Punishing Gaza Only Harms Those Backing Peace
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Daily Star
by Daoud Kuttab - (Opinion) January 30, 2008 - 5:54pm

  When the Gaza Strip was plunged into darkness last week as a result of the Israeli fuel blockade, many people around the world were surprised. But the optimism produced by the Annapolis peace process, which included President George W. Bush's promise of an agreement in 2008 to create a Palestinian state, was clearly unrealistic.

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A Fight For Life In A Power Struggle
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Independent
by Donald Macintyre - January 30, 2008 - 5:51pm

It's 8pm on Monday evening and the Aseli family is in full emergency mode. The power has just gone down in their apartment – for the second time that day – blacking out the lights and the electric heater.

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Bush's Delusions Die In Gaza
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Salon.com
by Gary Kamiya - January 30, 2008 - 5:44pm

It was a heart-wrenching story. Hundreds of thousands of people, trapped for endless years in an open-air jail and recently subjected to an airtight siege, blew up their prison wall and poured out to freedom.

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The Prospect Of A New Gaza Reality
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Jerusalem Post
by Gershon Baskin - (Opinion) January 29, 2008 - 7:00pm

Even after the disengagement from Gaza, Israel remained legally responsible for the welfare of the 1.5 million Palestinians there. International law considered the Gaza Strip to be under Israeli occupation even after every single settler and soldier left. The reason for Israel's continued legal responsibility is mainly based on the fact that Israel sealed all of Gaza's borders to the outside world and prevented the opening of a sea or airport in Gaza for the use of the Palestinians. Israel furthermore continues to control Gaza's territorial water and airspace.

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A Rough Guide To Hebron: The World's Strangest Guided Tour Highlights The Abuse Of Palestinians
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Independent
January 29, 2008 - 6:54pm

It starts in Shuhada Street, which runs through what is now the settlers' security zone, the rows of empty Palestinian shops and houses boarded up with steel shutters, many daubed with Stars of David to show who is in charge here. The only permitted vehicles are those of the settlers and the Israeli military.

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Excluding The Militant Group Won't Secure Peace In The Middle East.
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Christian Science Monitor
by Helena Cobban - (Opinion) January 29, 2008 - 6:40pm

Last week, the Palestinian militant organization Hamas masterminded a spectacular "bust-out" into Egypt of hundreds of thousands of Palestinians from Gaza, where Israel has been maintaining a tight siege for many years. That bust-out reinforced the strength of Hamas's popular support among Palestinians and has started to change the political map of the region.

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My Talks With Hamas
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Ynetnews
by Dror Ze’evi - (Opinion) January 28, 2008 - 7:29pm

Now I can reveal this: Several months ago, I participated in a series of meetings in Europe that involved a small group of Israeli and Palestinian public figures and academicians, including senior Hamas supporters.

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360 Days
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Israel Policy Forum
by M.J. Rosenberg - (Opinion) January 28, 2008 - 7:18pm

Reading about the Vietnam War, as I have been doing lately, is maddening. As President Lyndon B. Johnson makes fateful decisions that will ultimately leave 50,000 Americans dead and destroy his presidency, I almost want to shout out, “Stop! Are you blind? Can’t you see where this is leading?” But, of course, LBJ couldn’t see that.

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January 28, 2008 - Vol. 9, Issue 21
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Americans For Peace Now
by Middle East Peace Report - January 28, 2008 - 7:15pm

Military Escalation is a Boon for Hamas: Even before the breach of the Gaza-Egypt border, the escalation in cross-border attacks between Gaza and Israel had pumped up public support for Hamas. This was the principle finding of a poll conducted in the West Bank and Gaza by the Ramallah-based AWRAD research center, when compared with an AWRAD survey from shortly before the November Annapolis peace conference.

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Israeli 'economic Warfare' To Include Electricity Cuts In Gaza
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Washington Post
by Ellen Knickmeyer - January 28, 2008 - 7:13pm

Saying they were waging "economic warfare" against the Gaza Strip's Hamas leaders, Israeli officials told the Supreme Court on Sunday that the military intends to start cutting electricity to the Palestinian territory and continue restricting fuel. The statements by Israel's state attorney, outlining Defense Ministry plans, came in response to a lawsuit filed by Israeli and Palestinian rights groups.

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