Israeli Farms and Villages Around Gaza See Tough Times Ahead ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Media Line by Arieh O'Sullivan - February 23, 2011 - 1:00am Artist Shosh Segal is busy preparing her art gallery for the expected rush of tourists heading to southern Israel for the annual wild flower blooming in the coming weeks. The hills are already bursting with vibrant colors of anemones and turmoses, but reality has often found a way of spoiling plans, especially since she lives just a mile from the Hamas-ruled Gaza Strip. » Read more

Obama's no different ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Gulf News by George S. Hishmeh - February 24, 2011 - 1:00am Is Barack Obama, who is marking his mid-term as president, any different from his predecessors, except Dwight Eisenhower, as far as the Palestinian-Israeli conflict is concerned? Expectations were high when Obama walked into the White House. After his triumphant trips overseas, especially to Cairo, there was hope that he will usher a new positive era in US relations with the Muslim world and resolve the 63-year-old conflict between Israelis and Arabs. » Read more

A major factor for governments ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Jordan Times by Michael Jansen - February 24, 2011 - 1:00am Palestinians’ and Israelis’ response to the uprisings across the Arab world has been deafening silence at the people’s power level. When I asked Palestinian friends celebrating the dozen or so “revolutions” boiling in this region why Palestinians living under the repressive Israeli occupation are not out in the streets, they shrugged, saying they are “tired”. » Read more

Accountability Beyond Rhetoric ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Huffington Post by Ziad Asali - (Blog) February 23, 2011 - 1:00am The recent uprisings in the Arab world, including some regime changes, call for a meaningful reassessment of current policy. One would expect the usual demands for democracy, human rights, freedom of expression and regularly scheduled elections as well as a heightened commitment to the people of the region, that their rights and aspirations will be reflected in this new vision. Furthermore, it would not be surprising if all these were packaged as part of an initiative to address the Palestine/Israel conflict and a commitment to the establishment of a state of Palestine. » Read more