News:

Israel will stop transferring Palestinian tax revenues to the PA. (AP/Reuters/New York Times/AFP)

An Israeli peace activist Ron Pundak dies. (AP/Ha’aretz/Times of Israel)

Economy Minister Bennett threatens to quit over peace talks. (Reuters/Ha’aretz/Jerusalem Post)

Israeli officials say there is progress in talks on resuming peace negotiations. (Ha’aretz/Jerusalem Post)

Chief Palestinian negotiator Erekat says reports on progress in talks “are false.” (Times of Israel)

Switzerland says Palestine can join the Geneva Conventions. (AP/AFP)

Arab League Chief Nabil Elaraby backs the peace talks. (AP/Ha’aretz)

The wife of ex-Fatah official Dahlan says her husband intends to run for president in any future election. (Al-Monitor)

Hamas is using laser e-bullets for training, due to its economic crisis. (AP/Times of Israel)

Islamic Jihad ia gaining support in Gaza at the expense of Hamas. (Al Monitor)

Bethlehem hosts its second annual marathon. (Ma’an)

Jewish religious extremists prepare priests for what they hope will be Jerusalem’s “third temple.” (Al Monitor)

Jordan continues to assist rebels in the Syrian war. (New York Times)

Iranian leaders see their positions on Syria gaining traction. (Al Monitor)

Jordan and the World Bank sign a $250 million loan agreement. (Jordan Times)

Egyptian workers defy the government with strikes. (Washington Post)

Iraq’s deputy PM al-Mutlaq escapes an assassination attempt. (AP)

Iraqi insurgents use water as a weapon after seizing control of a dam. (Reuters)

Commentary:

Zbigniew Brzezinski, Frank Carlucci, Lee Hamilton, Carla Hills, Thomas Pickering and Henry Siegman insist on a more dynamic, proactive US role on Middle East peace. (Politico)

Jeffrey Goldberg says Kerry is not wrong for pushing the peace talks. (Bloomberg)

Alan Philps says Kerry risks “threefold failure” in the Middle East. (The National)

George Hishmeh says Kerry took an unprecedented step by blaming Israel for the failure of the peace talks. (Jordan Times)

The Jerusalem Post says both Israelis and Palestinians should not engage in the “blame game.” (Jerusalem Post)

Yossi Sarid says Israel is the only country that is treated with “kid gloves.” (Ha’aretz)

Chaims Gans says the demand that Palestinians recognize Israel as a “Jewish state” adds yet another humiliation. (Ha’aretz)

Bakir Oweida says Palestinian women face the oppression of Israeli occupation as well as injustice within Palestinian society. (Asharq al Awsat)

H.A. Hellyer says the Europeans keep missing opportunities in the Arab world. (The National)

The Daily Star says the Syrian opposition needs to listen to the many Syrians who are demanding a “change of course.”(Daily Star)

David Kenner asks if the world is still paying attention to Pres. Assad’s conduct. (Foreign Policy)

Aaron Magid says Egypt’s relationship with Israel is complex and paradoxical. (Daily Star)

Abdel Monem Said says Egypt needs electricity to move forward. (Al Arabiya)

Diana Moukalled says coexistence between different parts of Iraqi society has been weakened. (Al Arabiya)

David Petraeus and Vance Serchuk say if the US strikes a nuclear deal with Iran it needs to prepare for all the consequences. (Washington Post)

News:

A three-hour meeting between Israeli and Palestinian negotiators ends without clear sign ofprogress. (Ma’an/Jerusalem Post/JTA/Times of Israel)

FM Lieberman says the package deal being discussed is not the same as it was two weeks ago.  (Jerusalem Post/Ynet)

Israel appropriates Palestinian land in the occupied West Bank by recognizing another settlement outpost. (Reuters/PNN/Ha’aretz/The National)

A Fatah official says the Israeli government is committed to colonization. (PNN)

Israeli chief negotiator Livni says Economy Minister Bennett is stoking settler violence.(Ha’aretz/Ynet/Times of Israel)

Senior Israeli officials say they have transferred all the PA revenues they collected in March.  (Ha’aretz)

British Party Labor leader Miliband criticizes expansion of Israeli settlements. (BBC)

A PLO committee will travel to Gaza for reconciliation talks. (Ma’an/Xinhua)

Israelis accuse Pres. Abbas of “terrorism.” (Ma’an)

Palestinian citizens of Israel protest in Nazareth against national service. (Ha’aretz)

Israel’s drive to export its new-found natural gas could help rebuild some strained relations.(Reuters)

Hamas will launch a satellite channel in Gaza. (Ma’an)

