Visit msnbc.com for Breaking News, World News, and News about the Economy Secretary of State Hillary Clinton unequivocally stated that the United States would not permit Iran to obtain a nuclear weapon, she said this morning on NBC’s Meet the Press. Her comments come amidst speculation that Israel is preparing to strike Iran’s nuclear facilities. […]
In the midst of the Israel-U.S. dispute over settlements and a potential Israeli strike on Iran, four senior American officials will arrive in Israel this week, although U.S. officials contend that the high concentration of American presence in the region is purely coincidental. U.S. Special Envoy George Mitchell will meet with Israeli Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu on […]
The Israeli government embarked on its first major financial initiative to strengthen Arab-owned businesses by releasing a 160 million shekel ($40 million) tender late last week to support the integration of these companies into the overall economy. The program provides 80 million shekels of government money to the winning bidder of the tender who must […]
All across the world today, people are showing their solitary to the Iranian people in their struggle for democracy, freedom and human rights. In over 80 cities, from Austin, Texas to London to Tokyo, people are protesting against the disputed Iranian presidential election and the severe clampdown on opposition activities by the Iranian government. The […]
Foreign Policy published a piece by two academics – one Palestinian, Osama Abu-Irshaid, and one an American Jew with strong ties to Israel, Paul Scham – suggesting that in order to reach any kind of peace agreement with Hamas, negotiating partners (i.e. Israel and the United States) need to accept that they will never recognize […]
The U.S. government delivered the first $200 million of an expected $900 million to the Palestinian Authority yesterday. The State Department pledged the donations in March at a conference in Cairo meant to raise funding for Gaza Strip reconstruction and Palestinian Authority initiatives. The State Department released the following data on U.S. investments in the […]
Another power struggle is going on in Iran and its not reformist politicians against the hard-line political establishment. President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad has maintained his choice of Esfandiar Rahim-Mashaii as first vice president over the objections of the Supreme Leader Ayatollah Khamenei. Rahim-Mashaii upset hard-line clerics and politicians in 2008 by stating that Iranians were “friends […]
The latest line in pro-Israel new media is a Facebook widget that changes an individuals Facebook status to read as a fun fact about the Jewish State. A group of students from Hebrew University in Jerusalem created the application and already 3,000 people use the widget on their Facebook accounts. Some fun facts include: the […]
During her trip to Thailand, US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton has created quite a stir with her remarks on Iran. In her harshest words delivered against Iran yet, Clinton warned that the United States would take “crippling action” and work to “upgrade the defense of our partners in the region.” She warned Iran that […]
Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak travelled to Paris this week for discussions with European leaders to improve regional cooperation, however some reports indicate that the trip was a guise for surgery. Reportedly, the procedure is likely far more serious than Egyptian media accounts that claim Mubarak had back surgery. Moreover, many medical procedures performed on geriatric […]
The Lebanese government has charged 17 people in a plot to harm UN peacekeepers stationed in the southern part of the country. So far, ten people have been arrested and the other seven, including the groups alleged leader, were charged in absentia. The group, reportedly made up of people from Lebanese, Syrian and Palestinian origins, […]
One reason why Iran has always fascinated me is due to the many contradictions and paradoxes found in the Iranian society. They overthrew the tyrannical Shah in a revolution, but ended up replacing him with a dogmatic theological regime. It is an Islamic Republic, but its most prominent holiday, Nowruz, is based on Zoroastrianism. It’s […]
The Turkish government seeks to resume facilitating an Israeli-Syrian peace process, Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan said today after meeting with Syrian President Basher al-Assad. Resumption of the peace process could result from increased overtures from the United States towards Syria, most notably the appointment of an ambassador to Damascus alongside various trips from […]
The majority of Palestinians lack trust in Fatah, Hamas, or any other political party, according to a recent poll. Conducted by Near East Consulting, the poll found 38-percent of Palestinians maintain confidence in Fatah, compared with only 11-percent for Hamas and five-percent for other groups. Of likely voters, the poll found that 35-percent of those […]
The ultra-orthodox community in Israel and the settlements continues to gain increased political clout in Israeli politics, according to a new report from the International Crisis Group. Due to high birthrates and political mobilization, these communities will likely prove to be a significant hurdle in the evacuation of settlements and the realization of a two-states […]