Abbas Swears in New Gov't

Related Newser Stories

• Hamas Support Grows in West Bank

  Jan 6, 09 10:38 AM CST
  As violence continues in Gaza, support for Hamas is growing in the Fatah-controlled West Bank, the New York Times reports. Though demonstrations of solidarity with Hamas have thus far been relatively small, West Bank residents see Gaza as “part of themselves,” writes Steven Erlanger. Still, there’s little appetite for uprising after years of conflict. “The people are tired,” says a restaurateur.
  More »

• 'The Israelis Killed My Father'

  Jan 5, 09 1:54 PM CST
  Fares Akram’s family farm was a small “beloved place,” so close to the Israeli border that they’d always feared it would be hit by errant rockets launched by Hamas, he writes in the Independent. Instead, it was blown up by an Israeli bomb while Akram’s 48-year-old father was inside. There was no way to get an ambulance there with the Israelis blocking the roads, but there was nothing left to save anyway. “Just a pile of flesh,” Akram’s brother remarked. More »

• Israel Waging a Heartbreaking, Stupid War

  Jan 5, 09 11:37 AM CST
  Israel's push to wipe out Hamas via military action "is understandable, but stupid," writes Rabbi Michael Lerner, editor of the Jewish progressive magazine Tikkun. While Israel clearly must defend itself, "the kind of response matters"—and the killing of Gazan civilians is "a crime against humanity" as much as Hamas rocket fire. In an op-ed for the Times of London, Lerner calls for an immediate ceasefire and a new path forward.
  More »

• Hezbollah All Bark, No Bite on Gaza

  Jan 5, 09 9:50 AM CST
  Leaders of the Islamic group Hezbollah have been plenty vocal about the situation in Gaza, but Hassan Nasrallah hasn’t ordered his Lebanon-based militia into action or fired any missiles. And he’s unlikely to do so, analysts tell the New York Times, because Hezbollah believes Palestinian ally Hamas can win, and because it doesn’t want to risk another devastating Israeli assault on Lebanon. More »

• Will Israel Win Out, or Fire Up Its Enemies?

  Jan 4, 09 7:37 AM CST
  Invading the Gaza Strip may boost Israel's leverage, shoring up alliances and isolating Iran—but that's optimistic, writes Steven Lee Myers in the New York Times. President Mahmoud Abbas could be the one isolated—from his own people—as surviving Hamas leaders seethe and militants plot revenge across the Arab world. Even friendly Arab nations may back away from Israel as people rage over images of destruction.
  More »