Israel draws plan for 475-kilometer rail network in West Bank ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Haaretz by Chaim Levinson - February 27, 2012 - 1:00am Israel Railways has prepared a major plan for providing train service throughout the West Bank to serve both Israelis and Palestinians. The plan, prepared at the request of Transportation Minister Yisrael Katz, calls for establishing 11 new rail lines, according to a map that Haaretz has obtained. Katz has on several occasions expressed his intention to build a railway network in the West Bank. » Read more

Hamas, Qatar to sign 250 million USD deal to rebuild Gaza ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Xinhua February 26, 2012 - 1:00am GAZA, Feb. 26 (Xinhua) -- Gaza's Hamas leaders will sign a deal with the Qatari government to get more than 250 million U.S. dollars for reconstruction projects in the Gaza Strip, a Hamas minister said on Sunday. The deal is being finalized and will be signed in a week, said Yousef al-Mansi, Hamas minister of housing and public work. Under the agreement, 5,000 houses will be built and 55,000 would be repaired, he told Xinhua, explaining that these houses were damaged during Israel's major military offensive more than three years ago. » Read more

Israel nixes solar energy for Palestinians ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Associated Press by Karin Laub - February 25, 2012 - 1:00am AL-THALA, West Bank — Electricity from solar panels and wind turbines has revolutionized life in rural Palestinian herding communities: Machines, instead of hands, churn goat milk into butter, refrigerators store food that used to spoil and children no longer have to hurry to get their homework done before dark. » Read more

Cairo speech a symbol of Hamas's split with Syria ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The National by Bradley Hope, Hugh Naylor - February 26, 2012 - 1:00am Hamas's Gaza prime minister, Ismail Haniyeh, symbolically chose Cairo's Al Azhar Mosque, a spiritual and intellectual centre for global Islam, to declare Hamas had formally split with Syria, a former ally and once home to the Palestinian group's headquarters in exile. Friday's declaration by Mr Haniyeh to thousands of Islamist supporters in the Egyptian capital, condemning Syria's bloody bid to quash an uprising against President Bashar Al Assad is perhaps the strongest indication of the group's realignment in a revolutionary Middle East. » Read more

Gaza's Hamas PM voices support for Syria protests ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Associated Press by Mohammed Daraghmeh - February 24, 2012 - 1:00am CAIRO — The Hamas prime minister of Gaza on Friday expressed support for Syrian protesters seeking to overthrow President Bashar Assad, the first time a senior Hamas leader has publicly rebuked the group's longtime patron. Ismail Haniyeh said after Friday prayers at Egypt's Al-Azhar Mosque that Hamas commends "the brave Syrian people that are moving toward democracy and reform." » Read more

Faction leaders blame Hamas for impasse in unity govt ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Ma'an News Agency February 27, 2012 - 1:00am BETHLEHEM (Ma’an) -- Several Palestinian faction leaders on Sunday blamed internal disagreement within Hamas for the failure to announce a unity government. "Hamas says a trend within the movement is reluctant about Abbas heading the new government for constitutional rather than political reasons," Palestinian Popular Struggle Front member Ahmad Majdalani said. This internal division, which cites a constitutional excuse, is a major obstacle, he added. » Read more

Abbas: Israel carrying out 'ethnic cleansing' in Jerusalem ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Reuters February 27, 2012 - 1:00am JERUSALEM (Reuters) -- President Mahmoud Abbas accused Israel on Sunday of trying to erase any Arabic identity from Jerusalem, drawing a strong response from Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. Abbas, speaking at a conference in Qatar, said that for the past few years Israel has been waging a "final battle" aimed at erasing the Arab, Muslim and Christian character of East Jerusalem, which Israel captured from Jordan during the 1967 Middle East war. » Read more

Qatar emir: Arab identity in Jerusalem at risk ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Associated Press February 26, 2012 - 1:00am DOHA, Qatar — Qatar's ruler says the Arab identity in Jerusalem is threatened by Israeli expansion around the city claimed as capital by both Israel and Palestinians. Sheik Hamad bin Khalifa Al Thani urged a U.N-backed investigation into Israeli settlements as well as Israeli actions in predominantly Arab districts in Jerusalem and surrounding areas captured by the Jewish state in 1967. His remarks Sunday opened a conference in the Gulf emirate's capital Doha on Jerusalem. » Read more

Israeli PM slams Palestinian leader's speech ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Associated Press by Ian Deitch - February 26, 2012 - 1:00am JERUSALEM — Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu condemned Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas for making an "inflammatory speech" about Jerusalem's most sensitive holy site on Sunday, saying his words undermine peace efforts. Speaking during a visit to Qatar, Abbas charged that Israel was intending to destroy Jerusalem's Al-Aqsa Mosque, which sits atop the remains of the two biblical Jewish temples. It is the most sacred site in Judaism and the third holiest in Islam. The site is a very sensitive and emotional issue for Israelis and Palestinians. » Read more

Egypt increases power supply to Gaza Strip ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Ma'an News Agency February 27, 2012 - 1:00am GAZA CITY (Ma’an) -- Egypt increased its energy supply to the Gaza Strip on Sunday, director of the Hamas-run energy authority told Ma'an, adding that more is required to solve the crisis. "In light of the serious power shortage in the Gaza Strip, the additional five Megawatts have not resulted in a major improvement, and so further steps from Egypt would be necessary," Abu al-Amreen said on Monday. Egypt increased its power supply to the Gaza Strip from 17 to 22 megawatts in the first stage of an agreement reached last Thursday with Gaza's energy authority. » Read more