Middle East roundup

David Aaronovitch 'would love to have something flashy and definitive to say' about the present situation between Israel and the Palestinians. But he doesn't have. He's hopeful all the same, and what he wants is 'for everyone to become proselytisers for the slow, tedious, complicated business of drawing people away from negative actions and towards positive ones'.

Relevantly, it seems there has been public anger amongst Palestinians over the latest suicide bombing. Haaretz reports:

All the sharp Palestinian denunciations and reservations must be seen in the context of the atmosphere among the Palestinian public, which wholeheartedly supports Abu Mazen's calming policy and the attempts to restore normalcy to life in the West Bank and Gaza.

In the streets of East Jerusalem, at least, the report of the suicide bombing came as a total surprise... Yesterday, a store owner on Sultan Suleiman Street said all his customers registered anger when they heard of the attack.

And the Lebanon Daily Star reports that, since the assassination of Rafik Hariri, Syrian taxi drivers entering Lebanon have been protecting themselves from the danger of anti-Syrian attacks by carrying Hariri's picture:

According to the Interior Security Forces, more than 10 attacks have targeted homes of Syrians in Lebanon during the past week.

However, the most violent attack occurred during Tuesday's demonstration in Sidon, which gathered an estimated 13,000 people calling for a Syrian troops withdrawal from Lebanon. Some of the demonstrators attacked the residence of Syrian workers, firing their weapons and hurling stones and insults.

Meanwhile:

Israel has warned it is prepared to attack Syria and has declared the Middle East peace process frozen until the Palestinian leadership wipes out terrorist groups.

The father of Yael Orbach, killed in Friday's suicide bombing in Tel Aviv, has called for her death to be avenged:

Otherwise, he would do it himself, Orbach said, "in a way not yet seen."

Finally in this roundup: some Iraqis would rather have Thursday as part of their weekend than Saturday - because Saturday is a Jewish, or a Zionist, holiday.