The recently released video clip of abducted IDF soldier Gilad Shalit reinvigorated rallies in support of a prisoner exchange and placed a major dilemma on the shoulders of Israeli Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu. Instead of maintaining a refusal to trade over 1,000 Palestinian prisoners for Shalit, Netanyahu faces renewed pressure to agree to an exchange […]
Yesterday was a very historical day as the Iranian delegation met with the United States, the United Kingdom, France, Germany, China and Russia in Geneva. It is a little too soon to judge the efficacy of these talks, but there has been some positive news. As the New York Times reported, Iran has agreed to […]
The first exchange is complete. Israel swapped 19 female prisoners for a one-minute video of abducted IDF soldier Gilad Shalit. The video, shot recently with Shalit holding the September 14 2009 issue of a Palestinian newspaper, shows Shalit in decent health and assuages concerns that the soldier died long ago. Many analysts and officials contend […]
Scores of Lebanese Shiites have recently been expelled from the United Arab Emirates, allegedly for their refusal to inform on Hizballah. The expulsion of the Lebanese nationals started after the June 7 parliamentary elections in Lebanon, but had not been widely known or reported on until the group went public. Lebanon’s President Suleiman reportedly traveled […]
Tomorrow Obama administration’s essay at diplomacy with Iran will take place. While some are applauding this move as a new era in the Iran- U.S. relationship, the Wall Street Journal is reminding people that this is not the first time the United States has reached across to negotiate with Iran. In his Op-ed, We’ve Been […]
Hamas and Israeli officials, via Egyptian and German mediation, agreed to swap on Friday a video of abducted IDF soldier Gilad Shalit for 20 Palestinian female prisoners currently held in Israeli jails. A German mediator with access to the video attested that the footage includes segments with Shalit moving, thereby reassuring Israeli officials that Shalit […]
In the midst of Israeli Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu’s clandestine trip to Moscow earlier this month, initial rumors surfaced falsely indicated that the Israeli leader met with Arab leaders. These rumors raised some eyebrows of potential coordination between Israel and Arab countries without ties to the Jewish state, particularly Saudi Arabia and the other Gulf […]
[kml_flashembed movie=”http://www.youtube.com/v/URFn9IdecLY” width=”425″ height=”350″ wmode=”transparent” /] Last week ended on a huge Iran shocker: discovery of a new enrichment plant near the city of Qom. This week is also starting with a bang: Iran has tested two long-range missiles which defense analysts say are capable of hitting Israel or US bases in the Gulf region. […]
On the rarest of occasions does one event trigger the complete shutting-down of an entire country. Every once in awhile, members of a country observe a moment of silence, where a majority of the state’s citizens inject a one-minute pause into their daily routine. Such events also occur in Israel, particularly on Israeli Memorial Day […]
All the newspapers are buzzing with one news: the disclosure of a clandestine uranium enrichment plant in Iran. Here is President Obama’s statement on the Iranian nuclear facility that he made along with UK Prime Minister Gordon Brown and French President Sarkozy today at the G-20 meeting. PRESIDENT OBAMA: Good morning. We are here to […]
Iran is replacing the U.S. dollar by the euro in the country’s foreign exchange accounts. The Arabian Business reported that the euro will be used to calculate the value of the country’s Oil Stabilization Fund (OSF). The OSF, which forms part of Iran’s foreign exchange reserves, is a contingency fund set up to help the […]
The visit of Syrian President Bashar Assad to Jeddah, Saudi Arabia for the opening of Saudi King Abdullah’s new state-of-the-art, mixed gender university is expected to have a positive influence on Lebanese Prime Minister Saad Hariri’s effort to form a cabinet. Both Syria and Saudi Arabia hold significant influence in Lebanon and their cooperation is […]
Jews around the world are preparing to atone for their sins during the festival of Yom Kippur, a 25-hour day of fasting filled with self-reflection and prayers for the strength to improve oneself in the coming year. Yom Kippur is not about oppression like Passover or overcoming adversity like Hanukah. This festival is the one […]
Looks like this year Qaddafi will be the center of attention at the UN. While Ahmadinejad’s speech had some classic “blame West” moments, it just did not match the diatribes found in Qaddafi’s speech (For more on Qaddafi’s speech, check out the Foreign Policy Association’s Human Rights Blog). Ahmadinejad’s speech was more subdued, but that […]
Last week, Iranian President Ahmadinejad once again outraged the world by calling the Holocaust a “myth”. To be honest, it is embarrassing to me as a Muslim when I see a Muslim leader espouse such vitriol. This summer I went to the Dachau concentration camp and it was one of the most heart wrenching experience. […]