March 7th

NEWS: Pro-Israel activists are having a significant impact on the Washington conversation regarding Iran. PLO officials say the Middle East does not need more wars. The UN says exports from Gaza are still greatly inhibited. A top US military officer says the stalemate in Middle East peace talks endangers American interests. Israeli NGOs demand a probe into alleged abuse of a Palestinian woman by Israeli internal security. Palestinian citizens of Israel say the state is investing in their sector, but not enough. Senior Israeli rabbis warn against provocative actions by Jewish extremists at Jerusalem holy sites. Asharq Al-Awsat profiles Palestinian diplomat Nasser al-Kidwa, who will serve as deputy as to Kofi Annan, the joint UN-Arab League special envoy to Syria. Palestinian unity talks remain deadlocked. Palestinian officials say they're going to give Israel a deadline for resuming negotiations. COMMENTARY Aaron David Miller looks at the roles of Israel and Iran in the US election-year politics. David Sanger looks at divisions between the US and Israel regarding Iran. The LA Times says Pres. Obama has made a convincing case on continued diplomacy with Iran. Thomas Friedman says Obama may be the best friend Israel has ever had in the White House. Shmuel Rosner says a one-state arrangement would be a recipe for bloodshed. George Bisharat says Israeli courts don't provide justice for Palestinians. Ha'aretz says PM Netanyahu returned from Washington empty-handed. Elias Harfoush says Israel has ensured that the Iran issue is a major one in the US presidential campaign. Yossi Alpher sees worrying precursors of a possible third intifada, and Ghassan Khatib says the situation is volatile and unpredictable. Saleh Abdel Jawad says no one can know if another intifada is developing, but the issue raises important questions

March 6th

NEWS: The Sinai gas pipeline is again attacked. PM Netanyahu meets Pres. Obama at the White House, and Israeli officials say they are “disappointed” with the meeting. Palestinians say they are also “disappointed but not surprised” by the tenor of the meetings. PA officials warn new austerity measures may not offset the financial crisis. A Palestinian Constitutional Court postpones a hearing on whether the PA president can also serve as prime minister. Two Palestinian children are killed by abandoned Israeli ordnance in the West Bank. Gazans turn to generators given constant electricity outages. A Hamas leader says the organization would not get dragged into any conflict involving Iran. COMMENTARY: The New York Times says neither Israel nor Iran should doubt Obama's resolve. Bruce Ackerman says there is an important legal case against any attack on Iran. Robert Malley and Aaron David Miller say a unilateral Israeli pullback from parts of the West Bank could be useful. The CSM asks if Israel is formally an "ally" of the United States at all. Merav Michaeli says Palestinian women in Israel face a double-discrimination. Gershon Baskin says something must be done urgently to save the two-state solution. Emad El Din Adeeb says Israel believes another intifada may be imminent, and if it does emerge, it must be peaceful. Linda Heard agrees another intifada may be coming. Musa Keilani says many Israelis think a destabilized, disintegrated Syria is in their interests. Connie Bruck explains how those quoted in an ad by the Emergency Committee for Israel strongly objected to the advertisement.

March 5th

NEWS: In Israel there is both support and condemnation of a Palestinian citizen of Israel judge who stayed silent during the national anthem. Israeli officials cast a wary eye on the Sinai. Some supporters of Israel pressure Pres. Obama on the issue of Iran. Speculation grows that Israel may be considering special forces actions in Iran. Palestinian officials say they will give Israel a new deadline to agree ground rules for another round of talks. Former PM Olmert will address the next J Street conference. A new poll suggests that most Americans still have more positive views of Israel than the Palestinians. Palestinians find it hard to sell food products in Israel. Pres. Abbas may be preparing to send PM Netanyahu a letter asking about Israel's position regarding peace talks. In spite of turning against the Syrian regime, Hamas has not made any progress with the United States. Divisions in Hamas are threatening the primacy of its Politburo leader. Relations between Egypt and Hamas grow warmer, but are still distant. COMMENTARY: Colin Kahl says advocates of an attack on Iranian nuclear facilities should recall the outcome of the attack on Iraq's nuclear program. Doyle McManus says the US should not let itself be compromised by Israeli brinksmanship. Ha'aretz says Israel should heed Obama's advice on Iran. Chemi Shalev says Obama's hard-core detractors won't be swayed no matter what he says. Ron Kampeas looks at the upcoming Obama-Netanyahu meeting. Mostafa Zein says all US administrations look at the Middle East only through the Israeli lens. Rami Khouri says Hamas' break with Syria signals the end of the “resistance axis.” Oudeh Basharat says the time has come for Palestinians to speak out against atrocities in Syria. David Remnick says Israel's democracy is imperiled by extremism. Daniel Levy says Israeli domestic politics make it less likely that there would be any attack against Iran.

