The Washington Post, in its Feb. 22 edition, carries an article by correspondents William Booth and Anne Gearan, titled "One things missing as talks progress: Gaza - Deal would essentially leave out 1.6 million Palestinians."  The basic point of their report is that, while Israel and Mahmoud Abbas's Palestinian Authority are engaged in peace talks, Gaza under Hamas rule is left out, along with 1.6 million Palestinians. Or as they put it, "[t]he isolated and besieged Palestinian territory called the Gaza Strip is the rarely mentioned elephant in the bargaining room -- a huge obstacle to a permanent settlement of the decades-old conflict."  So far, so good, but not nearly good enough.  In depicting Gaza's isolation, Booth and Gearan tell Post readers that Hamas is in a weak position and has to govern "under a tight Israeli embargo." Which brings us to their dispatch's first glaring omission -- failure to mention that it's not just Israel that is...(Read Full Post)