Icrc Says Israeli Clamps Worsen Gaza And W.bank Crisis
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Reuters by Stephanie Nebehay - December 13, 2007 - 12:50pm Israeli restrictions have caused a humanitarian crisis in Gaza and the West Bank that is growing worse, leaving hospitals unable to treat the sick and keeping farmers off their land, the International Committee of the Red Cross said. In a statement issued on Thursday, the neutral humanitarian agency called on Israel to "lift the retaliatory measures which are paralyzing life in Gaza" and urged Palestinian factions to stop targeting civilian areas and putting lives at risk. |
Democrats Show Beltway "strength," Avoid Being Depicted As Weak
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Salon.com by Glenn Greenwald - December 13, 2007 - 12:54pm Democrats show Beltway "strength," avoid being depicted as weak (updated below - Update II) In the world of the Beltway pundit, Bush Dog Representative, and Democratic strategist, this is how Democrats prove how "strong" and tough they are and avoid being demonized as "weak" and "soft"; this is all just from today: From The Hill: From The Washington Post: From CNN: From The Hill: |
Aiming To Translate Politics Into Hope For Palestinians
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The New York Times by Steven Erlanger - December 13, 2007 - 12:55pm Tony Blair had that practiced politician’s half grin, his eyes in semi-focus, as the Palestinian minister of tourism, Khouloud Daibes, showed him around a display of Palestinian products at the Chamber of Commerce here Tuesday night. Mr. Blair, the former British prime minister and now the Western envoy for Palestinian development, posed for photos with businessmen and praised the quality of the local marble tiles. |
Prerequisites For Peace
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Baltimore Sun by Mustafa Barghouthi - December 13, 2007 - 12:58pm As one who for decades has supported a two-state solution and the nonviolent struggle for Palestinian rights, I view the recent conference in Annapolis with a great deal of skepticism - and a glimmer of hope. Seven years with no negotiations - and increasing numbers of Israeli settlers, an economic blockade in Gaza and an intricate network of roadblocks and checkpoints stifling movement in the West Bank - have led us to despair and distrust. Any commitment must be made not only to conclude an agreement before the end of 2008 but also to end Israel's occupation. |
Thanks, But No Thanks
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Guardian by Samih Khalidi - (Commentary) December 13, 2007 - 1:01pm The Palestinian state has now become the universal standard for all solutions to the Palestinian-Israeli conflict. The international community applauds the concept. President Bush proudly proclaims it as his "vision". The Israelis have come to it belatedly, after years of steadfast refusal and rejection. |
Angry Start To Palestinian Talks
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Independent by Donald Macintyre - December 13, 2007 - 1:02pm The first formal Israeli Palestinian negotiating process for seven years made an acrimonious start yesterday in the shadow of plans for new Jewish housing in Arab East Jerusalem and the threat of military escalation in Gaza. Palestinian negotiators used the first session since the international Middle East conference in Annapolis to express their outrage over plans for an expansion of the settlement of Har Homa - already criticised by the US, EU and UK government. |
How They Stole The Bomb
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Arab News by Uri Avnery - December 13, 2007 - 1:04pm It was like an atom bomb falling on Israel. The earth shook. Our political and military leaders were all in shock. The headlines screamed with rage. What happened? A real catastrophe: the American intelligence community, comprising 16 different agencies, reached a unanimous verdict: already in 2003, the Iranians terminated their efforts to produce a nuclear bomb, and they have not resumed them since. Even if they change their mind in the future, they will need at least five years to achieve their aim. |
No Peace Without Justice
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Jordan Times December 13, 2007 - 1:05pm Negotiations between Palestinians and Israelis started yesterday under a cloud. Understandably, both sides preferred to keep their talks as low-key as possibly, choosing a secret location in Jerusalem rather than, as expected, the King David Hotel [where Jewish terrorists once killed British soldiers]. One suspects that this decision came at the behest of the Palestinian team who could hardly afford to be seen grinning and backslapping at that place while Palestinians were being killed in Gaza and yet more land is set to be confiscated in the West Bank. |
World Bank: Pa Economy Depends On Mobility
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Haaretz by Avi Issacharoff - December 13, 2007 - 1:06pm A report released today by the World Bank warns that even if the donor countries meet all of the PA's demands for aid, the Palestinian economy will continue to deteriorate if Israel does not alter mobility and trade restrictions in the West Bank. The dire message comes ahead of the Pledging Conference to the Palestinian Authority next Monday in Paris. |
On America's Strength And Weakness
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Haaretz by Shlomo Avineri - December 13, 2007 - 1:07pm All that the participants in the Annapolis conference agreed upon was to begin negotiations on several parallel channels. It is clear the results will depend, to a large extent, on the United States' ability to navigate these moves. In this context, it is worth trying to recall where in the past the U.S. was successful in its diplomatic efforts in the Middle East, and where it failed. From the point of view of processes and events from past decades, the U.S. is successful in the Middle East if one of two scenarios is in place. When lacking, the U.S. fails. |
Soft Drink Fizz Goes Flat In Gaza
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Time by Tim Mcgirk - December 28, 2007 - 4:25pm Every closed factory has its own kind of unbearable silence. The Yazegi Group's soft-drink plant in Gaza, with its maze of metal tubes and conveyor belts all switched off, has the hush of a futuristic mausoleum. Marketing manager Ammar Yazegi pauses beside empty 7Up bottles stacked in perfect emerald-green cubes up to the rafters and says, "I miss the music of the machines and workers. It's a beautiful noise. This silence drives me crazy." |