February 6th

Israeli race tightens with Livni gains
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Financial Times
by Tobias Buck - February 6, 2009 - 1:00am

The race to become Israel’s next prime minister has tightened, with the latest polls showing the right-wing Likud party under Benjamin Netanyahu is losing ground to his centrist challenger, Tzipi Livni. Ms Livni, Israel’s foreign minister, has led her Kadima party to a late sprint that has seen it catch up on Likud. Polls show that Kadima is not only gaining ground, but that Likud is losing support to the far-right Yisraeli Beiteinu group.

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UN halts Gaza aid over 'thefts'
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from BBC News
February 6, 2009 - 1:00am

The UN aid agency in Gaza says it has suspended all aid shipments, accusing the Hamas government of seizing hundreds of tonnes of food supplies. Ten lorries carrying flour and rice were taken from the Palestinian side of the Kerem Shalom crossing, the UN's Relief and Works Agency (Unrwa) said. Hamas admitted a "mistake" had been made and says it will return the goods. But Unwra says deliveries will not restart until it has assurances that such seizures will not happen again. Gaza is facing a humanitarian crisis after Israel's three-week offensive.

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A setback for Turkey as Mideast broker
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Christian Science Monitor
by Yigal Schleifer - February 6, 2009 - 1:00am

Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan's recent outburst at the World Economic Forum, where he berated Israeli President Shimon Peres for Israel's attack on Gaza, has won him unprecedented popularity in the Arab world. Mr. Erdogan's tirade may help Turkey reconnect with the region after decades of being estranged. But it could also damage Turkey's aspirations to be a mediating power in the Middle East, particularly between Israel and its neighbors.

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U.N.’s Gaza Refugee Director Criticizes Israel and Hamas
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The New York Times
by Neil MacFarquhar - February 5, 2009 - 1:00am

John Ging, the director of operations for the United Nations refugee agency in Gaza, said Thursday that Israel’s blockade was creating growing misery there by choking off basic humanitarian supplies like food, medicine, clothes and blankets as well as school supplies. He also criticized the leadership of Hamas for letting its police force run wild, attacking a distribution center for the needy to cart off supplies.

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February 5th

The Obama Administration and the Unavoidable Issue of Palestine
Policy Focus by ATFP - February 5, 2009 - 1:00am

Overview

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The war in Gaza has strained the alliance between Israel and Turkey (1). The debate continues over Israel’s reported use of white phosphorous munitions in attacks on population centers in Gaza (2). In the New York Times, Thomas Friedman paints a bleak picture of the fractured state of affairs in both Palestine and Israel (3). The chief prosecutor of the International Criminal Court announces that it will examine the various requests to investigate possible war crimes by Israel (4). The Egyptian mediated talks involving Hamas and Israel fail to generate an agreeable ceasefire, (9) prompting further analysis of Egypt’s role as a broker in the region (5). Palestinian officials report that Mideast envoy George Mitchell plans to meet with President Mahmoud Abbas on February 26, in his second visit to the region this month (10).

Mitchell to meet with Abbas on February 26 - Palestinian officials
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Agence France Presse (AFP)
February 5, 2009 - 1:00am

US Middle East envoy George Mitchell will meet Palestinian president Mahmud Abbas on February 26 on his second visit to the region in a month, a Palestinian official said Wednesday. "Mitchell will meet president Abbas in Ramallah on February 26," said the official, who asked not to be named. He had initially said the meeting would take place on February 22. "This second visit since his appointment in January confirms the real interest the administration of President Barack Obama has in a settlement of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict."

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A public opinion poll conducted by Jerusalem Media & Communications Center
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Jerusalem Media and Communications Center
February 5, 2009 - 1:00am

A striking finding in this field poll is the disparity between opinions in the West Bank and opinions in the Gaza Strip on most of the issues tackled in the poll. For example, 53.3% of respondents in the West Bank believe that Hamas won in the recent war, while 35.2% of respondents in Gaza Strip felt the same.

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Hamas are Sunnis!
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Asharq Alawsat
by Tariq Alhomayed - (Opinion) February 5, 2009 - 1:00am

Khalid Mishal's speech in Iran has led to questions as to whether the leader of the Hamas movement has sufficient political awareness. Mishal's actions have confounded some of the movement's leadership, and provoked those who sympathize with the suffering of the Gaza Strip. Mishal's actions [in Iran] resulted in Hamas figures publicly responding, reinforcing the belief that there is extreme disparity between the Hamas movement in Damascus and the Gazan Hamas over Tehran which has not provided anything for Hamas and the people of Gaza other than [empty] talk which has benefited no-one.

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Egypt Prevents Hamas Taking Millions into Gaza
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Asharq Alawsat
February 5, 2009 - 1:00am

Egyptian authorities on Thursday prevented a senior Hamas official carrying nine million dollars and two million euros in cash entering Gaza via Rafah, a security official told AFP. Border official had held up a six-member delegation on its way back from truce talks in Cairo after insisting that they search their bags. The officials allowed five members to cross, but prevented Gaza-based Hamas spokesman Ayman Taha, who was carrying nine million dollars and two million euros, from crossing into Gaza with the money.

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