Transcripts on ’73 War, Now Public, Grip Israel
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The New York Times
by Ethan Bronner - October 10, 2010 - 12:00am

JERUSALEM — For many Israelis, the 1973 Arab-Israeli war was their single most terrifying moment, when a woefully unprepared nation, deluded into believing that its neighbors regarded it as impregnable, suffered a devastating attack and struggled back to victory at enormous cost with last-minute American help. Last week, the confidential discussions of Israel’s top leaders in the first days of that war, known here as the Yom Kippur War because the attack began on that Jewish holy day, were declassified and gripped the public.

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Israel keeps door open to new settlement freeze
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from
by Jeffrey Heller - (Analysis) October 10, 2010 - 12:00am

JERUSALEM, Oct 10 (Reuters) - Israel is not closing the door on a further freeze of new construction in West Bank settlements after the Palestinians, backed by Arab powers, gave Washington a one-month window to save peace talks from collapse. Much could depend on whether the United States opts to sweeten incentives to Israel to agree to a proposed 60-day partial building moratorium, Israeli political sources said on Sunday.

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Palestinian dream city hits snag from Israel
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Statesman
by Ben Hubbard - October 10, 2010 - 12:00am

ATARA, WEST BANK — It is billed as a symbol of the future Palestine: a modern, middle-class city of orderly streets, parks and shopping plazas rising in the hills of the West Bank, ready for independence, affluence and peace. But the $800-million project has hit a snag: Palestinians say construction of the city of Rawabi depends on getting an access road, which can't go ahead without Israeli permission.

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Abbas seeking alternatives if Mideast talks fail
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Statesman
by Salah Nasrawi - October 9, 2010 - 12:00am

SIRTE, LIBYA — Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas on Saturday sought Arab backing for possible fallback options in case troubled peace talks with Israel collapse, including urging the United States to unilaterally recognize a Palestinian state. For now, the Obama administration is still trying to salvage the negotiations that began in Washington five weeks ago. The Arab League, meeting in Libya over the weekend, gave the Americans another month — just past midterm elections in the U.S. — to try to break the deadlock over Israeli settlement expansion.

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Bizarre blend of politics and diplomacy
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Jordan Times
by Rami Khouri - (Opinion) October 8, 2010 - 12:00am

The revelation here in the United States last Wednesday that Washington was offering Israel new security-related guarantees in return for a two-month extension of the partial moratorium on new Jewish colonies in the occupied Palestinian territories is neither surprising nor encouraging.

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ATFP Advocacy Director Speaks at J Street Event
Press Release - Contact Information: Hussein Ibish - October 8, 2010 - 12:00am

On October 6th, ATFP Advocacy Director participated in a forum organized by J-Street and held at Temple Sinai entitled "Who are the Partners for Peace? Palestinian Perspectives: A Discussion with the American Jewish Community". In addition to Mr. Al-Omari, the panel included Dr. Amal Jadou, Deputy Chief of Mission of the General Delegation of the PLO to the U.S. and Amjad Atallah, Co-Director of the Middle East Task Force, New America Foundation, and was moderated by Amb. Martin Indyk, Vice President and Director of Foreign Policy at the Brookings Institution.


Source: Abbas hints at resigning if talks fail
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Ma'an News Agency
October 8, 2010 - 12:00am

President Mahmoud may submit his resignation after meeting with Arab leaders for an emergency Arab League session in Sirtre, Libya, a source told Ma'an on Friday. The source said Abbas hinted at resigning from his post if peace talks with Israel failed during a meeting of the Palestinian National Council of Amman, which he attended before heading to Libya for the session.

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Israel Signals Settlement Compromise to Save Talks
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Bloomberg
by Gwen Ackerman - October 8, 2010 - 12:00am

Israel signaled that a compromise may be reached in a dispute over settlement construction in the West Bank that threatens to derail U.S.-brokered peace talks with the Palestinians. Incentives offered by the Obama administration to Israel may allow Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to push through his Cabinet a limited renewal of the 10-month freeze on West Bank settlement construction that expired last month, Israel’s ambassador to the U.S. said.

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Israel kills two Hamas militants in W.Bank
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Reuters
by Yosri Al-Jamal - October 8, 2010 - 12:00am

Israeli troops shot dead two Hamas commanders in the West Bank on Friday, in a raid against militants Israel blamed for the killing of four Jewish settlers a month ago. Security forces killed the two militants in an early morning raid in Hebron, a city in the occupied West Bank which has long been a focal point of Israeli-Palestinian confrontation. Israeli Defence Minister Ehud Barak said the operation was "a quick response to the murder of the four Israelis".

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Abbas to Mitchell: I will resign if settlement construction continues
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Haaretz
by Akiva Eldar - October 8, 2010 - 12:00am

Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas informed U.S. envoy George Mitchell last week that the renewal of settlement construction will not only bring about the collapse of peace talks but it will also induce his resignation from the post of Palestinian Authority president. According to Palestinian sources close to the PA leadership, Abbas told Mitchell of his plans during their last meeting together.

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