December 21st

U.n. Advocates For Gazans
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Jewish Daily Forward
by Marc Perelman - December 21, 2007 - 3:24pm

The top humanitarian official at the United Nations said he found “shocking” the lack of international attention to the worsening situation in Gaza, which was caused by the Israeli blockade since Hamas took over the territory last June.

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Israel Looking At Hamas Truce Idea
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Associated Press
by Laurie Copans - December 21, 2007 - 3:23pm

Israel is examining a Hamas truce proposal delivered by Egypt, defense officials said, but violence persisted Friday as a Hamas militant was killed in what the group said was a clash with Israeli troops near the Israel-Gaza border. Israeli calls for cease-fire talks with the militant group that rules the Gaza Strip grew Friday as an Israeli Cabinet minister said he supported such negotiations under certain conditions.

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A Ceasefire From Hamas?
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Boston Globe
(Editorial) December 21, 2007 - 3:22pm

THE ISRAELI government reacted warily at first - and understandably so - to the proposal of a ceasefire in Gaza from Ismael Haniyeh, leader of the group Hamas. But after initially rebuffing the offer, Israeli officials are seriously considering it, according to an Israeli television report yesterday. Prime Minister Ehud Olmert's government would be wise to explore a ceasefire with Hamas, for it could not only save lives but also prepare the way for a comprehensive peace agreement.

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The Writing On Bethlehem's Wall: British Artist Seeks To Lure Tourists
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Christian Science Monitor
by Joshua Mitnick - December 21, 2007 - 3:21pm

Bethlehem, West Bank A dove dressed in a bulletproof vest raises its wings in surrender. A girl in pigtails and pink frilly dress frisks an Israeli soldier. The nose on a Pinocchio with a star-spangled tie has grown into a missile.

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Underwriting The Conflict In Hebron
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The American Prospect
by Matthew Duss - December 21, 2007 - 3:20pm

On Nov. 18, in the beautifully appointed ballroom of Manhattan's posh Grand Hyatt Hotel at Grand Central Station, the Hebron Fund held its annual fund-raising gala. According to organizers, guests paid upward of $300 a head, with anything above the cost of the dinner considered tax-deductible. The evening began with a reception in an anteroom featuring a buffet of gourmet foods. A chef in a tall hat worked a stir-fry station; another expertly sliced sashimi and rolled sushi. A dessert table overflowed with cakes and chocolate mousse.

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December 20th

The American Prospect examines how funds raised in the U.S. by groups like the Hebron Fund go beyond their ostensible support for Israel and perpetuate the oppressive reality of life for Palestinians in Hebron (1.) A Boston Globe editorial comes out in favor of an ceasefire between Israel and Hamas as a way to end rocket fire against Israel, and possibly being the transformation of Hamas into a political participant in the two-state solution process (3.) The Forward reports on growing U.N. concerns with the deteriorating humanitarian situation in Gaza (4.) An International Herald Tribune opinion by Eric Alterman uses the figures of the latest survey of American Jewry to point out the paradox between the values of the American Jewish mainstream and the right-wing in the community that frequently speaks for them (7.) The Economist (UK) examines the prospects of success for President Bush's upcoming tour of Middle East countries (10.) A Gulf News (UAE) opinion by former Pakistan foreign secretary Tanvir Khan analyzes the continuing uncertainty regarding Israeli-Palestinian peacemaking in spite of the positive results of the Annapolis meeting and Paris donor conference (13.) A Haaretz (Israel) opinion by Daniel Gavron urges Israel to remove unmanned roadblocks of no security function in the occupied West Bank (14.) Also in Haaretz, an opinion by U.S. ambassador to Israel Richard Jones details how peace education is critical to supporting and reinforcing Israeli-Palestinian political negotiations (16.)

Letter To An Israeli In Christmas Time
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Arabic Media Internet Network
by Dr. Bernard Sabella - December 20, 2007 - 4:59pm

This is the time of feasts and holidays. We are on our second day of Eid El Adha, the Muslim Feast of Sacrifice; Hanukkah, the Feast of Lights, was celebrated few days ago.   Christmas is around the corner. As we celebrate our separate holidays, it is clear that we have not yet found the middle ground that would enable all of us to genuinely share the celebrations of each other. There are many theories, academic arguments and practical reasons of why we have not yet arrived at the middle ground.

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Gaza: To Die With The Philistines?
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Arab News
by Uri Avnery - December 20, 2007 - 4:58pm

The most famous words ever spoken in Gaza were the last words of Samson (Judges, 16, 30): “Let me die with the Philistines!” According to the Biblical story, Samson took hold of the central pillars of the Philistine temple and brought down the whole building upon the Lords of the Philistines, the people of Gaza and himself. The teller of the story sums it all up: “So the dead which he slew at his death were more than they which he slew in his life.”

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Hamas, Pa Census Bureau Locked In Dispute Over Gaza Survey
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Haaretz
by Amira Hass - December 20, 2007 - 4:57pm

The United Nations and Palestinian parliament members are mediating between Hamas and the Palestinian Central Statistics Bureau (CBS) over a census taken in the Gaza Strip. The Hamas authorities shut the CBS offices last month and declared the census suspended, after CBS refused to hand over its data to a committee Hamas set up to supervise the census.

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In Jerusalem, Build Up, Not Out
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Haaretz
December 20, 2007 - 4:56pm

We shouldn't envy those who are building the future of Jerusalem. The secular people may be leaving the city, but it is growing by leaps and bounds - though it is not easy to find a place to build. The city cannot develop to the east, in the area known as E1, because of clear-cut pledges to the Americans not to create territorial contiguity between Jerusalem and Ma'aleh Adumim. It cannot expand westward because the Safdie plan has been shelved. A real problem.

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