February 14th

Democracy Is Coming Again to Palestine -- Hamas Permitting ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Media Line by David Miller - February 13, 2011 - 1:00am More than five years after the Hamas movement was swept into power in an upset election victory, the Palestinians will going back to the polls again – or not. The Palestinian Authority (PA) said last week it planned to hold municipal elections this summer and on Saturday announced that it would also conduct voting for president and parliament by September. But Hamas immediately said it would refuse to participate, a stance experts said precludes the prospect of elections for now. » Read more

As Egypt tumult spreads, top Palestinian negotiator, Saeb Erekat, resigns ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Christian Science Monitor by Ben Lynfield - February 13, 2011 - 1:00am Top Palestinian peace negotiator, Saeb Erekat, has resigned after embarrassing depictions in media leaks of his posture towards Israel, saying he hopes his stepping down will set a model of transparency for the young Palestinian state-in-the-making. » Read more

Future of Israel-Egypt treaty ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Gulf News by Patrick Seale - (Opinion) February 14, 2011 - 1:00am Israel has been unnerved by Egypt’s Revolution. The reason is simple: it fears for the survival of the 1979 Peace Treaty — a treaty which by neutralising Egypt, guaranteed Israel’s military dominance over the region for the next three decades. By removing Egypt — the strongest and most populous of the Arab countries — from the Arab line-up, the treaty ruled out any possibility of an Arab coalition that might have contained Israel or restrained its freedom of action. As Israel’s Foreign Minister, Moshe Dayan, remarked at that time: ‘If a wheel is removed, the car will not run again.’ » Read more

Postcard From Cairo, Part 2 ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The New York Times by Thomas L. Friedman - (Opinion) February 13, 2011 - 1:00am For anyone who spent time in Tahrir Square these last three weeks, one thing was very obvious: Israel was not part of this story at all. This was about Egypt and about the longing of Egyptians for the most basic human rights, which were described to me by opposition Egyptian newspaper editor Ibrahim Essa as “freedom, dignity and justice.’’ It doesn’t get any more primal than that. And when young Egyptians looked around the region and asked: Who is with us in this quest and who is not?, the two big countries they knew were against them were Israel and Saudi Arabia. Sad. » Read more

As Egypt Calms Down, So Do Israeli Nerves ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The New York Times by Isabel Kershner - February 13, 2011 - 1:00am As Israelis began to adjust to the departure of President Hosni Mubarak of Egypt, their staunchest and longest-standing regional ally, the alarm and anxiety that Israel has been projecting seemed to give way on Sunday to more nuanced tones, as well as some hints of admiration for the Egyptian people and sympathy for their cause. » Read more

February 11th

Complicated factors ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Jordan Times by George S. Hishmeh - February 11, 2011 - 1:00am Why is Benjamin Netanyahu (and many other Israelis) behaving like an ostrich, digging his head in the sand and wondering why the escalating Egyptian uprising, triggered by the recent Jasmine Revolution in Tunisia, has engulfed the Middle East and posed a threat to Israel? » Read more

Crossing borders: the long, lonely walk to Gaza ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Guardian by Harriet Sherwood - February 10, 2011 - 1:00am I've been in Gaza this week, and - as always – found the experience of crossing from Israel into the Strip and back again unnerving. The vast Israeli terminal, reminiscent of an international airport, is almost deserted. It was planned at a time when thousands of Palestinians crossed in to Israel each day to work. Now very few Palestinians can leave through Erez, and no Israelis are allowed to enter. So it's pretty much the preserve of journalists and NGO workers. » Read more

Israel Seeks to Widen Strategic Partnerships Beyond the U.S., Meridor Says ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Media Line by Arieh O'Sullivan - February 10, 2011 - 1:00am While America remains Israel’s strongest and most important ally, the Jewish state needs to explore widening its strategic partnerships to other countries in the Middle East and with the world’s emerging powers, Israel’s Deputy Prime Minister Dan Meridor told The Media Line. “The world is changing and moving. China is growing we need to have good relations with them,” Meridor said. “China is beginning to play a more important role in foreign policy. India is an important country. We are no longer enemies with Russia, of course, and Russia is an important.” » Read more

70 rabbis protest arrest warrant against Rabbi Dov Lior ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Jerusalem Post by Jonah Mandel - February 10, 2011 - 1:00am Nearly 70 prominent national religious rabbis signed a letter of protest published in a Friday newspaper, over the police’s announced intention to arrest Kiryat Arba Chief Rabbi Dov Lior if he continued to ignore their requests to present himself for questioning about his endorsement of the book Torah Hamelech. » Read more

Arab democracy good for us ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Ynetnews by Nechama Duek - (Opinion) February 10, 2011 - 1:00am The images we receive from Egypt, Tunisia and Yemen make me happy. They indicate that the Arab world is finally joining the global trend of shifting from dictatorships to democracies. As we know, democracy isn’t perfect, yet a better alternative has yet to be invented. » Read more