Today's Situation

ABU MAZIN TALKS, July 27, 2007

Of the three leading Hebrew dailies, Yedioth Ahronoth and Maariv both lead with the tragic death of a 7-month-old baby girl, after she was left in the back seat of the family car for over an hour by her father, in temperatures of over 70 degrees.

Haaretz, meanwhile, leads with an exclusive report that Israel and the Palestinian Authority have renewed limited security cooperation in the West Bank, after a hiatus of six years. According to the report - which follows a report in the same paper on Thursday that the sides have renewed cooperation on civilian matters - Palestinian security organizations loyal to Palestinian Authority Chairman Mahmoud Abbas have transferred information on terrorist plots in the West Bank to Israel. Palestinian security sources also confirmed that limited coordination has been resumed with Israel, according to the paper.

Elsewhere, all the papers report on two highly significant resignations - both of which were prompted by failure of the part of the person involved. On the Israeli side, navy chief Admiral David Ben Ba'ashat announced late Thursday that he has resigned his post over failures during last summer's Second Lebanon War. According to Yedioth Ahronoth, sources in the IDF said that Ben Ba'ashat's request to be relieved of his duties came as a result of the harsh criticism aimed at him in wake of the deaths of four naval soldiers during the war, when a missile hit their vessel. Investigations into the incident revealed failures in both intelligence and personnel levels.

In Gaza, meanwhile, one-time Fateh strongman Mohammed Dahlan also announced that he was resigning as national security adviser, ostensibly because of poor health. Some Palestinian officials said, however, that he had been asked to step down because of the recent defeat in Gaza.

Dahlan's former boss, meanwhile, told Maariv's Ben Kaspit, in an exclusive and in-depth interview, that he hopes to reach a 'comprehensive peace' agreement with Israel 'within one year'.

'The Americans are determined to push the sides to reach a peace agreement during President Bush's current term,' he said.  'I heard this with my own ears from the president himself and from secretary of state Rice.' (See full interview below.)

In an interview with Reuters, meanwhile, Abbas said he plans to abolish the district representation in legislative elections, leaving the entire legislature to be selected by a party list, similar to the system in Israel. In last year's elections which Hamas won by a large majority, half of the members were elected by a party list and half by district representation. The change would effectively reduce the weight of Hamas' strength in Gaza. Recent polls have shown Fateh far ahead of Hamas. Abbas added that he did not have a specific date for new elections, which many PA legal experts said he has no power to order. He also declined to say whether he would run for re-election despite previous statements that this would be his first and only term.

In Israel, meanwhile, Vice Premier Haim Ramon told Israel Radio on Friday morning that Israel must act now towards creating a new Arab state because we 'do not know how much time we still have a partner.' Ramon explained that Abbas and Palestinian Prime Minister Salam Fayyad are the first people with whom the government can talk and make a bi-lateral agreement. He said the final borders must be drawn 'carefully and slowly' but insisted that most of Judea and Samaria represent a 'threat' to Israel so long as Israel retains it.

On the domestic front, a poll carried out by Shvakim Panorama for Israel Radio shows that Kadima, led by Prime Minister Ehud Olmert would receive only seven seats, if elections were held today - an all-time low. Likud would win 32 seats and would have a coalition of 66 seats with Shas, Yisrael Beiteinu, United Torah Judaism and the National Union.

If Foreign Minister Tzipi Livni were the head of Kadima, the party would receive 23 seats, one less than the Likud. The new Social Justice party founded by Arcadi Gaydamak would win four seats if the elections were held now, and both Shas and National Union would lose two seats.

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