Author Archive
Peace Talks Back on Track
With President Obama set to mediate proximity talks again between Israel and Palestine, there is still much debate as to what it means to have American intervention in the process, especially among American Jews. Elie Wiesel (Left). For many on the right, supporting the Obama administration is akin to denouncing Israel as a state. But many [...]
Israel is Absent at Nuclear Summit
At the largest convention of world leaders in Washington in more than 50 years, President Obama can point to making progress. With Russia and Ukraine working to cut back on stockpiles of Uranium and bombs, and China with the U.S. on Iran sanctions, Israel should feel confident. Israel remained absent from the meeting, however. Speculations [...]
Gaza Prospers and West Bank Plants In Hope for Peace
In Gaza, the tunnels that lead to Egypt are a key mechanism for the transportation of goods. They have recently been multiplying like rabbits, fueling illegal trading of supplies that Israel has outlawed, in turn, dropping prices and leading to rebuilding of the areas that Israel bombed last year. Overall, Gaza is in much better shape than the [...]
Westernization and Palestine
It has recently been argued in an op-ed piece in the Wall Street Journal that the Westernization of the world is not related to Palestine, and infuriates jihadists nevertheless; that no matter the cause, Islamists would find reason to hate America. Westernization, Bret Stephens suggests, will be embraced by few and rejected by many, as is always [...]
Bibi’s Visit Ends Amidst Peace Doubts
Talks between Netanyahu and Obama wrapped up after tensions between the two governments flared over the past few weeks. Recently, the U.S. has urged Israel to yield to its requests to forego building in Jerusalem, but Israel asserts its right to build in its capital. The Obama administration has softened its approach to Iran's building of [...]
Obama and Israel
The Obama Administration has condemned the Israeli comments about building new homes in Ramat Shlomo, leading to the absence of warmth and fuzziness in the American-Israeli relationship so characteristic of preceding American presidencies. Obama believes the only way to peace in the region is a two state solution, and that the way to achieve this [...]
Tensions Between U.S. and Israel?
In a recent comment made by Israel's ambassador to the U.S., relations between the two countries are worse than they have been in more than 35 years. Although Prime Minister Netanyahu has said that there is no harm that comes to Arab Palestinians from the building of these 1600 new homes, Hillary Clinton and EU foreign policy head Baroness Ashton [...]
Biden’s Israeli Visit Ends On A Low
Vice President Biden's visit ended on a sour note due to the Israeli statement of building 1600 new houses for an ultra-Orthodox East Jerusalem neighborhood. The neighborhood has been annexed by Israel, and Palestinians view the area as their future capital. In a public statement Biden "condemned" the announcement as "precisely the kind of step [...]
Biden’s Journey to Israel
Vice President Joe Biden arrived in Israel on Tuesday to call for negotiations between Palestine and the Jewish state and to dissuadeIsraelis from unilateral military actions against Iran, Hamas, and Hezbollah. Calling the U.S.'s ties to Israel "unshakeable," the Vice President arrives on the eve of indirect peace talks between Palestine and [...]
World Heritage Sites Spark Dismay
For Jews, the Tomb of the Patriarchs in Hebron and the Tomb of Rachel in Bethlehem were declared by Prime Minister Netanyahu to be in need of refurbishment. This inspired much reaction from the leader of Palestine, Mahmoud Abbas. Hebron is a site revered by Jews, Christians and Arabs, primarily for being the putative resting place of Abraham, [...]
