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Israel arrests a leader of nonviolent opposition to the settlement barrier in the occupied West Bank, and disrupts the farewell ceremony for UNRWA's outgoing chief. Swedish officials say the EU resolution on Jerusalem is very close to their original proposal. Israeli military officials say Palestinians are trying to coerce Israel into accepting Palestinian statehood. More Israelis approve of Pres. Obama, but still do not feel that he supports Israel. The BBC looks at divisions between Fatah and Hamas in Nablus. Jailed Fatah leader Marwan Barghouti is profiled by the Independent. PM Salam Fayyad says Palestinians will not issue a unilateral Declaration of Independence. Gideon Levy says Israel is a "semi-theocracy." Michael Jansen says the Arabs should take advantage of the recent EU declaration on Jerusalem, and the Swedish ambassador to Jordan reaffirms European concerns about human rights in the occupied territories. Israeli FM Lieberman expresses sympathy with extremist settlers. In Bitter Lemons, Ghassan Khatib says Israeli pressure must be resisted, and Daniel Seidemann says the EU resolution is neither revolutionary nor trivial.
The New York Times says Israelis are united around the release of captured soldier Galid Shalit. Hamas sources say the swap is now up to Israel, and still may include jailed Fatah leader Marwan Barghouti. The EU has adopted a motion saying Jerusalem should be shared rather than divided, and the US says it is an issue for negotiations. Israel's Ambassador to the US Michael Oren defends his government's settlement moratorium policy in the Wall Street Journal, but Peace Now says building in the occupied territories is continuing briskly. Meanwhile, Palestinians are being prevented from building in "Area C." Extremist Israeli settlers threaten violence against Palestinians in response to the moratorium and a commentary in Ha'aretz complains that Israeli policy has made all Israelis into settlers. PM Netanyahu claims Palestinians have made a strategic decision to delay talks. A PA police officer has been sentenced to death for collaboration with Israel. The Guardian highlights health risks to Gaza children from contaminated water and a Huffington Post commentary describes nonviolent resistance to the occupation and the separation barrier in the West Bank town of Qalqilya.
The LA Times runs an obituary of Edward Sanders, Middle East adviser to Pres. Carter. Speculation continues to swirl around a possible prisoner exchange between Israel and Hamas, and the possible inclusion of jailed Fatah leader Marwan Barghouti. The German mediator has asked Hamas to stop press leaks. Israel is reportedly planning to build a wall along the Egypt-Gaza border, and is banning foreign leaders from visiting the Strip. Israel's justice minister has come under heavy criticism for saying that Jewish religious law should be paramount in Israel. Ha'aretz runs a commentary questioning whether Israel is interested in peace, and another arguing that the settlers' own extremism will prove their undoing. A commentary in the Guardian points out how much American financial support underwrites settler extremism. The head of UNRWA says the plight of the refugees must be addressed. The Tablet website profiles PM Fayyad.
The Washington Post says the PA government state building plan could provide the key to peace, the Arab News points out that no one has any better ideas, and the World Bank is donating $64 million toward the effort. Israel closes the only oil and gas terminal on the Gaza border. AFP profiles the plight of Palestinian refugees in Lebanon. Egypt says Israel is stalling on a prisoner exchange with Hamas, and may offer a new plan for Palestinian reconciliation. Jordan's Foreign Minister confirms his country's interest in the creation of a Palestinian state. Israel is ignoring 400 Palestinian home demolition appeals. A commentary in Ha'aretz says the settlement moratorium is part of a "masquerade," and the paper also interviews an extremist Jewish settler. Israeli diplomats are preparing to combat a Swedish EU initiative to recognize occupied East Jerusalem as the Palestinian capital. The Media Line profiles the new Palestinian "planned" city in the West Bank, and some Zionists around the world express outrage at the Jewish National Fund decision to donate 3,000 trees to the project. Ir Amim explains the dangers of new settlement construction in occupied East Jerusalem. The Daily Star reviews Joe Sacco's new graphic novel "Footnotes in Gaza."
Extremist settlers continued to defy the building moratorium, and the Israeli military fears they may attack Palestinians. A confidential EU report accuses Israel of de facto annexation of occupied East Jerusalem. Martin Indyk suggests that ensuring Palestinian control over West Bank territories is essential. Israelis are divided on the prospect of a prisoner swap with Hamas, and the two sides have both rejected mediator's proposals. A militant group claims to have attacked Israeli occupation forces in Gaza, which is suffering under a fuel and power crisis. The UAE is donating $2.5 million to UNRWA after the agency announced a zero balance. Ziad AbuZayyad says PM Netanyahu has to prove he is interested in peace. Ha'aretz says that while Hamas is imposing strict religious social order in Gaza, it is also cracking down on violent extremist groups. Pres. Obama, like all his predecessors, declines to move the US embassy in Israel to Jerusalem. A bitter argument has erupted over the appointment of Israel's UN ambassador. Patrick Seale agrees with other recent Arab commentaries that the Palestinians should call Netanyahu's bluff and return to negotiations with a strong stance. The Jordan Times denounces as strategically foolish Hamas' declaration that the 1947 UN partition resolution is null and void.
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