February 8, 2012

Middle East News: World Press Roundup

NEWS: Fatah officials say Gaza-based Hamas leaders are wrong in claiming the terms of the Palestinian agreement are illegal. Many Palestinians express skepticism about the agreement. The State Department reacts cautiously to the announced deal. The EU says it doesn't anticipate any change in aid to the Palestinians. The Israeli High Court rules to preserve the remnants of a Palestinian village depopulated in the 1948 war. Israel is relinquishing copyright control of its National Photo Collection. The CSM profiles Hamas. Two brothers are killed by unknown assailants in Nablus. A Palestinian “public freedom” committee suspends its work, saying neither major party shows any interest. COMMENTARY: Ha'aretz says PM Netanyahu is punishing Israel by avoiding peace. Zvi Bar'el says Americans are right to be upset about the Russian veto on a UN Syria resolution, but should remember its own history of vetoes on the Israeli-Palestinian issue. Carlo Strenger says the violence in Syria doesn't justify the occupation, but it does reinforce the dangerous region Israel faces. Elliott Abrams says if Hamas is admitted to PLO or PA without changing its current policies, Palestinians will have abandoned the peace track. The Jerusalem Post interviews former Israeli ambassador to the US Sallai Meridor. Mati Wagner asks if Hamas is really preparing to revise its policies. Nida Tuma says Palestinians managed to live happy lives in spite of the onerous occupation. The Gulf Times says the Palestinian agreement should be seen as a major victory for Qatari diplomacy. Yossi Alpher says Abbas is juggling multiple initiatives, while Israel has none at all. Ghassan Khatib says the goal of the Palestinian agreement is democratization.

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Fatah Official: Abbas Can Head Government

BETHLEHEM (Ma'an) -- President Mahmoud Abbas can appoint himself as head of the next government, a Fatah official said Wednesday, dismissing criticism that the move to bolster unity had no standing in Palestinian law.

Azzam Ahmad said no law prevented Abbas from heading the government. "I advise those who reject this to read the laws again; we are a presidential system, not parliamentary."

The Doha agreement signed Monday by Abbas and Hamas chief Khalid Mashaal has been welcomed and criticized, with some saying the president had overstepped the parliament's authority.

Legal Controversy on Abbas’ Posts Grows After Doha Delaration

RAMALLAH, Feb. 7 (Xinhua) -- A legal controversy over the posts of Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas rose on Tuesday, one day after he agreed in Qatar with Islamic Hamas movement's chief Khaled Meshaal that Abbas will form and lead a unified transitional government.

The sources, who spoke on condition of anonymity, told Xinhua that if Abbas as president of the Palestinian National Authority ( PNA) also becomes the prime minister of the Palestinian government, "there would be doubts on whether he will be able to run in the upcoming presidential elections or not."

Is Palestinian Handshake Much Ado About Nothing?

JERUSALEM // After Hamas and Fatah agreed to form a unity government and hold elections, you would think their rapprochement would be cause for optimism among Palestinians.

But just ask Mohammed Youssef.

He flatly dismissed Monday's accord as nothing more than a ruse between Fatah's chairman and the Palestinian Authority president Mahmoud Abbas and outgoing Hamas leader Khaled Meshaal to quell public anger over the slow pace of their reconciliation.

State Department Plays Down Warnings about Hamas-Fatah Announcement

The State Department played down warnings Tuesday over the latest step toward a unity government between Palestinian groups Hamas and Fatah, saying "the fundamentals have not changed" despite claims that the deal imperils the already anemic peace process.

Department spokeswoman Victoria Nuland said Secretary of State Hillary Clinton met Tuesday with Israeli Foreign Minister Avigdor Lieberman, and they discussed how "it's not particularly clear what this agreement will change."

EU: No Change in Palestinian Aid

BRUSSELS, Feb. 7 (UPI) -- The European Union says the Palestinian Authority's new Fatah-Hamas unity government will not change the EU's ongoing financial assistance to Palestinians.

Hamas is officially considered a terrorist group by the European Union but it gained some recognition for freeing Israeli soldier Gilad Shalit in a recent prisoner swap with Israel, the EUobserver reported.

Israeli Court Grants Reprieve to Abandoned Palestinian Village

JERUSALEM — A Jerusalem court has ruled against plans to build a luxury housing development on the remains of a Palestinian village abandoned in the 1948 war that followed the establishment of Israel.

The court battle was seen as a test case for preservation of Palestinian heritage in Israel, where remains of Arab villages whose residents either fled or were expelled in the fighting have largely vanished under modern buildings, parks and planted forests.

Israel’s National Photo Collection Being Released For Free Use

REPORTING FROM JERUSALEM -- The Israeli government is gradually releasing its National Photo Collection from copyright restrictions.

It's an online treasure trove of 150,000 photographs compiled and scanned from around half a million pictures and put on a searchable website in honor of Israel's jubilee year in 1998.

