March 7th

Gaza food situation tight as Karni crossing closed
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Ma'an News Agency
March 7, 2011 - 1:00am

The complete closure of the Israel-Gaza border crossing at Karni, announced on March 2, will make the delivery of food aid to Gaza more difficult, in an area where over half the population is estimated to be food insecure. The closure of Karni will also add 20 percent to the cost of aid delivery, said Chris Gunness, spokesperson for the UN Relief and Works Agency in Jerusalem, at a time when UNRWA is facing a budget deficit of over $50 million. Some 750,000 Palestinians receive UNRWA food assistance in Gaza, out of about one million refugees living in the territory.

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Fatah scattered over Fayyad unity plan
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Ma'an News Agency
March 7, 2011 - 1:00am

Fatah leaders are divided over re-appointed Palestinian Authority Prime Minister Salam Fayyad's plan to create a unity government as he re-assembles the resigned ministerial cabinet. Since handing in his government's resignation on 14 February and being re-appointed as Prime Minister, Fayyad has said he hopes to use the mandate given to him to reconstruct the cabinet as an opportunity to cobble together a body which would put an end to political infighting, and lead the way to municipal, national and presidential elections in the coming five months.

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Abbas gives Fayyad more time to form cabinet
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Ma'an News Agency
March 7, 2011 - 1:00am

Re-appointed Palestinian Authority Prime Minister Salam Fayyad requested on Sunday another two weeks to form a new government, the secretary general of the Council of Ministers said. Na’im Abu Al-Hums told Ma'an Fayyad made the request to President Mahmoud Abbas and it had been agreed, allowing the independent politician to continue a series of consultations with a range of Palestinian political parties.

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All's quiet on the Israel-Lebanon front
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Los Angeles Times
by Edmund Sanders - March 6, 2011 - 1:00am

Something unusual is happening along Israel's border with Lebanon: nothing. The 49-mile stretch, one of the Mideast's most volatile areas, has been uncommonly quiet since the 2006 war between Israel and Hezbollah. Even as both sides continue to build up arms and make war plans, it's been one of the longest lulls in fighting since Israel's founding. Not even a brief gunfire exchange last summer or the recent restructuring of Lebanon's government by Hezbollah have substantially raised border tension, as might have occurred a decade ago.

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New Egypt foreign minister likely to be tougher on Israel
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Washington Post
by Muhammed Mansour, Liz Sly - March 6, 2011 - 1:00am

Egypt on Sunday got its second new government in less than six weeks, including a new foreign minister who is expected to take a tougher line with Israel than the government of the ousted president Hosni Mubarak did. The newly appointed prime minister, Essam Sharaf, announced his new cabinet as tensions soared between pro-democracy protesters and the army in downtown Cairo, with troops firing live ammunition and civilians armed with knives and sticks dispersing demonstrators who wanted to storm a key security building.

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A Way Forward for Israelis and Palestinians
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Chronicle of Higher Education
by Saliba Sarsar - (Opinion) March 6, 2011 - 1:00am

"Is This Man Dangerous?" asks the headline on the cover of Haim Watzman's article on how the maverick Sari Nusseibeh is challenging Middle East orthodoxies (The Chronicle Review, February 4). The answer is a definite no. As a philosopher president (of Al-Quds University), he regularly floats ideas to question assumptions and authority, to think outside the box, in order to educate and to transform reality.

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A Way Forward for Israelis and Palestinians
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Chronicle of Higher Education
by Saliba Sarsar - (Opinion) March 6, 2011 - 1:00am

"Is This Man Dangerous?" asks the headline on the cover of Haim Watzman's article on how the maverick Sari Nusseibeh is challenging Middle East orthodoxies (The Chronicle Review, February 4). The answer is a definite no. As a philosopher president (of Al-Quds University), he regularly floats ideas to question assumptions and authority, to think outside the box, in order to educate and to transform reality.

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March 4th

ATFP president Ziad Asali says Arab uprisings are about accountability and corruption. Philip Wilcox says UNRWA is a good investment for American taxpayers. Palestinians reject Israeli proposals for an interim agreement. Israel bombs Gaza. Hamas proposes its own reconciliation plan. Palestinian citizens of Israel are criticized for having visited Libya. Israel seems to have concluded that no deal with the Palestinians is possible under present circumstances, and DM Barak says it's because of the makeup of the Israeli cabinet. Some Fatah leaders demand the ouster of PM Fayyad. Palestinians want international pressure to halt settler violence. PM Netanyahu says a binational state would be a disaster. Jonathan Schachter says Palestinians are looking for diplomatic options beyond Washington. Aluf Benn says Netanyahu may be moving to the center. An 11 year old Palestinian boy says he was beaten by Israeli police. Militant settlers plan for confrontations. Israel may seek to retain 40% of the West Bank. Elias Samo says the Arab Peace Initiative is the right basis for ending the conflict, but Yossi Alpher says it needs to be clarified.

ATFP president Ziad Asali says Arab uprisings are about accountability and corruption. Philip Wilcox says UNRWA is a good investment for American taxpayers. Hamas steals $500,000 from a bank in Gaza, and banks close in protest. Palestinians reject Israeli proposals for an interim agreement. Israel bombs Gaza. Hamas proposes its own reconciliation plan. Palestinian citizens of Israel are criticized for having visited Libya. Israel seems to have concluded that no deal with the Palestinians is possible under present circumstances, and DM Barak says it's because of the makeup of the Israeli cabinet. Some Fatah leaders demand the ouster of PM Fayyad. Palestinians want international pressure to halt settler violence. PM Netanyahu says a binational state would be a disaster. Jonathan Schachter says Palestinians are looking for diplomatic options beyond Washington. Aluf Benn says Netanyahu may be moving to the center. An 11 year old Palestinian boy says he was beaten by Israeli police. Militant settlers plan for confrontations. Israel may seek to retain 40% of the West Bank. Elias Samo says the Arab Peace Initiative is the right basis for ending the conflict, but Yossi Alpher says it needs to be clarified.

Not a clear enough incentive
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Bitterlemons
by Yossi Alpher - March 2, 2011 - 1:00am

According to the Arab Peace Initiative of 2002 and 2007, once Israel has made peace with all its neighbors in accordance with a specific list of conditions (1967 borders, a just and agreed solution to the refugee issue, the Palestinian capital in East Jerusalem), "the Arab countries . . . consider the Arab-Israeli conflict ended, and enter into a peace agreement with Israel." This, together with "security for all the states of the region" (an important issue that warrants a separate discussion), is the Arab "payoff" to Israel in return for peace.

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