Interview: Possibility of inter-Palestinian reconciliation within coming months slim: official
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Xinhua
by Saud Abu Ramadan, Emad Drimly - (Interview) November 22, 2010 - 1:00am

RAMALLAH, Nov. 21 (Xinhua) -- Wassel Abu Yousef, secretary general of the Palestinian Liberation Front (PLF) and member of Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO) executive committee, told Xinhua in an exclusive interview that he rules out the possibility of a reconciliation to be reached within the coming months amid the current situation.

»

The Palestinian President's Gifts
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Asharq Alawsat
by Abdul Rahman Al-Rashed - (Opinion) November 22, 2010 - 1:00am

In return for a 90-day settlement freeze, Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas has gifted Israel with 20 fighter jets and 20 billion dollars, in addition to increasing the appetite of Jewish contributors around the world in supporting the construction of more houses and flats in the West Bank and occupied Jerusalem.

»

Israel Enacts Bill to Force Referendum on a Treaty
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The New York Times
by Isabel Kershner - November 22, 2010 - 1:00am

JERUSALEM — Israel’s right-leaning Parliament approved legislation late Monday that could hamper the leadership’s ability to seal future peace deals with the Palestinians or Syria. The measure requires that any peace deal involving the ceding of territory annexed by Israel — namely East Jerusalem and the Golan Heights — must be put to a national referendum. The West Bank, which Israel never annexed, does not fall within the scope of the legislation, but it would include other pieces of sovereign Israeli territory that might be ceded in the context of land swaps in a peace agreement.

»

Palestinian Leader Insists on Halt to Settlements
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The New York Times
by Isabel Kershner - (Analysis) November 21, 2010 - 1:00am

JERUSALEM — The Palestinian president, Mahmoud Abbas, said Sunday that any American proposal for restarting Israeli-Palestinian negotiations must include East Jerusalem as part of a complete halt in Israeli settlement building. It was not immediately clear whether Mr. Abbas’s position, which is consistent with Palestinian policy, would scuttle a proposed deal that the Americans hope will lead to resumption of the negotiations. In the past the sides have found ways to surmount such difficulties.

»

With settlement deal, U.S. will be rewarding Israel's bad behavior
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Washington Post
by Daniel Kurtzer - (Opinion) November 21, 2010 - 1:00am

It was only a little over a year and a half ago that the Obama administration demanded a freeze on Israeli settlements in the occupied territories, including even the "natural growth" of existing settlements. At the time, the administration called settlement activity "illegitimate" and appeared ready to go to the mat with Israel to show just how strongly the United States believed that settlements impede peace.

»

As Netanyahu pushes for settlement freeze deal, suburban Ariel could be sticking point
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Christian Science Monitor
by Joshua Mitnick - (Analysis) November 21, 2010 - 1:00am

Ariel, West Bank With some 20,000 residents, a new performing arts center, and a university-in-the-making, this sprawling suburb has fashioned itself as an everyday Israeli city rather than a settlement of religious fundamentalists. But because Ariel, the fourth-largest Jewish settlement, is located 11 miles deep into the West Bank, it could prove to be one of the thorniest points of contention in border negotiations that the US hopes will give momentum to stalled peace efforts.

»

Israeli bill seen sinking future peace deals
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Statesman
by Ben Hubbard - November 21, 2010 - 1:00am

JERUSALEM — Israel's hawkish parliament is voting on legislation that could sink future peace deals with the Palestinians and Syria. Lawmakers are expected to approve Monday a bill that would make it harder for the government to cede east Jerusalem and the Golan Heights in any future accords. The legislation would require a two-thirds majority in Israel's 120-seat parliament for territorial concessions to win approval. Without that super majority, the government would need to win approval in a national referendum.

»

Netanyahu: No settlement freeze vote without U.S. offer in writing
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Haaretz
by Barak Ravid - November 21, 2010 - 1:00am

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu told lawmakers on Sunday that he had not yet received a written draft from the United States over a proposed package of incentives in exchange for a freeze on West Bank construction. "We still have not received from the Americans a written summary of the principle understandings," Netanyahu told eight MKs from his Likud party, adding that he would not bring the offer for cabinet vote until he saw the proposal in its entirety.

»

PA slams NIS 85 million Kotel development project
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Jerusalem Post
by Herb Keinon - November 21, 2010 - 1:00am

"This move preventing us from reaching solution," PA spokesman says; project to help accommodate 8 million annual visitors to Western Wall. The Palestinian Authority slammed a Sunday cabinet decision to allot NIS 85 million to a development project for the Western Wall over the next five years, AFP reported. Ghassan Hatib, a PA spokesperson reportedly said: "Israel does not have permission to make changes in the occupied territories, especially in Jerusalem." "This move is preventing us from reaching an agreement, because any solution must include Jerusalem," Hatib added.

»

The Meaning of Peace in Israel
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Asharq Alawsat
by Hussein Shobokshi - (Opinion) November 21, 2010 - 1:00am

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is making a mockery of the entire world, by feigning to succumb to the pressure exerted upon him, and announcing his acceptance of a temporary freeze on settlement construction. According to the deal, Israel will only continue the construction process in the West Bank, with the exception of Jerusalem. At the same time, Netanyahu has received a substantial reward, in the form of significant military equipment, estimated to be worth billions of dollars, from the United States. This incentive has been financed by U.S.

»


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