Bottom lines

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The release of a batch of Palestinian prisoners from Israeli jails. By Habib Haddad in the pan-Arab daily Al-Hayat

"We will never accept any American or foreign capitalising on our case for a goal that has nothing to do with freedom or democracy." -- Wael El-Ibrashi, Sawt Al-Umma

"When a strike gains strength, it will naturally and spontaneously move from the economic to the political sphere." -- Kamal Khalil, Al-Dostour

"Up until now nobody knows whether the upcoming meeting is a meeting or a conference or lecture or session... nobody knows." -- Anis Mansour, Al-Ahram

"There is a race at present between division and fragmentation in the wake of the US failure to create a paradigm for democracy and political plurality in Iraq." -- Kheir Allah, Al-Mustaqbal

"Dividing Iraq would automatically cause wars over land, resources and governing. That entirely contradicts Senator Biden's vision that division would disengage the warring groups." -- Abdul-Rahman Al-Rashed, Asharq Al-Awsat

"If Israel and the US Zionist lobby cannot allow the possibility of Iraq possessing nuclear weapons, how will they accept a nuclear Iran?" -- Zuhair Qusaibati, Al-Hayat