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Just as the belligerent rhetoric goes up a notch, there also has emerged increasing signs of divisions within Israel's strategic community on exactly when and how to deal with Iran's nuclear challenge

Gaza Renews Furniture Exports

A small shipment of household furniture from the Gaza Strip could point the way to a new source of jobs and economic growth in the Palestinian Territory

Terror Targets with Teflon Coating

A study took surveys conducted during the height of the Second Palestinian Intifada to see whether people's sense of 'life satisfaction' was affected by the violence

Jobless Rate Falls, But Economists Refrain from Cheering

Israel's unemployment rate dropped to a preliminary 5 percent, capping a steady decline of two-and-a-half years to its lowest rates since the late 1980s, but even the government's Central Bureau of Statistics was quick to discount the importance of the figure

Israel's Tax-Deductible Occupation

New Israeli legislation limits and taxes contributions to organizations opposed to the occupation

In Islamic Stronghold Christianity Carries On

Christians are a tiny and dwindling minority throughout the Holy Land, which comprises Israel, the West Bank and Gaza. But Christians say they are free to practice their faith

The Catastrophic Consequences of a Nuclear Iran

Can anyone reasonably expect a newly-nuclear leadership in Tehran to be reliably rational?

Are Israelis Less Willing to Make Sacrifices?

Chief of Israel social and economic reform panel says his countrymen are less willing to make peronal sacrifices for national security because they feel alienated and distressed

Israel Faces Chill Wind from Europe, Central Banker Warns

Bank of Israel Governor Stanley Fischer warns Europe's debt crisis will hurt Israel's economy but says budgetary restraint by the governrment can help mitigate the impact.

Surprise! Iran Has Nukes

If ever there was a time when 'see, I told you so' was warranted, it is now as the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) reports that Iran is close to developing a nuclear weapon

As The World Turns and The Centrifuges Whirl in Iran

Gosh, what a surprise: According to the United Nations, Iran seems to be at work on developing a nuclear weapon. I am shocked -- shocked. Goodness, what target do you think the mullahs and their nutcase president, the all too imitable Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, might have in mind?

In Quest For Cool, Tel Aviv Taps Tech

A new unit of Mayor Ron Huldai's office, Tel Aviv Global City, wants to add a new element to the city's nightlife -- start-up entrepreneurs working all hours writing business plans and computer code. The goal is to turn itself into the high tech center not just of Israel but all of Europe in 10 years' time

The Other Side of Itamar

Yuli Edelstein acts as private tour guide to a busload of foreign journalists. His message on a recent tour of the Jewish communities in the northern West Bank is that life here is very different

A Kinder, Gentler Hamas?

Is there a new Hamas in the making, one ready to put down its arms and live in peace with Israel? Or is it the same old Islamist movement putting on the airs of moderation as it abandons its old friends Syria and Iran and makes new ones in Egypt, Turkey and Qatar?

In Race to Moon Israel Thinks Small

The Israel non-profit Space IL hopes to win Google's global lunar competition with micro-technology and teen volunteers

Israel: Air Force Reorganizes Air Defenses to Meet Missile Threat

Israel has begun a major overhaul of its air defenses, which have been rushed to the field with newly designed anti-rocket batteries backed up by an integrated central control center

Palestinians Evoke '60s Freedom Riders in Bus Protest

Palestinian activists board an Israeli bus in attempt to mimic America's 1960s-era civil rights protestors

Squeezed By Israel, Palestinians Aim to Collect More Taxes

Palestinian Authority Prime Minster Salam Fayyad is determined to wean his government off reliance on foreign assistance and tax transfer from Israel and one way he aims to do that is by collecting more taxes from Palestinians

Herod Started The Temple But Great-Grandson Finished the Job

Archaeologists have uncovered what they say is evidence that the massive retaining wall of the ancient Temple Mount wasn't even started until at least 20 years after Herod died in 4 B.C.. The new findings challenge the perception that the enormous edifice, the largest construction endeavor in the ancient Holy Land, had been solely the work of the ancient king

Gilad Shalit's Release Emboldens Netanyahu's Iran Mandate

Israel's President Bibi Netanyahu and his defense minister Ehud Barak are more determined to attack Iran than ever

Two-State Solution is Only Solution in the Middle East

How could Israel think that the life of one captive soldier, Gilad Shalit, is worth releasing over 1,000 Palestinian prisoners with the blood of innocents on their hands?

