March 2nd

Barkat to suspend Silwan plan at PM's request ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Ynetnews by Roni Sofer - March 2, 2010 - 1:00am About an hour before Jerusalem Mayor Nir Barkat intended to present his full plan for the al-Bustan neighborhood in Silwan, which is in the city's east, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu asked him Tuesday to allot more time to try and reach an understanding with the Silwan residents regarding demloshing their houses for the project. Barkat heeded the prime minister's request. » Read more

Supreme Court abetting, not curbing, illegal settlements ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Haaretz by Akiva Eldar - March 1, 2010 - 1:00am Next week will be five years since the publication of the report on the outposts by former top prosecutor attorney Talia Sasson at the request of prime minister Ariel Sharon. That report was released in the wake of the government's decision to adopt the road map for peace, according to which it undertook to "immediately dismantle" all the illegal outposts established after March of 2001. The document listed 24 such outposts and noted that the vast majority of them are located, at least in part, on private Palestinian land. » Read more

Hamas: Jordan or Egypt likely behind Dubai hit ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Reuters March 2, 2010 - 1:00am Hamas suspects the security forces of an Arab state were behind the assassination of a senior group operative in Dubai earlier this year, the Al-Quds Al-Araby daily reported on Tuesday. Mahmoud Nasser, a member of Hamas' political bureau, told the newspaper that slain commander Mahmoud al-Mabhouh was likely being tracked by agents from Jordan and Egypt prior to the January 19 killing. Nasser said he had been given information regarding such efforts to kill Mabhouh, adding that the evidence indicated that the assassination was carried out earlier than the alleged agents had planned. » Read more

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