Jerusalem — The Bush administration is passing up an important possibility for winning the war on terrorism: a military intervention and international supervision of elections in Palestine.

Few anti-terrorism experts would disagree that solving the Israel-Palestine conflict can offer an important impetus for winning the global war on terrorism. Failure to resolve this conflict has been repeatedly stated as a source of irritation in the Arab, Islamic and most of the developing world. Continue Reading »

Along with a number of other Arab leaders, the prime minister of Israel, Ariel Sharon, is expected in Washington next week. Many analysts expect the Palestinian-Israeli conflict and Sharon’s plans to withdraw from Gaza to top the agenda of the meetings. Continue Reading »

Behind much of the recent anti-American statements and comment many Arabs are genuinely hoping for US President Bush to succeed in his vision for a more democratic Middle East. Nevertheless there are many reasons for this high level of scientism. US foreign policy in general and American policy towards the Middle East in particular has not shown consistency in this department. On the contrary American foreign policy is often the opposite of the democratic values that Americans espouse and enjoy within the continental USA. Continue Reading »

US Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld has publicly asked for help by calling for ideas to defeat the enemies of America. Here is one idea: Arab nationalism accomplished through democracy. We all know what the US is against in the Middle and Far East. What we are not sure of is what it is in these areas it agrees with. President George Bush tells us day after day that America stands for freedom and democracy in Iraq and the rest of the world. Great! So that satisfies one half of the equation. Now, if people were to choose democracy, as any free people would, what would be the political nature of the regime they are most likely to choose? Continue Reading »

The protest statement signed by 27 Israeli airmen could go a long way in unlocking the puzzle that has kept the Middle East violence from abetting. By publicly stating their opposition to air strikes against Palestinian civilian targets and their refusal to carry out such missions, these brave Israelis can make a key contribution to reaching a lasting cease fire, an important step on the way to reaching a comprehensive peace. Much regional and international support will be needed to reach this important goal but the airmen’s protest could help close a missing piece of the puzzle. Continue Reading »

Ramallah- The high level involvement of the United States government in the Middle East conflict presents a unique and rare opportunity for dramatically positive movement in the peace process. But for the Bush administration to succeed where others have faltered, a new direction is needed. The new direction must be based on a comprehensive approach, possibly reached in secret talks, and not the step-by-step time based process. Continue Reading »

Israeli and US officials have been talking about the need for various other Arab regimes to learn the lesson from the scenes of anti Saddam Iraqis celebrating in the center of in Baghdad. Certainly the lesson of April 9th in Baghdad is that oppressive dictators will one day have to face their people. While it is important for people and leaders to learn the lessons of this war in Iraq, there are lessons that should not be learnt. Continue Reading »

In the pre-war rumblings going on in the United States a strange argument is being made. War supporters are chiding permanent members of the UN Security Council for reflecting international (as well as some American) public opinion by contemplating the possibility of a veto to any resolution that will approve war. Countries like France, Russia and China are being accused of making the world body “irrelevant” and “obstructing and paralyzing” the work of the UN. William Safire went as far as to call this anti-war position a “further abdication of collective security.” Continue Reading »

I have spent the past two weeks in a private visit to the U.S. During this visit I tried to observe what the average Americans notices regarding the Middle East and have come up with the conclusion that very little attention is paid to the region. Two issues did come up in the media during my short visit.

The car bombing carried out in the north of Israel and the continued U.S. attempts to prepare the condition for a war against Iraq. Continue Reading »

It was no coincidence that the latest spat of attacks against Israelis occurred as US President George Bush was about to make his policy statement regarding the Middle East. Among other things, the statement was expected to include a road map to solving this century old conflict on the basis of a free independent Palestine alongside a safe Israel within secure borders. Continue Reading »