January 28th, 2008

360 Days
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Israel Policy Forum
by M.J. Rosenberg - (Opinion) January 28, 2008 - 7:18pm

Reading about the Vietnam War, as I have been doing lately, is maddening. As President Lyndon B. Johnson makes fateful decisions that will ultimately leave 50,000 Americans dead and destroy his presidency, I almost want to shout out, “Stop! Are you blind? Can’t you see where this is leading?” But, of course, LBJ couldn’t see that.

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To Avoid Fence, Jerusalem Arabs Are Making Move To Jewish Areas
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Jewish Telegraphic Agency (JTA)
by Dina Kraft - January 28, 2008 - 7:17pm

At Cafe Malcha in this city's French Hill neighborhood, Hebrew and Arabic newspapers sit on the counter and both languages are spoken amid the din of espresso machines and customers' laughter. The cafe’s back room is a well-known meeting place for Jewish and Arab businessmen, some of whom live in French Hill, a quiet neighborhood of stone apartment buildings and pine trees around Hebrew University’s Mount Scopus campus.

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Israel Vows Not To Block Supplies To Gaza
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The New York Times
by Steven Erlanger - January 28, 2008 - 7:16pm

Prime Minister Ehud Olmert of Israel promised the Palestinian president, Mahmoud Abbas, on Sunday that Israel would no longer disrupt the supply of food, medicine and necessary energy into the Gaza Strip and intended to prevent a “humanitarian disaster” there. Last Wednesday, the Hamas rulers of Gaza broke open the border to Egypt, allowing hundreds of thousands of Palestinians to seek goods that Israel had restricted in its clampdown on the region.

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January 28, 2008 - Vol. 9, Issue 21
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Americans For Peace Now
by Middle East Peace Report - January 28, 2008 - 7:15pm

Military Escalation is a Boon for Hamas: Even before the breach of the Gaza-Egypt border, the escalation in cross-border attacks between Gaza and Israel had pumped up public support for Hamas. This was the principle finding of a poll conducted in the West Bank and Gaza by the Ramallah-based AWRAD research center, when compared with an AWRAD survey from shortly before the November Annapolis peace conference.

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Bush Hits A Wall In The Mideast
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Washington Post
by Jim Hoagland - January 28, 2008 - 7:14pm

Watching Nancy Pelosi, John Boehner and other congressional leaders craft a stimulus package to calm the turbulent economy is like watching President Bush pursue his equally implausible and belated Middle East peace initiative. In each case, the challenges are so much larger than the means suddenly being brought to bear that you don't know whether to laugh or to cry.

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Israeli 'economic Warfare' To Include Electricity Cuts In Gaza
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Washington Post
by Ellen Knickmeyer - January 28, 2008 - 7:13pm

Saying they were waging "economic warfare" against the Gaza Strip's Hamas leaders, Israeli officials told the Supreme Court on Sunday that the military intends to start cutting electricity to the Palestinian territory and continue restricting fuel. The statements by Israel's state attorney, outlining Defense Ministry plans, came in response to a lawsuit filed by Israeli and Palestinian rights groups.

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Hamas Helps Egypt To Reclose Gaza Border
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Associated Press
by Omar Sinan - January 28, 2008 - 7:12pm

Hamas militants joined Egyptian forces for a second day Monday in trying to restore control at three breaches in the Gaza border, building a chain-link fence to seal off one opening and directing traffic at two others. Hundreds of thousands of Palestinians have flooded into Egypt unchecked over the past six days since Hamas militants blasted holes in the border partition. They have been voraciously buying up food, fuel and other goods made scarce by Israeli and Egyptian closures of Gaza's borders.

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January 27th

The Washington Post reports on latest indications that Israel's evolving strategy regarding the Gaza Strip included continuing electricity and fuel restrictions (2.) Americans For Peace Now presents its weekly translated excerpts from the Israeli press (4.) The Jewish Telegraphic Agency examines how Jerusalem's Palestinian population is moving to Jewish neighborhoods in order not to be caught behind the wall Israel is separating occupied East Jerusalem from the West Bank with (6.) In Israel Policy Forum, MJ Rosenberg is critical of Israel's policy of trying to affect Palestinian political change through economically blockading Gaza (7.) The Times (UK) looks at Hamas' refusal to allow the breached Gaza border crossings with Egypt to be turned over to the Palestinian government (9.) A Guardian (UK) comment by Peter Beaumont analyzes how the Gaza border breach has impacted the Mideast political landscape (11.) Arab News (Saudi Arabia) looks at a UN report finding the 57% of Palestinians live in poverty (13.) Haaretz (Israel) reports on presidential candidate Obama's concerns regarding the campaign against him to weaken his support in the American Jewish community (14.) A Yedioth/Ynet News (Israel) opinion by Ben Gurion university lecturer Dror Ze'evi argues for Israel accepting a long-term ceasefire with Hamas (15.)

January 25th

Naming Names From Gaza To Damascus And All The Way Through Lebanon!
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Raghidadergham.com
by Raghida Dergham - (Opinion) January 25, 2008 - 6:27pm

There are times when naming names becomes inevitable because any reluctance to do so, whether in the name of diplomacy, politics or any other consideration, may terribly discredit the hesitant party and hurt the victims of harmful maneuvering, be they innocent civilians in Palestine or an entire generation in Lebanon. There are times when entrusted mediators or self-proclaimed backchannels have to act according to their consciences under a moral and political responsibility that obliges them to name things as they are.

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Hamas Scores Another Victory: Israeli Media
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Arab News
by Mohammed Mar’i - January 25, 2008 - 6:24pm

Israeli media outlets yesterday said that Hamas has added another victory to its achievements in handling the strict siege imposed on Gaza Strip since the movement ousted the security sources of Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas and senior officials of rival Fatah movement last June.

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