AN ISRAELI VIEW Hamas has not turned the corner on Israel and violence ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Bitterlemons by Yossi Alpher - (Opinion) May 9, 2011 - 12:00am The signing of the Fateh-Hamas reconciliation agreement last week provided us with a host of policy statements by Hamas leaders that could conceivably shed light on the likelihood of the agreement actually reaching fruition. Some may be tempted to see in them an indication of creeping moderation. But overall, the circumstances point to negative prospects. » Read more

A PALESTINIAN VIEW An opportunity for Hamas moderation ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Bitterlemons by Mkhaimar Abu Sada - (Opinion) May 9, 2011 - 12:00am The signing of the reconciliation agreement between Fateh and Hamas can be considered a golden opportunity for the Palestinian people and their cause. Four years have passed since Hamas took over the Gaza Strip in June 2007 after violent clashes with its rival Fateh. Four years of political split and two governments, one led by Fateh in the West Bank and the other one led by Hamas in Gaza. Four years of incitement, hatred, imprisonment and torture of political opponents. » Read more

A PALESTINIAN VIEW Dialogue fosters moderation ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Bitterlemons by Ghassan Khatib - (Opinion) May 9, 2011 - 12:00am While examining the possible consequences of the reconciliation agreement between Fateh and Hamas, it is important to understand that Hamas is like any other political entity: it includes within its ranks different tendencies. These, in turn, can be developed or stunted, creating moderation or radicalization. » Read more

Asharq Al-Awsat talks to Hamas's Izzat al-Rishq ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Asharq Alawsat by Sawsan Abu-Husain - (Interview) May 9, 2011 - 12:00am Cairo, Asharq Al-Awsat- According to Dr. Izzat al-Rishq, member of the Hamas Movement's Political Bureau, the Palestinian factions that signed the Cairo agreement are in continuous meetings to complete the discussion of all issues as soon as possible. In an interview with Asharq Al-Awsat, he added that many meetings were held in Cairo both before and after the signing in order to take practical steps on the ground to show the Palestinian people that the agreement is not just ink on paper but rather a continuous action to restore the legitimate Palestinian rights. » Read more

World watches to see how far Hamas will compromise in peace with Fatah ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The National by Jonathan Cook - May 10, 2011 - 12:00am The landmark reconciliation deal reached last week by the Palestinian factions Fatah and Hamas required compromises on both sides, but none more so than by the Islamist movement that rules the Gaza Strip. Reflecting on the deal that brought their four-year rift to an end, Khaled Meshaal, the Damascus-based leader of Hamas, said afterward that his side had conceded autonomy on "how to manage the resistance". The use of violence - along with negotiations with Israel, domestic governance and foreign affairs - will now require Fatah's approval, Mr Meshaal told The Wall Street Journal. » Read more

For Israel’s Arabs, sense of disenfranchisement as Israel marks 63rd birthday ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Jewish Telegraphic Agency (JTA) by Dina Kraft - May 8, 2011 - 12:00am In an elegant limestone building in a Jerusalem neighborhood that before 1948 was home to the city’s Palestinian elite, a group of Jewish and Arab Israeli academics recently tried to untangle one of Israel’s most complex and charged questions: the status of its Arab minority. » Read more

Rabbi Ovadia Yosef’s leftist daughter, Adina Bar Shalom, talks about meeting Mahmoud Abbas ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Jewish Telegraphic Agency (JTA) by Noam Sheizaf - May 9, 2011 - 12:00am The delegation of Israelis who traveled last week to the West Bank headquarters of the Palestinian Authority, the Mukata in Ramallah, consisted mostly of the usual suspects. There were a few newcomers, such as Israeli tycoon Idan Ofer, but for the most part they were Israeli former officials, academics and activists who often talk about the need to advance the peace process and move toward a two-state solution. » Read more

Tony Kushner to receive CUNY honorary degree after all ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Jewish Telegraphic Agency (JTA) May 10, 2011 - 12:00am Trustees of the City University of New York approved an honorary degree for playwright Tony Kushner, reversing an earlier decision. The executive committee of the CUNY board of trustees voted Monday night to award Kushner an honorary doctorate during commencement ceremonies next month. The committee can reverse decisions of the full board. CUNY's board on May 2 had struck the playwright's name from a list of those scheduled to receive honorary degrees at CUNY's John Jay College of Criminal Justice after a university trustee, Jeffrey Wiesenfeld, attacked Kushner as anti-Israel. » Read more

UN chief presses Israel to release Palestinian funds ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Guardian by Harriet Sherwood - May 8, 2011 - 12:00am Israel is under pressure to release tax revenues belonging to the Palestinian Authority (PA) which it has blocked in response to the reconciliation agreement between Fatah and Hamas. The UN secretary general, Ban Ki-moon, and an umbrella group of countries that make donations to the PA have urged the Israeli government to hand over a sum of around 300m shekels (£53.1m). The income is used to pay the salaries of PA employees and to provide services. » Read more

Budrus: A West Bank village's emblematic struggle for its land ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Guardian by Harriet Sherwood - (Blog) May 9, 2011 - 12:00am I'm finally back in Jerusalem after almost two months away, much of it in Tripoli, which was weird and fascinating. But it's great to be back, and I intend to resume regular blogposts from this week, getting out and seeing what's happening on the ground in Israel, the West Bank and Gaza. Today sees the DVD release of Budrus, a documentary film about a Palestinian village's struggle against the route of Israel's separation barrier. Budrus has deservedly won many awards and if you didn't get a chance to see it at the cinema, now's your chance to catch up. » Read more