A Promise of War
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Washington Post
by Jackson Diehl - (Opinion) February 9, 2009 - 1:00am

The past four Israeli elections have been won by a candidate who promised to end Israel's conflict with the Palestinians. Tomorrow, for the first time in decades, Israelis may choose a prime minister who is promising to wage war.

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UN to resume aid supplies to Gaza
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from BBC World News
February 9, 2009 - 1:00am

The UN's Relief and Works Agency (Unrwa) halted aid on Thursday, saying Hamas had taken hundreds of tonnes of aid from shipments of flour and rice. An Unrwa spokesman said deliveries were not expected to resume until after Tuesday's Israeli elections. The Gaza Strip is facing a humanitarian crisis following Israel's recent three-week offensive. About half of Gaza's population is dependent on UN food aid. Israel intensified a blockade on the Gaza Strip 19 months ago when Hamas took over the territory.

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National security again to dominate Israeli elections
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Guardian
by Rory McCarthy - February 4, 2009 - 1:00am

Israeli Foreign Minister and Kadima party leader Tzipi Livni speaks at an election campaign rally in the southern city of Sderot. Photograph: David Buimovitch/AFP/Getty Images With less than a week to go before Israel holds elections, the rival candidates are locked in fierce debate not about whether the devastating war in Gaza went too far, but whether it went far enough.

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Control Of Gaza Subject Of Debate
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Washington Post
by Craig Whitlock - January 21, 2009 - 1:00am

As Palestinians begin thinking about how to rebuild the bombarded Gaza Strip, the biggest hurdle quickly became apparent: Who will be in charge? European countries, oil-rich Arab kingdoms and the United Nations have all pledged money or aid since Israel declared a cease-fire Sunday in the military offensive it launched Dec. 27. But none of the donors wants to deal with Hamas, the Islamist movement that still controls Gaza but is considered a terrorist organization by Israel, the European Union and the United States.

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Control Of Gaza Subject Of Debate
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Washington Post
by Craig Whitlock - January 21, 2009 - 1:00am

As Palestinians begin thinking about how to rebuild the bombarded Gaza Strip, the biggest hurdle quickly became apparent: Who will be in charge? European countries, oil-rich Arab kingdoms and the United Nations have all pledged money or aid since Israel declared a cease-fire Sunday in the military offensive it launched Dec. 27. But none of the donors wants to deal with Hamas, the Islamist movement that still controls Gaza but is considered a terrorist organization by Israel, the European Union and the United States.

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Mahmoud Abbas seen as big loser after fight between Israel and Hamas
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Chicago Tribune
by Joel Greenberg - (Analysis) January 20, 2009 - 1:00am

The Gaza Strip has been devastated by Israel's punishing offensive against Hamas, but Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas appears to be the war's most serious political casualty. Sidelined during the fighting and now struggling to play a role in Gaza's reconstruction, Abbas' Palestinian Authority, based in the West Bank, is battling to stay relevant. "Marginalized is a very good choice of words," Salam Fayyad, the prime minister of the Palestinian government in the West Bank, told journalists on Monday.

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On Day of Heavy Fighting, Moves Toward Gaza Peace
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Washington Post
by Griff Witte - January 16, 2009 - 1:00am

After one of the most violent days of Israel's nearly three-week-old war against the Hamas movement in Gaza, the conflict appeared late Thursday to be moving toward a diplomatic solution.

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Blair Says Mideast Cease-Fire Elements in Place
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Washington Post
by Griff Witte - January 12, 2009 - 1:00am

Israeli war planes and gunboats destroyed targets in the Gaza Strip Monday, including homes of Hamas leaders, as special Mideast envoy Tony Blair said after a meeting in Cairo with Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak that "the elements of an agreement" for a cease-fire are in place. Blair, the former British prime minister, spoke amid intense negotiations aimed at bringing the 17-day war to a halt. Both Israel and Hamas are participating.

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Ceasefire
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Israel Policy Forum
by M.J. Rosenberg - January 9, 2009 - 1:00am

It is obvious who is losing the Gaza war. But who is winning? First the losers. Hamas is losing. It made the mistake of believing its own propaganda about Israelis having lost the determination to fight for their state. For some reason, Hamas decided that the veterans of 1948, 1967, and 1973 had produced cowardly, unpatriotic, and inept descendants. Big mistake.

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The Gaza blame game
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Los Angeles Times
by Rosa Brooks - (Opinion) January 8, 2009 - 1:00am

How to be stupid . . . . . . Hamas style Refuse to recognize Israel. Remind the world that the establishment of Israel in 1948 was accompanied by the often violent displacement of 700,000 Palestinians, but ignore the fact that more than 60 years have gone by, making it a bit late for a do-over. Ignore the fact that most Israelis weren't even born in 1948, and that Israel is recognized as legitimate by an overwhelming majority of the world's states. Keep insisting on its destruction.

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