March 14, 2012

Middle East News: World Press Roundup

NEWS: An unannounced truce between Israel and militants in Gaza appears to be holding. Some Israelis regard the violence as a "mini-drill" for a conflict with Iran. Israeli officials say relations with Egypt are stable in spite of the flare-up. Islamic Jihad holds a "victory rally" in Gaza. Israelis are urged to avoid Turkey due to potential security threats. Israel's Druze community is divided over military service. The US and Jordan reportedly urge Pres. Abbas to stop threats to dismantle the PA. Palestinian members may play a key role in deciding the leadership race in Kadima. The EU is quietly pushing Israel to end impunity for violent settlers. COMMENTARY: Bradley Burston slams "leftists who have no problem with rocket attacks against Israel." Khaled Abu Toameh says Hamas will now have to get used to the fact that Islamic Jihad is a major rival in Gaza. Yaakov Katz says the new truce won't last more than a few months. Ron Kampeas says after PM Netanyahu's Washington trip, Israel must now decide what to do about Iran. The National says Egypt's role in calming the Israel-Gaza violence shows it needs to play a larger regional role. Filippo Grandi says the BRICS are building a new partnership with UNRWA. The Jordan Times says Israel provoked the latest round of violence and asks why. Tariq Alhomayed says those Palestinians involved in the violence are fighting Assad's battle for him. Yossi Alpher says with the peace process on indefinite hold, people need to think of constructive alternatives. Ghassan Khatib says Palestinians are caught in the middle of tension between the West and Iran.

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Unannounced Truce Calms Violence in Gaza

JERUSALEM — Both Israel and the Islamic Jihad militant group in Gaza indicated Tuesday that they would abide by an Egyptian-brokered truce ending four days of cross-border fighting, but each warned that maintaining the calm would depend on the actions of the other side.

Bary Mike cleaned up his store in the port city of Ashdod on Tuesday. A rocket fired from Gaza had landed near his business.

Israelis See Iran “Mini-Drill” in Gaza Flare Up

JERUSALEM, March 13 (Reuters) - Israel has emerged from the past few days of fighting with Palestinians in Gaza more confident that its advanced missile shield and civil defences can perform well in any war with Iran.

Describing how the flare-up in violence had provided an impromptu opportunity to test out Israel's defences, one Israeli official said on Tuesday it gave useful indicators for any potential conflict with Tehran: "In a sense, this was a mini-drill," the official said, speaking on condition of anonymity.

Israeli-Egyptian relations still stable after rocket bombardments: official

JERUSALEM, March 13 (Xinhua) -- A senior Israeli military official on Tuesday said that last week's targeted assassination of an Islamic militant headed off a cross-border attack with " strategic implications" for already-tense relations with Cairo.

"Always -- in our constellation -- the peace between us and Egypt is very important, and the national security of Egypt is very important as well," Maj.-Gen. (res) Amos Gilad, the Defense Ministry's Director of Policy and Political-Military Affairs, told reporters in a conference call focusing on the targeted assassination.

Islamic Jihad Holds Victory Rally in Gaza

Thousands of Islamic Jihad sympathizers participated in the group's victory rally celebrating the end of the current round of violence against Israel on Tuesday. The rally was attended by senior Islamic Jihad officials while the group's secretary-general, Ramadan Shallah, sent a video message from Damascus.

Israeli counterterrorism unit warns of imminent attacks in Turkey, urges Israelis to stay away

JERUSALEM — Israel is calling on its citizens to stay away from Turkey because of intelligence warning of imminent attacks against sites frequented by Jews and Israelis there.

The prime minister’s counterterrorism office issued the warning late Tuesday. It said “terror groups are planning to carry out attacks against Jewish and Israeli sites inside Turkey in the coming days.”

Last month Israel blamed Iran for attacks in Thailand and India. An Israeli diplomat’s wife was wounded in India.

In Israel, Druze Community Divided Over Military Service

Reporting from Isfiyeh, Israel— Amal Asad began his barrier-breaking military career in the Israel Defense Forces after being drafted just days before the 1973 Yom Kippur War. He went on to become one of its first Arab paratroopers and retired as brigadier general, the second-highest rank achieved by a non-Jewish officer.

U.S., Jordan Urge Abbas to Refrain From Threats to Dismantle Palestinian Authority

Over the last several weeks, the Palestinian issue has been pushed to the margins of both the Israeli and world media’s attention, as well as to that of the diplomatic agenda. The massacre in Syria, the presidential elections in Russia and the increasing tension with Iran captured the attention of Washington, the UN and Western Europe.

