Netanyahu and the Arab spring
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Al-Ahram
by Abdel-Moneim Said - (Opinion) June 15, 2011 - 12:00am

Two regionally and globally crucial spectacles have been unfolding in the Arab world this year. The first is the wave of "revolutions", or "uprisings", or whatever they might be called that have variously overthrown regimes, striven to overthrow others, and made yet others so uncomfortable that not a day goes by without them announcing various reforms.

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PM: Israel aims to offset PA's UN bid
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Ynetnews
by Attila Somfalvi - June 15, 2011 - 12:00am

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu met Tuesday with European Parliament President Prof Jerzy Buzek in Jerusalem. The two discussed various regional issues, including the unilateral Palestinian bid for statehood in the UN, planned for September. Netanyahu told Buzek the he aims to push a diplomatic initiative that would see 30 UN-member nations block the PA's bid. "It will not create an opposing majority, but it will balance out the bid's potential support," he said.

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US envoys try to renew Israeli-Palestinian talks
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Statesman
by Tia Goldenberg - June 15, 2011 - 12:00am

Senior U.S. diplomats have returned to the Middle East for an unannounced visit to try to find a way to restart Israeli-Palestinian peace talks that collapsed last year and now face new challenges. Dennis Ross and David Hale's visit, confirmed by an Israeli official Wednesday, is their first to the region since special Mideast envoy George Mitchell resigned last month after failing to break the negotiations deadlock.

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PM: Palestinians won't compromise if all demands are met
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Jerusalem Post
by Gil Hoffman, Hilary Leila Krieger, Tovah Lazaroff - June 15, 2011 - 12:00am

Netanyahu tells Jerzy Buzek 30 UN states should oppose Palestinian statehood bid; US, EU officials in Israel work to stop UN move. If the Palestinians obtain all of their requests and the UN General Assembly recognizes a Palestinian state, it will be difficult to get the Palestinian leadership to accept necessary compromises in peace negotiations, Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu said Tuesday night. Netanyahu made the comments during a meeting with President of the European Parliament Jerzy Buzek in Jerusalem.

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European Parliament: East Jerusalem should be Palestinian capital
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Haaretz
June 15, 2011 - 12:00am

The European Parliament supports the creation of a Palestinian state within the 1967 borders with agreed land swaps, its president said Wednesday. It embraced the vision for peace in the Middle East as outlined by U.S. President Barack Obama in a May 19 address in Washington, European Parliament President Jerzy Buzek said. Addressing the Knesset in Jerusalem, Buzek however reiterated direct peace negotiations were the "only solution."

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The Coming Israeli Tsunami?
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Middle East Online
by Immanuel Wallerstein - (Opinion) June 15, 2011 - 12:00am

The Palestinians are pursuing their project of seeking a formal recognition of their statehood by the United Nations when the General Assembly convenes in the fall. They intend to request a statement that the state exists within the boundary lines as they existed in 1967 before the Israeli-Palestinian war. It is almost certain that the vote will be favorable. The only question at the moment is how favorable.

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Israel’s choice vis-à-vis Palestine’s bid for statehood
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Common Ground News Service
by Jerome M. Segal - (Opinion) June 14, 2011 - 12:00am

Having despaired of productive negotiations with the Netanyahu government and having lost confidence in the Obama administration, the Palestinians are expected to seek recognition of the State of Palestine from the UN General Assembly (UNGA) in September. Attaining recognition from the General Assembly will be easy, but once recognition is attained, they face the hard part: getting Israel to end the occupation, share Jerusalem, and make a meaningful accommodation on refugees.

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What you see is what you get
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Jerusalem Post
by Gershon Baskin - (Opinion) June 13, 2011 - 12:00am

In June 2011, almost 100,000 people show up for the gay pride festivities in Tel Aviv – an amazing achievement after years of struggle. Six thousand showed up for a peace demonstration a few nights before. In the West Bank, more than 20,000 Palestinians work in Israeli settlements, and only a few hundred participate in the Friday demonstrations against the occupation.

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Choose wisely, Mr. Prime Minister
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Jerusalem Post
by Colette Avital - (Opinion) June 13, 2011 - 12:00am

Israelis were glued to their televisions last month, listening to a torrent of eloquent speeches from Washington, DC. With his rich language, Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu won over both houses of Congress – which couldn’t seem to cheer loudly enough – as well as his hard-Right base at home. Most Israelis, however, were left cold. When you’ve lived with an unresolved, violent conflict for this long, the cheers of Congress do not help. What matters is that we find a way to get past rhetoric and take our country’s future back into our own hands.

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Search for justice continues
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Bitterlemons
by Ghassan Khatib - June 13, 2011 - 12:00am

Several important dates have been observed in recent weeks. In one, hundreds of thousands of Palestinians became refugees when Israel was created, their lives and futures altered in a way that was catastrophic for the Palestinian nation. The second date that recently passed was the occasion of Israel's occupation of the rest of historic Palestine, comprised of the West Bank, including East Jerusalem, and the Gaza Strip.

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