Middle East News: World Press Roundup

The Washington Post reports on latest indications that Israel's evolving strategy regarding the Gaza Strip included continuing electricity and fuel restrictions (2.) Americans For Peace Now presents its weekly translated excerpts from the Israeli press (4.) The Jewish Telegraphic Agency examines how Jerusalem's Palestinian population is moving to Jewish neighborhoods in order not to be caught behind the wall Israel is separating occupied East Jerusalem from the West Bank with (6.) In Israel Policy Forum, MJ Rosenberg is critical of Israel's policy of trying to affect Palestinian political change through economically blockading Gaza (7.) The Times (UK) looks at Hamas' refusal to allow the breached Gaza border crossings with Egypt to be turned over to the Palestinian government (9.) A Guardian (UK) comment by Peter Beaumont analyzes how the Gaza border breach has impacted the Mideast political landscape (11.) Arab News (Saudi Arabia) looks at a UN report finding the 57% of Palestinians live in poverty (13.) Haaretz (Israel) reports on presidential candidate Obama's concerns regarding the campaign against him to weaken his support in the American Jewish community (14.) A Yedioth/Ynet News (Israel) opinion by Ben Gurion university lecturer Dror Ze'evi argues for Israel accepting a long-term ceasefire with Hamas (15.)

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January 28, 2008 - Vol. 9, Issue 21 ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Americans For Peace Now by Middle East Peace Report - January 28, 2008 - 7:15pm Military Escalation is a Boon for Hamas: Even before the breach of the Gaza-Egypt border, the escalation in cross-border attacks between Gaza and Israel had pumped up public support for Hamas. This was the principle finding of a poll conducted in the West Bank and Gaza by the Ramallah-based AWRAD research center, when compared with an AWRAD survey from shortly before the November Annapolis peace conference. » Read more

Israel Vows Not To Block Supplies To Gaza ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The New York Times by Steven Erlanger - January 28, 2008 - 7:16pm Prime Minister Ehud Olmert of Israel promised the Palestinian president, Mahmoud Abbas, on Sunday that Israel would no longer disrupt the supply of food, medicine and necessary energy into the Gaza Strip and intended to prevent a “humanitarian disaster” there. Last Wednesday, the Hamas rulers of Gaza broke open the border to Egypt, allowing hundreds of thousands of Palestinians to seek goods that Israel had restricted in its clampdown on the region. » Read more

To Avoid Fence, Jerusalem Arabs Are Making Move To Jewish Areas ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Jewish Telegraphic Agency (JTA) by Dina Kraft - January 28, 2008 - 7:17pm At Cafe Malcha in this city's French Hill neighborhood, Hebrew and Arabic newspapers sit on the counter and both languages are spoken amid the din of espresso machines and customers' laughter. The cafe’s back room is a well-known meeting place for Jewish and Arab businessmen, some of whom live in French Hill, a quiet neighborhood of stone apartment buildings and pine trees around Hebrew University’s Mount Scopus campus. » Read more

Gaza Border Crisis Puts Egypt On The Spot ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Bbc News by Ian Pannell - January 28, 2008 - 7:20pm Alaa smiled and pulled me by the arm. Firstly he wanted to check my credentials. "You are a foreign correspondent?"   I nodded and we got the camera ready to record an interview.  He shook his head - not an interview, he just wanted to just tell me something. In faltering English he declared: "This is the happiest day of my life!" » Read more

Palestinians Clash Over Control Of Border ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Times by James Hider - January 28, 2008 - 7:22pm The Palestinian Government of Mahmoud Abbas said yesterday that it had reached a deal with Egypt to take control of the Gaza border, which Hamas militants breached with blowtorches and explosives last week, allowing hundreds of thousands of people to cross. Within hours Hamas officials denied that any such agreement side-lining the Islamists had been sealed with Cairo, which is struggling to contain the chaos that erupted on its border last week. » Read more

Palestinian Factionalism Is Speeding Up Its Trip To Nowhere ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Daily Star (Editorial) January 28, 2008 - 7:26pm   Editorial » Read more

