March 5th

From Ireland to Israel
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from International Herald Tribune
by Zion Evrony - (Opinion) March 4, 2010 - 1:00am

During a recent trip to Northern Ireland, one theme that dominated all of my conversations was encapsulated in the words “Who would have believed…?” It was the happiness shared by those present that the unimaginable had happened: The conflict that had once made the province a byword for terrorism and sectarian violence had ended.

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Validity of Israeli-Palestinian proximity talks in doubt
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Xinhua
by David Harris - March 5, 2010 - 1:00am

In the coming days the Middle East will host important visits by key international players as the United States hopes to get Israeli-Palestinian peace talks back on track. The star-studded lineup includes U.S. Vice President Joe Biden, Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva and United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon. Before they cross the Mediterranean, U.S. special envoy George Mitchell will make the journey this weekend. While the others will be in town to give their backing to renewed peace negotiations, it is up to Mitchell to enable that process to begin.

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Clashes erupt at Jerusalem holy site
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Reuters
by Ari Rabinovitch - March 5, 2010 - 1:00am

Israeli police and Palestinians clashed near Jerusalem's flashpoint al-Aqsa mosque on Friday and about 30 people were injured, Israeli police and Palestinian medical workers said. Israeli police entered the compound housing the mosque and fired stun grenades to disperse Palestinians who they said had thrown stones on police officers and Jewish worshippers nearby. Palestinian medical workers said at least 17 Palestinians were injured by tear gas and rubber-coated bullets, one seriously. About a dozen police officers were also lightly hurt in the clashes, a police spokesman said.

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Gaza a Year Later
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from International Herald Tribune
by MICHEÁL MARTIN - (Opinion) March 4, 2010 - 1:00am

Last week I visited Gaza, the first European Union foreign minister to do so in over a year. My purpose was very much a humanitarian one, to see for myself the impact of a blockade that has now been imposed on the people of Gaza for some two-and-a-half years and to meet with the courageous and dedicated staff of the U.N. Relief and Works Agency (UNRWA), including its director of operations, Irishman John Ging. They play an indispensable role in maintaining vital humanitarian services to the people of Gaza.

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Hamas: Return to talks a betrayal of the nation
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Ma'an News Agency
March 5, 2010 - 1:00am

Gaza's deputy Palestinian Legislative Council (PLC) speaker Ahmad Bahar called a return to negotiations with Israel a "waste of the Palestinian cause," saying the outcomes of any talks would "not meet any standards of legitemacy." The statement on Thursday followed rumors that indirect talks with a US envoy shuttling between Israel and the PLO could start as early as Sunday, after the Arab League gave the go-ahead on Wednesday for talks within a four-month timeframe.

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PA sends medicine to Gaza
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Ma'an News Agency
March 5, 2010 - 1:00am

The Palestinian Authority (PA) Health Ministry in Ramallah successfully arranged a delivery of badly-needed medicine to the Israeli-blockaded Gaza Strip, a Thursday report said. The International Committee of the Red Cross coordinated the entry to Gaza with the Israeli military, he said, noting the shipment will be followed by 16 truckloads of medicine and laboratory medical equipment to Gaza, for which arrangements were being made.

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Hamas bans men from women's hair salons
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Associated Press
March 4, 2010 - 1:00am

Gaza's Islamic Hamas government on Thursday banned men from working in women's hair salons, the latest step in its campaign to impose strict Islamic customs on Gaza's 1.5 million people. Since seizing Gaza in 2007, Hamas has taken steps in that direction while avoiding a frontal assault on secularism. The majority of Gaza residents are conservative Muslims, but Hamas is under growing pressure from more radical groups to prove its fundamentalist credentials by imposing ever harsher edicts. The latest measure irked one of the victims of the ban.

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Hamas: PA continues political arrest campaign
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Ma'an News Agency
March 5, 2010 - 1:00am

Hamas officials released a statement accusing Palestinian Authority forces of detaining three of the party's affiliates from locations across the West Bank overnight Thursday. The three were reportedly from Nablus and Hebron, although the arrests could not be independently verified by Ma'an.

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March 4th

The Arab League approves proximity talks, which are expected to start soon. Dubai police call for the arrest of PM Netanyahu. Hamas bans men from women's hair salons. UN officials call for easing the Gaza blockade. Israel's High Court approves protests in occupied East Jerusalem. Pres. Peres says PM Netanyahu is being held back on peace by the right wing. The PA consults map experts. Settlers in Sheikh Jarrah sing songs of praise for Baruch Goldstein. Part two of a YNet commentary on prospects for another intifada. A Facebook posting stymies a planned israeli raid in the occupied West Bank. A new organization of Palestinians overseas is formed. Adam Ingram says Hamas must disarm before it can be a partner in peace. Support for Palestinians grows at the UN. Daoud Kuttab critiques Israel's "heritage sites" claim. Osama al-Sharif looks at challenges facing Pres. Abbas.

Abbas' consequential choices
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Arab News
by Osama Al-Sharif - (Opinion) March 3, 2010 - 1:00am

Ask Mahmoud Abbas, the beleaguered Palestinian president, about the law of diminishing returns and he would probably explain it far better than an experienced economist! And he should. The past year has seen his political fortunes dip in value faster than the world's ailing money markets. And yet he holds on, trying to reverse the trend and looking for ways to point his dilapidated leadership into a new horizon.

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