March 6th

Picking Up Pieces, Gazans Debate Israel Incursion
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The New York Times
by Steven Erlanger - March 6, 2008 - 7:21pm

In a small shop by their rocketed, bullet-pocked apartment building, the Abed Rabo family argued raucously about the impact of the 48-hour Israeli military incursion, which killed nearly 100 Palestinians, including some neighbors. “We all support resistance to the Israelis,” said Hitam Abed Rabo, 33, a lawyer with the military court set up by Hamas, which she supports. “They talk about responding to rockets, but nothing justifies what the Israelis did here. They have to be confronted with strong resistance, so they don’t come back.”

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Under Pressure, Abbas Says He’ll Talk Peace, But Actual Dialogue May Be Remote
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The New York Times
by Helene Cooper, Isabel Kershner - March 6, 2008 - 7:20pm

After coming under heavy pressure from the United States, Mahmoud Abbas, the Palestinian president, said Wednesday that he intended to resume negotiations with Israel on a peace plan. But he did not say when he would return to talks, and he is under political pressure at home not to do so if the Palestinian death toll continues to rise from Israeli attacks on Gaza.

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Palestinians Question Own Advocacy Group
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Jewish Daily Forward
by Nathan Guttman - (Opinion) March 6, 2008 - 7:19pm

The American Task Force on Palestine, a moderate group that has emerged in the past several years as the most prominent pro-Palestinian voice in Washington, is fighting off criticism from within the Palestinian American community that it has cozied up to the Bush administration at the expense of the Palestinian cause.

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March 5th

A Nathan Guttman opinion in The Forward examines the role of ATFP and the criticisms it faces in advocating for a two-state solution (1). The New York Times reports that Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas has agreed to resume talks with Israel, although when remains uncertain (2). In the Washington Post, Griff Witte discusses how barriers continue to be build in the West Bank despite promises of relief (4). The Middle East Times comments on a report released by the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace concerning Bush’s mideast policies (7). Also in the Middle East Times an editorial analyses the current gaza situation (8).

Rice’s Insistence On Palestinian-israeli Talks Can Work – If She Means It
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Daily Star
(Editorial) March 5, 2008 - 7:52pm

US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice has achieved a major breakthrough for her country's foreign policy by insisting that Palestinian-Israeli peace talks continue despite a dramatic increase in violence in the Gaza Strip. Undeterred by an Israeli onslaught that has killed more than 120 people - including dozens of civilians, among them at least 23 children - Rice has forced Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas back to the table after he demanded that a truce be put in place first.

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' Birthright Palestine' Mimics Jewish World's Flagship Program
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Jerusalem Post
by Haviv Rettig - March 5, 2008 - 7:51pm

A new Palestinian NGO is taking a page out of the Jewish educator's handbook in its search to strengthen the connection of Palestinians overseas to their "historic homeland" and Palestinian society. The name of the program leaves no doubt as to its intent, or its inspiration. Birthright Palestine is described on its Web site as a "program created by native Palestinians for diaspora Palestinians."

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Forward From Gaza: How The U.s. Can Lead ((interview With Daniel C. Kurtzer)
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Middle East Progress
by S. Daniel Abraham - (Interview) March 5, 2008 - 7:51pm

The problem right now is that everyone is looking only at tomorrow. There is no long-term thinking or activity taking place. The Israelis and Hamas are engaged in an effort to hurt each other. Hamas finds it in its own very significant interest right now to not only inflict some pain on Israel but to demonstrate that it has the capacity to hit Ashkelon and to withstand Israeli incursions.

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Arab Initiative Still The Best Deal Around
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Middle East Times
by Alon Ben-meir - (Opinion) March 5, 2008 - 7:50pm

The Arab summit, scheduled for the latter part of March in Damascus, is in serious trouble even before it begins because of several political discords among Arab states as well as the region's continuing violent conflicts. Whereas a resolution to the crisis in Lebanon over the selection of a new president seems a prerequisite to holding the summit in Damascus, no one expects its leaders to even attempt to resolve the many other crises that have plagued the Arab world.

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Rice Encircled By Mideast Troubles
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Middle East Times
by Sana Abdallah - March 5, 2008 - 7:49pm

The mission of U.S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice to restart the Palestinian-Israeli peace negotiations was Tuesday facing serious challenges as the Palestinian leadership insisted that Israel first halt its military operations in the Gaza Strip. Following talks with Rice in Ramallah, Palestinian Authority (PA) President Mahmoud Abbas said he was committed to the peace process, but blamed the Israeli attacks and the siege of Gaza for sabotaging the negotiations.

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Hamas Rejects Arab-league Proposal For Truce With Israel
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Media Line
March 5, 2008 - 7:48pm

Hamas has turned down a recent proposal by the secretary general of the Arab League, ‘Amru Mousa, for a unilateral truce stopping rocket firing into Israel, sources in Gaza said.   The proposal, which was presented to Hamas leader, Khalid Mash’al during Mousa’s visit to Damascus last week, also suggests declaring a unilateral cease-fire with Israel.   The plan, according to the League’s sources, was meant to stop the current military operation against Hamas and avoid further escalation and a likely massive Israeli invasion of Gaza.   Mash’al

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