The following are editorial opinions from newspapers from around the world which may be of interest to Royal Gazette readers.

Aftenposten, Oslo, Norway,–on the Middle East

The absence of war is not the same as peace. The cease-fire that went into force for the Gaza Strip this weekend is extremely fragile. None of the fundamental conflicts between Israel and the Palestinian Hamas movement have been solved. The path back to armed conflict is dangerously short.

More than 1,300 Palestinians have been killed since Israeli planes began attacks on December 27 to stop rocket strikes from Gaza against southern Israel. In the same period, 13 Israelis lost their lives. ...

Shocking pictures of the destruction are now spreading around the world. So are the tales of individual suffering in a war where there was no place to hide. Some will, without a doubt, use these stories to harden battle willingness ahead of new, irreconcilable confrontations.

We hope the pointlessness of these tragedies can speed up work on finding a last peace settlement.

For Israel, the prices for this iron-fisted use of might has been loss of support from the rest of the world and increased isolation in Israeli's immediate vicinity. In the long term, this is a burden the country cannot afford.

Hamas ... is probably not knocked out. In its not unlikely that Hamas has strengthened its position among Palestinians ...

The rest of the world, with the US in the lead, should see the cease-fire as a chance to start real negotiations.

Jordan Times, Amman, Jordan,–on Barack Obama

The inauguration of Barack Obama as the 44th president of the United States marks a milestone in US history. And could be a lesson for many developed countries around the world.

Born to a Kenyan father and a white mother from Kansas, Obama overcame many — including racial — hurdles to win the hearts and minds of not only his countrymen but also of millions of people from the four corners of the world.

His journey to the White House was long and difficult, but his perseverance and deep conviction that his nation is due for a change enabled him to win the race. ...

There is need to change the way the US conducts itself vis-a-vis the international community. George Bush and his administration broke the promise to come to the rescue, especially, of people that are still denied freedom and self-determination rescue or of those living in abject poverty and deprivation. ...

What the new US president has to do to correct past failures and bring about peace between Israel and its Arab neighbours is to signal, as early as possible, his determination to be even handed and bold in pursuing a policy of proactive engagement in the Palestinian problem. ...

Impartiality and respect of international law is all that is needed to address that. It cannot be too much to ask of anybody.