Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu met with Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak today, reaffirming that Israel will seek a peace process with the Palestinians. Netanyahu stated that the renew of the peace process could occur as early as the coming weeks. The two leaders also discussed reconstruction efforts in Gaza and the partnership to reduce terrorism emanating […]
A new report indicates that Israel intends to develop infrastructure -such as parks and highways- to surround Jerusalem in order to solidify the country’s grip on the city. Many proponents of a two-state solution state the need for a divided Jerusalem as the capital city of both Israel and a future Palestinian state. Many right […]
Washington Post columnist Charles Krauthammer deconstructs the ten-year truce deal offered by Hamas leader Khalid Meshal in an interview earlier this week with the New York Times. He asserts that the ceasefire would only serve to permit Hamas to rearm itself and gain momentum to eventually rid the Middle East of Israel, a staple in the […]
The Obama Administration’s refusal to condition Egypt’s military aid on political and human rights reform is congruent with Bush Administration’s policy. It is a good move, aimed at maintaining the strategic relationship. In interviews in Egypt, Hillary Clinton and Robert Gates have both gone on record as opposing conditions as a matter of policy. Secretary […]
While the world uses science and health advisories to combat the swine flu (officially referred to in Israel as the Mexican flu to avoid offending observers of Kashrut where pigs are forbidden), some rabbis in Israel are urging a different approach– prayer and a day of fast. The Israeli government already posted advisories and quarantined […]
Middle East Progress interviewed Israeli President Shimon Peres on his latest trip to the United States to meet President Barack Obama and speak at the AIPAC conference. Peres expressed the need for hope in the peace process, a strategy mirroring, although likely unrelated, the Obama ’08 campaign. Notably, Peres stated: “The Israeli public has already […]
Hamas continued reaching out to the Obama Administration, this time in an exclusive interview of the group’s leader Khalid Meshal with the New York Times. He stated that the group intends to pursue a working relationship with the West, and urged observers to understand that the organization can adapt and negotiate depending on the circumstance. […]
US Secretary of Defense Robert Gates arrived in Egypt today in the first stop on a week-long tour of Egypt and Saudi Arabia. I suspect that Gates will make some unannounced stops in the region (to Iraq, perhaps), but I can’t verify that. Gates set out three goals for his meetings in Egypt: (1) encourage […]
It’s no surprise that the residents of Egypt’s Manshiyat Nasser (also known as “Garbage City), the vast majority of whom are poor Copts who make a living in part by raising swine (as well as sorting and selling garbage), did not take well to the Egyptian government’s recent decision to slaughter the country’s 300,000 pigs […]
Due to anti-Arab cheers emanating from the stands of right-wing affiliated soccer team Beitar Jerusalem, the team must play a home game against rival Maccabi Tel Aviv sans fans as punishment. The recent infraction occured last month when multiple fans initiated chants insulting Muhammed. In the past, fans booed during a moment of silence for assassinated […]
Washington Post Columnist David Ignatius writes about moderating a panel discussion at Davos that erupted into a minor international incident between Israel and Turkey. At the event, Israeli Prime Minister Shimon Peres launched into a long rebuttal to the other speakers, defending Israel’s attack on the Gaza Strip. Trying to respond, Turkish Prime Minister Recep […]
According to the new Freedom House Press report, Israel dropped from Free to Partly Free status. The new ranking, though, remains just beyond the threshold to obtain a Free ranking. Meanwhile, the Palestinian Authority ranked as Not Free and Israel maintains the best overall free press score in the region. A quick summary of the […]
As U.S. attorneys dropped the espionage case against two former AIPAC officials, Vice President Joe Biden will headline the groups annual meeting. Other prominent speakers include House Majority Leader Steny Hoyer, Senate Foreign Relations Committee Chairman John Kerry, Sen. Dick Durbin, and Reps. Jane Harman and Eric Cantor. Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu will address the […]
The number of Americans opposing settlements jumped 23-percent since 2002 to approximately 75-percent, according to a new poll. The U.S.-backed Road Map for Peace calls for an immediate freeze on settlements while Israeli Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu’s posture towards settlements remains in question. Almost exactly half of those questioned, though, expressed equal sympathy for both […]
A judge has ordered the release of four generals that were being held in connection with the assassination of former Lebanese Prime Minister Rafik Hariri in 2005. Belgian judge Daniel Fransen ordered the men to be freed Wednesday after it was determined that the evidence being used to hold them was insufficient. The four generals […]