Israel seems to be facing something that it might not have expected in its war of words with its neighbors: unity. And it looks like some nations of the Middle East are hanging together in the face of Israeli aggression instead of hanging alone, which has often been the tradition in the past. Falling far […]
Egypt is bracing for changes in its internal politics. Mr. Elbaradei is in the lead in this push for political reform in the country; supported by small opposition groups he warned the current regime of potential civil disobedience. The Muslim Brotherhood, the largest political group in Egypt, under the leadership of its new elected chairman […]
Well, Mr. Moammar Gadhafi has now called for “Jihad” against Switzerland. The call to Jihad is suppose to be in retaliation against the Swiss ban of the building of new mosque minarets in the country. Mr. Gadhafi made the provoking comments fully aware of special place he enjoys in the Arab and Muslim World. When […]
The stalled Israeli-Palestinian peace process and U.S. position toward Israel has reportedly frustrated Special Envoy and Obama administration negotiator George Mitchell, leading him to offer his resignation, which was rejected in turn. Peace talks have gone nearly nowhere and Israeli, Palestinian and U.S. officials alike have scattered blame for the failure. Mitchell reportedly objected to […]
President Barack Obama intends to honor a slew of influential individuals in the humanities. Although two names stick out as having had a profound influence on Israel and the Jewish world. For starters, the President will honor author and Holocaust survivor Elie Wiesel, who has penned a number of influential books on the subject and […]
The head of the IAEA announced yesterday in Egypt that he could be a presidential candidate in the next elections. For the people of Egypt this is an announcement of hope. Upon arrival in his home country about a week ago, Mr. ElBaradei announced the creation of a commission with a primary goal of “advocacy […]
The assassination of a top Hamas official sparked an international outcry accusing Israel of committing the daring paramilitary activity. While there is still no official confirmation or substantial evidence that the Mossad committed the act, most observers either blame Israel or think there is no doubt to suspect any other country (Hamas has enough enemies […]
Great political confusion is taking place in Israel, the confusion is manifested by actions and statements made by a government that can only be described as a government in disarray. The cold relationship and the lack of chemistry between President Obama and Prime Minister Netanyahu are seen to be a tacit disapproval of the current […]
Israel is still contemplating restarting peace negotiations with Syria. The Obama administration just reversed a Bush administration position and sent an ambassador to Damascus. Syria continues to fuel turmoil in Lebanon and function as an ally for Iran. Syria also continues to support terror and permit conventional weapons proliferation and attempted -unsuccessfully thanks to an Israeli […]
With world opinion generally critical of Israeli actions and the large majority of the Arab world opposed to the Jewish state, Israel takes the friends it can get. However, Israel is still involved in a tiff with the self-titled pro-Israel, pro-peace lobby J Street. Some Israeli officials, such as ambassador to the U.S. Michael Oren, […]
It’s that time of year when our readers should be rooting on the Hoyas in the Big East. But, Georgetown may pick up a few more fans in the Middle East as the university considers opening a satellite teaching hospital in the Palestinian territories. Georgetown already operates a campus in Qatar and recently opened up […]
After the fall of Saddam Hussein, the United States found itself battling a tough and stubborn Shiite insurgency. This resistance was led by a young militant named Muqtada al-Sadr, and before long, Middle East analysts and scholars began drawing comparisons to another Shiite resistance leader, Hizballah’s Hassan Nasrallah. Before the US-led invasion of 2003, the […]
Observers are assessing the outcome of the Secretary of State Mrs. Clinton’s trip to the Middle East. The Itinerary of the secretary was, first, the attendance of U.S.-Islamic World conference, second, stops in various Arab cities to promote and gather support for tougher sanctions against Iran. The result: mission unaccomplished. About a year ago, the […]
Sometimes I feel like I could run the show better at the Israeli Foreign Ministry than its current occupants. Last month, the Israeli government managed to apologize to Turkey after Turkish media depicted Israelis in an anti-Semitic context. Deputy Foreign Minister Danny Ayalon refused to shake the hand of a Turkish ambassador, leading Israeli officials […]
In the past few days the Dubai Chief of Police released CCTV footage of a hit team that took the life of Mahmoud Al-Mabhouh on January 19, 2010. This footage has sparked an international man hunt for the 11 people identified by their passport photos. Mabhouh was a senior member of Hamas and one of […]