A Silver Lining for Palestine?

Frustrated by the failure of international players -- and the United States in particular -- to act as neutral and effective arbiters, the Palestinian Authority recently put in motion a plan to unilaterally declare statehood

Three Millennia of Wars

'Holy Wars, 3000 Years of Battles in the Holy Land' illuminates those major battles that shaped this part of the world for three millennia

'Bad Wind' Blowing Through Israel

Now that a far right-wing government has governed Israel for almost three years, settlers feel emboldened so that Jewish extremists are wreaking havoc and mayhem

Rights Groups Express Worry Over Democracy

An NGO's report cites setbacks in Israeli legislation, police behavior over the past year as hurting the Israel's human rights profile

'Unity And Non-Violence' Requisites For Palestinian Statehood

Palestinian Prime Minister Salam Fayyad Interview -- 'Without doctrine of non-violence, too many missing ingredients' for statehood

Gospel Trail Puts Tourists on Path of Jesus

A newly developed trial in Israel's north meanders through a scenic, site-rich route from Nazareth to the Sea of Galilee that Jesus himself may have walked

Berisha Nurtures Albanian-Israeli Ties

Though the main focus of his trip was on business and investments, Prime Minister Sali Berisha also gave Israel support on the Palestinian issue

Sinai Bedouin Join Al-Qaeda Out of Bitterness, Not Ideology

Economic and social grievances at heart of surge in violence in the Egyptian-ruled Sinai Peninsula

Why Does America Defend the Weak and Small?

Only the United States seems to have an affinity for protecting tiny, vulnerable countries. Israelis, anti-communist Chinese, Kurds, Greeks and Armenians have a few things in common. They have relatively small populations, aggressive neighbors, few strong allies, many expatriates and refugees in the United States, and a tragic history of persecution and genocide

Where Pilgrims Once Trod, Sewage Flows

Neglected and treated as the city's dirty backyard and a polluted dump, the Kidron Valley is conceived to become a green pilgrim path

Dead Sea's 7 Wonders Bid Spurs Politics and Patriotism

The Dead Sea has become the object of flag-waving patriotism, political point-scoring and potential profits as the people and governments of the two countries and a third country in the making lobby for their shared patrimony to be declared one of nature's seven wonders

Iranian War Fever-Pitch Debate Blasted Wide Open

The debate over attacking Iran's nuclear installations that had been simmering behind the closed doors of the Israeli defense establishment has cracked wide open with ministers and experts pushing the pros and cons in the media

A Shift in Israel-Hamas Relations?

The exchange of kidnapped Israeli soldier Gilad Shalit for more than one thousand Palestinian prisoners, many of them convicted terrorists, may indicate a shift in Hamas' position, says former U.S. ambassador to Israel Martin S. Indyk

The Problem Is Palestinian Rejectionism

Nearly two decades of peace negotiations between Israel and the Palestinians have failed miserably. The key reason for this failure is the Palestinians' refusal to recognize Israel as a Jewish state

Israelis and Palestinians Deploy New Technology in Fighting

The flare-up in fighting between Israel and Palestinian militants was as much a showcase for military technology as it was a forceful statement of the two sides' political agenda

United States Law Enforcement Chiefs to Israel

U.S law enforcement officials learn counter terrorism techniques from Israel and told the key was sharing intelligence

Senator Landrieu: Don't Cut Aid to Israel

Louisiana Senator Mary Landrieu says the U.S. shouldn't cut aid to Israel and offers her state's help for the country's nascent energy industry

New Projects to Ease Gaza Housing Crisis

In response to a growing housing crisis in the Gaza Strip in the occupied Palestinian territory, several new building projects have been initiated by the Hamas-led government, and thousands of families have begun purchasing properties in new communities

UNESCO Vote to Admit Palestinian Authority Stirs Tempest

The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) voted to admit Palestine to full membership, adding heft to the Palestinian Authority's bid for membership to the United Nations and triggering a possible substantial loss of funds for the UN agency

U.S. Congress: Standard Bearer for Israeli Expansion

Representative Joe Walsh and 30 co-sponsors issued a resolution supporting Israeli annexation of the West Bank.

