, the region’s strategic landscape is now primarily defined by sectarian allegiances. As a result, Hamas's external leadership is trying to reintegrate the organization into the mainstream Sunni Arab fold, cultivating closer ties with states like Qatar, Jordan and Egypt, while distancing itself from Iran and abandoning Syria altogether.

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Radical action needed after Oslo's decline
Media Mention of Hussein Ibish In The National - April 20, 2012 - 12:00am

In 1993, when the Oslo Accords were signed and the Palestinian Authority was born, the senior Israeli politician Yossi Beilin was a leading advocate for Palestinian self-rule. The accords, and the Authority, were intended to pave the way for permanent solutions on borders, refugees and two-state control.

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The Peace Process Stuck in a Rut of Malaise
Media Mention of Hussein Ibish In The National - April 13, 2012 - 12:00am

The Quartet of Middle East mediators - the US, the UN, the EU and Russia - met Wednesday on the sidelines of the G8 foreign ministers' meeting in Washington. But the Quartet's first high-level meeting since December passed almost without notice in the US. Neither The Washington Post nor The New York Times had a story about it in yesterday's editions. In part, say observers, the lack of interest is due to other, more pressing issues. The violence in Syria dominates the attention of the foreign-policy circuit in Washington, where Iran's nuclear programme is also a perennial concern.

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ATFP Praises Release of US Aid to the PA, Welcomes New Quartet Statement
Press Release - April 12, 2012 - 12:00am

Washington DC, April 12 -- The American Task Force on Palestine (ATFP) today welcomed the announcement by Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton that the United States would be releasing a $147 million package in aid to the Palestinian people. The move overrides some remaining congressional holds on the US aid package to the Palestinians for fiscal year 2011 economic support.


Safer Side by Side: Why Israel Needs Palestine
In Print by Hussein Ibish - The Daily Beast (Opinion) - April 2, 2012 - 12:00am

Benny Begin, a member of Prime Minister Netanuyahu's inner cabinet, recently dismissed the idea of the creation of a viable Palestinian state, claiming it would be an unbearable security threat to Israel. He added that Netanuyahu's 2009 Bar-Ilan speech, which seemingly endorsed the two-state goal, was aimed exclusively at foreign audiences but that Palestinian statehood "was not brought up for discussion in the government, nor will it be discussed." "This is not the government's position," he stated bluntly. All the evidence suggests he's correct.

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The West Must Support Universal Values in the Arab World
In Print by Ziad Asali - The Huffington Post (Opinion) - March 30, 2012 - 12:00am

Over the past 14 months of uprisings in the Arab world, Iran has steadily lost influence throughout the Middle East. Recognizing this is crucial for understanding the way in which Palestine, Syria and other key strategic battlegrounds now play into Iranian calculations, and how new opportunities have emerged for both Arabs and the West.

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Bret Stephens' Crisis of Empathy
In Print by Hussein Ibish - The Daily Beast - March 27, 2012 - 12:00am

Sometimes crude binaries can be instructive, and it's possible to distinguish two different types of people: those who seek out generous and universalist empathy with others, and those who prefer the warm cocoon of tribal solidarity.

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American Task Force on Palestine - 1634 Eye St. NW, Suite 725, Washington DC 20006 - Telephone: 202-262-0017