Hamas will not recognise Abbas after term ends ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Agence France Presse (AFP) October 6, 2008 - 8:00pm Hamas members of parliament said on Monday that they will not recognise Mahmoud Abbas as president after January 8, a move that could sharpen the internal divisions plaguing the Palestinians. “The legal term of President Abbas ends on January 8 and Abu Mazen [Abbas] will not remain president for a single minute after this date,” Hamas parliamentary leader Ahmed Bahar told AFP. » Read more

Olmert's Final Divorce From "All of Eretz Israel" ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Counterpunch by Uri Avnery - (Opinion) October 6, 2008 - 8:00pm In colloquial Israeli Hebrew, when someone discovers something that everybody else already knows, we say: "Good morning, Elijahu!" Why Elijahu? I don't know. Now one could say: "Good morning, Ehud!" That's what I said to myself when I read the sensational interview that Ehud Olmert gave this week, on the eve of the Jewish New Year, to the newspaper "Yediot Aharonot". » Read more

In Israel, a first attempt at high school integration ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Christian Science Monitor by Brenda Gazzar - October 6, 2008 - 8:00pm Yazan Khalaf has no shortage of big dreams. Aspiring to be a pilot, the young Arab-Israeli entering the 10th grade is also trying to "change the whole world." Yazan might not start any kind of global revolution, but he is taking part in an educational experiment that could profoundly affect Israel. » Read more

Egypt blocks Gaza protest attempt ATFP World Press Roundup Article from BBC News October 5, 2008 - 8:00pm Police in Egypt have blocked a convoy organised by opposition groups to carry medical supplies to the Gaza Strip. The convoy had been due to leave from the journalists' syndicate in central Cairo but activists gathering there were surrounded by police. Reports say at least 15 people were detained in Cairo - some of them linked to the Muslim Brotherhood. Some activists were reportedly detained trying to cross into Sinai and some nearer Rafah. The protest is being supported by other opposition groups in Egypt. » Read more