Palestinians Stop Paying Israeli Hospitals for Gaza and West Bank Patients ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The New York Times by Ethan Bronner - February 10, 2009 - 1:00am JERUSALEM — Scores of Palestinian patients being treated in Israeli hospitals, a rare bright spot of coexistence here, are being sent home because the Palestinian Authority has stopped paying for their treatment, partly in anger over the war in Gaza. Hadassah Hospital in Jerusalem says that for the past week, no payments have come in and Palestinians whose children it is treating have been instructed by Palestinian health officials to place them in facilities in the West Bank, Jordan or Egypt. » Read more

Violence breaks quiet of cease-fire on eve of Israel's national election ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Boston Globe by Ibrahim Barzak - February 10, 2009 - 1:00am GAZA CITY - Israeli aircraft struck two targets in the Gaza Strip and a Gaza militant died in a clash with troops on the border yesterday, as an official of the moderate Palestinian government accused Hamas of trying to boost hawkish candidates in Israel's election. The violence on the eve of the vote occurred as Egyptian mediators continued their efforts to cement a long-term cease-fire between Hamas and Israel, after the three weeks of intense fighting that racked the coastal territory last month. » Read more

Livni and Netanyahu level as Israeli election begins ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Guardian by Rory McCarthy, Haroon Siddique - February 10, 2009 - 1:00am Israelis cast their votes today in the country's general election, with the rightwing opposition leader, Binyamin Netanyahu, and his rival, Tzipi Livni, the centrist foreign minister, neck and neck, according to analysts. Up to a fifth of voters were thought to be undecided hours before voting began, an unusually high number that reflected disillusionment with all candidates. After casting her vote in Tel Aviv, Livni urged people to ignore the bad weather and cast a vote for "hope". » Read more