February 9th

Seize the Day, Tomorrow Could Be Worse ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Forward by Leonard Fein - February 8, 2011 - 1:00am “We are witnessing a genuine grassroots revolution in Egypt and its outcome will have to reflect the will of the people, not our desires.” So writes a friend from Israel. But “the will of the people,” as awesomely impressive it has been these past days in Tahrir Square and elsewhere, inevitably becomes a chimera the morning after the old regime has been chased from power. » Read more

Face of Israel's armed forces visited UK incognito ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Reuters by Dan Williams - February 8, 2011 - 1:00am The chief spokesman of Israel's armed forces said on Tuesday he had visited Britain incognito and under guard for fear of being targeted by pro-Palestinian protesters. » Read more

The revolution isn't over yet ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Bitterlemons by Ghassan Khatib - (Blog) February 7, 2011 - 1:00am A PALESTINIAN VIEW Fourteen days into the massive public protests against Egypt's regime, it is still too early to deeply analyze the situation. Let us instead touch on some of the questions and problems that the revolution--as they call it in Egypt--is creating and trying to overcome. » Read more

10 Palestinians injured in Gaza strikes ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Ma'an News Agency February 9, 2011 - 1:00am Ten Palestinians were injured Wednesday morning in Israeli air strikes which started after midnight and hit in a series of explosions running from the northern end of the Strip to the south. Spokesman of the higher committee of ambulance and emergency services Adham Abu Salmiya said that eight were lightly injured including two children and three women. The injured were transferred to the Kamal Odwan Hospital north of Gaza City. » Read more

Return to negotiations now ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Bitterlemons by Smadar Peri - (Blog) February 7, 2011 - 1:00am AN ISRAELI VIEW - Now, especially now, when the intifada in Egypt projects out to streets and rulers' palaces throughout the Arab world and the virus of demonstrations could land at any moment in another country--this is precisely the right time to return to the negotiating table with the Palestinians. Yes, we have demonstrated maturity and political loyalty to President Hosni Mubarak. Nor do we miss an opportunity to explain how volatile and worrisome the situation is. But this is not enough. » Read more

Israel's stake in an Egyptian democracy -- now ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Christian Science Monitor February 8, 2011 - 1:00am Israel’s peace treaty with Egypt once seemed as solid as the stones of the pyramids. It provided a “cold peace” for more than three decades between the former enemies. But the pact was based on a weak reed – the assumption that a friendly autocrat like Hosni Mubarak would always rule in Cairo. Now with young Egyptians like Google executive Wael Ghonim waging a pro-democracy revolt in Tahrir Square, the security pact’s future could be sinking like an army tank in the Sinai sands. » Read more

February 8th

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