Obama`s Top Adviser Says Does Not Believe In Imposing A Peace Settlement ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Haaretz by Shmuel Rosner - (Opinion) February 25, 2008 - 7:30pm The knock at the door of her hotel room on Friday halts the conversation for a moment. No big deal, just to check whether Samantha Power drank from the minibar. Is she that troubled? Power responds with a brief laugh. The minibar remains sealed. That does not mean that the attacks do not bother her. In the course of the 50-minute conversation she leaves no stone unturned. » Read more

Israel Sees Progress In Peace Talks ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Al Jazeera English February 25, 2008 - 7:29pm Israeli and Palestinian negotiators have agreed to build teams of government experts in an effort to boost peace talks, according to an Israeli official.   The teams will examine issues including security, trade and water use, Arye Mekel, Israel's foreign ministry spokesman, said on Sunday. bodyVariable350="Htmlphcontrol1_lblError";   » Read more

Hamas's Illegitimacy ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Jerusalem Post (Editorial) February 25, 2008 - 7:28pm Politicians, ex-intelligence chiefs and men of letters are among the swelling - if still relatively marginal - chorus of those advocating direct contacts with Hamas as an antidote to the daily Kassam attacks on Sderot and its western Negev surroundings. Only an accommodation with those who hold sway in Gaza, they argue, can restore a modicum of serenity to the suffering south. » Read more

Simultaneous Implementation Is The Only Hope ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Bitterlemons by Ghassan Khatib - (Opinion) February 25, 2008 - 7:27pm One of the main responsibilities of the Palestinian side under the roadmap is its security obligation. Under it Palestinians are required to end military attacks on Israelis and the Palestinian Authority to dismantle "terrorist infrastructure". The security obligation is perceived to be the counterpart to the Israeli responsibility to end settlement expansions and dismantle settlement outposts. » Read more

Europe: Heading For A New Security Deal With Israel ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Inter Press Service (IPS) by David Cronin - February 25, 2008 - 7:25pm The European Union is considering new steps to deepen its cooperation on scientific research with Israel, despite admitting that previous funds earmarked for that purpose have gone to firms operating illegally in the Palestinian territories. Between now and 2013, the Israeli government is to contribute 440 million euros (652 million dollars) per year so that it can participate in the EU's so-called framework programme for research. » Read more

Israel’s Hamas Predicament: Shoot Or Talk ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Financial Times by Tobias Buck - (Opinion) February 25, 2008 - 7:23pm The Gaza Strip nestles on a flat, sandy piece of land along the Mediterranean coast, but viewed from Jerusalem the territory resembles a quivering volcano. Ever since Hamas, the Islamist group, took control of the strip last June, the government of Israel has struggled to come up with a Gaza strategy that matches its policy goals. With violence on the rise and the humanitarian situation in Gaza worsening by the day, Israel’s leaders are under pressure to formulate a new approach. » Read more

Abbas: Peace In 2008 Or Never ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Associated Press February 25, 2008 - 7:22pm Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas urged the US on Monday to make good on its promise to work for a Middle East peace settlement by the end of the year, warning that there would not be any future chances. Abbas spoke following a closed door meeting with Jordan's King Abdullah in the Jordanian capital of Amman and warned that if the Bush administration didn't make good on its pledge to "make 2008 the year to broker peace, then there will never be any future chances to achieve this goal." » Read more

In Israel, Some See No Option But War ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Washington Post by Griff Witte - February 25, 2008 - 7:21pm Aharon Peretz has spent most of his 51 years in this cactus-fringed, working-class town, and he would like to stay. But his wife and six children feel differently: Daily retreats to the basement during rocket strikes from the nearby Gaza Strip have frayed their nerves, and an attack that cost an uncle both his legs has convinced them it's time to go. Peace will return for his family, Peretz has decided, only if Israel chooses to go to war with his neighbors. » Read more

Israel Rejects Arab League Criticism On Palestinian Peace Talks ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The New York Times by Steven Erlanger - February 25, 2008 - 7:17pm Israeli officials on Friday rejected Arab complaints that they were not committed to a two-state solution for Israel and the Palestinians and said Prime Minister Ehud Olmert had responded positively to the Arab League initiative as a basis for negotiations. Mark Regev, the spokesman for Mr. Olmert, was responding to recent Arab statements, published in The New York Times, warning Israel that unless it accepted the 2002 proposal — for full recognition of Israel in return for complete withdrawal to the 1967 boundaries — the deal would be withdrawn. » Read more