Egypt allows 100 protesters into Gaza. 2009 saw a sharp drop in casualties in the occupied West Bank. Activists are helping civilians overcome the trauma of the Gaza war. Pres. Abbas says no effort will be spared to aid civilians in Gaza. A new report anticipates significant growth in the Palestinian economy. Ha'aretz reports that settlement construction is "booming" in the occupied West Bank, and runs a commentary saying Israel must tell settlers they can remain in a Palestinian state only as Palestinian citizens. PM Netanyahu proposes a peace summit. Authorities arrest, then release an Israeli settler in connection with last month's mosque arson. Palestinians say dramatic developments on peace are possible in the near future. The fate of jailed Fatah leader Marwan Barghouti may be key to an Israel-Hamas prisoner swap. The BBC says Gaza's economy has moved literally underground. American Jewish organizations back a former Somali official accused of human rights violations in an effort to protect Israel from lawsuits. Stalled peace talks have deepened the divide among Palestinians. The UAE manages to get humanitarian aid into Gaza. Backlash over the Gaza war has affected Israel's diplomacy. Ghassan Khatib says the two state solution is still alive, but being killed by Israeli settlement activity.

Palestinians: Dramatic development in peace process possible
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Ynetnews
by Ali Waked - January 1, 2010 - 1:00am

A dramatic development in the peace process is expected in the coming weeks, Palestinian sources told Ynet Thursday. The sources said Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas is set to visit Egypt early next week to discuss jumpstarting the regional peace talks with his counterpart Hosni Mubarak. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu met Mubarak in Cairo earlier this week. According to the Prime Minister's Office, "The two leaders discussed ways to jumpstart the peace process with the Palestinians, as well as the efforts to release kidnapped soldier Gilad Shalit."

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Q&A: ''Israeli Settlements Killing Two-Nation Solution''
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Inter Press Service (IPS)
by Jerrold Kessel, Pierre Klochendler - (Interview) January 1, 2010 - 1:00am

JERUSALEM, Dec 30 (IPS) - In the absence of any progress towards peace between Israelis and Palestinians, leaders of the Palestinian Authority (PA) are adopting a reasonable approach as a way of building up international pressure on Israel to get it back to the negotiating table.

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Q&A: ''Israeli Settlements Killing Two-Nation Solution''
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Inter Press Service (IPS)
by Jerrold Kessel, Pierre Klochendler - (Interview) December 30, 2009 - 1:00am

JERUSALEM, Dec 30 (IPS) - In the absence of any progress towards peace between Israelis and Palestinians, leaders of the Palestinian Authority (PA) are adopting a reasonable approach as a way of building up international pressure on Israel to get it back to the negotiating table.

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Backlash over Gaza onslaught chastens Israel
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The National
by Vita Bekker - January 1, 2010 - 1:00am

There is little doubt that the wave of nationalism among Israelis following the country’s devastating onslaught a year ago in the Gaza Strip helped Benjamin Netanyahu gain the premiership in last February’s elections. The offensive, launched in a bid to curb rocket fire on Israel’s southern communities from Hamas-ruled Gaza, highlighted the security threats faced by Israel and shifted more voters to right-wing parties such as Mr Netanyahu’s Likud that had pledged aggressive action against Palestinian militants.

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Backlash over Gaza onslaught chastens Israel
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The National
by Vita Bekker - January 1, 2010 - 1:00am

There is little doubt that the wave of nationalism among Israelis following the country’s devastating onslaught a year ago in the Gaza Strip helped Benjamin Netanyahu gain the premiership in last February’s elections. The offensive, launched in a bid to curb rocket fire on Israel’s southern communities from Hamas-ruled Gaza, highlighted the security threats faced by Israel and shifted more voters to right-wing parties such as Mr Netanyahu’s Likud that had pledged aggressive action against Palestinian militants.

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Gaza: where there’s a will to help, there’s a way
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The National
December 31, 2009 - 1:00am

ABU DHABI // This week, a convoy of 18 ambulances completed a long and arduous journey from Abu Dhabi to the Gaza Strip. The “caravan of ambulances”, as the UAE Red Crescent Authority’s secretary general adviser, Dr Saleh al Taei, described the convoy, set off from the capital to Jeddah, then sailed to the Egyptian port of Nuweiba, before moving on to Al Arish and finally to Rafah on the Gaza-Egyptian border.

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Stalled peace process widens Fatah-Hamas divide
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The National
by Omar Karmi - December 31, 2009 - 1:00am

GAZA CITY // Just under a year ago, as Israeli tanks rumbled out of a devastated Gaza Strip accompanied by a final volley of homemade rockets, it was hard to imagine that there could be any return to the political status quo ante or that the division between the West Bank and Gaza would continue for long.

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Communal Groups Back Somali in Bid To Block Israel Lawsuits
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Jewish Daily Forward
by Nathan Guttman - December 30, 2009 - 1:00am

WASHINGTON — American Jewish organizations that fought to establish the jurisdiction of U.S. courts for suits against terrorist groups are taking an opposite tack in suits involving human rights abuses. Jewish groups have filed briefs siding with a former Somali official now living in Virginia who is alleged to bear responsibility for atrocities committed during his tenure.

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Smuggling fuels Gaza's stalled economy
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from BBC World News
by Heather Sharp - December 31, 2009 - 1:00am

The day Israel launched its 22-day offensive on Gaza , a year ago, Osama and his family lost most of their $70,000 life savings. The Gaza accountant, who gives only his first name, had put his money into a local investment scheme - even selling an apartment and his wife's jewelry to do so. The scheme initially produced excellent returns, which Osama understood came from trade through the smuggling tunnels from Egypt to the blockaded Gaza Strip.

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