WHAT THE PAPER SAY: Middle East duel is no match for a royal flush

MUCH hand-wringing over the increasingly desperate situation in the Middle East dominates Europe's news pages this week. Italy's Corriere Della Sera says the current stand-off between Israel and the Palestinian Authority is the "end of the game for Yasser Arafat". The paper says that the duel between Ariel Sharon and Arafat looks as if it will end soon in the Israeli leader's favour.