Today's Situation

BACK TO PALESTINE, August 20, 2007

Israeli newspapers managed to get tensions with Syria off their front pages on Monday. After a week in which one paper or another led its daily coverage with some Syria-related report (and a day after Haaretz led with a report of messages from Damascus to Jerusalem, via Arab intermediaries, in which the Syrians reassured Israel that they do not want war), it was the turn of the Syria press to ratchet up the heat on Monday.

According to Ynet, the website of Yedioth Ahronoth, the government-controlled Tishreen News warned Monday that the United States is pressuring Israel to go to war against Syria. It charged that even if Israel is not the 'direct cause for acts of murder, Israel is the indirect cause of the tragedy and crime' of a war. The newspaper also stated that American aid to Israel is arriving at a time when Israel not only 'is rejecting peace with Damascus but also is preparing the army for a new round of hostilities.'

In its editorial, the paper also slammed Washington's decision to boost military aid to Israel whom it promised $30 billion over the next 10 years. 'American aid to Israel comes at a time when it is not only rejecting peace but also threatening and vowing to work around the clock to conduct military maneuvers in preparation of a new war. It is no secret that the war statements made by Israel officials against Syria are not pointless but express Israel's true intentions towards Syria,' the editorial read.

In Israel, meanwhile, attention appears to have switched back to the Palestinian. According to Army Radio, Prime Minister Ehud Olmert spoke Sunday night by phone with President Hosni Mubarak of Egypt. The radio said the discussion focused on the possibility of reviving the Middle East peace process and Olmert's recent contacts with President Mahmoud Abbas of the Palestinian Authority.

Haaretz, meanwhile, reports that the United States says it will soon send trainers to help the Palestinian Presidential Guard improve its security capabilities. The U.S. State Department said the training will be provided by its bureau of diplomatic security as part of a series of courses that will take place this fall through early 2008.

The program is part of the framework agreement for more than $80 million the U.S. has pledged to boost the security needs of the Palestinian Authority. The State Department statement said the assistance will help improve the Palestinian Authority's capacity to deliver security for the Palestinian people and fight terrorism, build confidence between the parties and ultimately help to meet the security needs of the Palestinians and Israelis alike.

Maariv, meanwhile, says that the Olmert government has approved the renewal of the mandate of the United Nations Interim Troops (UNIFIL) in southern Lebanon, but so far has not been successful in including a clause demanding the return of kidnapped IDF soldiers Ehud Goldwasser and Eldad Regev.

Finally, Arutz 7 covers a report in the World Tribune, which claims that the Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO) is preparing to change its command in Lebanon in an attempt to extend its authority from central to southern Lebanon. The PLO is trying to increase is presence during the battle between the Lebanese army and Fatah al-Islam terrorists. The newspaper also reported that the PLO was weakened by the military takeover in Gaza by Hamas, which also has strengthened its influence in Lebanon.

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