March 2nd

NEWS: Upcoming meetings between Pres. Obama and PM Netanyahu will focus on Iran. Pres. Peres says the US should put all options on the table regarding Iran and promises the Catholic Church to protect Christian sites in Jerusalem. Hamas again confirms its political headquarters is no longer in Damascus. Another hunger striking Palestinian prisoner held without charge by Israel says she will not stop until her demands are met. Hundreds participate in a marathon race in Gaza. Israel is preparing to test a next-generation missile system. FM Lieberman says Israel's military and settlers must stay in the Jordan Valley. Most Americans see Iran as a threat, but most Israelis oppose a military attack. Experts are seeking ways to both calm Israel and contain Iran. UNRWA faces much skepticism and misunderstanding in the United States. COMMENTARY: Aaron David Miller says Iran, Israel and Turkey are the driving powers in the Middle East now. Ha'aretz says Israel should consider amending its national anthem to include non-Jewish sentiments, and Noah Klieger says it's unreasonable to expect any Arab, even the most loyal citizen of Israel, to sing a song about Jewish national aspirations. Yoel Marcus says Israel is becoming a footnote in American politics. Aluf Benn says Netanyahu's Washington trip will be the most momentous of his career. Alex Fishman says Israel should be very concerned about growing Palestinian despair. Jill Jacobs says the Jewish National Fund is involved in human rights abuses in the occupied territories, but its CEO, Russell Robinson, denies this. George Hishmeh says Israel's policies are a dangerous course of action. Ahmad Nagi says Palestinians face a bleak future. Shawqi Issa says the issue of Palestinian prisoners in Israeli jails is important and complex. Yossi Alpher says it behooves Israel to treat all suspected terrorists equally.

March 1st

NEWS: ATFP urges calm after Israeli occupation forces raid AQU, but questions what message Israel is sending. The stated Israeli reasons for the raids are hotly disputed Palestinians. The PA says seizing broadcast frequencies violates the Oslo agreements. Israel quietly recognizes a major “unauthorized” settlement outpost. A PA office in Gaza is ransacked by unknown assailants. PM Netanyahu's Washington trip will mainly focus on questions regarding Iran. Israeli officials say Syria's rebels want peace with Israel. The Pentagon says it has plans for a possible conflict with Iran. A Jewish Israeli Supreme Court justice says there is no need for Palestinian judges in Israel to sing the national anthem. The PA insists it is opposed to any new intifada. Jordan is slowly easing restrictions on work for Palestinians from Gaza. Democrats are pushing back against Republican efforts to monopolize Israel issues in the American campaign season. COMMENTARY: Amos Yadlin says Israel may feel forced to strike Iran on its own. Ari Shavit says if Netanyahu and Pres. Obama don't start working together on Iran, they may bring disaster on both their countries. Yonah Alexander and Milton Hoenig say there is still room for diplomacy with Iran on the nuclear issue. Gideon Levy says the silence of a judge who is a Palestinian citizen of Israel during the national anthem was a quiet protest. Avi Issacharoff says both Israeli and Palestinian leaders are setting the stage for another intifada. JJ Goldberg says Republican attacks on the church-state divide will not appeal to most Jewish Americans. The National says the ongoing controversy about Mohammed Al Dura shows the Israeli propaganda machine at work. Tariq Alhomayed says if Israel was doing what the Assad regime has been in Syria, the Arab outcry would be much more intense. Stuart Reigeluth and Julian Memetaj say Palestinians in Israel face systematic discrimination.

