Hamas

After listening to Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on his recent swing though the United States I can only assume that Bibi just doesn't realize it's 2011.  How else to explain his repeated comments, including his insulting dressing down of President Barack Obama at the White House, explaining why Israel cannot return to their 1967 borders because Israel would then lack the “strategic depth” to defend itself.  Strategic depth?  Why?

For policymakers seeking an entry-point to engage the Middle East in dialogue, there may be an opening created by the apparent disillusionment of many ME societies with both Islamist groups and Muslim leaders.

This week, I've been pondering over the reported breakthrough in the Israeli-Palestinian negotiations. There have been many moments in this sixty year-old conflict that seemed like they would climax in a denouement, but something would always fall apart in the last minute. The latest developments are unlikely to bring a speedy end to this territorial dispute, but they are worth mentioning for other reasons.

"The sum of my experience is that reaching a two-state solution, Palestine and Israel living side by side in security and peace, is still possible, despite the dangers that we face and whose severity has increased recently." (Excerpt from the speech delivered by the Palestinian Authority's President Mahmoud Abbas, announcing his decision not to seek re-election next year--Ramallah, November 5, 2009).