Israeli intransigence on any prisoner swap, combined with increasing pressure on Hamas, caused by a US/Fatah collusion, promise a bleak future for the Palestinian people and their government, writes Khaled Amayreh in the West Bank

The conflict between Fatah and Hamas has destabilised the already volatile Palestinian political scene but a settlement involving a unity government may be close at hand, writes Erica Silverman

Speaking to Dina Ezzat in Ramallah and Gaza respectively, Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas and Palestinian Prime Minister Ismail Haniyah appear far too much at odds to be able to join hands in leading one of the toughest struggles ever -- the Palestinian struggle for freedom and statehood

Dina Ezzat spends a few days in Gaza

A more pessimistic outlook for Iraq's future is pervading Washington and London, prompting calls for a swift way out of the war-torn country, writes Salah Hemeid

Sectarian violence in Iraq is spiralling out of control, and the Iraqi government is resisting calls by the US to swiftly prepare a security timetable, writes Nermin Al-Mufti

The UN calls for peace in Darfur as Sudan's neighbour's concerns about the spillover impact of the world's worst humanitarian crisis gathers pace, writes Gamal Nkrumah

As Somali peace talks held under the auspices of the Arab League get underway in the Sudanese capital Khartoum, the future of Somalia gets murkier, writes Gamal Nkrumah