March 7th

Un Human Rights Council Flays Israel Over Bloody Gaza Attack ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Daily Star March 7, 2008 - 6:44pm   The United Nations Human Rights Council Thursday condemned Israel's bloody military assault on Gaza while also urging an end to rocket attacks that have killed Israeli civilians. The 47-member council approved the motion calling for "the immediate cessation of all Israeli military attacks throughout the occupied Palestinian territory" by 33 votes to one, with 13 abstentions. » Read more

Persevering In The Face Of Extremism ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Middle East Progress by Mara Rudman - (Opinion) March 7, 2008 - 6:42pm Too depressingly familiar. Eight young people killed, along with the gunman who ended their lives. Many more injured. As is the intent of such extremists, he took aim not only at innocent civilians, but also at the heart of future security and hope for Israelis and Palestinians: a negotiated two-state resolution to their conflict. Ensuring that he not achieve this broader objective will require a renewed commitment by all involved, including the United States. » Read more

Heart Of Darkness ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Israel Policy Forum by M.J. Rosenberg - (Opinion) March 7, 2008 - 6:35pm This is one of those times when the Israeli-Palestinian situation seems to be in a free fall. Yesterday’s terror attack at a Jerusalem yeshiva followed the Gaza incursion which followed the shelling of Sderot and now Ashkelon. It is becoming hard even to recall the few years, only a decade ago, when Israeli-PLO security cooperation had reduced terror in Israel to virtually zero and Israeli bargain hunters and day trippers flooded the Arab towns of the West Bank every weekend. And yet here we are. » Read more

Let’s Make A Deal ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Jewish Daily Forward (Editorial) March 7, 2008 - 6:32pm Of all the cruel ironies in the latest Israeli-Palestinian flare-up around Gaza, perhaps the oddest is the sight of Islamic militants stepping up their bombardment of Sderot and expanding their rockets’ range to reach major Israeli cities — and then accusing Israel of escalating the conflict when it shoots back. Israel’s response to the relentless rocket fire raining down from Gaza may not be effective in stopping the bombardment, but it can hardly be called unjustified. A country that’s under military assault is obliged to act. » Read more

Israel On Alert, Gaza Braces After Jerusalem Killings ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Agence France Presse (AFP) March 7, 2008 - 6:30pm Israel was on alert and Gaza braced for reprisals on Friday as crowds mourned eight teenagers killed by a Palestinian gunman at a Jewish religious school in an attack claimed by the Islamist Hamas. Residents of the impoverished Gaza Strip were bracing for punitive Israeli military strikes after the attack which shook the faltering peace talks and provoked strong condemnation from around the world. » Read more

The Recent Gaza Escalation ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Common Ground News Service by Americans For Peace Now - March 7, 2008 - 6:29pm Over the past few days Israelis, Palestinians, and the world have witnessed the unfolding of a serious and dangerous military escalation between Israel and Hamas. This crisis is a symptom of failed policies, irresponsible actions, and a lack of strategic thinking. Further escalating the violence in Gaza may deal a fatal blow to the credibility and viability of the peace process, and would erode support for the peace process among both Israelis and Palestinians. » Read more

Jerusalem Braces After Gun Rampage ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Australian by Martin Chulov - March 7, 2008 - 6:24pm Tensions were heightened by the fact that the gunman, who killed eight students - most of them 15- and 16-year-olds - and wounded eight more in the library of the Jewish religious college on Thursday night local time, was an Israeli resident of east Jerusalem, with full access to the city. » Read more

Mideast Turning Point ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Washington Times by Claude Salhani - (Opinion) March 7, 2008 - 6:23pm After the misplaced euphoria brought about by the Annapolis peace summit and a naive belief by some that the Middle East dispute could be solved in less than 12 months — a typically mistaken assumption of the region — events have now taken a turn for the worse. » Read more

For Israel, Hard Options In Gaza ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Boston Globe (Editorial) March 7, 2008 - 6:20pm IF ISRAEL'S aims in striking at Hamas forces in Gaza this past week were to weaken the Islamist movement politically and deter it from continuing to launch rockets into Israel, early signs suggest the operation did not succeed. Before contemplating another such attack against Hamas fighters embedded among civilians in tightly packed urban locations, Israeli leaders ought to ask themselves whether tactics such as these stand any chance of achieving the desired goals. » Read more

March 6th

Hamas: Cease-fire Deal Must Include West Bank ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Haaretz by Jack Khoury, Yossi Verter And Barak Ravid - March 6, 2008 - 7:41pm Hamas said Thursday that any Gaza Strip cease-fire with Israel must include an end to Israel Defense Forces operations in the West Bank, as Egypt launched talks with Hamas and Islamic Jihad in a bid to secure a truce. Hamas spokesman in Gaza Ayman Taha told A-Shams Radio that the Hamas delegation dispatched to the Egyptian city of El-Arish on the Sinai Peninsula had returned to the Strip. » Read more