Hamas

The Future Palestinian State Takes Root
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Wall Street Journal
by Hussein Ibish, Michael Weiss - September 2, 2010 - 12:00am

Many contentious issues could bedevil the Israeli-Palestinian negotiations that began Wednesday, but on one subject both sides can largely agree: The state-building program launched last year by Palestinian Authority Prime Minister Salam Fayyad has made measurable progress. While the terrorist group Hamas rules in the Gaza Strip, Palestinians in the West Bank are trying to build the framework of a future state. The West Bank economy grew by 8.5% last year (according to the International Monetary Fund), despite the global recession and

Hamas claims responsibility for second West Bank shooting attack in two days
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Haaretz
by Anshel Pfeffer - September 2, 2010 - 12:00am

Hamas on Thursday claimed responsibility for a shooting attack in which two Israelis were wounded, one of them seriously, in the West Bank. Wednesday's roadside attack, near the Jewish settlement of Kochav Hashachar, occurred on the eve of face-to-face peace negotiations between Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu in Washington.

Abbas has the will, and the way
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Haaretz
by Avi Issacharoff - September 2, 2010 - 12:00am

In spite of Tuesday's terror attack and its tragic consequences, Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas remains a partner for peace. Over the next few days we will, of course, hear the same old slogans bandied about: "There is no Palestinian partner," or better yet, "Yasser Arafat could have made peace but didn't want to; Abbas may or might not want to conclude a peace with Israel, but he cannot."

PA official vows: 'We'll hit Hamas with an iron fist'
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Jerusalem Post
September 2, 2010 - 12:00am

Palestinian Authority security forces have vowed to arrest Hamas members and bring order to the West Bank, according to a Thursday report by London daily Asharq Al-Awsat. "We arrested hundreds of Hamas members, and we'll continue to do so," a high-ranking Palestinian Authority official told Asharq. "We will prevent them, however we can, from bringing anarchy to the West Bank. We will hit them with an iron fist."

Middle East talks: no real desire for change spells little hope of success
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Guardian
by Ian Black - September 1, 2010 - 12:00am

No previous round of Middle East peace negotiations has begun with such rock-bottom expectations as the one being launched in Washington tonight. Neither side expects to be able to reach an agreement unless the US tries to impose one. And few believe that if Barack Obama does attempt that, Binyamin Netanyahu and Mahmoud Abbas will be able to live with it – the Israeli premier because of his fractious rightwing coalition and the Palestinian president because of Hamas opposition and wider despair over years of peace "process" without change.

PA condemns attack claimed by Hamas
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Ma'an News Agency
September 1, 2010 - 12:00am

The Palestinian Authority has condemned Tuesday's shooting attack that left four Israeli citizens dead near a settlement close to Hebron in the occupied West Bank. "What happened tonight in Hebron was timed to coincide with the PLO's decision to engage in negotiations to end the occupation and achieve freedom and independence for our people," Prime Minister Salam Fayyad said.

Palestinian forces arrest dozens of Hamas activists
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Reuters
by Mohammed Assadi - September 1, 2010 - 12:00am

Palestinian security forces in the West Bank detained dozens of Hamas activists on Wednesday in response to a lethal attack on Jewish settlers in the occupied territory, a senior security source said. The Hamas armed wing claimed responsibility for the killing of four Jewish settlers near Hebron on Tuesday on the eve of a new round of U.S.-backed peace talks. "Dozens of Hamas members have been arrested, mainly in Hebron area and across the West Bank," the source said. "We are investigating if they have any links to the shooting attack. There will be more arrests."

Terror attack achieved its goal - embarrassing the PA
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Haaretz
by Amos Harel, Avi Issacharoff - (Blog) September 1, 2010 - 12:00am

The shooting attack in the Hebron Hills on Tuesday could not have been a surprise. Palestinian opposition groups, especially Hamas, were highly motivated to embarrass the Palestinian Authority on the eve of the start of direct talks in Washington. A short conversation with the members of the Palestinian delegation to Washington Tuesday night shows that the mission was indeed accomplished.

Killing of Israeli Settlers Rattles Leaders
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The New York Times
by Isabel Kershner - August 31, 2010 - 12:00am

The killing of four Israeli settlers, including a pregnant woman, in the West Bank on Tuesday evening rattled Israeli and Palestinian leaders on the eve of peace talks in Washington and underscored the disruptive role that the issue of Jewish settlements could play in the already fragile negotiations. The military wing of Hamas, the Islamic group, claimed responsibility for the attack — in which gunmen fired on a vehicle carrying two men and two women at a junction near the city of Hebron — and described it on its Arabic Web site as a “heroic operation.”

Hamas targets Israeli-Palestinian talks by killing four Israelis
ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Christian Science Monitor
by Joshua Mitnick - August 31, 2010 - 12:00am

As Middle Eastern leaders gathered in Washington to inaugurate a new round of Israeli-Palestinian talks, Hamas gunmen killed four Israeli settlers in their car outside the West Bank city of Hebron. The attack appeared to be an attempt to spark violence that could undermine the peace negotiations and was a stark reminder that the Islamist Hamas movement remains an important force in Palestinian politics, no matter how much either the Israelis or the Palestinian Authority's Mahmoud Abbas wish they would go away.

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