Actors’ Protest and Rabbi’s Sermon Stoke Tensions in Israel Ahead of Peace Talks
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The New York Times
by Isabel Kershner - August 29, 2010 - 12:00am

Israel was in an uproar on Sunday over a refusal by Israeli theater artists to perform in West Bank Jewish settlements, and Palestinians were outraged by a virulently anti-Palestinian sermon by a Jerusalem rabbi, further fueling the atmosphere days before the expected resumption of Israeli-Palestinian peace talks in Washington.

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Decoding the Mideast peace rhetoric
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Politico
by Ben Smith - (Opinion) August 27, 2010 - 12:00am

Secretary of State Hillary Clinton last week announced a new round of peace talks. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas (known as Abu Mazen) accepted her invitation to Washington for the talks beginning September 2.

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Abbas: Negotiations despite opposition
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Ma'an News Agency
August 27, 2010 - 12:00am

President Mahmoud Abbas said he would go to negotiations in Washington next week despite heavy opposition to the resumption of peace talks with Israel. Speaking at an iftar meal honoring religious figures and diplomatic officials in Palestine, Abbas said he hoped Israeli negotiators would grasp what he termed the "current opportunity to achieve peace."

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Netanyahu proposes bi-weekly meetings with Abbas during direct peace talks
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Haaretz
by Barak Ravid - August 27, 2010 - 12:00am

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu proposed to the U.S. administration On Thursday that he hold a face-to-face meeting with Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas every two weeks to try to forge covert understandings and set principles to solve every issue. After the principles are determined, small negotiation teams would hammer out the details and put the understandings into writing. Netanyahu said in a meeting to prepare for the Washington summit that "serious negotiations in the Middle East mean only direct, quiet and consecutive talks between the two leaders on the key issues."

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US wants agreement now, peace later
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Ynetnews
by Shimon Shiffer - August 27, 2010 - 12:00am

The Obama administration plans to present Israel and the Palestinian Authority with a new outline aimed at ending the Middle East conflict. The Yedioth Ahronoth daily has learned that the Americans will pressure the parties to sign a framework agreement for a permanent settlement within one year, but that the agreement itself woulbe implemented within 10 years.

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Abbas' position isn't as weak as it may first appear
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Gulf News
by George S. Hishmeh - (Opinion) August 26, 2010 - 12:00am

Palestinians will begin heading home a year from now to reclaim property in their homeland, which they have not seen for 62 years since the state of Israel was established there. They will be welcomed at the border by Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, Israeli Foreign Minister Avigdor Lieberman and thousands of cheering Israelis.

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Netanyahu: I never promised to extend West Bank settlement construction freeze
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Haaretz
by Barak Ravid - August 26, 2010 - 12:00am

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu told Likud ministers on Sunday that he had not made any promises to U.S. President Barack Obama or any other American government official regarding an extension of the settlement construction freeze in the West Bank. "We made no proposals to the Americans on extending the freeze," Netanyahu said. "We said that the future of the communities will be discussed as one of the elements of a final-status settlement, along with the other issues. We promised nothing on this issue to the Americans."

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For Once, Hope in the Middle East
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The New York Times
by Martin Indyk - (Opinion) August 26, 2010 - 12:00am

NOW that President Obama has finally succeeded in bringing the Israelis and the Palestinians back to the negotiating table, the commentariat is already dismissing his chances of reaching a peace agreement. But there are four factors that distinguish the direct talks that will get under way on Sept. 2 in Washington from previous attempts — factors that offer some reason for optimism.

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In the Mideast, the peace process is only a mirage
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Washington Post
by George F. Will - August 26, 2010 - 12:00am

Immersion in this region's politics can convince those immersed that history is cyclical rather than linear -- that it is not one thing after another but the same thing over and over. This passes for good news because things that do change, such as weapons, often make matters worse.

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Israel begins forming negotiations team for direct peace talks
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Haaretz
by Barak Ravid - August 26, 2010 - 12:00am

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Thursday evening began forming Israel's negotiating team for the direct peace negotiations set to commence next week in Washington, the Prime Minister's Office announced. Netanyahu will assemble a small negotiating team that will be under his direct supervision, in order to allow for thorough, serious and speedy talks.

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