http://www.al-monitor.com/cms/render/live/en/sites/almonitor/home/rssfeeds/politics-rss/maincontent/nrc-politics.html nrc-politics Jahia 6.6.0.0 r40429, http://www.jahia.org 29e5dbbe-f0be-4ebc-960b-d689677ae656 http://www.al-monitor.com/pulse/originals/2013/05/israel-palestine-economic-forum-business.html A new peace initiative will be presented at the World Economic Forum in Jordan this weekend [May 24-26]. 5/24/13 8:27 PM http://www.al-monitor.com/pulse/originals/2013/05/israel-palestine-economic-forum-business.html http://www.al-monitor.com/files/live/sites/almonitor/files/contributed/jnt_news_israel-palestine-economic-forum-business/Economic.jpg?t=thumbnail_278 Then Palestinian Prime Minister Salam Fayyad (L) speaks next to Israel's President Shimon Peres during a session at the World Economic Forum in Davos, Jan. 26, 2012. Dalia Hatuqa 5/24/13 6:27 PM 63bcf3c3-ed2d-4eef-b599-f8a606106371 http://www.al-monitor.com/pulse/politics/2013/05/syrian-revolution-alawite-fears.html The Alawites of Syria must be protected and included in any transition in Syria. 5/24/13 5:22 PM http://www.al-monitor.com/pulse/politics/2013/05/syrian-revolution-alawite-fears.html http://www.al-monitor.com/files/live/sites/almonitor/files/contributed/jnt_news_syrian-revolution-alawite-fears/Syria Alawite.jpg?t=thumbnail_278 Syrians stand above a poster of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad (L) and Lebanese Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah (R) hanging on the wall of a building in the Alawite neighborhood of Nuzhah in the western city of Homs, Jan. 11, 2012. Ghassan al-Ayach 5/24/13 1:08 PM http://www.assafir.com/Article.aspx?EditionId=2467&ChannelId=59411&ArticleId=1794&Author=غسانالعياش cc076d02-c155-4d82-aabc-2bfdd2143daf http://www.al-monitor.com/pulse/security/2013/05/tunisia-as-north-african-al-qaeda-base.html Given the weak security situation, ongoing political crises and increasing Salafist activity, Tunisia could turn into a new base for al-Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb. 5/24/13 5:21 PM http://www.al-monitor.com/pulse/security/2013/05/tunisia-as-north-african-al-qaeda-base.html http://www.al-monitor.com/files/live/sites/almonitor/files/contributed/jnt_news_tunisia-as-north-african-al-qaeda-base/Police-guard--Great-Mosque-in-Kairouan.jpg?t=thumbnail_278 Tunisian police keep watch in front of the Oqba ibn Nafa mosque, also known as the Great Mosque, in the city of Kairouan, May 19, 2013. Supporters of the hard-line Islamist group Ansar al-Sharia clashed with Tunisian police on Sunday after the government banned its annual rally, saying it posed a threat to society. Noureldine al Faridi 5/24/13 1:58 PM http://alhayat.com/Details/516297 c9912cce-e3b8-49b0-b399-d4d9bcc22747 http://www.al-monitor.com/pulse/security/2013/05/sinai-tribal-head-interview-crisis.html In an interview with Azzaman, Sinai tribal council head Sheikh Ali Freij addresses claims that terrorism thrives in the Sinai peninsula and explains the tribes’ positions toward Egypt, Israel and Palestine. 5/24/13 4:25 PM http://www.al-monitor.com/pulse/security/2013/05/sinai-tribal-head-interview-crisis.html http://www.al-monitor.com/files/live/sites/almonitor/files/contributed/jnt_news_sinai-tribal-head-interview-crisis/169184088.jpg?t=thumbnail_278 Palestinian security forces patrol the Rafah area in the Gaza Strip on the border with Egypt on May 21, 2013. The abduction of security personnel last week in Sinai prompted Egyptian police to shut down the border crossing. Moustafa Amara 5/24/13 11:53 AM http://www.azzaman.com/?p=35014 108abacd-c635-474f-b2f9-a39fe430c528 http://www.al-monitor.com/pulse/politics/2013/05/syrian-coalition-prepares-for-geneva-2.html The Syrian opposition began a three-day meeting in Istanbul on May 24, in which its various groups will try to address pressing issues in preparation for the coming Geneva negotiations. 