Gaza violence

Mark Regev and Jibril Rajoub

Jibril Rajoub, a Fatah party member, joins Sir David to discuss the blockade of Gaza

Recent events in the Israeli and Palestinian conflict do not bode well for the ongoing peace talks.

Israeli incursions into Gaza in the last two weeks have left over 120 Palestinians dead.

The military operation came after Palestinian militants in the Hamas administered territory stepped up rocket attacks on Israel, killing one and injuring others.

Then on Thursday evening a Palestinian gunman killed eight people at a Jewish religious college in East Jerusalem. Hamas did not claim responsibility for the attack but supported it in response to Israel’s military action.
 

Gaza has been under a blockade for over six months and in January it was tightened further amid a surge in rocket attacks. This week a coalition of UK based charities said that the territory was experiencing the worst humanitarian crisis since Israeli occupation during the 1967 war.

Mark Regev – the spokesperson for Ehud Olmert, the Israeli prime minister, – joins Sir David to discuss the attack on Jewish students and its implications for the peace talks.

Ragev defends the actions of the Israeli army and says it will be difficult to deal with Hamas because they are opposed to peace and reconciliation.

Sir David also talks to Jibril Rajoub, a member of the Fatah party who worked in the late Yasser Arafat’s administration.

Rajoub condemns attacks that target innocent civilians, Palestinian or Israeli. He also says Hamas is part of the Palestinian society and as such must be treated as a partner in the peace process.

Watch the interview with Mark Regev and Jibril Rajoub on YouTube 

Wangari Maathai

Dr. Wangari Maathai is the first African woman to receive the Nobel Peace Prize

Hundreds of people have been killed in Kenya since last December’s disputed election.

Kenya had previously been seen as one of Africa’s more stable and prosperous countries. Following the violence, Kenya is now faced with a variety of challenges including reconstruction, dealing with the displaced and wounded and healing deep-seated ethnic tensions.

This week, Mwai Kibaki, Kenya’s president, urged MPs to approve a power sharing agreement aimed at ending the political crisis. Under the deal, opposition leader Raila Odinga would assume the new post of prime minister.
 

Dr. Wangari Maathai is a Kenyan environmental and political activist. In 2004 she became the first African woman to receive the Nobel Peace Prize. Maathai is also an elected member of the Kenyan parliament and served as a minister under Kibaki between 2003 and 2005.

Maathai joins Sir David to discuss the power sharing deal and the possibility of returning to the political fray. Maathai says that there is a real sense of optimism in Kenya following the political agreement but warns that the root cause of the crisis must be addressed.

Watch the interview with Wangari Maathai on YouTube

Jeffrey Archer

Jeffrey Archer joins the programme to discuss his latest book, A Prisoner of Birth

Jeffrey Archer is a British best-selling author and former politician. After leaving Oxford University he was elected to the Greater London Council, and three years later he became a member of parliament.

However, he was forced to resign from parliament five yeas later after investing in a fraudulent company.

Archer subsequently took up writing and was immediately successful with a string of best-sellers, including Kane and Abel and his first book Not a Penny More, Not a Penny Less.

Jeffrey Archer joins Sir David to discuss his latest book, A Prisoner of Birth, and his experiences during a two-year stint in prison.

Watch the interview with Jeffrey Archer on YouTube

Laura Schwartz

Sir David is joined by Laura Schwartz, a US Democratic political commentator

This week George Bush, the US president, endorsed Arizona Senator John McCain’s White House bid after the candidate sealed the Republican nomination.

The Democrats meanwhile are no closer to selecting their candidate, with Hillary Clinton and Barack Obama neck and neck in the US presidential race.

Following ‘Super Tuesday’ Obama won ten primaries in a row giving his campaign real momentum.

Clinton has since fought back with victories in the important states of Ohio and Texas, as well as Rhode Island. The outcome may not be settled until the Democratic Convention in August when the ‘Superdelegates’ cast their votes.

Sir David is joined by Laura Schwartz, a Democratic political commentator and former special assistant to Bill Clinton, a former US president.

Schwartz warns that the closeness of the Democratic race could benefit the Republicans. She also says that Obama is likely to have more delegates than Clinton by the time of the convention.

Kate Parker

Kate Parker joins Sir David and discusses Columbia’s current situation

This week Venezuela and Ecuador cut diplomatic ties with Columbia and sent troops to Columbia’s borders.

This followed an incursion by the Columbian army into Ecuador to attack a Farc rebel camp.

The operation left around 20 dead, including a senior Farc commander.
 

Alvaro Uribe, Columbia’s president, has apologised to Ecuador for the incursion but maintained the action was necessary.

Columbia also criticised both Ecuador and Venezuela for not clamping down on the group heavily enough.
 
Farc were established in the 1960s as the military wing of the Columbian Communist Party and are considered by many to be a terrorist group.

During the 1980s, the rebel group became involved in the illicit drug trade, which fuelled their conflict with the Columbian government.
 

Sir David talks to Kate Parker of the Economist Intelligence Unit about Columbia’s actions and the subsequent tensions in the region.

Parker warns the possibility of war cannot be discounted but says Venezuela and Ecuador would have little chance of beating US-backed Columbia in a military conflict.

Watch the interview with Laura Schwartz and Kate Parker on YouTube

Frost Over The World airs at 18:00GMT every Friday on Al Jazeera English and is repeated during the week.