Gaza: Hamas bans motorbike rides for women ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Ynetnews October 7, 2009 - 12:00am The Hamas government has banned motorcycle riders from carrying women on the back seat – the latest in the militants' virtue campaign in Gaza. The ban was posted on Hamas Interior Ministry Web site on Tuesday. It said the ban seeks "to preserve citizen safety and the stability of Palestinian society's customs and traditions." Hamas wants to impose a strict interpretation of Islam. Its other efforts have included breaking up mixed couples on the beach and obliging female lawyers to wear headscarves in court. » Read more

Minister Braverman: Jewish extremists also at fault for riots ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Ynetnews by Sharon Roffe-ofir - October 7, 2009 - 12:00am Minorities Minister Avishay Braverman (Labor) said Wednesday that Jewish extremists were also to blame for the recent violence in Jerusalem. Speaking to Ynet, Braverman warned that outlawing the Islamic Movement would only bolster it and hurt Israel's status. "Ministers and MKs' calls to have the movement banned only serve the Islamic Movement's political interests. Outlawing the group would only embolden extremist elements and strengthen the movement itself," he told Ynet. » Read more

Israel fears violence following arrest of Islamic Movement head ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Haaretz by Barak Ravid - October 7, 2009 - 12:00am Security forces fear an outbreak of further violence following the arrest of the leader of the Islamic Movement's northern branch, Sheikh Ra'ad Salah on Tuesday. Salah was arrested, and later released, after Police Commissioner David Cohen, State Prosecutor Moshe Lador and Jerusalem police chief Aharon Franco decided that Salah would be interrogated about recent statements. » Read more

U.S. to Israel and PA: Calm Jerusalem tensions ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Haaretz by Barak Ravid - October 7, 2009 - 12:00am In its first response to recent clashes in Jerusalem, the U.S. administration of President Barack Obama on Tuesday called on Israel and the Palestinian Authority to take steps to calm the tensions in the capital. Israeli police mobilized reinforcements from across the country to secure the volatile Jerusalem on Tuesday, deploying thousands of officers on city streets for fear that two days of low-grade clashes with Palestinian protesters would escalate. » Read more

PLO official admits "mistake" in delaying Goldstone report ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Ma'an News Agency October 7, 2009 - 12:00am A senior Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO) official admitted for the first time on Wednesday that the Palestinian leadership made a mistake by delaying action on a United Nations report on war crimes in Gaza. "We have the courage to admit there was a mistake," said Yasser Abed Rabbo, a member of the PLO executive committee and an advisor to President Mahmoud Abbas, according to AP. Abbas’ government buckled to US pressure last week and withdrew a motion from the UN Human Rights Council to take action on a report by South African Judge Richard Goldstone. » Read more

Israel tightens Jerusalem 'siege' ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Ma'an News Agency October 7, 2009 - 12:00am Palestinians in Jerusalem’s Old City are describing it as a community “under siege” as Israeli forces continue to operate in large numbers fearing renewed demonstrations. Restrictions in the city were so severe Wednesday that children were prevented from reaching schools in the Old City. Israeli forces also prevented Islamic Endowment (Waqf) personnel from reaching the Al-Aqsa Mosque, which has been the site of rolling demonstrations and clashes with Israeli forces over the past four days. » Read more

What was Abbas promised in return for burying Goldstone? ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Ma'an News Agency October 7, 2009 - 12:00am The public is both bewildered and outraged about President Mahmoud Abbas’ reported capitulation to US pressure in delaying action on Richard Goldstone’s report on war crimes in Gaza. One of many unanswered questions about the Geneva affair is: What was he promised? What did the US offer Abbas that convinced him to burry Goldstone’s meticulously-researched indictment of Israel? An Israeli journalist attempts to answer this question in an article that appeared on Tuesday. » Read more

The future of Israel? ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Christian Science Monitor by Nathan Gardels - October 6, 2009 - 12:00am Nathan Gardels: For those of us who have not had the opportunity to read your book "Right of Return," which imagines Israel in 2024, what is the picture you paint? » Read more

What to Do With Hamas? Question Snarls Peace Bid ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Washington Post by Howard Schneider - October 7, 2009 - 12:00am In the two years since it seized power here, the militant Hamas movement has undercut the influence of the Gaza Strip's major clans, brought competing paramilitary groups under its control, put down an uprising by a rival Islamist group, weathered a three-week war with Israel, worked around a strict economic embargo -- and through it all refused a set of international demands that could begin Gaza's rehabilitation. » Read more