Gaza, general news, and a few pieces to bring in the New Year

For those who are coming out of their holiday hibernation (because if you're anything like me you will have generally avoided newspapers like the plague for two weeks), there are numerous international situations which have developed in recent weeks. At the top of the list is Gaza.
Of course the cease-fire was generally considered precarious at best, but to have it be broken so completely and fiercely was unexpected by many in the international community. For those looking for background information there are several fairly balanced reports to read:
Gaza: the rights and wrongs - The Economist
Beyond Gaza - Daily briefing from the Council on Foreign Relations
Crisis Guide: The Israeli-Palestinian Conflict - An excellent background guide from the Council on Foreign Relations with reports, movies and timelines which is useful for those looking for more history on the overall conflict.
Ending the war in Gaza - Solutions from the International Crisis Group


Going beyond background - A few interesting selections:
Why Israel Fights - Opinion piece from the New York Times (WARNING: this is an editorial so it displays bias, as do the following selections, but it was an interesting perspective of the situation in terms of the US and its policy towards the Middle East as a whole)
In the US, Gaza is a different war - Examination of the portrayal of the war in the mainstream American media from Al Jazeera
Gazans: "We are living a nightmare"- Al Jazeera


In other news, results from the election in Ghana were finally released, the situation in Zimbabwe has worsened dramatically, the Sri Lankan government has made significant incursions into territory held by the Tamil Tigers, voters in Bangladesh overwhelmingly elected a secular party, and riots in Greece threw the country into a state of emergency. Despite eschewing current events, I'm sure many of you were bombarded with the image of an Iraqi reporter hurling shoes at President Bush during a press conference.



Since it is the new year there have been numerous reports making forecasts for next year and reflecting on the past one. Some of the interesting ones I've come across have been linked below:
The Year Ahead - The Economist
The Top Ten Stories You Missed in 2008 - Foreign Policy
The Great Crash, 2008 - Foreign Affairs (predicts the geopolitical shift of power in the coming year as a result of financial collapse)