A trip to Auschwitz by Palestinian university students causes an uproar. (Washington Post)

Israel says Sec. Kerry’s remarks on Iran’s nuclear threshold is “not acceptable.” (Reuters/Jerusalem Post)

Syrian government forces seize two villages near the Lebanese border. (AP/Reuters)

Hezbollah is developing new tactics in the Syrian civil war. (AP)

American officials say they are looking into reports of another Syrian government chemical weapons attack. (AP/Washington Post)

Libya’s Interim PM al-Thani will step down after he was attacked by militias. (AP)

Deputy Secretary of State William Burns will retire in October. (AP)

A series of bombings kills more than 20 across Iraq. (New York Times)

Iraqi secularists are reportedly under attack ahead of the elections. (Al Monitor)

Iran lodges a complaint against the US over the denial of visa for its UN Ambassador.(Reuters/Xinhua/The National)

Iranians see “little relief” as sanctions are eased. (New York Times)

Dubai seeks to become an “Islamic” economic hub. (New York Times)

Commentary:

Hussein Ibish says Professor Mohammed Dajani should be praised, not blamed, for teaching Palestinian students about the Holocaust.  (The National)

The Jordan Times says the PA was right to join international treaties. (Jordan Times)

Jackson Diehl says over the past 25 years Israelis and Palestinians have made slow but enormous progress toward coexistence. (Washington Post)

Khaled Elgindy says the latest round of peace negotiations between Israelis and Palestinians never had a chance to succeed. (Foreign Policy)

Nathan Jeffay asks why the recent Israeli land grab in the occupied West Bank is different than any other. (Jewish Daily Forward)

Ben Caspit says PM Netanyahu needs Pres. Obama more than ever if peace talks fail. (Al Monitor)

Ha’aretz says Israel should stop “shutting its eyes’ to what is going in the occupied West Bank. (Ha’aretz)

Moshe Arens says extremist settlers in the occupied West Bank are a fringe group that hates Arabs and has no respect for the State of Israel. (Ha’aretz)

Gideon Levy says Ron Pundak wanted peace for peace’s sake, without pathos or guilt. (Ha’aretz)

Oudeh Basharat says the struggle by Palestinian citizens of Israel against religious extremism is part of a wider Arab struggle. (Ha’aretz)

Amer Al Sabaileh says recent developments in Syria shows only a political solution is possible. (Jordan Times)

Yezid Sayigh says the Syrian conflict is drifting in favor of the government. (Carnegie)

Afraa Al-Hariri and Om El-Ezz El-Farissi debate whether women were at the forefront of the Arab Spring.(Asharq al-Awsat)

Rami Khouri says Lebanon finds itself a mirror of the Middle East. (Daily Star)

Hamza Mustafa says Iraqi militia are playing a key role in Syria. (Asharq al-Awsat)

Abdul Rahman Al Rashed says Arabs must unite before seeking a permanent seat at the UN. (Al Arabiya)

H.A. Hellyer says Egypt’s “war on terror” is doing more harm than good. (Al Arabiya)

News:

Israeli and Palestinian negotiators meet again with no sign of a breakthrough. (Reuters)

Pres. Obama will meet with Sec. Kerry to discuss the future of the peace talks. (AFP/Times of Israel)

FM Lieberman warns the Palestinians that a prisoner release will not happen as long as they try  to join international agencies. (AP/Ynet)

Pres. Abbas will ask the Arab League for economic aid. (Ha’aretz/Jerusalem Post)

The Arab League says there is still a chance to move negotiations forward. (Ma’an)

The release of the Palestinian prisoner Marwan Barghouti is linked to the peace talks. (New York Times)

Former Pres. Carter backs the PLO move to sign 15 conventions. (Ma’an)

Palestinians want Russia and the EU to change the format of peace talks. (Ynet)

Extremist Jewish settlers injure six Israeli soldiers and destroy a military post. (Xinhua/Ha’aretz/JTA)

Hamas leader Haniyeh warns Palestinian refugees in Lebanon against inter-Palestinian violence. (Ma’an)

Thousands of Palestinians living in occupied East Jerusalem have been living without water for over a month. (AP)

Israel’s High Court upholds a decision by the military to prevent a Palestinian olympian from leaving Gaza.  (AP/Ha’aretz)

King Abdullah of Jordan meets with Pope Francis. (AP/Jordan Times)

The World Food Program says Syrian wheat production has hit an all time low. (Reuters)

An Israeli official says Pres. Assad again used chemical weapons two weeks ago. (Ha’aretz/Times of Israel)

