Israel's foreign minister said Sunday that a peace deal with the Palestinians is impossible under current conditions and that Israel should pursue a lesser deal instead — a concept the Palestinians swiftly rejected.
Palestinian leaders told the Obama administration they are ready to accept nearly any security arrangements for a Palestinian state demanded by Israel, according to a senior official of the Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO).
Four months after President Obama announced a yearlong timeline for Mideast peace, Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton admitted initial defeat. In a Friday speech, Mrs. Clinton acknowledged permanent breakdown in direct negotiations the Obama administration had predicted would lead to an agreement by September 2011. "Unfortunately, as we have learned," she said, "the parties in this conflict have often not been ready to take the necessary steps." This only comes as a surprise to the Obama team.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Sunday dismissed a call from a key government partner to share the holy city of Jerusalem with the Palestinians, a reminder of the obstacles facing already troubled peacemaking efforts.
Finally shining light on one of the most important and most overlooked elements of the Middle East "peace process," the Israeli government has compiled a new quarterly report that analyzes what its Palestinian counterparts are doing to promote peace - or not.
Israeli officials came under sharp criticism Sunday for their handling of the country's deadliest wildfire ever, prompting critics to ask whether the nation's leaders can cope with more serious challenges, such as rocket attacks and a nuclear-armed Iran.
A bus burst into flames as it raced to an Israeli prison during a massive forest fire Thursday, killing dozens of prison guards participating in the rescue mission, officials said. It was one of the deadliest accidents in the nation's history.
Former Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert took a rare public jab at his successor on Thursday, saying that Israel should agree to the U.S. demand to halt settlement construction in the West Bank in order to restart Mideast peace talks.
Israel's Knesset passed into law Monday a bill that could make it significantly more difficult for an Israeli government to consummate peace agreements with the Palestinians and the Syrians.
