A Talk with Palestinian Negotiator Ahmed Qurei
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Asharq Alawsat
by Kifah Zaboun - August 9, 2010 - 12:00am

Ramallah, Asharq Al-Awsat- Ahmed Qurei, who is also known by his Arabic Kunya Abu Alaa, is a former Prime Minister of the Palestinian Authority, and a veteran negotiator. In 1968 he joined the Fatah political party, and lived in exile with its founder, Yasser Arafat. After improving the economic fortunes of the party, he became a member of the Fatah central committee in 1989, and subsequently went on to play a prominent role in peace negotiations. He is highly regarded for the instrumental role he played in negotiating the Oslo accords of 1993.

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Take the masks off
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Haaretz
by Zeev Sternhell - (Opinion) August 6, 2010 - 12:00am

It's hard to know whether in our relations with the Palestinians we have reached a turning point of the kind that is termed "historic," but it's clear we're at a point where the sides have to take off their masks. A peace agreement is apparently closer than ever right now. The Arab states that are united in an anti-Iranian coalition want an agreement, as does Syria, which thirsts for the Golan Heights.

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Saudis coaxing PA to enter direct talks
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Jerusalem Post
by Herb Keinon - August 6, 2010 - 12:00am

Saudi Arabia is urging Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas to enter direct talks with Israel, and can “sweeten a deal” by offering financial assistance for agreeing to negotiations, a top Israeli diplomatic official said on Thursday. According to the official, the US – which is pressing Abbas to enter the talks – was behind a meeting in Riyadh on Wednesday between Abbas and Saudi Arabia’s King Abdullah.

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Middle East leaders' undignified behavior
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Ibishblog
by Hussein Ibish - August 6, 2010 - 12:00am

In the context of the Obama administration's strong push for direct negotiations between Israel and the Palestinians, the frankly undignified and needlessly complicating behavior of almost all the national leaderships in the Middle East has never been more apparent.

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At the crossroads to peace and war in the Middle East
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The New York Times
by Michael B. Oren - August 6, 2010 - 12:00am

Rarely have the lines in the Middle East's sands been drawn so distinctly. Arrayed on one side is the peace-seeking camp that opposes militant extremism and favors direct talks between Israel and the Palestinians. On the other are the organizations, many of them surrogates for Iran, that work to undermine moderate governments and violently impede any effort for peace.

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ATFP President Joins Al-Hura Panel on Recent Middle East Developments
Press Release - Contact Information: Ziad Asali - August 5, 2010 - 12:00am

ATFP President Dr. Ziad Asali discusses the recent Arab League decision to approve direct negotiations and other recent Middle East-related developments on Al-Hura's program All Directions with fellow panelists Amb. Ted Kattouf, Washington Times journalist Eli Lake and journalist Muhammad Abdel Aziz. The program was recorded and aired originally on July 30, 2010.


Israel’s insistence on direct talks
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Jordan Times
by Michael Jansen - August 5, 2010 - 12:00am

Israeli Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu insists on holding direct talks with the Palestinian Authority (PA) for four important reasons. First, he seeks to end Israel's isolation on the international scene. Second, he wants to project the impression that his right-wing government is prepared to negotiate with the Palestinians. Third, he is determined to begin anew, to erase 19 years of negotiations and arrangements agreed by previous Israeli premiers. His intention is to impose and formalise new "red lines? across which Israel will not budge.

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Abbas: Either Fight or Negotiate!
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Asharq Alawsat
by Abdul Rahman Al-Rashed - August 5, 2010 - 12:00am

No one ever tells the whole truth, even in simple cases such as negotiations, and here is a story to illustrate that. Of all the American Presidents, Barack Obama is actually the most enthusiastic to establish a Palestinian state and liberate the West Bank and Gaza. This is something that the Arabs and their supporters have failed to achieve through war, bombings, demonstrations or zealous speeches over the past 40 years. It is natural to regard negotiations as an alternative to defeat, and even the "Oslo Accords" that were criticized by many achieved more than empty rhetoric.

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Hamas urges Fatah not to go to direct talks with Israel
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Xinhua
August 5, 2010 - 12:00am

Islamic Hamas movement warned on Thursday Fatah party of going to direct negotiations with Israel after the latter declined holding a tripartite meeting to set terms of reference for the stalled peace process. Salah al-Badawil, Gaza-based spokesman for Hamas, in a press release, demanded Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas' Fatah party not to return to "absurd talks" with Israel, urging the West Bank- ruling movement to give the priority for achieving national unity and isolating Israel.

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Contacts underway to set peace reference: Palestinian official
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Xinhua
August 5, 2010 - 12:00am

A Palestinian official revealed on Tuesday that international and Arab contacts are underway to set the terms of reference for the peace process. "There are many contacts between the Palestinian leadership and international and Arab peace players to ensure that the Palestinian demands to start direct talks will be met," Fatah official Jamal Mohaisen told Xinhua following a meeting of the party's central committee that was chaired by President Mahmoud Abbas in Ramallah.

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