Arabs to Play Key Role Deciding Kadima Race

Two weeks ahead of the March 27 Kadima leadership primary, sources close to opposition leader Tzipi Livni and Knesset Foreign Affairs and Defense Committee chairman Shaul Mofaz said the race could be decided by the votes of Arab Israelis.

More than 23,000 out of Kadima’s 95,000 members eligible to vote in the race are non- Jews. While there are no exact figures within the sector, party officials said it is split evenly among Arab Israelis and Druse.

Israel 'must end imputiny of violence by settlers'

EU governments, including Britain, have secretly been urged by their top diplomats in Jerusalem and the West Bank to press Israel to enforce laws against Jewish settlers responsible for an "alarming" rise in violence against Palestinians and their property.

To the leftist who has no problem with rocket fire on Israel

War again. Rockets again. Israel assassinates the commander of a radical Palestinian militia coalition in Gaza. In retaliation, gunners in the Strip fire rockets at cities across southern Israel. Israel launches a series of air strikes targeting the launch crews. More than 20 Palestinians are killed and scores injured. In Israel, questions are raised about the wisdom and the necessity of the assassination.

Sounds all too familiar. Not much new here, from the looks of it. Back pages, even in the Arab world.

Hamas No Longer Major Player in Gaza

Hailing the latest Egyptian-brokered truce as an “achievement,” Islamic Jihad and the Popular Resistance Committees, the two groups who were behind the rocket and mortar attacks on Israel, have proven that Hamas is no longer the major player in the Gaza Strip.

As of this week, Hamas will have to live with the fact that these two groups pose a challenge to the Islamist movement’s control over the Gaza Strip.

Until the Next Round

Israel and Islamic Jihad reached a tenuous cease-fire on Tuesday, which both sides know will likely not last longer than a few months.

In a week or so, Palestinian terror groups will again begin firing rockets sporadically into Israel and the IDF will respond with the bombing of tunnels and so-called terror targets.

The price in such a case would be far too high for what Israel is willing to pay.

After Bibi’s U.S. visit, question remains: What’s Israel’s next step on Iran?

WASHINGTON (JTA) -- Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is waiting and watching when it comes to Iran -- although for how long, no one knows.

Analysts and Jewish organizational officials who speak with Israeli and U.S. government say Netanyahu came away from his meeting last week with President Obama feeling that he has a strategic partner in seeking to keep Iran from obtaining a nuclear weapon. But, they say, he has yet to decide whether Obama’s tactics will do the job or if Israel must strike.

Diplomacy Led By Cairo is Still a Stabilising Force

It was Egyptian mediation that secured a ceasefire between Hamas and Israel after four days of deadly clashes. For all of the changes in Cairo since Hosni Mubarak's fall more than a year ago, there are signs that it is resuming its role as a powerhouse in the region. Especially because of the changes in Cairo, that renewed diplomacy has been a welcome development.

UNRWA is Becoming Thick With BRICS

The last summit of the so-called BRICS (Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa) almost exactly a year ago saw the unveiling of a compelling call to global humanitarian and development action. The final communiqué envisioned an alliance united by the “overarching common objective of a strong and shared desire for peace and security, contributing significantly to the development of humanity, establishing a more equitable and fair world.”

Unjustified

An uneasy ceasefire seems to have taken hold in Gaza, stopping Israeli warplanes from pounding the Palestinians in the strip after four days that left 25 Palestinians dead.

The blame game started from day one: Israel said it killed the leader of the Popular Resistance Committees (PRC) on Friday because he was “planning” to attack it through the Sinai desert; US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton condemned the firing of rockets at Israel — in response to its initial killings — the UN, France and Russia expressed concern or tepidly appealed for an end to the fighting.

Gaza’s Blood Traders Fighting Assad’s Battle?

Whilst the world is in a state of shock with regard to the massacres that continue to be carried out against the Syrian people at the hands of the Bashar Assad regime, “tinplate” rockets were being fired from Gaza into Israel, and the Israelis, of course, responded to this with violence, and then suddenly it was announced that the Egyptians had mediated and therefore the situation had calmed, and then Hamas announced that it was involved in this.

So why did what happen, happen? Why was the Egyptian mediation accepted in the first place?

It’s Not Iran

The Israeli-Palestinian peace process, as we have known it since the 1993 signing of the Oslo accords, essentially died more than three years ago with the demise of the final status talks between then-Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert and Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas. Whatever happens in the months ahead between Israel and Iran or between the United States and Iran will not directly affect a non-existent peace process.

Palestinians Are Caught in the Middle

The tension between Iran, on one hand, and Israel and the United States, on the other hand, is growing and having a variety of impacts regionally and internationally. The reason for the increased tension is numerous official statements and periodic leaks over a possible Israeli strike on Iranian nuclear facilities as a way to prevent it from becoming a nuclear power.

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