January 16th, 2008

Bloody Reality Bears No Relation To The Delusions Of This President
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Independent
by Robert Fisk - (Opinion) January 16, 2008 - 5:28pm

Twixt silken sheets – in a bedroom whose walls are also covered in silk – and in the very palace of King Abdullah of Saudi Arabia, President George Bush awakes this morning to confront a Middle East which bears no relation to the policies of his administration nor the warning which he has been relaying constantly to the kings and emirs and oligarchs of the Gulf: that Iran rather than Israel is their enemy.

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Holy Land Killing Begins Again As Bush Wraps Up Middle East Visit
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Sydney Morning Herald
by Ed O\'loughlin - January 16, 2008 - 5:27pm

AS THE US President, George Bush, wrapped up his first extended Middle East tour, the Holy Land returned to the grim status quo, with violence flaring in Gaza and the West Bank. Only the scale of the killing is in any way remarkable - at least 19 Palestinians in Gaza, including five civilians, and an Ecuadorean labourer working on an Israeli kibbutz. It is the highest daily death toll in the Israeli-Palestinian conflict in over a year. In the West Bank a senior leader of the Islamic Jihad group was killed by Israeli troops early yesterday.

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One Hand Clapping
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Middle East Times
(Editorial) January 16, 2008 - 5:25pm

The first thing to say about U.S. President George W. Bush's travels around the region to push the cause of an Israeli-Palestinian peace is that it is extremely welcome: The second thing to say is that it would have been much more welcome had it occurred seven years ago, before 3,000 to 5,000 Palestinians and 1,000 Israelis had lost their lives during the second intifada.

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Bush Gets Peace Talk Promises
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Associated Press
by Anne Gearan - (Analysis) January 16, 2008 - 5:24pm

President Bush received renewed promises of bargaining for Mideast peace and a polite hearing for his warnings about Iran, and he collected major bling from his Arab hosts. But neither Israel nor its Arab neighbors assured Bush that they will do what the United States asks on issues ranging from democratic reform and unauthorized Israeli housing expansion to high gas prices.

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Bush Trip Revives Israeli Push For Pardon Of Spy
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Washington Post
by Jonathan Finer - January 16, 2008 - 5:23pm

A balding, bearded visage loomed over President Bush's visit here last week, peering down from banners and from posters on buses barreling along quiet streets. The face was that of Jonathan Pollard, an American who pleaded guilty in 1986 to passing top-secret information to Israel. Israeli supporters seeking his release were rebuffed by President Bill Clinton during the last period of extended negotiations between Israelis and Palestinians. Now they are ramping up their campaign for a presidential pardon.

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Faith, Freedom And Bling In The Middle East
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The New York Times
by Maureen Dowd - (Opinion) January 16, 2008 - 5:21pm

As a Saudi soldier with a gold sword high-stepped in front of him, President Bush walked slowly beside King Abdullah through the shivery gray mist enveloping the kingdom, following the red carpet leading from Air Force One to the airport terminal. When the two stepped onto the escalator, the president tenderly reached for the king’s hand, in case the older man needed help. He certainly does need help, but not the kind he is prepared to accept.

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Gaza Strike Hardens Hamas Position
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Christian Science Monitor
by Dan Murphy - January 16, 2008 - 5:20pm

Mahmoud Zahar, the Hamas leader widely seen as the strategic mind behind the Islamist movement's successful takeover of the Gaza Strip last summer, struck a defiant tone when asked in an interview last week how long he thinks Hamas can maintain control in the face of an economic blockade and Israeli pressure.

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January 15th

The Christian Science Monitor looks at how the situation in Gaza is entrenching Hamas control and hardline positions (1.) The Associated Press assesses whether the promises made to and by President Bush during his Mideast trip will translate into a renewed momentum for peace (4.) In an editorial, the Middle East Times concludes that the Bush Mideast peace push is too little too late (5.) BBC (UK) analyzes the motivations behind the Bush Mideast visit (8.) A Daily Star (Lebanon) opinion by Rami Khouri examines a paper by a high-ranking U.S. military figure on the root causes of the terror problem (10.) A Haaretz (Israel) opinion by Amira Hass explains why the granting of Palestinian citizenship to the famous Israelli conductor Daniel Barenboim obscures the fact that the Palestinian Authority (PA) has little control over population or citizenship issues (12.)

The Generals Of Professor Rice
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Haaretz
by Amir Oren - January 15, 2008 - 6:04pm

United States Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice, the main impetus in the Bush administration for squeezing something out of the 2008 drought year, convinced the president to break from his principle of linkage - the basis of his road map - and skip to the final stage, the final status framework. This is a concession to Palestinian demands, and a further reversal for the Israeli position since Yasser Arafat opened fire in September 2000 and frightened Israel with the possibility that he might declare an independent state unilaterally (the "Magic Melody" scenario).

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Diplomat: U.s. Firmly Opposes All W. Bank, E. J'lem Construction
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Haaretz
by Barak Ravid - January 15, 2008 - 6:03pm

The United States clarified to Israel during U.S. President George Bush's visit this week that it disapproves of all building in East Jerusalem and the West Bank - including in the large settlement blocs, a senior Western diplomat said Tuesday. The diplomat added that Israel and the U.S. differ on their interpretation of the letter President Bush sent to former prime minister Ariel Sharon in April, 2004.

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