57% Of Palestinians Live In Poverty ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Arab News by Mohammed Mar’i - January 28, 2008 - 7:26pm The UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) yesterday released a pessimistic report summarizing the living conditions of Palestinians in the West Bank and Gaza Strip in 2007. The report said that 49 percent of Palestinian households in the West Ban and 79 percent in the Gaza Strip live in poverty. 34 percent of Palestinians face “food insecurity” (which is defined as households with income and consumption of 1.6 dollars per day). » Read more

Obama: Opponents Trying To Weaken My Support In Jewish Community ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Haaretz by Shmuel Rosner - January 28, 2008 - 7:28pm Democratic presidential hopeful Barack Obama said Monday that there is a "constant virulent campaign" being waged against him as he strives to win the party's nomination, aimed particularly at weakening support for him from within the Jewish community. Obama told Haaretz and writers from several Jewish-American newspapers that the campaign against him - calling him Muslim and accusing him of not pledging allegiance to the United States - is especially visible in the Jewish community. » Read more

Living With The Breach: Israeli Strategists Weigh Gaza Options ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Jewish Telegraphic Agency (JTA) by Leslie Susser - January 29, 2008 - 6:40pm The collapse of the border wall between the Gaza Strip and Egypt has done much more than break Israel’s siege of the Hamas-run strip. It also has opened up new, far-reaching strategic options for Israel while exposing it to grave new dangers. » Read more

Eu Calls On Israel To Halt "illegal" Settlements ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Deutsche Presse Agentur January 29, 2008 - 6:53pm The European Union's foreign ministers called on Israel on Monday to halt all settlement activity in Palestinian areas, saying that it was illegal.   "The EU considers that settlement building anywhere in the occupied Palestinian Territories is illegal under international law. This includes Israeli settlements in both East Jerusalem and the West Bank," the ministers said in a joint statement. » Read more

Short Term Gain For Hamas, Long Term Gain For Israel ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Bitterlemons by Ghassan Khatib - January 29, 2008 - 6:57pm The dramatic recent developments on the Palestinian-Egyptian border are direct and predictable results of the internationally supported Israeli siege on Gaza. It should have been expected that the mounting pressure on Gaza would cause a popular explosion. The Egyptian border was the weakest link in the prison wall, since all other escape routes, including the sea, are blocked by Israel. » Read more

The Prospect Of A New Gaza Reality ATFP World Press Roundup Article from The Jerusalem Post by Gershon Baskin - (Opinion) January 29, 2008 - 7:00pm Even after the disengagement from Gaza, Israel remained legally responsible for the welfare of the 1.5 million Palestinians there. International law considered the Gaza Strip to be under Israeli occupation even after every single settler and soldier left. The reason for Israel's continued legal responsibility is mainly based on the fact that Israel sealed all of Gaza's borders to the outside world and prevented the opening of a sea or airport in Gaza for the use of the Palestinians. Israel furthermore continues to control Gaza's territorial water and airspace. » Read more

Ahead Of Super Tuesday, Obama Tackles E-mail Smears ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Jewish Telegraphic Agency (JTA) by Ron Kampeas - January 30, 2008 - 5:48pm A packed auditorium was waiting for U.S. Sen. Barack Obama to receive a pivotal endorsement and his aide was rushing him along, but he had something important to say first -- to American Jews. "Before we go, I'd like to add one last comment," the Democratic presidential hopeful told the aide in a conference call with the Jewish news media Monday morning, just minutes before being endorsed by U.S. Sen. Edward Kennedy (D-Mass.) at American University here. "My strong and deep commitment and connection to the Jewish community should not be questioned." » Read more

Ujc Sees Fund For Israeli Arabs As Fresh Start In Fund Raising ATFP World Press Roundup Article from Jewish Telegraphic Agency (JTA) by Jacob Berkman - January 31, 2008 - 6:03pm As part of a move to revamp its fund-raising strategy, the United Jewish Communities has started a joint venture fund to raise significant dollars to help Israeli Arabs. The organization, which serves as the umbrella of the North American federation system, is raising $750,000 from 15 private donors, foundations, federations and service organizations to start the UJC Venture Fund for Jewish-Arab Equality and Coexistence. » Read more

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