Trapped In Gaza
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The New York Times
(Editorial) January 24, 2008 - 5:56pm

The neglect and mistreatment of the 1.5 million Palestinians trapped in the Gaza Strip is a disgrace, and a very dangerous one. They are pawns in the struggle among Hamas, which controls Gaza and uses the territory to bombard Israel daily; its rivals in the Fatah movement that run the Palestinian Authority and the West Bank; and Israel. If something isn’t done quickly to address the Gazans’ plight, President Bush’s Annapolis peace process could implode.

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They Neither See Nor Remember
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Haaretz
by Amira Hass - January 23, 2008 - 8:47pm

The security establishment was quick on Monday to boast of the success of its tactic of escalation against Gaza: Look, the number of Qassams declined. By the time these lines are published, the security establishment may spin another logical axiom: Since we renewed the supply of diesel fuel on a one-time basis, the Palestinians have gone back to firing Qassams. The conclusion: Continue the escalation. The logic of escalation is the middle name of the current defense minister, Ehud Barak, and many Israelis are adopting it.

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Reckless In Gaza
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Jewish Daily Forward
(Editorial) January 23, 2008 - 8:40pm

Ehud Olmert, Israel’s perpetually embattled prime minister, probably thought he was performing a daring display of political balancing this week. First he saw off the visiting President Bush with grand words of peace. Then he announced that he opposed any major ground incursion into lawless Gaza. The next day, his troops opened up the bloodiest day of Israeli-Palestinian fighting in more than a year.

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Israel Vows To Keep Pressure On Gaza To Stop Rocket Salvoes
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Jewish Telegraphic Agency (JTA)
by Leslie Susser - (Analysis) January 23, 2008 - 8:39pm

Despite international and Arab protests, Prime Minister Ehud Olmert has indicated Israel will keep up its pressure on the Gaza Strip in an effort to force Hamas and other Palestinian militias to stop their cross-border rocket attacks on Israeli civilians. But Israel relaxed its blockade somewhat on Tuesday after masses of Palestinians tried to cross the Gaza-Egypt border. On Wednesday, the crowds succeeded in knocking down the border fence, and thousands of Palestinians streamed into Egypt to stock up on supplies before returning to Gaza.

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Mideast: In Gaza, It's Darkness At Noon
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Inter Press Service (IPS)
by Mohammed Omer - January 23, 2008 - 8:37pm

It gets dark, and cold, and people are getting hungry. Israel closed border crossings Friday, not allowing even UN humanitarian aid trucks carrying basic food. Crossings have been closed frequently since October 2007. "On Wednesday or Thursday we will have to suspend our food distribution programme in Gaza," spokesman for the UN Relief and Works Agency (UNRWA) Christopher Gunness told IPS. "We are running out of fuel for vehicles."

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Divided They Fall: A Powerful Incentive For Hamas And Fatah To Reconcile
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Daily Star
(Editorial) January 22, 2008 - 7:12pm

Some of the condemnatory language flowing out of the international community is finally looking commensurate with the appalling tactics employed by Israel's government and military in the Gaza Strip. Direct reprisals against civilians and other forms of collective punishment are war crimes, after all, regardless of whether or not the perpetrator has deigned to sign that part of the Geneva Conventions defining them as such. But it is not enough for outside powers to summon the courage to speak out against Israeli abuses.

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No Light, No Heat, No Bread: Stark Reality For The Powerless In Gaza
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Guardian
by Rory Mccarthy - January 22, 2008 - 7:10pm

When it opened its doors seven years ago, the European Gaza hospital was one of the biggest foreign investments in the long-troubled Gaza Strip and one of the leading medical centres in the Palestinian territories. Yesterday, the 250-bed hospital was sliding rapidly into crisis, turning away patients for routine operations and struggling to manage emergency cases, as the sole power plant in Gaza halted electricity production after Israel stopped all fuel supplies.

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Gazans Fear Crisis After Four Days Of Blockade
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Washington Post
by Ellen Knickmeyer - January 22, 2008 - 6:59pm

Four days into an Israeli blockade that has cut off food and fuel to the Gaza Strip, residents of the strip contemplated Monday how long it would be until disaster hit. One family of 13, shivering in the cold, counted its eight remaining candles. A bakery that normally feeds thousands had three days' worth of flour. Hospital generators with enough fuel for three days and no spare parts powered incubators in which twin boys born 2 1/2 months prematurely were being kept alive, their thin chests heaving convulsively.

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Peek At An Agreement
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Jerusalem Post
by Gershon Baskin - January 18, 2008 - 6:44pm

President George W. Bush has given Israel and the Palestinian Authority until the end of his term to reach an agreement on the creation of a viable democratic Palestinian state that will live peace with Israel. The assumption is that the sides will negotiate in secret and will reach a declaration of principles which will then be brought to the electorate in Israel and Palestine - either through full elections or through referenda.

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A Shameless Deserter
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Haaretz
by Yoel Marcus - January 18, 2008 - 6:39pm

There is nothing more dishonorable than a soldier who deserts his unit during a war. There is nothing more cowardly and despicable than a soldier who runs off and abandons his comrades on the battlefield to save his own skin. How selfish, spineless and ugly of the Yisrael Beiteinu party to quit the coalition while a bloody battle is underway in Gaza. How egotistical of its chairman, Avigdor Lieberman, to choose the worst possible moment to shirk his government responsibility.

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