Who is Hamas? 5 Questions About the Palestinian Militant Group

1. What are the origins of Hamas?

Hamas emerged as the Palestinian wing of Egypt's Muslim Brotherhood after the outbreak of the first intifada in 1987 and is the largest Palestinian militant organization, as Kristen Chick wrote in a 2009 Monitor briefing. An Arabic word that means zeal or enthusiasm, "Hamas" is also an acronym for the group's official Arabic name, the Islamic Resistance Movement.

2 Brothers Shot Dead in Central Nablus

NABLUS (Ma’an) – Two Palestinian men were shot dead Wednesday after unidentified gunman opened fire in a store on Amman Street in Nablus in the northern West Bank.

Locals said a gunman opened fire from point-blank range at the head of Munadil Nasasra, 36. The victim was evacuated to Rafidia Hospital in Nablus where medics announced his death shortly after he arrived.

His brother, Muhammad Nasasra, 18, suffered critical injuries to the abdomen and legs. Medics pronounced him dead later Wednesday. Both victims were from the village of Beit Furik east of Nablus.

Palestinian Committee Suspends Work as Demands Neglected

RAMALLAH, Feb. 8 (Xinhua) -- A Palestinian committee pushing for public freedom suspended its work Wednesday because rival Hamas and Fatah parties did not consider its recommendations, sources said.

The committee will soon write to the Palestinian president and Fatah head, Mahmoud Abbas, and all the other Palestinian factions to inform them of its decision, the sources told Xinhua.

By Avoiding Peace, Netanyahu is Punishing Israel

In a Pavlovian response to the reconciliation agreement signed by the rival Palestinian factions, under which Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas will also serve as temporary prime minister, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu presented Abbas with a simplistic ultimatum - peace with Hamas, or peace with Israel.

West Does Not Have Monopoly On Veto Morality

"At the end of last week we received a reminder about the environment we're living in. We heard Iran's ruler talk about Israel's destruction, we saw the Syrian army massacring its own people. Some leaders have no compunctions about harming their people or their neighbors," said Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu at the start of the cabinet meeting. True, it's a lousy environment. Only one sentence is needed to complete the picture: "And there are governments that don't mind continuing to occupy other nations for nearly 50 years."

Israeli, Syria, and the Double Standard of the Free World

I have for years opposed Israel’s occupation of the West Bank, and I continue to be appalled by Israel’s continuing expansion of settlements. But I'm running into a linguistic problem: if I use ‘appalled’ for Israel’s treatment of Palestinians, what term is left for Assad’s butchering of his own people for almost a year?

The New Palestinian Prime Minister

Once upon a time, progress toward Israeli-Palestinian peace was thought to require reform of Palestinian political institutions. Creation of the post of Palestinian Authority (PA) prime minister, separate from that of PA president, was viewed as a milestone. On March 14, 2003, President Bush marked creation of the prime minister post in a press conference:

‘Elections Won’t Keep DC From Pushing Peace’

If Washington feels a peace deal between Israel and the Palestinians is possible in the near future it will become actively involved in securing an agreement even during an election year, former ambassador to the US Sallai Meridor said Tuesday.

Senior Israeli officials have said in recent weeks they did not feel Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas was interested in serious negotiations with Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu now because of the assumption that US President Barack Obama could not press Netanyahu to make concessions during an election year.

Is Hamas Trying to Change its Stripes?

JERUSALEM (JTA) -- Is Hamas trying to change its stripes?

Terrorist attacks against Israelis appear to be on pause, and rocket fire from Gaza is down significantly. The Hamas leader in Damascus, Khaled Meshaal, is trying to distance himself from the Assad regime and align Hamas with the forces of the Arab Spring. Hamas’ parent organization in Egypt, the Muslim Brotherhood, has entered mainstream politics in Cairo, and U.S. officials have met with Brotherhood leaders.

From Across the Line: Do Palestinians Have a Life?

Accompanying an Israeli couple on a short tour of Ramallah, I opt to take them to a nice Palestinian American-style coffee shop – one of my favorite places to go. Interestingly, one of their first comments on the visit is that the coffee prices are just as high as those in Tel Aviv. NIS 15 for a cup of coffee is quite expensive considering the average Palestinian income, but still affordable to some.

A ‘Major Triumph for Qatari Diplomacy’

The Doha Declaration signed between the two main Palestinian movements - Fatah and Hamas - should be considered as a “major triumph for Qatari diplomacy”, a number of Palestinian and Arab political experts said yesterday.

They said that that Qatari diplomacy’s “strenuous efforts” succeeded in bringing the Palestinian people back together. They expressed their thanks to Qatar, under the leadership of HH the Emir of Qatar Sheikh Hamad bin Khalifa al-Thani, for supporting Palestinian reconciliation.

Abbas Juggles Initiative While Israel Takes None

The Israeli-Palestinian peace process was dead well before the Arab revolutionary wave began a little over a year ago. Nor does it appear likely that the Arab revolutions, in and of themselves, will catalyze its revival. Still, they have affected the peace process in a number of significant, albeit still evolving ways.

The Goal is Democratization

The relationship between the ongoing uprisings and revolutions in the Arab world and the Palestinian-Israeli peace process is a convoluted mix of cause and effect.

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