February 9th

A Promise of War ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Washington Post by Jackson Diehl - (Opinion) February 9, 2009 - 1:00am The past four Israeli elections have been won by a candidate who promised to end Israel's conflict with the Palestinians. Tomorrow, for the first time in decades, Israelis may choose a prime minister who is promising to wage war. » Read more

After Gaza War, Daunting Curbs On Rebuilding ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Washington Post by Griff Witte - February 8, 2009 - 1:00am Mohammed Irhaiem's former home was a spacious 1,500 square feet and was built from solid concrete blocks. It had views of the Mediterranean and fruit trees in the yard. His new home, which he surveyed for the first time this week, measures 12 by 6 feet and is made of sheets of canvas held aloft by three wooden poles. His is one of 90 bright white tents that have sprouted in neat rows amid a sea of gray rubble, the wreckage from homes -- including Irhaiem's -- that were destroyed during the 22-day Gaza war between Israel and Hamas. » Read more

Survey: Only one in four Gazans supports Hamas ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Haaretz February 9, 2009 - 1:00am Only a quarter of the Palestinians in Gaza support Hamas, Army Radio reported Monday. According to the findings of a new poll conducted in Gaza by the Palestinian Center for Public Opinion, support in the ruling Hamas government has drastically gone down following the Israel Defense Forces offensive in the coastal strip. Only 28% of the Palestinians now say they support Hamas, compared to 51% who voiced their support for Hamas in November 2008. » Read more

PA: Hamas rockets are bid to sway Israeli election ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Associated Press February 9, 2009 - 1:00am The Palestinian Authority foreign minister on Monday accused Hamas of trying to influence the outcome of Tuesday's general election in Israel by keeping up the rocket fire on southern Israel. Riad Malki said Hamas did not want to see a pro-peace government elected in Israel during the parliamentary vote because it would pursue a political deal with the PA, dominated by its rival Fatah movement. On Sunday, two rockets struck southern Israel, violating an informal Israel-Hamas truce. » Read more

February 6th

The myth of Martyrs versus Traitors ATFP World Press Roundup Article from by Hussein Ibish - (Opinion) February 6, 2009 - 1:00am The recent conflict in Gaza has the potential of becoming a transformative political event in the Middle East that allows Islamists to capture the Arab political imagination for at least a generation. Along with their familiar appeals to religious and cultural "authenticity," and dubious claims regarding good governance and democracy, Islamists are beginning to consolidate an exclusive claim to the most powerful Arab political symbols: Palestine and nationalism. » Read more

UN to probe Hamas for use of children ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Jerusalem Post by Ruth Eglash - February 6, 2009 - 1:00am The United Nations is ready to address Hamas's use of children as human shields during last month's IDF offensive in Gaza, the UN special representative for children and armed conflict told The Jerusalem Post on Thursday. "We have not yet dealt directly with the human shield issue, but we will now mention it in our reports," Radhika Coomaraswamy said in an exclusive interview following a four-day visit to the region. » Read more

Gaza aftermath: IDF bides its time, Hamas leaders hide out, everyone awaits truce ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Haaretz by Amos Harel, Avi Issacharoff - February 6, 2009 - 1:00am Just days before the Knesset elections, the decision on whether to continue the confrontation in the south lies in the hands of Hamas. If the organization accepts the Egyptian cease-fire initiative, this will likely restore calm to the region along the border with the Gaza Strip, at least for a few months; a negative reply will set Israel back on the road of assassinating Hamas leaders, eventually leading to a new round of hostilities. » Read more

Haaretz Poll: Kadima, Likud are neck-and-neck with 4 days to go ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Haaretz by Mazal Mualem, Yossi Verter - February 6, 2009 - 1:00am Likud and Kadima are in a neck-and-neck race to be the next Knesset's largest party, according to the latest Haaretz-Dialog poll. The poll, the last to be published before next Tuesday's election, showed the gap between the two parties continuing to narrow: It is now down to only two seats in Likud's favor. » Read more

Political Divide Between Hamas, Fatah Deepens ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Middle East Times by Mel Frykberg - February 6, 2009 - 1:00am Hamas security men are back on the streets, directing traffic and trying to restore some semblance of law and order following isolated incidents of looting in the wake of Israel's 23-day military assault on Gaza. Operation Cast Lead left over 1,300 Palestinians dead and nearly 500 wounded, most of them civilian, and also left the infrastructure of the coastal territory decimated. The smuggling of weapons, and everyday essential items, into Gaza and sporadic rocket fire on Israel has resumed. » Read more

Egypt savours peace mediator role ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The National by Matt Bradley - February 6, 2009 - 1:00am Representatives from more than half a dozen Arab nations may have met this week, but the fact that they all agreed to a plan drafted by Egyptians has not been lost on analysts here. After years of watching Saudi Arabia take the lead in the Middle East peace process and after more than a month of facing the collective anger of the Muslim world for its refusal to open its border crossing with the Gaza Strip, Egypt, many here say, has once again taken its seat at the head of the Middle East’s diplomatic table. » Read more