New IDF Gaza commander to take post
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Jerusalem Post
by Yaakov Katz - November 17, 2008 - 8:00pm

A changing of the guard at the helm of the IDF's Gaza Division is to take place Wednesday morning, despite the continued Hamas rocket attacks on Israel. Last week, Chief of General Staff Lt.-Gen. Gabi Ashkenazi postponed the ceremony, at which Brig.-Gen. Eyal Eizenberg is to replace Brig.-Gen. Moshe Tamir. That move was interpreted as a possible indicator that Israel was considering launching a wide-scale operation inside Gaza. "This is not the case," a senior IDF source said Tuesday. "Israel is working to keep the cease-fire alive and Hamas ultimately wants the same."

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Israeli incursion into south Gaza
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from BBC News
November 17, 2008 - 8:00pm

The Israeli military has launched an incursion into the Gaza Strip and clashed with Palestinian gunmen there. Witnesses say the Israeli troops were accompanied by bulldozers which have been destroying agricultural land east of the town of Rafah, in southern Gaza. There was no immediate reports of any injuries or deaths. Meanwhile, Israeli defence officials say they have re-imposed a total closure of the border crossings into the Gaza Strip. A convoy of 33 trucks of humanitarian aid was allowed in on Monday, but United Nations officials say the supplies will run out within days.

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8 Qassams hit western Negev
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Ynetnews
by Ilana Curiel - November 16, 2008 - 8:00pm

Eight Qassam rockets were fired at communities in the western Negev's Eshkol Regional Council on Monday morning. There were no reports of injuries but several houses were damaged. Residents of the Eshkol Regional Council were ordered to enter fortified rooms. The Al-Quds Brigades, the Islamic Jihad's military wing, claimed responsibility for the attack. Following the barrage, the transfer of humanitarian aid to the Gaza Strip was put on hold.

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Officials: Israel to free 250 Palestinian inmates
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Associated Press
by Mark Lavie - November 16, 2008 - 8:00pm

Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert on Monday promised to release 250 Palestinian prisoners, a goodwill gesture to the moderate Palestinian president at a summit overshadowed by ongoing violence in Gaza that threatens a cease-fire. Even as Olmert and Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas met in Jerusalem, Gaza militants were firing rockets, underlining that Abbas has little influence in the seaside territory. Islamic Hamas militants overran the Gaza Strip last year, expelling forces loyal to Abbas.

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Analysis: Hamas, Israel trying to rewrite truce
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Associated Press
by Karin Laub - November 16, 2008 - 8:00pm

A June truce between Israel and Gaza's Hamas rulers comes up for renewal next month and it looks like both sides are trying to dictate more favorable terms. That would explain why Israel and Hamas have been trading rocket fire and air strikes for two weeks, even as they keep saying they're interested in a continued cease-fire. But the attempt to establish new ground rules could easily spin out of control, especially if there are civilian casualties. Domestic concerns further complicate the situation.

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Israel Kills 4 Militants in Gaza Strip
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The New York Times
by Taghreed El-Khodary, Isabel Kershner - November 15, 2008 - 8:00pm

Israeli officials ratcheted up their tough talk on Sunday after an airstrike killed four Palestinian militants in Hamas-run Gaza, but both sides left the door open to restoring a truce that has broken down.

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Gaza ceasefire continues to unravel
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Financial Times
by Tobias Buck - November 13, 2008 - 8:00pm

The ceasefire between Israel and Palestinian militants in the Gaza Strip continued to unravel on Friday, as several Israeli towns close to the territory came under attack from rockets and mortars. The two sides have been trading attacks since early last week, when an Israeli military incursion into Gaza killed six militants belonging to Hamas, the Islamist group that controls the territory. Gaza-based groups responded with a barrage of rocket and mortar fire, and the violence escalated further when a second Israeli incursion claimed the lives of four more Palestinian militants this week.

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Gaza violence flares again as UN food handouts stop
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Agence France Presse (AFP)
November 13, 2008 - 8:00pm

Violence flared again around Gaza on Friday, wounding two militants and an Israeli woman and putting a five-month-old truce in jeopardy as UN food handouts to the Hamas-ruled strip ground to a halt. Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert held emergency talks with Defence Minister Ehud Barak and military top brass following the firing of nearly 20 rockets from Gaza into southern Israel on Friday. Olmert said at the meeting that the rocket fire was "a blatant and fundamental violation" of the June 19 Egyptian-brokered ceasefire that followed months of deadly clashes between Israel and Hamas.

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Hamas fires long-range rockets at Israel
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Reuters
by Abed Shana - November 13, 2008 - 8:00pm

Hamas Islamists fired long-range rockets at a southern Israel city on Friday after an Israeli air strike on their Gaza stronghold in the 11th day of skirmishes that threaten a five-month-old truce. The armed wing of the Islamist group said it fired five Grad rockets, the longest-range weapon it has used against the Jewish state. Israel said they hit Ashkelon, north of Gaza on the Mediterranean coast, with no casualties.

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Deadly Gaza Border Clash Threatens Truce
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The New York Times
by Isabel Kershner - November 12, 2008 - 8:00pm

Four Hamas gunmen were killed in a clash with Israeli soldiers along the Gaza border on Wednesday, further testing a shaky truce that took effect in June. The Israeli military said in a statement that its forces had identified a group of gunmen trying to place an explosive device near the border fence, leading to an exchange of fire. Four of the gunmen were fatally hit and an Israeli soldier was lightly wounded, the statement said.

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