Whose Jerusalem Is It, Anyway?
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Slate
by Shmuel Rosner - (Opinion) February 28, 2008 - 4:41pm

"Arafat balked at not having sovereignty over all of East Jerusalem, including the Temple Mount." That's former President Bill Clinton's version of the defining moment of the failed Camp David summit of 2000. "He turned the offer down." Clinton "called Arab leaders for support," but "most wouldn't say much." Not one of them was brave enough—or stupid enough—to take the credit and the blame for helping Palestinian Authority Chairman Yasser Arafat give up, even if only symbolically, on Muslim control of the Temple Mount.

»

Mideast: Gaza Border In Political Limbo
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Inter Press Service (IPS)
by Khaled Moussa Al-omrani, Adam Morrow - February 27, 2008 - 6:49pm

One month after throngs of Palestinians flooded into Egypt's Sinai Peninsula from the Gaza Strip, the flashpoint Rafah border crossing remains tightly shut. But according to some opposition figures, the breach -- viewed by many as a victory for Palestinian resistance faction Hamas -- signalled the need for new border protocols consistent with shifting political realities.

»

Obama`s Top Adviser Says Does Not Believe In Imposing A Peace Settlement
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Haaretz
by Shmuel Rosner - (Opinion) February 25, 2008 - 7:30pm

The knock at the door of her hotel room on Friday halts the conversation for a moment. No big deal, just to check whether Samantha Power drank from the minibar. Is she that troubled? Power responds with a brief laugh. The minibar remains sealed. That does not mean that the attacks do not bother her. In the course of the 50-minute conversation she leaves no stone unturned.

»

Surging In Primaries, Obama Faces New Israel-related Criticism
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Jewish Telegraphic Agency (JTA)
by Ron Kampeas - February 22, 2008 - 4:27pm

Even as U.S. Sen. Barack Obama (D-Ill.) solidifies his status as the Democratic front-runner with victories Tuesday in Wisconsin and Hawaii, he is facing a new line of attack from some Jewish circles regarding his advisers on foreign policy. In recent weeks, writers associated with several right-wing media outlets have taken aim at what they describe as anti-Israel voices advising Obama on Middle East issues, spurring a rash of mass e-mails voicing similar concerns.

»

Abbas Cool To Aide's Call For Kosovo-like Declaration Of Statehood
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Haaretz
by Barak Ravid - February 20, 2008 - 6:55pm

Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas, responding to an aide's call on Wednesday for a unilateral declaration of statehood if peace talks with Israel continued to falter, ruled out taking any such step soon. "We will pursue negotiations in order to reach a peace agreement during 2008 that includes the settlement of all final status issues including Jerusalem," Abbas said in a statement.

»

Who's He Kidding?
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Haaretz
by Akiva Eldar - (Opinion) February 19, 2008 - 6:48pm

Essentially, the Sderot residents are a new version of "the victims of peace." Government spokesmen explain that an invasion of the Gaza Strip may strike a fatal blow to Mahmoud Abbas, the partner, because peace negotiations with the West Bank Palestinian leadership cannot take place under the shadow of scenes of hundreds of Palestinian casualties caused by an Israeli invasion of the Strip.

»

Hopes Are Fading
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Arabic Media Internet Network
by George S. Hishmeh - (Opinion) February 15, 2008 - 2:11pm

It is now almost three months since representatives of nearly 50 countries and international organisations attended the historic Middle East peace conference at the Naval Academy in nearby Annapolis which gave many high hopes that a Palestinian-Israeli settlement is around the corner. The event was the first serious action on the Arab-Israeli conference since President George W. Bush assumed the presidency more about seven years ago.

»

Usip Report: Ten Pieces Of Advice For #44
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Israel Policy Forum
by M.J. Rosenberg - (Opinion) February 8, 2008 - 7:48pm

The latest news from the region is that once again the Israelis are reducing the supply of electricity to Gaza, in response to increased Hamas attacks in Israel. The cutbacks come despite the fact that the policy of punishing the general population has been repeatedly tried and failed, and despite a strong warning from the Bush administration. 

»

Egyptian President Views Gaza Border Crisis, Iran Ties, Mideast
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Bbc News
(Interview) February 8, 2008 - 7:43pm

Text of report by Italian leading privately-owned centre-left newspaper La Repubblica, on 31 January [Interview with Egyptian President Husni Mubarak by Nicola Lombardozzi and Alix Van Buren in Cairo on 30 January: "'Israel Will Not Offload Gaza On to Us'"]

»

Olmert Too Weak To Deliver
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Arab News
by Osama Al-sharif - February 6, 2008 - 7:59pm

n the intricate and volatile workings of Israeli politics a day is a lifetime and the chances of survival are measured not by how many are on one’s side but by the weakness or strength of one’s opponents. Thus Ehud Olmert finds himself relatively stronger after the final findings of the Winograd Commission on the 34-day-war with Lebanon’s Hezbollah in the summer of 2006 were published last week.

»


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