Israel Accepts Quartet Proposal to Resume Peace Talks

Israel has welcomed a proposal by international mediators to resume peace talks with the Palestinians 'immediately and without preconditions'

Blocking Palestinian Statehood

In 2010 President Obama sounded hopeful that by the following year there would be 'an agreement that will lead to a new member of the United Nations -- an independent, sovereign state of Palestine.' Sure enough, in September 2011, the Palestinians asked the UN Security Council to recognize a state of Palestine -- but Obama ordered the U.S. delegate to veto the request. What gives?

Israeli Parliamentarians Call for Annexation of West Bank

The Land of Israel caucus is urging the Israeli government to respond to the Palestinian Authority's bid for statehood by formally annexing all Israeli settlements in the West Bank.

The Occupation That Time Forgot

On my many drives from West Bank city to West Bank city, from Ramallah to Jenin, Abu Dis to Jericho, Bethlehem to Hebron, I'd play a little game: Could I travel for an entire minute without seeing physical evidence of the occupation?

Azerbaijan Faces Difficult Choice Between Turkey and Israel

Policymakers in Azerbaijan are facing a dilemma: can an enemy of a friend be a friend? Specifically, can Baku maintain cordial relations with both Turkey and Israel at the same time?

Israeli - Palestinian Conflict: The Prisoner Swap

The prisoner exchange between Israel and Hamas reflects the power of occupation and the power of changing circumstances

Hamas Gains From Prisoner Swap Likely to Fade

Islamic movement scores points with prisoner exchange with Israel, but public will forget, analysts say

Arab Spring, Israeli Isolation

With the Arab uprisings gradually reconfiguring the regional political landscape, Israel is finding itself increasingly isolated. For at least a decade, Israel has identified Iran as its main strategic nemesis, but the Arab spring has rekindled simmering tensions between Israel on one hand, and Arab states as well as Turkey on the other

Concerns Over Palestinian Children in Israeli Custody

While there have been emotional scenes after the release of 477 Palestinian prisoners held in Israeli jails, concerns are being raised about the plight of 164 Palestinian children from the West Bank in Israeli custody

Mossad Gets Dragged Into Latest British Political Scandal

British media have speculated that the man behind the fall of their minister of defense was in cahoots with Israel's famed intelligence agency, Mossad, perhaps unwittingly, as the perfect spy

Bittersweet Reunion of Righteous Gentiles

While Israel's Yad Vashem Holocaust Memorial has recognized and honored thousands of these bright lights who risked their lives during the darkness of the Second World War, it is a little known fact that some 130 of these Gentile rescuers chose to move to Israel since then

Arab Spring Turkish Harvest

As the greatest beneficiary of the Arab Spring, Turkey is going head to head with both Syria and Israel

For Israeli Tycoons: New Strings Attached

Israel's tycoons face a future of fewer possibilities as the government takes its first step toward limiting their freedom of action

Israeli Innovation on Display

A new exhibit at the Bloomfield Science Museum in Jerusalem not only puts Israeli innovations on display but attempts to discover just how Israeli scientists are able to come up with so many high tech inventions

Israeli Settlers: Never Shy About Taking Law Into Own Hands

Israeli Knesset Member Ben-Ari has announced a call to action for Israeli settlers to confront anticipated demonstrations in support of the Palestinian bid for statehood

Israel's Truths and Omissions on Vote for Palestine State

So what's wrong with the United Nations voting for creation of a Palestinian state, I asked Israel's Deputy Foreign Minister Danny Ayalon in a recent interview

