Israel
Obama’s Chance to Renew the Peace Process

Obama’s Chance to Renew the Peace Process

President Barack Obama’s upcoming trip to the Middle East presents an opportunity to move the dormant Palestinian-Israeli peace process forward. If he’s serious about making progress, the president should take into account how dispute resolution works in the Arab and Muslim world and note how little resemblance it bears to the West’s approaches to resolving conflicts. Understanding the sides’ different cultural perspectives on key aspects of negotiations will be crucial to creating a successful peace bid.

read more

Ahead of March Iran Talks, U.S. Urged to Back Possible Israeli Strike

Senators Lindsey Graham and Robert Menendez introduced a joint resolution declaring U.S. support for Israel in the event of an Israeli military strike on Iran’s nuclear programme. “If the Senate moves forward with this [non-binding resolution,] they risk sending the signal to the Iranians that, no matter what was said at Almaty, the U.S. does not have its own house in order to make a deal and is not serious about resolving the nuclear dispute peacefully,” says Jamal Abdi, policy director of the National Iranian American Council.

read more
Israel’s Pointless Attack on Syria

Israel’s Pointless Attack on Syria

Israel’s recent air strike on one of Syria’s premier military research centers came as no surprise to those monitoring the spiraling turn of events in the Levant over the last few months. In the days and weeks running up to the audacious attack, there were several signs that something was afoot—a scurry of Israeli envoys shuttling between Tel Aviv and Washington, reports of closed-door security meetings, the distribution of gas masks to residents of northern Israel, and the deployment of Israel’s Iron Dome missile defense system in the same region, to name just a few.

read more
The Depths of Malaise in Palestine

The Depths of Malaise in Palestine

According to recent polls of Palestinians, frustration with the Israel-Palestinian conflict is at a high point; the two-state solution is steadily losing credibility in the eyes of the people; and ordinary citizens in the Holy Land are starting to wonder whether a settlement can be achieved without another round of bloodshed. 

read more

It’s All About Israel

If former Defence Secretary-designate Sen. Chuck Hagel’s lacklustre performance at his confirmation hearing Thursday heartened neo-conservatives and other hawks opposed to his nomination, those who argued that the Israel lobby has been exerting too great an influence on U.S. foreign policy were ecstatic. In fact, the degree to which Israel and the threat posed to it by Iran dominated the hearing was somewhat understated: The full transcript revealed that Israel was brought up no less than 178 times, followed closely by Iran with 171 mentions.

read more