An Unenviable Job ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The New York Times (Editorial) January 23, 2009 - 1:00am We welcome President Obama’s choice of George Mitchell to be his new Middle East envoy. It is an unenviable and essential job. A former Senate majority leader, Mr. Mitchell has the stature to represent the new administration. He negotiated the 1998 Good Friday accord in Northern Ireland, good training for taking on the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. As a Lebanese-American, his appointment also sends an important signal that the United States will continue to be an unwavering ally of Israel but also sensitive to the Palestinians’ many legitimate grievances. » Read more

Palestinian Rival Says It Is Attacked by Hamas ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The New York Times by Sabrina Tavernise - January 23, 2009 - 1:00am The 27-year-old in a sweatsuit limped to the table, heaved himself into a chair and began to talk about how he had been shot. Men from Hamas have begun to assault people they suspect of supporting its chief political rival, Fatah, he said, and on Sunday, he became one of the victims. It was impossible to verify the man’s account, which he provided on the condition that he remain anonymous, out of concern for his safety. But it came during a week in which leaders of Fatah accused Hamas of harassing and harming its members in the Gaza Strip. » Read more

As Obama Visits State Dept., Clinton Announces Two Special Envoys ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Washington Post by Karen Deyoung, Glenn Kessler - January 23, 2009 - 1:00am President Obama traveled to the State Department yesterday afternoon for a visit that was as rich in symbolism as in substance, underscoring his pledge to give top priority to diplomacy as he outlined an activist policy in the Middle East and warned that "difficult days lie ahead" in Afghanistan. » Read more

No Home to Return to in Gaza ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Washington Post by Griff Witte - January 23, 2009 - 1:00am When members of the Sultan family ran from their home as an Israeli tank shelled its northern wall, there was no time to shut the front door. There was also no need. The house, which family patriarch Samir al-Sultan began building at the age of 15, was all but destroyed as Israeli forces advanced into the Gaza Strip in early January, turning the house's contents into a mangled mess of glass and mortar. With no home to return to and no prospects for rebuilding, the Sultans on Thursday were among the thousands of Palestinians in Gaza searching for somewhere to go. » Read more