The United States has renewed sanctions against Syria after considering sending an ambassador to Damascus and taking steps to normalize relations. The reasons cited for this move is Syrian intransigence in her ties with Iran, her snub of the recent Arab summits on international security, and the sale of SCUD missiles to Hezbollah. Please read […]
Palestinian Prime Minister Salaam Fayyad is everywhere. His plan to develop economic, political, social, and security institutions has rapidly caught the world’s attention over the last year and Fayyad is slowly gaining ground among the Palestinian population — all this from a man who was appointed to his position because of the dismal popularity he […]
Book Review: How Did the Persian Empire Collapse? This book review was originally published in Iran Times International in Washington D.C. Decline and fall of the Sasanian Empire: The Sasanian-Parthian Confederacy and the Arab Conquest of Iran, Parvaneh Pourshariati (International Library of Iranian Studies), 510 pp. This is a landmark work of original scholarship that gathers […]
One of the more shocking stories regarding Iranian nuclear program I read this weekend was The New York Times’ article “U.S. Subpoenas Times Reporter Over Book on C.I.A.” The author, James Risen, who is a reporter for The New York Times and a Pulitzer Prize winner, received a subpoena requiring him to provide documents and […]
See. As I said yesterday, I told you the administration loves us. President Obama proclaimed that May is Jewish Heritage Month. Oddly enough, he also proclaimed that May 1 is both Law Day (yes, there is that stereotype about Jews) and Loyalty Day (and yes, there is the bigoted dual-allegiance claim about Jewish-Americans that resurfaces […]
There have been at least two odd scenes in Beirut over the last couple of weeks. The first was a soccer game played by MPs which was supposed to demonstrate cross-sectarian cooperation, and the second was a fairly large march & rally whose participants called for a more secular Lebanon. Both events reflect the sentiment […]
A group of Democratic congressmen are circulating a letter on Capitol Hill for signatures in support of the two-state solution, expressing support for the White Houses efforts and egged on President Barack Obama to continue seeking resolution to the decades-old conflict. The effort is led by Reps. Bill Delahunt (D-MA), Ron Kind (D-WI), David Price […]
Not to spread blatant propaganda, but I criticize Israel enough that during the month of Independence day I can be civil. Israel has defied all odds. Israel turned a desert and swamp into a thriving democracy, a leader in science and an economic hub in a region largely dominated by non-democratic regimes that suppress human […]
[kml_flashembed movie=”http://www.youtube.com/v/YGvlwvB3O24″ width=”425″ height=”350″ wmode=”transparent” /] As Al Jazeera reports Iran’s football federation says it is sending a delegation to Fifa – the international football association – to urge the Geneva-based association to overturn its ban on the hijab. The ban effectively prohibits the Iranian women’s team from playing in the Youth Olympic Games in Singapore this August. Fifa says the dress contradicts […]
National Security Advisor Gen. Jim Jones gave a rousing pro-Israel speech at the Washington Institute for Near East Policy last week, expressing the Obama administration’s continued support for Israel. Meanwhile, speculation continues to swirl that the White House’s has instigated a crisis in relations between the two countries, spurred in part by disagreements on settlements […]
For those interested in the J Street vs. professor Alan Dershowitz debate that reached a climax earlier this year at the AIPAC conference, the feud has been elevated to new heights, with both groups chiming in to lambaste one another. Dershowitz threw the latest punch, alleging that J Street could no longer claim to be pro-Israel, noting […]
The White House is hosting a summit on Global entrepreneurship in Washington D.C. next week. In a conference call earlier today, white house spokes people stated that the initiative is a result of certain promises made during the President’s Cairo speech. The conference will focus on areas of education, science and technology, economic opportunities, health […]
Even though the Obama administration has publicly clashed with Netanyahu administration, resulting in what some have called a crisis, the White House has floated the idea of drafting a new peace proposal. Some reports indicate that U.S. and Israeli officials have secretly begun ironing out differences, with the top state department Middle East advisory traveling […]
Author’s note: a previous version of this article appeared on the MEA website. Israeli officials claimed last Thursday that they had intelligence indicating that Syria has been arming Hizballah with SCUD missiles. If so, it would mark a significant departure for Hizballah in terms of military strategy and weapons capability. Now, nothing should come as […]
Israelis celebrated Independence Day this week, rejoicing in the streets, on the beach, at barbecues, and dancing to music at concerts throughout the country. While Israelis rejoice, some in society are not quite as happy, namely Arabs and Palestinians who label Israeli independence as the “Nakba,” which is translated as “the Catastrophe.” Protesters “mourning” the Nakba carried Palestinian […]