Obama's Big Israel Breakthrough
Thursday's speech may have singlehandedly repaired a rocky relationship
Barack Obama came to Jerusalem to win over the Israeli people, and with a single speech he did. It happened when he addressed an audience of several thousand young people in Jerusalem and delivered what may have been the most passionate Zionist speech ever given by an American president. READ MORE >>
The Israeli government that President Obama will encounter this week may charitably be called a unity coalition—and less charitably, a schizophrenic coalition. From Tzippi Livni on the left, responsible for negotiations with the Palestinians, to former settler leader Uri Ariel on the right, the new construction minister responsible for, well, construction, this is a government deeply divided on the future of the West Bank. READ MORE >>
Who Won Israel's Latest War?
War, and Israel’s Quixotic Search For Normalcy
Why Israel Still Can’t Trust That Obama Has Its Back
When the President of the United States repeatedly says he’s got your back, and in precisely those words, what more can you ask for? READ MORE >>
Can Israel Trust the United States When It Comes to Iran?
When Benjamin Netanyahu meets with Barack Obama on Monday, the main issue will be trust. Obama will ask that Israel trust America’s determination to stop Iran, and trust that when he says all options are on the table he means it. Netanyahu will likely be thinking about May 1967. READ MORE >>
How Obama Excelled and Bill Clinton Disappointed During the Palestinian Statehood Showdown
For Israelis, this is the time of the return of the lie. Palestinian leader Mahmoud Abbas tells the UN General Assembly that Israel bears sole blame for the origins of the conflict, that Israel is the sole obstacle to resolving it, and that, in effect, the Jews have no connection to the land of Israel. And he receives a standing ovation. READ MORE >>
No Apologies: Israel Isn’t to Blame for Its Growing Isolation
Jerusalem—As the U.N. votes on Palestinian statehood, and former regional allies of the Jewish state like Turkey and Egypt turn openly hostile, much of the international community is blaming Israel for its own isolation. READ MORE >>
Yes, We Can’t
Town and Country
In April, the southern Israeli town of Sderot hosted its eighth annual French film festival, which was an achievement more impressive than it sounds. Sderot is a small town, and it is also a poor one; it has only 20,000 residents, many of them immigrants from former Soviet Asian republics. READ MORE >>
