Palestinian Authority

By Gregg Carlstrom in Middle East on September 22nd, 2011
Palestinians marching in Ramallah on Wednesday in support of the PLO's statehood bid. [Gregg Carlstrom/Al Jazeera]

The reaction in the West Bank to US President Barack Obama's speech at the United Nations has been, as you might expect, frustrated. Frustrated - but not surprised.

The frustration was mostly with the tone of the speech, rather than its substance. The most offensive line to many, at least in interviews this morning, was Obama's declaration that "there are no shortcuts"; as several Ramallah residents reminded me, the Palestinian people have been dispossessed for 63 years already.

But the speech did not surprise anyone; it has been clear for months, after all, that Obama planned to veto the Palestine Liberation Organisation's bid for full membership at the UN. Mustafa Barghouti, the Palestinian politician and activist, called Obama's position "disappointing" in an interview before the president's speech.

By Al Jazeera Staff in Middle East on January 29th, 2011
Photo by AFP

From our headquarters in Doha, we keep you updated on all things Egypt, with reporting from Al Jazeera staff in Cairo, Alexandria, and Suez.  Live Blog: Jan28 - Jan29 - Jan30 - Jan31 - Feb1 - Feb2 - Feb3<

By Teymoor Nabili in Middle East on January 27th, 2011
[Photo by EPA]

After days of furiously shooting the messenger, (in truth, simply making public a privately held belief), the Palestinian Authority may, finally, be seeing the real value of the Palestinian Papers.

By Gregg Carlstrom in Middle East on January 25th, 2011

Day 3 of The Palestine Papers, Al Jazeera's months-long investigation into thousands of leaked Israeli-Palestinian negotiating documents, just went live - and today it's all about security.

The Madhoun assassination. The Palestine Papers include the hand-written notes of a 2005 meeting between Israeli defence minister Shaul Mofaz and Palestinian interior minister Nasser Youssef - in which they discuss the possible assassination of a leading member of the Al Aqsa Martyrs Brigades.

By Al Jazeera Staff in Middle East on January 25th, 2011
West Bank map by the Palestinian Authority that was leaked in The Palestine Papers

Shockwaves went through the Palestinian diaspora after The Palestine Papers revealed how Palestinian Authority negotiators conceded a very limited right of return for refugees to Palestine.

According to the documents that were revealed on Monday, the PA conceded to settle on the return for only 100,000 out of some 5,000,000 refugees and their families.

From Lebanon to Egypt, Palestinians in the diaspora reacted with anger and disbelief to the revelations by Al Jazeera.

Mahmoud Zahar, a leader of Hamas in the Gaza Strip, immediately urged Palestinians to protest the PA's suggested concession.

In the Jordanian al Hussein refugee camp, one of 13 camps set up in the aftermath of 1948 and 1967 wars with Israel, refugees said the Ramallah-based authority has no right to dismiss the right of refugees to return to Palestine.

"Regardless of whether it was treason or not, we f

By Al Jazeera Staff in Middle East on January 25th, 2011
The grafitti reads: "Al Jazeera are spies" and "Al Jazeera = spies for israel"

Palestinian Authority loyalists have vandalised the Al Jazeera office building in Ramallah in reaction to the release of The Palestine Papers.

A small group of protesters had gathered in front of the building in the main square of the West Bank town on Monday.

By Gregg Carlstrom in Middle East on January 24th, 2011

We've just posted the second batch of stories and documents from The Palestine Papers, Al Jazeera's months-long investigation into thousands of confidential documents from Israeli-Palestinian negotiations.

Our coverage today hits on a few main themes:

Population "swaps." Israeli negotiators, including foreign minister Tzipi Livni, proposed a plan to transfer several Arab Israeli villages - including Baqa al-Gharbiyya and Barta'a - a future Palestinian state. The proposal is reminiscent of the "Lieberman plan," the proposal named after Israeli foreign minister Avigdor Lieberman that's been denounced as racist by many left-wing Israeli commentators.

By Laila Al-Arian in Middle East on January 24th, 2011
Photo by EPA

Al Jazeera’s release on Sunday of the Palestine Papers, a trove of documents related to Israeli-Palestinian negotiations, has led to reaction throughout the world.

The Palestinian Authority (PA) has gone on the offensive, with President Mahmoud Abbas calling the release “shameful,” and his adviser Yasser Abed Rabbo accusing Al Jazeera of launching a "smear campaign".

Former Palestinian negotiator Ahmed Qurei said "many parts of the documents were fabricated, as part of the incitement against the Palestinian Authority and the Palestinian leadership".

Sami Abu Zuhri, a Hamas spokesman, said the documents reveal the PA's "close collaboration with [Israel], and reflects its role in trying to kill off the Palestinian cause".

On the Israeli side,

By Gregg Carlstrom in Middle East on January 24th, 2011

We'll be blogging throughout the day about the first installment of The Palestine Papers, Al Jazeera's months-long investigation into thousands of confidential documents from Israeli-Palestinian negotiations.

(Last night's coverage, if you missed it, dealt with the PA's offer to concede almost all illegal settlements in East Jeursalem, and chief Palestinian Authority negotiator Saeb Erekat's offer to be "creative" about the legal status of the Haram al-Sharif.)

By Sherine Tadros in Middle East on December 21st, 2010
Photo by EPA

If you can’t beat them…try going it alone. 

That seems to be the new motto in the Palestinian camp. The idea is to get the United Nations to recognize a Palestinian state based on 1967 borders. Intense diplomacy is underway to get member states to onboard with the idea - so far a handful of Latin American countries (known to be sympathetic to the Palestinian cause) have lent their support. 

 The Europeans, quelle surprise, are wavering. They’ve gone for the less controversial option of upgrading the Palestinian Authority diplomatic status. 

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