Middle East Pundit

The Palestinians cannot form a unity government because they refuse to recognize Israel.
The International community has made this one of their conditions and Hamas will not give in.
And who’s the intransigent one?

Everyone’s witnessed the spectacle that goes by the name Jimmy Carter these past few weeks. Perhaps in an attempt to redeem his very public and very disastrous track record in the Middle East during his brief tenure in office, Carter has decided to meet with Hamas and Syria, much to the protest of the […]

The BBC has reported two members of Hamas’ military wing were killed at one of their training facilities in the Gaza Strip, and, true to script, Hamas has blamed Israel for their deaths.
Knowing Hamas, they probably died while trying to put together suicide bombs or some other form of explosive device when they met their […]

The NY Time argues the Bush Administration has had a huge policy shift in the Middle East, seeking to facilitate peace between the Israelis and the Palestinians, whereas previously the Administration has had a very hands off approach.
The story says,
At President Bush’s first National Security Council meeting in January 2001, he announced that he did […]

Bernard Lewis highlights two very different set of issues for today’s Annapolis summit regarding what he terms “The Jewish Question.”
The first issue involves Israel and physical border disputes with her neighbors - something which can and should be worked on.
However, if the discussion consists of the existence of the state of Israel, then any negotiation […]

Most fair minded inviduals recognize the Palestinian “Right of Return” is an illusion, political posturing, in desperate need of context and completely unrealistic.
Of course, these are not my words alone, but I do agree with them.
Saudi columnist Yousef Nasser Al-Sweidan says the “Right of Return” is a “utopian ideal and a recipe for disaster” and […]

Like the U2 song, Israel cannot live with or without Hamas.
Hamas’ election and Saudi recognition (which has propped up their status internationally) has forced Israel to work with a Hamas government if they’re going to make a peace deal with the slight problem that Hamas wants nothing of it.
Evacuation of West Bank settlements will […]

If Israel made peace with the Palestinians and its Arab neighbors would the Middle East experience a golden age of peace without precedent in which all current conflicts between various states with no ties or interests in Israel suddenly dissipate? The smart guys who wrote the Iraq Study Group (ISG) and Kofi Annon seem to […]

Jordan News has published a story from Ynet News and titles it “U.S. senators to arrive in Israel for indoctrination.”
The U.S. Senate is sending a delegation to Israel to meet with their counterparts in the Israel government. According to the article, the Israelis will brief the members of Congress on Iran, Hezbollah and Global […]

Israeli politicians keep complaining the Palestinian government will not recognize Israel.
I say ’so what?’
Instead of basing negotiations upon acceptance of the Israeli state by a terrorist government whose Covenant calls for Israel’s destruction, Israel should question the legitimacy of Hamas.
Besides having a contiguous presence in present day Israel for 4,000 years, Israel has in modern […]