How to Save Israel and the United States from Themselves

Most Americans would likely agree that the main shock delivered to Americans and the American government by the 9/11 attacks was that of vulnerability. Another such shock is impending. It is the national vulnerability that will be revealed this month by the American veto of a Palestinian demand for full United Nations membership

Israel - Turkey Tensions Here to Stay

Israel has little prospect of restoring its once-close ties to Turkey anytime in the near future and will likely find itself under pressure from Ankara in Egypt and in the Mediterranean

Even Non-Violent Palestinian Intifada Seems Unlikely Now

Despite a history of popular mobilization and sophisticated grassroots activism supported by social media, Palestinians appear less likely than ever to engage in a major protest, violent or peaceful, whether it is out of confusion, fatigue or a willingness to give Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas time to achieve his statehood dream, analysts say

Jewish Extremists Burn Mosque in Israel

Suspected Jewish extremists burned down a mosque in northern Israel sparking a brief rioting by Arab-Israelis, who protested against the arson attack

Israeli 'Price Tag' Vandals Mark Up Violence

The escalation in 'price tag' attacks on Arab targets and even on the property of the Israeli establishment is a sign of a sense of growing alienation among the Jewish extremist fringe

Art Comes to Jerusalem Open Market

The bustling Mahane Yehuda Market, or shuk, is a well-known Jerusalem landmark. People travel from far and wide to buy vegetables, meat and fish, spices and treats. More recently, chic cafes and boutiques have sprung up. And now there's a project called Tabula Rasa to transform the rundown surrounding streets with urban artwork

Cyprus: Waters Roil in Eastern Mediterranean

Once the preserve of fishing boats and yachts, in the space of just a few weeks the serene waters of the Eastern Mediterranean have become a field of contention. As Greek Cyprus begins exploiting its potentially vast gas and oil reserves, Turkey asserts its growing role as a regional power, and a worried Israel is pushing back

Boxed in on the Middle East

The United States has effectively relinquished its role as the key negotiator of Middle East peace as the Palestinians, ignoring President Barack Obama's entreaties, announced their decision to pursue UN membership and be recognized as an independent state

Obama's Middle East Dilemma

As Palestinians head to the United Nations, President Obama faces one of the most excruciating dilemmas of his presidency, a predicament partly of his own making

Palestinian Leader: Obama Wrong to Take Israel's Side

Palestinian Ambassador Maen Areikat called on the Obama administration to stop coddling Israel and vote for United Nations recognition of Palestine, or at least abstain from voting in the U.N. Security Council

Israel: The Cost of Arrogance

A triple diplomatic challenge to Israel from Turkey, Palestine and Egypt both reflects the region's political transformation and reveals the key flaw in Israel's attitude to its neighbors

Saudis to United States: You're Sleeping on the Couch Tonight

Former Saudi intelligence chief Prince Turki al-Faisal warned the U.S. that its recalcitrance over the Palestinian Authority's bid for statehood will force Saudi Arabia to reconsider its ties with Washington

Turkey's Neo-Ottoman Foreign Policy

Whereas Turkey's foreign policy mantra used to be 'no problems with the neighbors,' Turkey now seems to want to become the chief bully in the eastern Mediterranean, escalating tensions between the NATO member and Israel, a key US ally

West Bank Economy Slows as Aid Drops and Statehood Jitters Grow

Economic growth in the Palestinian West Bank has sharply decelerated this year as foreign aid dried up and business people and consumers held back on spending ahead of concerns about the effects of the Palestinian independence drive, economists said

For Hamas Silence on Palestinian Statehood Is Golden

100 Hamas Members Arrested Just Before UN Vote for Palestinian Statehood

Palestine Goes to the UN

Former Israeli Army Chief Says Talk to Hamas

Europe's Palestine Problem

Turkey-Israel: What's next?

Israeli Settlements Keep Middle East Unsettled

Israeli - Arab Crisis Approaching

Palestine Towards Statehood

The Upcoming Palestinian Uprising

Egypt's Reluctant Rulers

September Looms Large in Israeli-Palestinian Conflict