A Dose of Nuance: Prophets and guardians
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Jerusalem Post
by Daniel Gordis - (Opinion) January 5, 2012 - 1:00am

There is, it seems, a bit of an occupational hazard to this column-writing business. It probably holds for all sorts of topics, but it’s undoubtedly true when thinking aloud about Israel. Here’s the choice: You can either plant yourself firmly on one side of the political divide, being predictably “right wing” or “left wing,” or you can, depending on the issue, say what you think but appear a bit less consistent. The advantages of the first option are clear.

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A Dose of Nuance: Prophets and guardians
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Jerusalem Post
by Daniel Gordis - (Opinion) January 5, 2012 - 1:00am

There is, it seems, a bit of an occupational hazard to this column-writing business. It probably holds for all sorts of topics, but it’s undoubtedly true when thinking aloud about Israel. Here’s the choice: You can either plant yourself firmly on one side of the political divide, being predictably “right wing” or “left wing,” or you can, depending on the issue, say what you think but appear a bit less consistent. The advantages of the first option are clear.

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Pinkwashing’s Complicated Context
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Gay City News
by Michael Luongo - (Opinion) January 4, 2012 - 1:00am

Israel is known as the most advanced country in the Middle East on LGBT rights issues. It has openly gay politicians, a parade and bars in Tel Aviv, open service in the military, and a burgeoning queer film and arts scene. This positive atmosphere, however, is largely useful only if you happen to be Jewish and are living on a certain side of the West Bank separation wall.

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Why US won't be center stage in new Israeli-Palestinian talks
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Christian Science Monitor
by Howard Lafranchi - January 2, 2012 - 1:00am

The United States won’t take its usual center-stage position when Israeli and Palestinian negotiators meet Tuesday for their first direct talks in more than a year.

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Palestinian Authority gives Mideast peacemakers an ultimatum
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Los Angeles Times
by Maher Abukhater - December 23, 2011 - 1:00am

REPORTING FROM BETHLEHEM, WEST BANK -– The Palestinian Authority on Thursday gave the so-called quartet of Middle East peace negotiators an ultimatum: It will resume its campaign for statehood recognition if there is no movement in the peace process in the next month. "If nothing happens by Jan. 26, we are going back to our international campaign for recognition," said Nabil Shaath, a senior official in the administration of Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas.

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Tibi: World beginning to understand Palestinians' hopes for state
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Richmond Times Dispatch
by Ahmad Tibi - (Opinion) December 22, 2011 - 1:00am

The arrogance of some American politicians and presidential candidates toward the Palestinians and Palestinian national aspirations is breathtaking. Last week, House Majority Leader Eric Cantor stated, "If the Palestinians want to live in peace in a state of their own, they must demonstrate that they are worthy of a state." He appeared to hold all Palestinians responsible for the violence of a few.

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Israel backs aid to Palestinian Authority
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Politico
by Ben Smith - December 21, 2011 - 1:00am

In a dramatic public shift that appears to lower the intensity of the simmering diplomatic conflict between Israel and the Palestinian Authority, the Israeli government is backing a strings-attached compromise that would restore American aid to the Palestinian Authority.

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Palestinian textbooks debate reaches US campaign
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Associated Press
by Mohammed Daraghmeh, Karin Laub - December 17, 2011 - 1:00am

Do Palestinian school textbooks "teach terrorism," as Newt Gingrich claimed in a recent debate among U.S. Republican presidential hopefuls? His example - that Palestinians "have text books that say, `If there are 13 Jews and nine Jews are killed, how many Jews are left?'" - is not in any of the texts, researchers say. As for Gingrich's broader claim, the textbooks don't directly encourage anti-Israeli violence, but they also don't really teach peace, studies say.

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UNESCO Becomes a New Battleground
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Inter Press Service (IPS)
by A.D. McKenzie - (Analysis) October 27, 2011 - 12:00am

Palestine’s bid to become a member of the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organisation (UNESCO) has created a tense atmosphere here, as the United States threatens to cut financing if the application is approved. Delegates to the agency’s 36th General Conference, which began this week, faced heightened security and a barrage of international media attention, as UNESCO’s 193 member states prepare to vote on the Palestinian request.

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Inside the tiny Washington group that is 'mainstreaming Palestine'
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Foreign Policy
by Josh Rogin - (Blog) October 19, 2011 - 12:00am

Tonight, when Palestinian Prime Minister Salam Fayyad comes to Washington to speak at the annual gala of the American Task Force on Palestine (ATFP), he will be endorsing an organization that is punching well above its weight in the U.S. policy debate over the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.

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