After the strong beginnings of 2009, during the Obama administration’s first days in office, 2010 began on a cautious note on the Palestinian cause.

There were some promising signs: the Israeli government partially froze its settlement activities; indirect talks commenced and there was hope that in one crucial area all seemed all in agreement, the need to delineate the borders of the future Palestinian state. Such agreement would have allowed negotiators to be relieved of the weight of settlement activities.

After seeing settlers nearly triple in the 18 years since the beginning of the Oslo process, the Palestinians were no longer willing to belittle the need for the suspension of settlement activities. Israelis, the theory went, also needed the border issue settled so as not to have to keep worrying about the pressure of continuously being asked to suspend settlements. Continue Reading »

At the beginning of the latest US-Israel crisis over the issue of the settlement freeze, the Americans considered both carrot and stick to “encourage” the Israelis to do the right thing, in accordance with international law.

Among the incentives that special adviser to Secretary of State Hillary Clinton Dennis Ross and company convinced the White House to offer the Israelis was a set of the latest US fighter planes, to the tune of $3 billion, a commitment from Washington to veto any UN Security Council resolution calling for the recognition of Palestine and incorporating the Israeli demands regarding security presence in the Jordan Valley. Continue Reading »

Whatever else one can say about the speaker of the Jordanian Parliament, he is clearly a quick learner.

The 16th Parliament was off to a rocky start a few weeks ago. While the choice of Faisal Fayez was sealed when all competitors withdrew their candidacy for the top spot, all other positions were hotly fought for. Quickly assembled blocs disintegrated as fast, and even members of the same bloc traded verbal insults; some MPs even slipped into the seats of Cabinet ministers once members of the executive branch left the Parliament building.

Fayez quickly laid down the law and has taken control of Parliament since. When the idea of reaching a consensus for the different committees proved problematic, he went back to the book and insisted that elections for every committee be carried out according to Parliament’s by-laws. Continue Reading »

If the past three months have proved one thing, it is that the present Israeli government is not ready or willing to take the minimum steps needed for peace. By rejecting international consensus on the need for a temporary freeze of the illegal settlement activities in occupied territories, the ultra-right-wing Israeli government has shown it is unwilling or unable to comply with the requirements needed for a successful peace process. The Americans will make yet another mistake if they fail to accept this fact and attempt to move the peace process forward as if nothing has happened. This would be nothing short of appeasement and a reward to intransigence and therefore will not bode well for the future of the talks. While Palestinians have very few viable alternatives at the present, they certainly can’t continue with this charade. Continue Reading »

Nearly seven years ago, I met Danish journalist and freedom of media defender Jesper Hojberg in Amman Jordan and mentioned that we needed help in the Arab region with investigative journalism. Before long, Hojberg and his International Media Institute were able to help us translate this dream into a project that this week brought the largest gathering of Arab and international investigative reporters, experts, university professors and donors in Amman. Continue Reading »