EGYPT: Contagious, but benevolent and the ground is shaking under the Israeli feet.

 Palestinians talk elections amid Egypt unrest

RAMALLAH, West Bank (AP) - The Western-backed Palestinian government in the West Bank says it will hold local council elections "as soon as possible." 

The move appears to be a response to unrest in Egypt, where demonstrators have staged days of rallies against the authoritarian government. The Palestinian Authority has not held elections since 2006. Prime Minister Salam Fayyad's Cabinet said Tuesday it will set dates for the vote next week. 

Fayyad hopes to hold elections in both the West Bank and the Gaza Strip. But in reality, Gaza will likely not participate since it is controlled by the rival Hamas militant group. 

Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas canceled local elections in the West Bank in 2009 when it appeared that his Fatah movement would lose to independents.

Egypt, Jordan, and the Arab world's 'watershed' moment

(CNN) -- The protests that have spread through parts of the Arab world led to dramatic change in another country Tuesday, as Jordan's king dismissed his government. 

King Abdullah II made the decision following protests in recent weeks in which several thousand people demanded economic and political reforms.

Experts on the region said Tuesday Abdullah's decision was aimed at warding off larger-scale demonstrations in the wake of the huge protests in Tunisia and Egypt. The Tunisia protests, which began the movement, toppled that country's government. In Egypt, President Hosni Mubarak has fired his Cabinet, but protesters in massive demonstrations continue to call for his ouster.

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Yes, 

but not malignant