March 2nd

Hamas seeks to have rockets in West Bank ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Xinhua March 1, 2010 - 1:00am The military wing of Islamic Hamas movement on Monday said it is working on home-made rockets which can be fired on Israeli settlements in the West Bank. "Having a Qassam rocket in the West Bank is a demand that must be achieved," Ezz el-Deen al-Qassam Brigades said in a statement published on its website. The statement came a week after security forces loyal to President Mahmoud Abbas arrested a Hamas cell while preparing to test-fire a rocket near Ramallah city. It was the first time that a home-made rocket be found in the West Bank ready to be fired. » Read more

Palestinians warn of third uprising against Israel over religious shrines ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Xinhua by Saud Abu Ramadan, Emad Drimly - March 1, 2010 - 1:00am The Israeli government's declaration to include two religious shrines in the West Bank into the list of Jewish heritage sites and the attempt of Jewish groups to enter into al-Aqsa Mosque in East Jerusalem on Sunday had increased the tension between Israel and the Palestinians. Palestinian analysts believe that the recent Israeli actions " pour oil on the flames," adding "this tension would promote violence on the ground and would open the doors for violent confrontations, although the Palestinian National Authority (PNA) has a security control on the territory." » Read more

Hamas leader disowns son who spied for Israel ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Associated Press by Diaa Hadid - March 1, 2010 - 1:00am A senior Hamas leader publicly disowned his son Monday, days after the young man announced he had secretly spied for Israel and helped authorities hunt down members of the Islamic militant group. Hamas Web sites published a letter late Monday by Sheik Hassan Yousef that the militant group said was smuggled out of the Israeli prison where he is serving a six-year sentence. » Read more

Under blockade, coastal Gaza now a fish importer ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Associated Press by Karin Laub - March 2, 2010 - 1:00am Under a sea blockade, the coastal Gaza Strip has now become a seafood importer. Its desperate fishermen — cut off from plentiful fishing grounds by Israeli patrol boats — have turned to sneaking into Egyptian waters in tiny motorboats to buy their catch and bring it home. Others bring in fish by land, in ice-packed plastic foam boxes pulled through smuggling tunnels from Egypt. And even though the Mediterranean is right on Gaza's doorstep, locals are creating fish ponds to provide Gaza's 1.5 million people their key source of protein. » Read more

US answers not yet enough for Mideast talks-Dahlan ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Reuters by Ali Sawafta - March 1, 2010 - 1:00am A Palestinian official said on Monday the United States had yet to give adequate answers to Palestinian queries on a proposal for indirect negotiations with Israel. Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas, facing U.S. and Israeli calls for an immediate resumption of peace talks, had asked the United States to clarify its proposal for indirect negotiations. U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton said last week she hoped talks would start "shortly". But Mohammed Dahlan, senior official in Abbas's Fatah party, said the U.S. clarifications received so far were not enough. » Read more

Hamas and pro-al Qaeda cells set for more conflict ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Reuters by Nidal Al-Mughrabi - (Analysis) March 2, 2010 - 1:00am Hamas Islamists ruling the Gaza Strip face a growing security challenge from al Qaeda-inspired Palestinian groups in the religiously conservative enclave. Fundamentalist Muslims, or Salafis, whose agenda of global jihad, or holy war, against the West is against Hamas's nationalist goals, have stepped up bombing attacks in the Gaza Strip in recent weeks, targeting Hamas security men and offices. » Read more

EU: Israeli heritage list 'hinders peace efforts' ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Ma'an News Agency March 2, 2010 - 1:00am The EU criticized on Monday Israel’s decision to list shrines in Bethlehem and Hebron as national heritage sites. The spokesperson of Catherine Ashton, the EU’s high representative for Foreign Affairs and security policy said in a statement, "The High Representative regards the recent decision by the Government of Israel to add sites in Hebron and Bethlehem to the list of Israeli national heritage sites as detrimental to attempts to relaunch peace negotiations.” “The European Union calls on Israel to refrain from provocative acts,” the statement added. » Read more

In Hebron, PA cabinet criticizes Israeli heritage list ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Ma'an News Agency March 2, 2010 - 1:00am In what was billed as a move to support the city, the Palestinian Authority cabinet held its weekly session in the Hebron Municipality Hall on Monday, protesting Israel's decision to include the Ibrahimi Mosque on the list of its national heritage sites. Under pressure from settlers, Israel listed Hebron’s Ibrahimi Mosque and Bethlehem’s Rachel’s Tomb as national “heritage sites” slated for renovation last week, sparking Palestinian protests. » Read more

US Senator John Kerry presses Israel on Gaza access ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Ma'an News Agency March 2, 2010 - 1:00am US Senator John Kerry raised the issue of Israel’s closure of the Gaza Strip during his meetings with Israeli and Palestinian officials in the Middle East, his spokesman said on Monday. The US Senate Foreign Relations Committee chairman "has long called for heightened access for humanitarian goods and foodstuffs," said spokesman Frederick Jones on the phone from Washington. » Read more

Will Israel heritage sites spark next Palestinian intifada? ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Christian Science Monitor by Joshua Mitnick - March 1, 2010 - 1:00am Amid spreading Palestinian protests against Israel's decision to declare shrines in two West Bank cities as Israel heritage sites, the Palestinian cabinet held a solidarity meeting Monday in the city of Hebron near one of the sites while some here worried about a new Palestinian intifada. Clashes on the Temple Mount plaza in Jerusalem's Old City Sunday capped a week of violence since the declaration of Hebron's Tomb of the Patriarchs and Rachel's Tomb in Bethlehem as official Israel heritage locations. » Read more