U.S.-Arab Relations | The American Task Force on Palestine

Obama calls Abbas to discuss Middle East peace
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Reuters
March 20, 2012 - 12:00am

US President Barack Obama spoke to Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas for the first time in six months on Monday to discuss the long-stalled Middle East peace process, the White House said. White House spokesman Jay Carney said in a statement that Obama called Abbas and told him the United States was committed to Middle East peace. He told Abbas both sides need to reinforce the efforts that have brought an end to recent fighting and to avoid provocative actions.

U.S. War Game Sees Perils of Israeli Strike Against Iran
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The New York Times
by Mark Mazzetti, Tom Shanker - March 19, 2012 - 12:00am

WASHINGTON — A classified war simulation held this month to assess the repercussions of an Israeli attack on Iran forecasts that the strike would lead to a wider regional war, which could draw in the United States and leave hundreds of Americans dead, according to American officials. The officials said the so-called war game was not designed as a rehearsal for American military action — and they emphasized that the exercise’s results were not the only possible outcome of a real-world conflict.

In 2011, US primacy in the Middle East died
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Jerusalem Post
by Barry Rubin - (Opinion) March 18, 2012 - 12:00am

This is the end... Of our elaborate plans, the end, Of everything that stands.... No safety or surprise.... There’s danger on the edge of town.... And all the children are insane.... The West is the best.... But you will never follow me.” – “This is the End,” The Doors

Abbas and Obama Should Not Expect a Helping Hand From Netanyahu
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Huffington Post
by Akiva Eldar - (Opinion) February 15, 2012 - 1:00am

After the uproar over the Palestinian Authority's admission to UNESCO some three months ago, President Mahmoud Abbas ordered a freeze on PA requests for admission to other UN organizations. It seems that Abbas promised Barack Obama that until the presidential elections he would spare the U.S. president from having to choose between a vote that would annoy Jewish voters and one that would upset the Palestinian voters and their sympathizers.

‘Elections Won’t Keep DC From Pushing Peace’
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Jerusalem Post
by Herb Keinon - (Interview) February 8, 2012 - 1:00am

If Washington feels a peace deal between Israel and the Palestinians is possible in the near future it will become actively involved in securing an agreement even during an election year, former ambassador to the US Sallai Meridor said Tuesday. Senior Israeli officials have said in recent weeks they did not feel Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas was interested in serious negotiations with Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu now because of the assumption that US President Barack Obama could not press Netanyahu to make concessions during an election year.

State Department Plays Down Warnings about Hamas-Fatah Announcement
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Fox News
February 7, 2012 - 1:00am

The State Department played down warnings Tuesday over the latest step toward a unity government between Palestinian groups Hamas and Fatah, saying "the fundamentals have not changed" despite claims that the deal imperils the already anemic peace process. Department spokeswoman Victoria Nuland said Secretary of State Hillary Clinton met Tuesday with Israeli Foreign Minister Avigdor Lieberman, and they discussed how "it's not particularly clear what this agreement will change."

Islamophobic Film and Its Jewish Backers
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Jewish Daily Forward
by J.J. Goldberg - (Opinion) February 2, 2012 - 1:00am

The New York Police Department is caught up in a tangled spat with the city’s Muslim community and assorted liberal groups over counter-terrorism measures that seem to have crossed the line into rank anti-Muslim bigotry. The department’s chief spokesman has made matters worse by repeatedly offering explanations of police actions that turned out to be false. Some critics are now calling for his dismissal. In a sense, it’s just the latest case — several cases, actually — of minority rights versus over-zealous law enforcement, post-9/11. This case is more complicated than most, however.

A Year for Elections, Not Mideast Peace
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Wall Street Journal
by Elliott Abrams - (Opinion) January 12, 2012 - 1:00am

Last week Israelis and Palestinians held talks for the first time since September 2010. Back then, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas met at the White House, under bright lights and with great expectations, along with Jordanian King Abdullah and Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak. In a matter of weeks the talks failed—and Mr. Mubarak didn't last much longer himself. What to expect this time?

Ayoon Wa Azan (A Palestinian State is Attainable After 2013)
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Dar Al-Hayat
by Jihad El-Khazen - (Opinion) January 11, 2012 - 1:00am

American policies, both domestic and foreign, are a hostage of the U.S. elections, a stand-alone American industry much like the auto and hi-tech industries. Presidential elections are held every four years, along with elections for the House and a third of the Senate’s seats (in addition to local elections of every kind in the states). Then the winner in the presidential elections in November would have barely entered the White House in January, when he has to begin preparing for the U.S.

Starting the new year with failed old diplomacy
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Jordan Times
by Rami Khouri - (Opinion) January 6, 2012 - 1:00am

The good news about the Jordanian-hosted Palestinian-Israeli-Quartet meeting in Amman to explore possibilities for resuming Palestinian-Israeli direct negotiations is that former US Mideast specialist Dennis Ross is not there to guarantee failure with the pro-Israel tilt of the US delegation. The bad news is that the meeting is likely to fail because the Ross approach to guaranteeing diplomatic failure with the pro-Israel tilt of the US delegation still prevails.

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