April 29th

Palestinian prime minister Salam Fayyad must go, Hamas insists ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Guardian by Conal Urquhart - April 28, 2011 - 12:00am Hamas has insisted on the departure of Salam Fayyad, the Palestinian prime minister favoured by Israel and the west, under a deal agreed with its rival faction Fatah for a unity government, according to sources in Gaza. The Islamist organisation also said it would keep control of the Gaza Strip under the accord, which is expected to be formally signed by leaders of the two factions in Cairo next week. The plan drew further criticism on Thursday from Israel, which has said it would not deal with a Palestinian government that included members of Hamas. » Read more

Palestinian Unity Raises New Problems as It Solves Others ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Media Line by David Miller - (Opinion) April 28, 2011 - 12:00am The memorandum signed by the Fatah and Hamas movements on Wednesday, aimed at ending a four-year-old political division, creates as many problems as it solves, experts warned. » Read more

Analysis: How to deftly play the ‘reconciliation’ card ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Jerusalem Post by Herb Keinon - (Opinion) April 29, 2011 - 12:00am Finally, the purple elephant in the room stood up Wednesday and started to snort. Ever since Hamas’s takeover of Gaza in 2007, all parties occupied with the Israeli-Palestinian conflict have pretended that Hamas’s control of Gaza did not exist; that it was possible to talk about reaching a peace agreement with the Palestinian Authority – you could even talk about a Palestinian state – and somehow turn a blind eye to the fact Hamas was ensconced in Gaza and was not just going to sit back and quietly let it all happen. » Read more

No partner ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Jerusalem Post (Editorial) April 28, 2011 - 12:00am ‘There will be no dialogue with these murderers,” Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas said back in June 2007, referring to Hamas. “There will be no dialogue with the forces of darkness.” Abbas made these remarks shortly after Hamas, in a bloody coup, had seized control of the Gaza Strip. It was also a few months after an assassination attempt against him, which he said was engineered by Hamas. Now the same Hamas members whom he once correctly referred to as “murderous terrorists” are to become Abbas’s colleagues in a “national unity” government. » Read more

Abbas: We'll keep pursuing peace ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Ynetnews by Elior Levy - April 28, 2011 - 12:00am Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas said Thursday that the Palestinian Authority intends to pursue peace negotiations with Israel despite of its reconciliation with Hamas. Abbas, who met with top "Israel Initiative" representatives, said that "negotiations have been ongoing since 1993, when Arafat recognized the State of Israel and Rabin said he recognized the PLO as the Palestinians' representative. We will continue these talks for the PLO. The new government and the peace talks are two different things." » Read more

Jumping the gun ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Haaretz by Amos Harel, Avi Issacharoff - (Opinion) April 29, 2011 - 12:00am The surprise reconciliation agreement initialed on Wednesday in Cairo by representatives of Fatah and Hamas is largely the outcome of pressure from the Palestinian public. In the Middle East of spring 2011, no Arab leader - and that includes Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas and Hamas' Khaled Meshal - can completely disregard public opinion. » Read more

Israel can redeem itself by recognizing a Palestinian state ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Haaretz (Editorial) April 29, 2011 - 12:00am A ghastly specter has Israel terrified ? the specter of the Palestinian state. More accurately, this specter has been terrifying Israel’s leaders for the past four decades. It has now been replaced by a feeling of perplexity, which grows as we approach the day the Palestinian state is declared in the United Nations, with a sweeping international majority. Despite Israel’s desperate efforts to stall the process, the die appears to be cast ? a Palestinian state will be founded, and soon. Now the question is what Israel should do ? beyond lobbyism, spreading horror and expressing fears. » Read more

IDF, PA forces still coordinating despite Fatah-Hamas pact ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Haaretz by Anshel Pfeffer - April 29, 2011 - 12:00am No decisions have been made by the Israel Defense Forces regarding any changes in security cooperation with Palestinian Authority security forces in the West Bank following the announcement of a reconciliation between Fatah and Hamas. Contacts between IDF officers on the ground and their West Bank Palestinian counterparts are projecting business as usual. » Read more

AL praises Palestinian national reconciliation agreement ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Xinhua April 28, 2011 - 12:00am The Arab League (AL) hailed on Thursday the initial reconciliation agreement signed by Palestinian rival groups Hamas and Fatah on the controversial points in Cairo. The AL called to mobilize all Arab and Palestinian efforts in order to transform this agreement into real ground and to start implementation immediately. It also called on the unity of all Palestinian factions and civil societies to provide the required support to end the inter- Palestinian split and root the national reconciliation in a democratic frame. » Read more

Jordan welcomes Hamas-Fatah reconciliation deal ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Xinhua April 29, 2011 - 12:00am Jordan said Thursday that it welcomed a reconciliation agreement between the Palestinian movements of Fatah and Hamas, the state-run Petra news agency reported. "Jordan welcomes and supports all efforts to unify the Palestinians. Jordan has been always stressing the need to realize Palestinian reconciliation, which unifies Palestinians and helps them realize their legitimate aspirations in creating their statehood," Jordanian Foreign Minister Nasser Judeh said Thursday. » Read more