Israel Plans Egypt Border Fence
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Bbc News
February 6, 2008 - 7:56pm

The measure was agreed by a security cabinet meeting following the temporary breach of the Gaza-Egypt border, when thousands left Gaza unchecked. Plans for a fence were dropped years ago because the multi-million dollar price tag was deemed too expensive. Israel was struck by its first suicide bombing for more than a year on Monday. Initial speculation that the assailants were Gazans who arrived via the largely unguarded 230km (150-mile) Egyptian border was quashed on Tuesday when Hamas movement said the attackers had come from the occupied West Bank.

»

Israel Rebuffs Egypt-gaza Border Deployments
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Reuters
by Jeffrey Heller - February 6, 2008 - 7:55pm

Israeli leaders on Wednesday rejected proposals to secure Gaza's frontier with Egypt with additional Egyptian forces or international troops two weeks after militants blasted it open, officials said. Israel's Foreign Ministry had suggested giving the nod to Egypt to double the number of its guards at the border to 1,500. Under an Israeli-Egyptian peace agreement, the number of troops that can be deployed along the frontier is limited.

»

The BBC reports that Israel has approved the construction of a fence along its border with Egypt (2) while reports issued by The Media Line and MIFTAH detail the growth in the economy of the West Bank (4) and the political opinions of educated, youth and women Palestinians (5) respectively. An editorial in the Jewish Daily Forward wonders why Israel continues not to explore Hamas’ standing offer of a cease-fire (8). In the Daily Star, Rami Khouri comments on the declining power of the Arab state (9). Finally, Amira Hass of Haaretz discusses what the PA can do to increase its support among current Palestinians on strike.

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