February 19th

Free Marwan Barghouti ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Ynetnews by Amnon Shamosh - (Opinion) February 18, 2013 - 1:00am According to my understanding of the changing Middle East, the only person who can be elected enthusiastically by both segments of the Palestinian nation and be a real partner for peace is Marwan Barghhouti. » Read more

Vain hope springs eternal ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Haaretz by Moshe Arens - (Opinion) February 19, 2013 - 1:00am "Hope springs eternal," wrote Alexander Pope, in "An Essay on Man." And so it is with Israel's hope for peace with the Palestinians. After every disappointment, hope rises again. When Yasser Arafat seemingly renounced terrorism at a press conference in Geneva in December 1988, we wanted to believe him. We signed the Oslo Accords in 1993, brought him and his minions from Tunis to Gaza and Ramallah - only to find that he had by no means abandoned terrorism. » Read more

Pro-Israel group's primer on West Bank settlements shows just how disastrous they are ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Haaretz by Eric H. Yoffie - (Opinion) February 18, 2013 - 1:00am Finally, a serious effort has been made to offer college students a compelling explanation of Israel’s settlement policy. To be sure, it did not succeed, but it was an effort worth making, if only to demonstrate just how vulnerable Israel is on the settlement issue.     » Read more

Gazans Suffer As Foreign NGOs Refuse to Deal with Hamas ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Al-Monitor by Omar Shaban - February 18, 2013 - 1:00am The relationship between international organizations operating in the Gaza Strip and the Hamas government has been marked by tension and distrust. This is especially true, since these organizations have taken the same positions as the West — including the U.S. and Israel — to sever ties with the Hamas government and with any of its affiliated institutions, while at the same time seeking to implement their work in the Gaza Strip. » Read more

Obama's best and worst-case scenarios for Israel's new government ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Haaretz by Bradley Burston - (Opinion) February 19, 2013 - 1:00am For Benjamin Netanyahu, it wasn't supposed to break this way.  Four months ago, when he called early elections, advisers assured the prime minister that his best-case scenario was also among the most likely: » Read more

Moving past stalemate in the Middle East ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Los Angeles Times by Maen Areikat - (Opinion) February 19, 2013 - 1:00am With the U.S. » Read more

Israelis Begin to See Continuity In Mubarak, Morsi Policies ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Al-Monitor by Jacky Hugi - February 18, 2013 - 1:00am The clamor rising from Tahrir Square in Cairo was a common scene, familiar to all and sundry. The masses packing the square were calling out for the resignation of the president and crying for his prosecution on charges of killing demonstrators, while opposition politicians tried to outdo each other denouncing him on satellite TV channels. » Read more

Hamas condemns Egypt’s flooding of Gaza tunnels ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Al-Arabiya February 17, 2013 - 1:00am Hamas released a statement on Saturday condemning Egypt’s closure of tunnels with Gaza, saying this renews Israel’s blockade on the strip, reported AFP. Khalil El-Haya, a senior Hamas official, said at a conference in Gaza that the tunnels were the only means available to Palestinians to face Israel's “brutal blockade,” reported the agency. » Read more

Israel to return West Bank farmland to Palestinian owners after wrongly allocating land to kibbutz ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Haaretz by Amira Hass - February 18, 2013 - 1:00am Israel is slated to return some 1,200 dunams (‏300 acres) of farmland in the northern Jordan Valley to its Palestinian owners, following the Israel Lands Administration’s admission it had mistakenly assigned the land to Kibbutz Merav, which is within the Green Line. » Read more

Israeli Siege Snuffing Out Gaza's Camel Industry ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Al-Monitor by Rami Almeghari - February 14, 2013 - 1:00am Salama Jbara, a long-time camel rider and breeder, participated last Friday [Feb. 8] in a camel marathon near the destroyed and abandoned Gaza International Airport in the southern city of Rafah. Salama's camel and 12 others took part in the race, which many consider here a part of the local culture that some tribes, including the Malalha, al-Semairy and Abu Amra, continue to preserve despite years of turmoil that have reduced camel production in Gaza. » Read more