The release of the alleged Lockerbie bomber Abdel-Baset Al-Megrahi was probably the only positive thing to come out of a region suffering from Palestinian division, the failure to form a Lebanese government and huge explosions in the Iraqi capital Baghdad. The editorial of the Palestinian daily Al-Quds expressed little surprise that Egypt postponed a new round of Fatah-Hamas talks scheduled in Cairo this week because nobody expected it to be held on time and if held, nobody thought that it would succeed. It is not the first time, and the editorial expected it will not be the last, that a Palestinian round of talks is postponed since the two conflicting parties, Hamas and Fatah, still adopt the same hard-line approach to reconciliation. As proof of its argument, the edit said both parties claim they do not hold any political prisoners that belong to the other. Nevertheless, we hear every now and then that one of the parties does release some political prisoners held by the other side. However, the real test for both parties is holding the legislative and presidential elections on time. As such, the Palestinian people would have their say. "It is not accepted or logical that the Palestinians confront Israeli plans to judaise Jerusalem and build more settlements while they are in a state of division and conflict," the edit read. Ahmed Al-Boghdadi expected more division and instability especially in Gaza. He wrote in the United Arab Emirates daily Al-Ittihad that Hamas's decisive victory against the Al-Qaeda- inspired Jund Ansar Allah was a message to the West and the Palestinian Authority that it is still present in Gaza and it is the only party that can control the Palestinian street in the Strip. Given that Jund Ansar Allah was formed under Hamas's umbrella, the writer expected that other Islamic radical groups would emerge to oppose Hamas in the future. Hamas, in turn, would face these groups as firmly as it did Jund Ansar Allah. Thus, opposition to Hamas is likely to grow in the future, something the writer believed, heralds new military confrontation, conflict and division in Gaza. The formation of the Lebanese government is still very difficult if not impossible, according to Abdullah Iskandar. There are two obstacles: the quota of the various parties and the so-called regional representation in Lebanon. The obstacles are directly linked to the concept of a national unity government that represents all the parties and blocs in Lebanon. In search of a solution, parties resort to all tools except one that could resolve the current stalemate: the constitution. Ever since the results of the last elections were revealed, the March 14 group received the parliamentary majority that should have allowed it to form a government. But the opposition behaved as if a national unity government provided an opportunity to divide the ministerial portfolios between the majority and opposition. Thus the conflict started over the important ministries. In other words, as Iskandar said, the present crisis revealed the absence of political standards that could unite all the Lebanese including the concept of the state. Thus, each party worked according to its own standards and personal links. "Perhaps the Lebanese parties should consider forming a federal government at the expense of the state and nation. It is better than a national unity government that could not be formed. And that is the real crisis in Lebanon," Iskandar wrote in the London-based independent political daily Al-Hayat. The explosions that rocked Baghdad last week was a cause for concern for many writers. Abdel-Jabbar Khodeir Abbas wrote that Iraqis were shocked by the size, timing and accuracy of the explosions especially because they came at a time when there was increasing conviction that security is improving in Iraq. A consolation or a word from a political or security official did not manage to cushion the repercussions of the explosions or improve the tarnished image of the state. Something else the writer found very confusing was the excuse that some came up with -- the absence of real pursuit of national reconciliation. As if an explosion is the only tool or option before political opponents in order to impose their will. In order to reward them for their achievement, one should bow to their demands. But would that transform them into doves, Abbas asked in the Iraqi daily Al-Rafidayn. Tariq Al-Homayed agreed with Iraqi Foreign Minister Hoshyar Zebary that the future could bring worse blasts. He added that the present government committed two strategic mistakes -- it celebrated the withdrawal of US troops as an achievement of the government in the hope that it would boost Prime Minister Nuri Al-Maliki in elections in January. The second is the over- confidence in the security forces that was shown in removing the cement walls around Baghdad. It aimed to show Al-Maliki's government as strong and in full control of security whereas in reality, there are clear indications that Iran, Al-Qaeda and the Baathists penetrated the security forces. Thus Al-Homayed reiterated that plans to win the election should be done through reconciliation, the only tangible political achievement. "The future holds greater if not worse danger to Iraq unless genuine political reconciliation is achieved," he summed up in the London-based political daily Asharq Al-Awsat . Writers looked at the significance of the release of Megrahi, the Libyan accused of the Lockerbie bombing. Haydar Rashid focussed on news that came out of Libya in an attempt to analyse the changes in domestic and external Libyan politics past the present. The most important piece of news was the release of Megrahi who was allegedly freed for humanitarian reasons. However, other newspapers claimed deals and contracts with Britain were behind his freedom. The other piece of news was the official apology by the Swiss president to Libya for detaining Libyan leader Muammar Gaddafi's son and daughter-in-law in Switzerland. In another related issue, newspapers reported that in response to the detention, Libya withdrew some five million euros from Swiss banks, cancelled a number of investment contracts with Bern and banned two Swiss investors from leaving Libyan territory. Rashid concluded that Libyan politics had witnessed great changes since Gaddafi came to power. "But the main pillar in it is the language of money and investment contracts to impose its demands," Rashid wrote in the Jordanian independent daily Al-Arab Al-Yom.
