For The Cause, The Settlements Must Go ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Jerusalem Post by Sheldon Schreter - January 31, 2008 - 6:11pm Israelis seem to have lost their belief in the rightness of our cause, as various observers have recently noted with alarm. Whether you attribute this to ideological fatigue, the universal tendency to pursue personal and material goals over collective ones, or loss in the belief of God's promise of this Land to Abraham, there is real cause for concern. Given Israel's challenges and the demands placed on its citizens, a national consensus on war and peace, relations with our Arab neighbors, and over societal priorities is no luxury, but a necessity. » Read more

Worse Than The Partial Report ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Haaretz (Editorial) January 31, 2008 - 6:09pm Because they were so preoccupied with the final 60 hours of the war, and because of the fact that the Winograd Committee exonerated Ehud Olmert from an implied accusation that he decided on a ground operation at the last moment only in order to improve his political position, people seem to have failed to hear the extraordinarily serious remarks read out by Judge Eliyahu Winograd in his summarizing announcement to the public. The blood libel against Olmert was removed from the agenda, but on the other hand, the committee declared him unfit to conduct a war. » Read more

The Aftermath Of The Gaza Tsunami ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Gulf News by George S. Hishmeh - (Opinion) January 31, 2008 - 6:08pm It was very uplifting to see Palestinian men, women and children, hundreds of thousands of them, climb up the corrugated iron wall that separated their Israeli-besieged Gaza Strip from Egypt and watch them on Al Jazeera run freely to shop for much-needed supplies, visit with relatives and friends they have not seen for years, and play joyfully. The scenes of cows, camels and bicycles carried by cranes across the border will not be easily erased from anyone's fondest memories. » Read more

Hamas Sets Rafah Border Conditions ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Al Jazeera English January 31, 2008 - 6:07pm A delegation led by Khaled Meshaal, the leader of Hamas, has proposed joint Palestinian-Egyptian control of the Rafah crossing.    They set down these conditions on Thursday on the second day of talks in Cairo geared towards resolving the week-old crisis on the Gaza-Egypt border as Egypt continued its mediating role between Hamas and Fatah.   » Read more

Poll: Palestinian Majority Wants Pro-abbas Forces On Gaza Crossings ATFP World Press Roundup Article from China View January 31, 2008 - 6:05pm Majority of Palestinians support that President Mahmoud Abbas' security forces take control on Gaza Strip crossing points, a poll showed on Wednesday.     According to the poll, conducted two days ago by An-Najah University, 73.9 percent of the surveyed said the pro-Abbas security forces should be deployed on the crossings in order to reopen them. » Read more

Leading Article: A Disastrous War And A Weakened Leader ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Independent (Editorial) January 31, 2008 - 6:04pm The Winograd Commission into the 2006 Lebanon war has already drawn blood in the form of the departure of the Israeli Defence minister and Chief-of-Staff who were in office at the time of the operation. But Winograd looks unlikely to force the resignation of the man many Israelis hold responsible above all others for the debacle: Prime Minister Ehud Olmert. » Read more

Olmert Survives, For Now ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Guardian January 31, 2008 - 6:04pm The retired justice Eliyahu Winograd, who headed the panel investigating Israel's 34-day war in Lebanon in 2006, said yesterday what everybody already knew. The ground offensive launched in the last 60 hours of the war "did not achieve any military objective, nor did it fulfil its potential". A total of 33 Israeli soldiers died, but the offensive did not reduce the number of Katyusha rockets falling on northern Israel, and it was also unclear how it affected the position of the Lebanese government or Hizbullah on a ceasefire. » Read more

Ujc Sees Fund For Israeli Arabs As Fresh Start In Fund Raising ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Jewish Telegraphic Agency (JTA) by Jacob Berkman - January 31, 2008 - 6:03pm As part of a move to revamp its fund-raising strategy, the United Jewish Communities has started a joint venture fund to raise significant dollars to help Israeli Arabs. The organization, which serves as the umbrella of the North American federation system, is raising $750,000 from 15 private donors, foundations, federations and service organizations to start the UJC Venture Fund for Jewish-Arab Equality and Coexistence. » Read more

Methodist Church Renews Drive For Divestment From Israel ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Jewish Daily Forward by Nathan Guttman - January 31, 2008 - 6:02pm Tensions are re-emerging between Jewish organizations and some mainline Protestant churches in the wake of a renewed drive for churches to divest from companies doing business with Israel. » Read more

No Progress On Gaza Border Breach ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Los Angeles Times by Jeffrey Fleishman - January 31, 2008 - 6:01pm Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas on Wednesday underscored the complexity of resolving the Gaza Strip crisis when he insisted anew that his administration alone should be responsible for the coastal enclave's border crossings. Speaking to reporters after meeting here with Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak, Abbas said he would not negotiate with Hamas, the militant party that controls the Gaza Strip, to end a security breach that has allowed more than 500,000 Palestinians to cross into Egypt through the Rafah post in the last week. » Read more