February 28th

Zero Dark Zero ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The New York Times by Roger Cohen - (Opinion) February 28, 2013 - 1:00am A minister in the outgoing Israeli government put it to me bluntly during a recent visit to Israel: “For the first time in these elections, the Palestinians did not come into it.” Israelis for the most part are comfortable enough to ignore their neighbors. If they are on the Titanic they prefer not to think about it. » Read more

Two Palestinians end hunger strike that fuelled protests ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Reuters by Noah Browning - February 27, 2013 - 1:00am Two Palestinian prisoners whose hunger strike stoked clashes in the West Bank have ended their protest after Israel agreed to release them in May, a Palestinian official said on Wednesday. The men were among four prisoners held without formal charge in an Israeli jail who have refused to eat for between three and six months. » Read more

A Third Intifada? ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The American Prospect by Matthew Duss - (Opinion) February 28, 2013 - 1:00am Over the past days, growing unrest in the Israeli-occupied West Bank in response to the death of a Palestinian in Israeli custody has threatened the relative calm that has prevailed recently, a result of the considerable amount of cooperation between the Palestinian security services and the Israeli army. » Read more

Israel Should Reconsider Administrative Law ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Al-Monitor by Shlomi Eldar - (Opinion) February 27, 2013 - 1:00am It was only after the death of Palestinian prisoner Arafat Jaradath, the violent demonstrations that erupted in its wake, and the fear that this could be the spark that ignites a Third Intifada that the Israeli media decided to expand its coverage of hunger strikes under way in Israeli prisons. » Read more

Eight hundred thousand ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Haaretz by Gideon Levy - (Opinion) February 28, 2013 - 1:00am Eight hundred thousand. That is the number of Palestinian residents arrested and imprisoned in Israeli jails since the beginning of the occupation, according to The New York Times. Almost a million people. That estimate could be a bit high; some say it's “only” 600,000. After all, there is no exact number.  But the general picture is clear and chilling: When people say that Israel imprisons the Palestinian people, this is what they mean: the physical, concrete, overcrowded and torturous imprisonment of people in jail. » Read more

Abbas needs an heir apparent ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Los Angeles Times by Jonathan Schanzer - (Opinion) February 28, 2013 - 1:00am President Obama's visit to the Middle East next month is widely billed as an earnest attempt to double down on diplomacy and revive the moribund peace process between the Israelis and Palestinians. Unfortunately, the odds are stacked against the president. » Read more

Why the Middle East Needs America ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The New York Times by Allen Weiner - (Opinion) February 28, 2013 - 1:00am Over the years, the contention that the Israeli-Palestinian conflict be solved only through “direct talks” has become almost a mantra, especially from the Israeli government and its allies. But direct talks between implacable foes, without active mediation, may be the worst possible way to try to settle the conflict. Facing one’s adversary directly across the table heightens psychological barriers even to a mutually beneficial deal. » Read more

European Union Consuls Call for Economic Sanctions against Israel ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Media Line by Linda Gradstein - February 27, 2013 - 1:00am   Charge Israel is Making a Two-State Solution Impossible » Read more

PA, Hamas not interested in escalation ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Ma'an News Agency February 27, 2013 - 1:00am GAZA CITY (Ma’an) – A third intifada is not likely to erupt in the occupied West Bank, neither a military confrontation is expected between Israel and the Palestinian factions in the Gaza Strip, say Palestinian analysts. » Read more

February 27th

Analysis: Stabilizing the West Bank ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Jerusalem Post by Yaakov Lappin - (Analysis) February 27, 2013 - 1:00am There are several factors behind the current wave of violence in the West Bank. Some of them stem from a return to terrorism and violent disorder by prisoners who were released under the Gilad Schalit exchange deal, and who have since been rearrested for violating the terms of their release. As the IDF makes arrests, Palestinian elements attempt to delegitimize these security efforts, and use them as a pretext to launch disturbances. As the IDF disperses the rioters, these efforts too become pretexts for more violence. » Read more