November 16th

Israel Exhibits Its True Colours ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Gulf News (Editorial) November 16, 2007 - 4:28pm Since 1967, when Israel occupied the eastern part of Jerusalem, there has been a silent movement by Israeli politicians and consecutive prime ministers to ensure that talk on the fate of occupied East Jerusalem is always pushed to "later stages" of any "negotiations" with the Palestinians or even the international community. In fact, the first time occupied Jerusalem was put on the negotiating table was during the Camp David meetings in 2000. Then-Israeli prime minister Ehud Barak received heavy criticism from many Israelis for even discussing it. » Read more

Judging Hamas's Actions ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Asharq Alawsat (Editorial) November 16, 2007 - 4:27pm Hamas broke away from the Palestinian Authority and took over Gaza by force. Some of its members threw a defenseless Fatah employee from the rooftop of a 15-story apartment building to his death. Hamas’ security forces killed peaceful demonstrators in the streets and prevented people from praying in public squares; all this in just under five months. Hamas openly abused the political system that brought it to power and in the process ruined intra-Palestinian relations. Therefore we wonder, why the reckless behavior and why all this violence? » Read more

From Payer To Player In The Mideast ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Jordan Times by El-hassan Bin Talal - (Opinion) November 16, 2007 - 4:25pm The European Union’s policy in the Middle East is the litmus test of its common foreign and security policy. Many Europeans share this belief, but, as the EU considers entering the fray of Middle East peace talks, it must respond to former Israeli prime minister Ariel Sharon’s jibe that in the region “you are payers, not players”. » Read more

The Palestinian Path To Peace Does Not Go Via Annapolis ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Guardian by Jonathan Steele - (Opinion) November 16, 2007 - 4:22pm As the United States-sponsored Israeli-Palestinian meeting in Annapolis, Maryland, approaches, the key question is what follows when it fails. Fiasco is looming, so what do the Palestinians do next? In their decades-long bid for justice, they have already tried everything. » Read more

Israel's Economic Blockade Stops Gaza's Strawberry-farmers Selling Their Crop ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Independent by Donald Macintyre - November 16, 2007 - 4:20pm Almost all of Gaza's turbulent story is bound up with Jamil Abu Hmaideh's strawberry fields here in the far north of the strip. Between two wispy clouds high in the blue sky above us, two Israeli Apache helicopters hover on the look-out for the Qassam rocket-launching crews as we bite into the luscious, perfectly ripened fruit Mr Hmaideh has picked for us. » Read more

Leaked E-mail Pitches Prince Charles Into Heart Of Row Over Royal Visit To Israel ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Times by Ruth Gledhill - November 16, 2007 - 4:16pm The Prince of Wales was embroiled last night in a diplomatic row after the leaking of e-mails in which his senior staff made disparaging comments about Israel. Internal e-mails between two of the Prince’s closest aides make clear that there was “no chance ever” of Clarence House accepting an invitation to visit Jerusalem. The e-mails, published in The Jewish Chronicle today, also disclose a fear that Israel would want the Prince “to help burnish its international image”. » Read more

No Clear Way Forward For Middle East Peace ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Financial Times by Philip Stephens - (Opinion) November 16, 2007 - 4:14pm Some time ago I asked one of Europe’s foreign ministers why we should hold out any hopes for the forthcoming Annapolis conference on the Middle East. Had something changed to suggest Israelis and Palestinians would strike the bargain that has so long eluded them? » Read more

The Gaza-west Bank Divide ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Israel Policy Forum (Editorial) November 16, 2007 - 4:10pm It is now three years since Yassir Arafat’s death on November 11, 2004, and a good time to evaluate the prospects for Palestinian statehood. Perhaps the best evaluation has been provided by Arafat’s successor. » Read more

In Lawless Nablus, The Law Changes At Sundown ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Jewish Daily Forward by Matthew Gutman - November 16, 2007 - 4:05pm Tawfiq Kalboni fidgets with some wayward bills. A moneylender in this central West Bank city, Kalboni, 42, owed another moneylender about $150,000. When he failed to pay, he said, the creditor collected on the debt, Nablus style. Five weeks ago, masked gunmen kidnapped his 14-year-old son from the doorstep of his house. » Read more

Abbas Calls For Ouster Of Hamas ‘gang’ From Gaza ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The New York Times by Isabel Kershner, Taghreed El-Khodary - November 16, 2007 - 4:01pm Three days after Hamas policemen shot and killed at least seven civilians at a rally in Gaza, leading a number of Gazans to express shock and anger at Hamas, Mahmoud Abbas, the Palestinian president and the leader of the rival faction Fatah, called for the ouster of Hamas from power in Gaza. » Read more