May 29th, 2008

Tutu: Gaza Blockade Abomination ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Bbc News May 29, 2008 - 9:37pm Nobel peace laureate Desmond Tutu has called Israel's blockade of the Gaza Strip an "abomination". He strongly condemned what he called international "silence and complicity" on the blockade, which he compared to the actions of Burma's leaders. Speaking at the end of a two day mission to the area, the former archbishop said the humanitarian situation there could not be justified. Earlier, 60 Palestinians were detained in an Israeli raid on northern Gaza. » Read more

Israel's Defense Minister Says Olmert Must Step Down ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Los Angeles Times by Richard Bourdreaux - May 29, 2008 - 9:36pm Israel's defense minister said Wednesday that he would use his political clout to bring down the coalition government if Prime Minister Ehud Olmert does not step aside to face possible bribery charges. The ultimatum by Ehud Barak, a former prime minister who heads the coalition's second-biggest party, raised pressure on the Israeli leader to resign or at least temporarily step aside before a criminal investigation runs its course. » Read more

Fighting For Arab Moderation ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Time by Scott MacLeod - (Blog) May 29, 2008 - 9:35pm Marwan Muasher, a former Jordanian deputy prime minister and foreign minister, has just published The Arab Center: The Promise of Moderation (Yale University Press). It's one of the most important books on the Middle East, and is required reading for everyone interested in finding solutions to the many problems the region faces today.   » Read more

The Fatah Revolutionary Council And Fayyad’s Government ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Al-ayyam by Hani Habib - (Opinion) May 29, 2008 - 9:33pm It was possible for the 25th session of Fatah’s Revolutionary Council, which concluded recently, to have been the most important and significant of all its past meetings, since it was held under difficult and complex circumstances that are affecting all aspects of the Palestinian movement. These difficult circumstances include the political separation between Ramallah and Gaza, the failure of the Palestinian-Israel negotiating process, and the continuation of Israeli aggression. » Read more

May 28th

One Country Or Two? ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Al-ayyam by Qays Abd Al-kareem (abu Leila) - (Opinion) May 28, 2008 - 6:26pm Talking about a onestate solution, as opposed to a two-state solution, would be escaping forward and avoiding all the hard obstacles that are facing the Palestinian struggle for liberation, instead of actually allowing us to deal with and resolve these obstacles. The reality is that a one state solution, if it is wanted to be truly democratic and ensure racial equality between both people, cannot be achieved without having to go through a two-state solution first. » Read more

Amnesty: Israel Harms Palestinian Civilians, Exploits Foreigners ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Haaretz May 28, 2008 - 6:19pm An Amnesty International report released on Wednesday finds that Israel attacks innocent Palestinian civilians, exploits foreigners and subverts the general right to freedom of employment. In its annual annual report on the state of the world's human rights, Amnesty writes that six decades after world leaders unanimously signed the Universal Declaration on Human Rights, the record is dismal and urgent action is needed to prevent global chaos. » Read more

Lebanon Falls... And The West Bank Rises ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Jerusalem Post by Ephraim Sneh - (Opinion) May 28, 2008 - 6:18pm Amid the excitement of the latest events - including the announcement of negotiations with Syria and the developments in the latest Olmert corruption scandal - not enough attention was paid to the most significant event of last week: the fall of Lebanon in oil-rich Qatar. » Read more

Gaza: 2 Hamas Gunmen Killed In Idf Strike ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Ynetnews by Hanan Greenberg - May 28, 2008 - 6:14pm Two Hamas gunmen were killed Wednesday morning as IDF troops clashed with armed Palestinian groups in southern Gaza. Over a dozen mortar shells were fired at Israeli ground forces operating in the region near the Sufa border crossing in the early morning hours as well as sporadic small arms attacks. Troops were able to get a fix on the point of origin of the mortar barrages and the IAF launched a counterstrike against the cell, killing two gunmen » Read more

Farmers Under Qassam Fire Stop Shipments Of Food To Gaza ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Ynetnews by Yonat Atlas - May 28, 2008 - 6:13pm A large group of farmers from communities in southern Israel under constant bombardment from Gaza's terror groups arrived at the Sufa border crossing and prevented the transfer of provisions into the Strip. Ailing Aid     The farmers said they were demonstrating against Israel's policy of continuing to ship aid into Gaza while rocket attacks continue to emanate from the territory. » Read more

Report: Israel, Syria Agree On 85% Of Issues ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Ynetnews by Roee Nahmias - May 28, 2008 - 6:12pm A senior Israeli source, who took part in unofficial Turkey-mediated talks between Israel and Syria, has said that the two sides are discussing a border line which will be based on the June 4 1967 borders and the future of the Golan Heights' residents, the London-based Arabic-language al-Sharq al-Awsat newspaper reported Wednesday. The source confirmed that "serious progress has been made in the talks." » Read more