November 16th

The battle between Israel and Gaza solves nothing ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Guardian by Jonathan Freedland - (Opinion) November 15, 2012 - 1:00am This is a horror movie we've seen before. In the days following a US presidential contest, an Israeli government, about to face an election of its own, decides it can tolerate Hamas rocket-fire no longer. It hits back hard, determined to show the Israeli public that it is not sitting idle as a million of its citizens huddle in bomb shelters, their children unable to go to school, but that it is tough, ready to do whatever it takes to "restore deterrence". It will bring quiet to its southern towns by forcing Hamas to fear its wrath once more. » Read more

Has Israel learned the lessons of Operation Cast Lead? ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Gulf Times by Amira Hass - (Opinion) November 16, 2012 - 1:00am Unlike Operation Cast Lead, in which the Israel Defense Forces shelled crowded places like police stations near schools from day one, this time it’s clear the IDF is trying to avoid heavy Palestinian fatalities. This conclusion cannot console the family members of those killed and wounded so far. Nor does it allay the fear of what could still happen. By Thursday afternoon at least four Palestinian civilians had been killed in air strikes − an 11-month-old, a 3-year-old girl, a young pregnant woman and a 60-year-old man. Dozens of civilians were wounded. » Read more

Middle East peace takes a beating ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Los Angeles Times (Editorial) November 16, 2012 - 1:00am After months of relative quiet — broken, in this country, only by the pandering of the presidential candidates — the century-old Palestinian-Israeli conflict has burst back into the news. It began last week when the Palestinian Authority revived its plan to seek an upgrade in the United Nations to "non-member observer status." On the face of it, that's hardly a game-changing power grab, and it seems unlikely to dramatically alter the regional balance of power. » Read more

Israeli Gaza offensive similar to 2008-2009 campaign, but aims to be more focused ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Associated Press (Analysis) November 15, 2012 - 1:00am JERUSALEM — The major operation Israel launched to stop Gaza rocket fire bears some striking similarities to a punishing three-week campaign it unleashed against Hamas militants four years ago. Both began with a sudden series of airstrikes that caught Hamas off guard, included a threat to invade the coastal strip and came shortly after an American election and before an Israeli one. But the rules of the game have changed. That means Israel is now likely to carry out a briefer, more focused operation. » Read more

Israel not rushing to invade Gaza ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Reuters by Dan Williams - (Analysis) November 15, 2012 - 1:00am JERUSALEM, Nov 15 (Reuters) - Israel's threat to reprise its Gaza invasion of four years ago if its air strikes against Hamas do not end rocket fire from the Palestinian enclave masks important differences between then and now. Two days into the assault, the absence of the saturated aerial bombing seen at the start of the last Gaza war in 2008 suggested the Israelis were not yet carving safer access points for ground troops. » Read more

Morsi's challenge: An Israel-Hamas truce ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Haaretz by Zvi Barel - (Opinion) November 16, 2012 - 1:00am Egyptian President Mohammed Morsi is facing one of the most difficult diplomatic challenges of his brief tenure. Recalling his ambassador from Israel for “consultations” hasn’t eased the pressure for stronger action from his own party and others. His decision to send Prime Minister Hisham Qandil to Gaza on Friday is thus in part an effort to show his own people that his government supports Hamas and the Palestinian people in Gaza. » Read more

Morsi's Gaza Challenge ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Daily Beast by Hussein Ibish - (Opinion) November 15, 2012 - 1:00am Reports that open areas near Tel Aviv or waters off its coast were struck by rockets fired from the Gaza Strip have transformed the politics and psychology of the conflict, making a major Israeli ground offensive in the Gaza Strip much more likely. » Read more

Muslim Brotherhood mobilizes protests against Israel in Cairo ATFP World Press Roundup Article from USA Today by Sarah Lynch - November 16, 2012 - 1:00am 10:36AM EST November 16. 2012 - CAIRO – Thousands of Egyptians took to the streets Friday protesting Israeli attacks on the Gaza Strip, waving Palestinian flags across the Egyptian capital and demanding the Egyptian government cut ties with Israel. "We're here today to say to Israel: Go to Hell," said Mustafa Kamel from a Cairo neighborhood called Imbaba at a demonstration outside Al-Azhar Mosque that was planned by the Muslim Brotherhood. "Muslims are strong. In Egypt, we refuse Israel and the politics of America." » Read more

Muslim Brotherhood mobilizes protests against Israel in Cairo ATFP World Press Roundup Article from USA Today November 15, 2012 - 1:00am 10:36AM EST November 16. 2012 - CAIRO – Thousands of Egyptians took to the streets Friday protesting Israeli attacks on the Gaza Strip, waving Palestinian flags across the Egyptian capital and demanding the Egyptian government cut ties with Israel. "We're here today to say to Israel: Go to Hell," said Mustafa Kamel from a Cairo neighborhood called Imbaba at a demonstration outside Al-Azhar Mosque that was planned by the Muslim Brotherhood. "Muslims are strong. In Egypt, we refuse Israel and the politics of America." » Read more

Closing Roads as Popular Resistance in West Bank ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Al-Hayat by Mohammad Younes - November 15, 2012 - 1:00am Israeli settlers and soldiers were met yesterday with an unusual Palestinian confrontational approach, as hundreds of youth, accompanied by Israeli and foreign sympathizers, took over roads reserved for settlers and barricaded them with chains or their own bodies. » Read more