January 4th

Palestinians' factional split deepens over Gaza conflict
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Los Angeles Times
by Richard Boudreaux, Ashraf Khalil - January 3, 2009 - 1:00am

Reporting from Ramallah, West Bank, and Jerusalem — Israel's week-old assault on the Gaza Strip has widened the rift between Palestinians who back the search by moderate leaders for a peace accord with the Jewish state and those drawn to Hamas' call for armed struggle. The breach was on display Friday in the West Bank as the territory's U.S.-backed Palestinian Authority leadership, striving to contain rising anger over the death toll in Hamas-ruled Gaza, sent police to put down pro-Hamas demonstrations.

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Attacks Further Split Arab Rulers, People
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Washington Post
by Anthony Shadid - January 4, 2009 - 1:00am

"War on Gaza" was the description the satellite channel al-Jazeera gave for the Israeli ground invasion that began Saturday, a culmination of eight days of bombing that have killed hundreds of Palestinians in the crowded seaside strip. But across the Arab world, the struggle was as noteworthy for what was becoming a war at home.

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The New Meaning of an Old Battle
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The New York Times
by Steven Lee Myers - January 3, 2009 - 1:00am

WASHINGTON — In unleashing a series of punishing attacks in Gaza last week, Israel clearly aimed to hand Hamas a defeat from which it could not recover anytime soon. The campaign may succeed, experts here and in Israel say, but it could also backfire. Either way, the political consequences could reverberate throughout the Middle East, all the way to Iran, and help determine the ability of President-elect Barack Obama to pursue his stated goals of calming the Middle East through diplomacy.

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Invasion Offers Benefits but Also Risks to Both Sides
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from
by Sudarsan Raghavan, Griff Witte - January 4, 2009 - 1:00am

In the first eight days of Israel's battle against Hamas, the conflict was fought from the air, with Israeli fighter jets striking from the skies on targets in Gaza, and with Hamas firing unguided rockets with the hope they would land on Israelis living in cities as far as 25 miles away.

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Is the Real Target Hamas Rule?
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The New York Times
by Ethan Bronner - January 4, 2009 - 1:00am

EREZ CROSSING, on the Israel-Gaza border — As Israel’s tanks and troops poured into Gaza on Saturday, the next phase in its fierce attempt to end rocket attacks, a question hung over the operation: can the rockets really be stopped for any length of time while Hamas remains in power in Gaza? And if the answer is determined to be no, then is the real aim of the operation to remove Hamas entirely, no matter the cost?

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International community giving Israel time to weaken Hamas in Gaza
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Haaretz
by Aluf Benn - January 4, 2009 - 1:00am

The international community, headed by the U.S. and Egypt, is giving Israel time to carry out the ground offensive in Gaza, so it will severely damage Hamas' regime. The rationale behind such a move is that a weakened Hamas would improve the chances of achieving a stable agreement in Gaza once the fighting subsides. And so there is a degree of foot-dragging in the diplomatic efforts to reach a cease-fire. The most visible sign of this was the decision to postpone the United Nations Security Council discussion on Gaza planned for Monday.

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Israeli Troops Advance, Bisecting Gaza
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The New York Times
by Taghreed El-Khodary, Isabel Kershner - January 4, 2009 - 1:00am

GAZA — Israeli troops advanced into Gaza on Sunday under cover of heavy air, tank and artillery fire after opening a ground war against the militant group Hamas on Saturday night. Witnesses said the Israeli forces had punched across Gaza, bisecting its northern and southern parts, and had taken over certain strategic areas, including what the military has described as rocket launching sites.

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January 3rd

Israel’s attacks on Gaza continue, with another Hamas leader killed and mounting concern about civilian suffering (1, 2, 3, 4). Efforts in the Arab world to blame Egypt for the conflict continue to gain ground (5, 6, 7). Raghida Dergham argues that Israel and Hamas need to be saved from their own errors and Roula Khalaf calls for a new Palestinian peace strategy, while Yossi Alpher says Israel has no strategic options (8, 10, 11). Patrick Seale says the war is “political insanity” for Israel, and Abdul Rahman Al-Rashed asks how Hamas can claim to be surprised at Israel’s behavior (9, 12).

How Did Hamas Fail to Anticipate This?
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Asharq Alawsat
by Abdul Rahman Al-Rashed - (Opinion) January 2, 2009 - 1:00am

Hamas claims that it was surprised by the [Israeli] attack and the Israelis boast that they win battles by using the element of surprise. An Arab minister said that he was actually used to deliver a false message without being aware of what he was doing, and reassured Hamas that Israel was not planning to wage an attack against it. Accordingly, Hamas elements felt at ease and continued to deliver speeches and fire missiles that target nothing but farms and unpopulated areas.

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Israel has no real strategy to deal with Hamas
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Bitterlemons
by Yossi Alpher - (Opinion) January 3, 2009 - 1:00am

Israel has opted to launch a major attack on Hamas in Gaza. The idea appears to be to use heavy military force, primarily from the air, but with a limited objective: to weaken Hamas to a point where it returns to a cease-fire on conditions congenial to Israel. The opening conditions were favorable from Israel's standpoint: It achieved tactical surprise in launching a Sabbath attack while much of the world was busy with Christmas and New Year celebrations.

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