February 29th

NEWS: ATFP hosts a hosts a Washington dinner for the Council of Religious Institutions of the Holy Land. Israeli occupation forces raid two private TV stations in the West Bank and confiscate equipment, which the PA says violates the Oslo Accords. Israel criticizes an invitation from the PLO to Security Council members to visit the occupied territories, as Palestinians begin to lobby for a resolution condemning settlement activity. The PA says it has made no decision regarding the future of security cooperation with Israel. Palestinians say the Chief Justice of their high religious court died two days after a raid on his home by occupation forces and hold Israel responsible. Israel uses its new “skunk” weapon against protesters in Hebron. A new Israeli study holds that the country's security situation is the worst in decades. Billionaire Sheldon Adelson reportedly gives another “substantial” donation to an organization associated with Newt Gingrich. Pro-Israel voices in the United States join calls for removing the Iranian MEK organization from the official list of designated foreign terrorist groups. COMMENTARY: Zvi Bar'el says the Israeli government believes in numerous mirages. Yitzhak Laor says Israelis are too insulated from the costs of occupation. Arieh O’Sullivan tracks the growing Palestinian opposition to armed resistance. Jonathan Marcus speculates about how Israel might go about attacking Iran if it decided to do so. Daniel Zemel and Jack Moline say Israelis should return to the more tolerant Zionism of the late PM Rabin. Emad El Din Adeeb says the coming phase in Palestinian politics will favor Hamas and its politburo chief. Osama Al Sharif asks if it's too late to save Arab East Jerusalem. Lara Friedman recounts her second, more encouraging, day at a conference on East Jerusalem in Qatar. Tony Karon asks if Hamas' break with Iran is good for Israel. Shibley Telhami looks at Israeli public opinion regarding a possible attack against Iran.

February 28th

NEWS: Israel takes the unusual step of naming a city square after a Palestinian doctor. Israeli troops kill an unidentified man on the Sinai border. The Israeli government asks residents of the largest "unauthorized settlement" to voluntarily relocate. Gaza's power-plant shuts down again. A Palestinian woman being held without charge by Israel is on a hunger strike. Hanan Ashrawi says Israel should end its "policy of racism." Israeli occupation authorities say they intend to build an industrial zone on the site Palestinians had identified for a future Palestinian state airport. Israeli officials reportedly say they would not warn the United States before attacking Iran. J Street brings a delegation of Americans, including six members of Congress, to Israel and the occupied territories. Hamas leaders admit that Iran is angry with the organization for siding with the Syrian opposition. Palestinian officials ask Qatar-based Islamist cleric Qaradawi to retract an opinion that non-Palestinians should not visit Jerusalem. COMMENTARY: Xinhua interviews Gaza-based Hamas leader Haniyyeh. Moshe Arens says Palestinian Muslim and Christian citizens of Israel must serve in the military. The Jerusalem Post praises the late former Israeli PM Begin for not wanting to end the occupation. Susan Hattis Rolef says Israeli courts must decide the demarcation line between Zionists and fascists.Gershon Baskin continues to answer questions from those skeptical about the possibility of peace. Lara Friedman says a recent conference on Jerusalem in Qatar totally ignored Jewish history and much of what was said there was objectionable and painful. Bilal Hassan says confronting Israel is an Arab, and not just a Palestinian, imperative. Hussein Ibish says conditions for the eruption of a third intifada are quickly building.

