February 10th

Israel let Iran have it, but it’s the Israelis running scared ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Haaretz by Yoel Marcus - (Opinion) February 10, 2012 - 1:00am We won't deny there is a sense of disquiet, not to say fear, among the public about Iran becoming a nuclear power and what our response might be. In a world that invests so much in the manufacture of advanced weaponry, the use of nuclear weapons is off limits. The two bombs that were dropped on Hiroshima and Nagasaki led the Great Powers to the conclusion that further slaughter on this scale could not be permitted. With other kinds of slaughter, it's not so terrible. » Read more

Unequal Neighbors: Off the Grid in Area C ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Ma'an News Agency by Charlotte Alfred - February 10, 2012 - 1:00am MASAFER YATTA (Ma'an) -- Pylons tower over South Hebron Hills village Um al-Kher, hoisting electricity cables that bisect the agricultural community. But like hundreds of their Palestinian neighbors, this tiny hamlet has no access to the power grid. The cables running above the heads of the 150 Um al-Kher residents supply a chicken farm set up a decade ago by the adjacent Karmel settlement, wedging the village on both sides. "They give electricity to the chickens but not to us," says Aziz Muhammad Hadhalin, 26, an engineer and community activist. » Read more

Israel’s Shin Bet needs to start watching over itself too ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Haaretz by Yossi Sarid - (Opinion) February 10, 2012 - 1:00am We never really knew whether there was such a person as George; we also had doubts about the existence of the Loch Ness monster. At the end of last week we discovered that he lives among us and grants interviews. That's his first name and that's his rank - he's always called "George" and he's always "captain." But that's also a surname, and the family is us. The story investigative journalist Ronen Bergman told me is terrifying, not to say shocking. George opens the door of the interrogation room, sheds light on the darkness at noon and lets us take a quick look inside. » Read more

Hamas and Fatah: A Mideast muddle ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Washington Post (Editorial) February 9, 2012 - 1:00am THE ON-AGAIN, off-again “unity” agreement between rival Palestinian movements Hamas and Fatah seems to be on again. Or at least it was on Monday, when Palestinian President and Fatah leader Mahmoud Abbas announced a new accord with Hamas chief Khaled Meshal after a meeting in Doha, Qatar. The pact calls for Mr. Abbas to serve as prime minister of a coalition government, which would serve only long enough to hold elections for a new Palestinian leadership. That’s if it gets off the ground: On Wednesday, Hamas’s Gaza-based leadership issued a statement objecting to the deal. » Read more

PA Security Detains 56 in Israeli-held Hebron Zone ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Ma'an News Agency February 10, 2012 - 1:00am HEBRON (Ma’an) -- Palestinian security forces detained 56 Palestinians sheltering in the Israeli-controlled section of Hebron early Friday, after coordination with Israeli authorities. The dawn raid was the second Palestinian incursion into Hebron's H2 area in recent weeks, under full Israeli control since a 1997 deal split the city. A Palestinian security official told Ma'an the sweep of arrests was permitted by Israeli authorities after pressure from Europe and the US. » Read more

Abbas’ Deal with Hamas Gets Support from Fatah, PLO ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Xinhua February 9, 2012 - 1:00am RAMALLAH, Feb. 9 (Xinhua) -- Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas on Thursday got support from his Fatah party and the Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO) to the agreement he had reached with rival Hamas movement. The Central Committee of Fatah and the PLO's Executive Committee met in the West Bank city of Ramallah and welcomed the deal, which was struck in Qatar Sunday. According to the agreement, Abbas will form an interim government to prepare for elections in the Palestinian territories, including in the Hamas-controlled Gaza Strip. » Read more

Fatah Official: Palestine Seeks Arab Support for Halt to Israel Talks ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Ma'an News Agency February 10, 2012 - 1:00am BETHLEHEM (Ma'an) -- Fatah Central Committee member Mahmoud Al-Aloul said Friday that Palestinian leaders will seek Arab support for their decision not to return to direct negotiations with Israel, after exploratory talks ended last month without agreement. PLO officials are set to brief the Arab League follow-up committee on Sunday, after Palestinian and Israeli envoys met for a series of talks in Jordan before an international Quartet deadline of Jan. 26 to submit proposals on borders and security issues. » Read more

February 9th

Words matter: A new language for peace ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Jerusalem Post by John V. Whitbeck - (Opinion) February 8, 2012 - 1:00am The words people use, often unconsciously, can have a critical impact. Dangerously misleading terminology remains a major obstacle to Israeli-Palestinian peace. The current initiative by Palestine to upgrade its status at the United Nations from “observer entity” to member state or, temporarily failing that, “observer state” is commonly referred to, by both supporters and opponents of this initiative, as an effort to “achieve statehood” or “recognition of statehood” through the United Nations. It is nothing of the sort. » Read more

The Mainstreaming of Hamas Continues as Palestinian Unity Gains Steam ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Time by Karl Vick - (Analysis) February 6, 2012 - 1:00am One of the least-noticed consequences of the Arab Spring might be called the “mainstreaming of Hamas.” The chief of the Palestinian party and militia, which the West knows chiefly for its suicide attacks on Israel, has declared repeatedly that it has decided to set aside violent resistance and, in the spirit of the Arab Spring, concentrate on demonstrations and other nonviolent methods. » Read more

Special from Israel: Officials mull path forward after historic Palestinian reconciliation ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Egyptian Independent by Roger Hercz - (Opinion) February 9, 2012 - 1:00am Jaffa -- Mahmoud al-Zahar, the co-founder of Hamas, was clearly satisfied as he spoke to Israeli TV following the historic Palestinian reconciliation pact signing last week. “Your intelligence organizations are not so impressive after all,” he told Channel 10 News. Israeli leaders were certainly caught off guard when news broke that Fatah and Hamas had reached a deal to mend ties, four years after a schism erupted between the two Palestinian factions and Hamas security forcibly ousted Fatah personnel from the Gaza Strip. Al-Zahar was rubbing Israel’s lack of anticipation in its face. » Read more