Palestinian tycoon launches first private equity fund ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Reuters February 8, 2011 - 1:00am "Palestine's private sector is thirsty for an infusion of cash and managed expansion," said Bashar Masri, whose Ramallah-based holding company Massar International invests in real estate and financial and investment services. The Siraj Palestine Fund would unleash "the latent potential of Palestinian SMEs by promoting technological advancement, job creation and addressing the acute shortage of equity capital", a statement said. The fund had raised over $60 million and was expected to reach $80 million in the next few months. » Read more

4 mortars hit south; car damaged ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Ynetnews by Shumlik Hadad - February 7, 2011 - 1:00am The Color Red rocket alert system was sounded Tuesday morning in Gaza vicinity communities, followed by a loud blast caused by a mortar shell which exploded in a parking lot in the Shaar Hanegev Regional Council. The mortar shell, fired from the northern Gaza Strip, damaged one car. A second mortar landed in a nearby field and damaged a hose. There were no reports of injuries. About three hours later, the Color Red alert system was activated once again and two more explosions were heard in the area. There were no reports of injuries. » Read more

Wanted Kiryat Arba rabbi tells supporters: I'm not racist ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Haaretz by Chaim Levinson - February 8, 2011 - 1:00am Some two thousand demonstrators showed their support Tuesday morning for Rabbi Dov Lior, the head rabbi of Kiryat Arba, who is wanted by the police for endorsing the controversial book "Torat Hamelech," which justifies killing non-Jews. Rabbi Lior addressed the crowd at the Kiryat Arba demonstration, saying that "a couple of months ago, two Talmudic scholars from Yizhar published a book on the status of Jews and non-Jews. Racism refers to one nation wishing to enslave another, and this is not our intent." » Read more

Northern Sinai heating up ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Media Line by Arieh O'Sullivan - February 8, 2011 - 1:00am Embittered and emboldened Bedouin tribesmen have turned the northern Sinai Peninsula into a lawless and violent frontier between Israel and Egypt. Security sources said that the Bedouin have also forged links with radical Hamas operatives who have escaped from Egyptian jails or slipped through the border from the Gaza Strip. Despite reports of an increased Egyptian troop presence, the local security forces have been severely degraded, increasingly attacked and in some cases overwhelmed. Most of the details of the chaos have gone unreported. » Read more

Egypt unrest cuts fuel lifeline to Gaza ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Guardian by Harriet Sherwood - February 8, 2011 - 1:00am Gaza is facing acute fuel shortages as a result of the unrest in neighbouring Egypt, which has caused supplies of petrol and diesel smuggled through tunnels to almost dry up. Although some fuel is imported into the Gaza Strip from Israel, it costs three times as much as diesel and petrol smuggled in from Egypt. Gazans depend on diesel for generators during power cuts of about eight hours a day. Long queues of cars, motorcycles and people on foot carrying containers have formed at gas stations. Smuggled construction materials and Egyptian cigarettes are also in short supply. » Read more

Settlers in Hebron receive Spanish FM with calls of 'Nazi, anti-Semite' ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Haaretz by Chaim Levinson - February 8, 2011 - 1:00am Settlers in Hebron received visiting Spanish foreign minister on Tuesday morning with derogatory cries, calling her a "Nazi" and "anti-Semite" because of her initial refusal to meet with settler leaders of the city. » Read more

Netanyahu must advance peace if he wants a stable Mideast ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Haaretz (Opinion) February 8, 2011 - 1:00am The upheaval in Egypt is sowing anxiety in Israel. President Hosni Mubarak's government adhered strictly to the peace treaty, functioned as a stabilizing force in the region and supported expanding the circle of peace agreements to the Palestinians and neighboring states. The eight Israeli prime ministers who served over the course of Mubarak's 30-year reign could depend on him for strategic support, even when they waged wars on other fronts and deepened the occupation and the settlement enterprise. » Read more

An Israeli conspiracy that never existed ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Arab News by Abdulateef Al-Mulhim - (Editorial) February 7, 2011 - 1:00am I have, since childhood, been hearing about an invisible thing called the Israeli conspiracy. » Read more

Israeli troops wound Palestinian worker near borders ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Xinhua February 7, 2011 - 1:00am A Palestinian worker was moderately injured on Monday after being shot by Israeli soldiers near the borders between northern Gaza Strip and Israel, witnesses and medics said. A Gaza worker in his mid twenties was shot by Israeli soldiers as he was collecting gravels with other workers, Adham Abu Selmeya, spokesman of emergency and ambulance service in the health ministry of the deposed Hamas government, told Xinhua. The worker was sent to Shifa Hospital in Gaza City for medical treatment, said Abu Selmeya, adding that the worker is in moderate health condition. » Read more

On peace process: Time not to act ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Politico by Aaron David Miller - (Editorial) February 8, 2011 - 1:00am The pursuit of Arab-Israeli peace didn’t need another nail in the coffin. But in the wake of political changes sweeping through Tunisia, Egypt, Jordan and perhaps elsewhere, you can almost hear the hammer. » Read more