February 27th

NEWS: The Catholic Church asks Israel to help end attacks on churches in Israel and the occupied territories. Egypt will supply more power to Gaza, but local authorities say it's not enough. Pres. Abbas accuses Israel of conducting “ethnic cleansing” in Jerusalem, which PM Netanyahu angrily denies. Qatar's Emir agrees Arab identity in Jerusalem is at risk. Most other Palestinian parties are blaming Hamas for the impasse in national reconciliation talks. Hamas leaders say they now openly support the Syrian uprising, and analysts say it marks a historic shift in Hamas' regional alignments. Israel is threatening to demolish Palestinian solar energy installations in the occupied territories because they were built “without permission.” Qatar reportedly pledges $250 million for reconstruction in Gaza. Israel is planning a huge railway network for the occupied territories. Israeli officials fear the outbreak of another Palestinian intifada, but not in the coming year. COMMENTARY: AP interviews Hamas leader Abu Marzouk about the group's relocation from Syria. Akiva Eldar says Netanyahu was peddling a swindle during the last round of negotiations. Anshel Pfeffer says Israeli officials are skeptical about a planned pro-Palestinian mass march on Jerusalem next month. The Jerusalem Post interviews former Mossad Chief Halevy, who says it makes no sense to ask Palestinians to recognize Israel as a “Jewish state.” Leonard Fein says Israel needs to face up to its own nuclear arsenal. Shlomo Gazit says there is no apartheid in Israel, but there is discrimination against Palestinian citizens. Samah Jabr says life in the occupied territories is very much like apartheid. Matt Duss looks at the politics and economics of smuggling in Gaza. U Penn student Joshua Goldman says his “Birthright Israel” experience was hardly apolitical, but in fact tendentious propaganda.

February 24th

NEWS: Palestinians present their own account of what happened in recent negotiations, after Israel leaked its version. The UNSC condemns recent bombing attacks on Israeli diplomats. Two Palestinians are injured in an Israeli airsrike on Gaza. A crisis emerges in Palestinian unity negotiations. The BBC looks at the roots of the crisis. Hamas denies being a obstacle to national unity, or a factor in unrest in Egypt. Occupation forces clash with Palestinian protesters at East Jerusalem holy sites. The US refuses a visa to a right-wing extremist Jewish MK. 400 Palestinians protest in occupied Hebron to open one of the city's main streets to Palestinian traffic. COMMENTARY: Dalia Dassa Kaye says Israel faces bad options regarding Iran's nuclear program. Doron Rosenblum says the current Israeli government doesn't seem to think past the use of force. Xinhua looks at how Israel's coalition politics might affect its foreign policy. Chemi Shalev says Israel's quest for close allies beyond the US and Western Europe is pointless. Tal Becker asks if “delegitimization” is a threat or a nuisance to Israel. J.J. Goldberg says Pres. Obama and PM Netanyahu might agree on Iran more than many think, but they don't trust each other. Paul Findlay says Israel wants to bomb Iran to preserve its nuclear monopoly. Michael Broning says the apparent new flexibility of some Hamas leaders should be tested by engagement. Hasan Barari says Israel is faced with strategic dilemmas regarding the future of Syria. John Dugard says there are some important similarities between Israel's occupation and apartheid in South Africa but that doesn't mean the same response makes sense.

February 23rd

NEWS: The Israeli government gives preliminary approval for 600 more settler housing units. An agreement between Hamas and Egypt may end the fuel crisis in Gaza. Hamas abandons the plan to tax goods imported through Israel. An Israeli talkshow host is being investigated for calling leftists and Arabs “anti-Semites” and “Nazis.” US officials and EU FP chief Ashton criticize Israel's decision to retroactively recognize “unauthorized” settlement units. Extremist settlers propose Israel annex huge chunks of the occupied territories. Hamas and Fatah hold talks in Cairo on a national unity government. News reports say Hamas will demand key positions in any new government, including the Interior Ministry, and no change in security arrangements. PLO officials dismiss Israel's leaked account of recent negotiations as “half-truths.” COMMENTARY: Ari Shavit says it's up to Pres. Obama to stop an Israeli attack on Iran. Bradley Burston says the BDS movement is coming under some overdue scrutiny. Mira Sucharov says a recent debate on Twitter over a hunger strike shows how value-free the conversation has become. Cameron Brown says whatever they think about Israel, most Jewish Americans should and will continue to support Obama. Ray Hanania says Palestinians need to do more to tell their story through film. Douglas Bloomfield notes GOP presidential candidates are doing almost nothing to reach out to Arab-American voters. Robert Zaretsky says French Jews mostly support Pres. Sarkozy. John Whitbeck says Palestinians have real options in the UN General Assembly. Alex Brummer says Israel would improve its security and future by addressing concerns of its Bedouin citizens. The Economist interviews Hirsh Goodman on the future of Israel. David Makovsky says issues regarding Iran will challenge relations between Obama and PM Netanyahu as never before.

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