Syrian Information Minister Zoabi says the presidential election will not be delayed. (Reuters/Xinhua)

A gunman kills a Dutch priest in the Syrian city of Homs. (AP/New York Times)

Syria’s polio outbreak has now officially spread to Iraq. (New York Times)

Women activists in Egypt are worried that their rights in the new constitution have not yet been implemented. (AP)

PM Erdogan says Turkey’s next elected president will be a more powerful figure. (Reuters)

In parts of the Anbar province there will be no balloting due to fighting. (AP/Xinhua)

A young Iraqi hopes books will stop his peers from migrating. (Washington Post)

Commentary:

Hassan Barari says neither the Palestinians nor the Israelis are capable or willing to offer the concessions necessary for peace. (Jordan Times)

Aaron David Miller outlines five rules for saving Kerry’s initiative. (New Republic)

Dennis Ross provides his suggestions for how to move the process forward. (WINEP)

J.J. Goldberg says Palestinians have been easing the terms for renewing talks with Israel. (Jewish Daily Forward)

Klaus Schwab says there is a strong constituency in Israel and Palestine to make peace a reality. (Times of Israel)

Daniel Landes says ending the Israeli-Palestinian conflict is a Jewish imperative. (Ha’aretz)

Nehemia Shtrasler says PM Netanyahu wants the peace talks to keep going but he will not give up the West Bank. (Ha’aretz)

Yoram Schweitzer, Benedetta Berti and Shlomo Brom look at the erosion of the Israel-Hamas ceasefire in Gaza. (INSS)

The Daily Star says the violence that has erupted in the Palestinian refugee camps in Lebanon undermines their “legitimate struggle.” (Daily Star)

The Jordan Times says Syrian refugees in Jordan should not resort to violence. (Jordan Times)

The Los Angeles Times says the US should pressure Egypt to stop the crackdown on opposition groups. (Los Angeles Times)

H.A. Hellyer asks if there is a link between government policies and the rise of terrorism. (Al Arabiya)

Octavia Nasr says with every political battle, Lebanon sinks deeper into the abyss. (Al Arabiya)

The National says young Arabs are seeking to emulate the UAE’s success. (The National)

News:

News:

Sec. Kerry says Israeli and Palestinian leaders “must lead” to prevent peace talks from collapsing. (AP/Reuters/New York Times/AFP/Ha’aretz/Wall Street Journal)

Kerry calls Pres. Abbas to prevent talks from collapsing. (Ma’an)

A critical meeting between American Envoy Indyk and Palestinian and Israeli negotiators reportedly ended in failure. (PNN/Jerusalem Post)

A Palestinian official says talks with Israel can continue only if they define the borders of a future Palestinian state. (Times of Israel/The National)

US officials accuse Israeli Housing Minister Ariel of deliberately sabotaging talks. (Ha’aretz)
mitments. (Xinhua/Ynet)

Palestinian Representative to the UN Mansour delivers the treaty accession letters to the various bodies. (Xinhua)

There appears to be an American consensus that the release of convicted spy Pollard would be “futile.” (Ha’aretz)

American lawmakers threaten to withhold Palestinian aid. (Al Monitor)

Jewish “price tag” extremists vandalize 40 cars of Palestinian citizens of Israel. (Xinhua/Ma’an/Ha’aretz)

Employees of Israel’s Foreign Ministry announce end of their strike. (New York Times/Ynet)

Israel refuses to let a Gaza-based athlete run in a Bethlehem marathon. (Ha’aretz)

The UN says Syrian refugees in Lebanon now exceed 1 million. (AP/Reuters)

Turkey continues to block Twitter, despite a court ruling. (AP/Reuters)

The Muslim Brotherhood urges Britain not to yield to foreign pressure in conducting a review of the group.(Reuters)

PM Jomaa says he wants to “fix” the Tunisian economy. (AP)

Commentary:

The Jordan Times says the “delaying tactics” of both Israelis and Palestinians are too familiar to be taken seriously. (Jordan Times)

Abdallah Schleifer says the only option for Israelis and Palestinians is a two-state solution. (Al Arabiya)

Grant Rumley says Abbas’ move to seek membership in 15 international organizations does not necessarily mean the end of the peace process. (Foreign Policy)

Ha’aretz asks where is PM Netanyahu leading Israel. (Ha’aretz)

Ari Shavit says Kerry must find a “Plan B” to deliver peace to Israel and the Palestinians. (Ha’aretz)

Douglas Bloomfield says Palestinians and Israelis should both be blamed for the failure of the peace talks. (Jerusalem Post)

David Horovitz says the deep asymmetry between Israelis and Palestinians is “dooming the negotiations.” (Times of Israel)

Joyce Karam says releasing convicted spy Pollard will not save the Israeli-Palestinian peace talks. (Al Arabiya)

Peter Beinart says Sheldon Adelson represents a “culture of hate.” (Ha’aretz)

The Washington Post says the US will not be judged well by historians because it failed to stop the “mass slaughter” in Syria. (Washington Post)

The National asks what more can the UAE do in Syria. (The National)

Taylor Luck says this week marks the anniversary when the international community failed the entire Syrian population. (Jordan Times)

Mohammed Fahad al-Harthi says Pres. Obama’s visit to Saudi Arabia affirms the strategic relationship between the US and the Kingdom.(Al Arabiya)

Mshari Al-Zaydi says the UK’s recent moves against it are a turning point in the history of the Muslim Brotherhood. (Asharq al-Awsat)

News:

Pres. Abbas submits applications for Palestine to join 15 international conventions and agencies.(Reuters/New York Times/Ha’aretz)

Israeli Ministers warn of punitive action if the PLO pursues efforts to join international agencies. (AFP/Times of Israel)

Sec. Kerry vows to push peace talks forward but cancels his visit to Ramallah.(AP/PNN/Ha’aretz/The National)

US officials say Kerry feels he has “gone as far as he can” for Middle East peace.(Ha’aretz/Jerusalem Post)

A Palestinian official says they do not want Kerry’s initiative to fail. (AP)

The Arab League calls for an emergency meeting on April 9th to discuss Israeli-Palestinian peace talks. (AFP)

Veteran Palestinian prisoners support Abbas’ applications. (Ma’an)

Israel publishes tenders for 708 settlement units in occupied East Jerusalem. (Xinhua/Ha’aretz)

Pres. Obama faces stiff opposition to freeing convicted spy Pollard. (Jerusalem Post/Reuters/Times of Israel)

The ex-wife of convicted spy Pollard urges the Israeli government to secure his release. (AP)

Hamas rejects the extension of the peace talks. (Ma’an/Jerusalem Post)

Israeli occupation forces detain 10 Palestinians in overnight West Bank raids. (Ma’an)

Extremist Jewish settlers assault Palestinian worshipers after they stormed the Al-Aqsa mosque. (PNN)

The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights says the death toll in the Syrian conflict has exceeded 150,000. (AP/The National)

An Egyptian police officer is killed in a bombing outside Cairo University. (Reuters/AP)

Parliamentary election campaigns start in Iraq. (AP/AFP)

Commentary:

Osama Al Sharif says Abbas will probably accept an extension to the peace talks. (Jordan Times)

Bassem Khoury says the PLO’s unanimous vote to resume efforts at international recognition means roles have changed. (Ha’aretz)

Yossi Mekelberg says Israel has to bear more of the responsibility for the failure of the peace talks. (Al Arabiya)

The New York Times says releasing convicted spy Pollard is a bad idea. (New York Times)

The Washington Post says the US should refrain from releasing Pollard. (Washington Post)

The Los Angeles Times says the US should not try to salvage the peace talks by releasing Pollard. (Los Angeles Times)

The Jewish Daily Forward says pardoning Pollard is “unwise.” (Jewish Daily Forward)

Aaron David MIller says releasing Pollard will not save the peace process. (Time)

Dennis Ross says Pollard’s release seems to be justified. (Time)

Peter Feaver asks if releasing a convicted spy will help the US secure Middle East peace. (Foreign Policy)

Ruth Marcus says the US should free Pollard. (Washington Post)

Anshel Pfeffer says if Pollard is released Israel should not accord him a hero’s welcome. (Ha’aretz)

Matthew Kalman says yesterday’s appeal by Abbas’ to international bodies to recognize the state of Palestine is a “masterstroke.” (Ha’aretz)

Rami Khouri says Israel is facing a backlash in the US. (The Daily Star)

Khaled Diab says ending the Gaza blockade is both the “principled and pragmatic” thing to do. (The National)

Eyal Benvenisti says FM Lieberman’s plan to transfer Arab areas to a future Palestinian state violates Israel’s basic obligation as a democratic state. (Ha’aretz)

Michael Young says Russia has kept Pres. Assad in power and now it’s stuck with him. (The National)

Manuel Almeida says the Assad regime is discrediting international law by exploiting every opportunity to use it in its favor. (Asharq al-Awsat)

Jonathan Schanzer and Emanuele Ottolenghi say PM Erdogan should be worried about how corruption allegations will damage Turkey’s standing in the West. (Foreign Policy)