5/24/13 3:53 PM http://www.al-monitor.com/pulse/politics/2013/05/syrian-coalition-prepares-for-geneva-2.html http://www.al-monitor.com/files/live/sites/almonitor/files/contributed/jnt_news_syrian-coalition-prepares-for-geneva-2/1-RTXZXQH.jpg?t=thumbnail_278 George Sabra (L), a veteran Christian opposition figure and acting president of the Syrian National Coalition, speaks during the opening session of a meeting of members of the Syrian opposition in Istanbul, May 23, 2013. Former coalition leader Moaz al-Khatib is at center. Mohammad Ballout 5/24/13 9:49 AM http://www.assafir.com/Article.aspx?EditionId=2468&ChannelId=59441&ArticleId=1877&Author=محمدبلوط f0bfce12-2b68-46dc-a3d2-ca214a27a2fd http://www.al-monitor.com/pulse/originals/2013/05/iraq-government-crisis-threatens-future.html As disputes persist among Iraq’s governmental branches, it is unlikely that a resolution will be reached anytime soon. 5/24/13 3:34 PM http://www.al-monitor.com/pulse/originals/2013/05/iraq-government-crisis-threatens-future.html http://www.al-monitor.com/files/live/sites/almonitor/files/contributed/jnt_news_iraq-government-crisis-threatens-future/Maliki Nujaifi.jpg?t=thumbnail_278 Iraq's Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki (R) speaks during a joint news conference with Iraqi parliament speaker Osama al-Nujaifi in Baghdad, Dec. 20, 2010. Mustafa al-Kadhimi 5/24/13 11:39 AM 7b80b41c-4df0-46ff-918f-b1341a33ca1b http://www.al-monitor.com/pulse/originals/2013/05/egypt-draft-laws-shura-council.html Egypt’s political debate heats up over draft legislation. 5/24/13 3:31 PM http://www.al-monitor.com/pulse/originals/2013/05/egypt-draft-laws-shura-council.html http://www.al-monitor.com/files/live/sites/almonitor/files/contributed/jnt_news_egypt-draft-laws-shura-council/RTXZQNK-001.jpg?t=thumbnail_278 An anti-government protester, who is covered with an Egyptian flag and has a model depicting a tank, holds a picture of former Egyptian President Gamal Abdel Nasser while lying down in Tahrir Square in Cairo, May 17, 2013. Bassem Sabry 5/24/13 12:34 PM 3726514c-f36a-4046-ae37-8b21c49064df http://www.al-monitor.com/pulse/originals/2013/05/kerry-visit-palestine-israel-peace-talks.html US Secretary of State John Kerry’s unscheduled detour in the West Bank to buy a shawarma sandwich has given rise to speculation about his motives. 5/24/13 3:25 PM http://www.al-monitor.com/pulse/originals/2013/05/kerry-visit-palestine-israel-peace-talks.html http://www.al-monitor.com/files/live/sites/almonitor/files/contributed/jnt_news_kerry-visit-palestine-israel-peace-talks/RTXZXXP.jpg?t=thumbnail_278 US Secretary of State John Kerry greets workers as he visits a restaurant in the West Bank city of Ramallah, May 23, 2013. Daoud Kuttab 5/24/13 4:27 AM 8692b234-9799-4e28-b1ce-ce9dba13c0e0 http://www.al-monitor.com/pulse/originals/2013/05/turkey-puzzled-us-exxon-krg.html Ankara questions US concerns over its arrangement with ExxonMobil for energy exploration in the Kurdistan Region of Iraq. 5/24/13 3:01 PM http://www.al-monitor.com/pulse/originals/2013/05/turkey-puzzled-us-exxon-krg.html http://www.al-monitor.com/files/live/sites/almonitor/files/contributed/jnt_news_turkey-puzzled-us-exxon-krg/Oil Iraq.jpg?t=thumbnail_278 Workers adjust a valve of an oil pipe in Tawke oil field near Dahuk, 400 km (249 miles) north of Baghdad, Nov. 24, 2010. In this part of Iraq, the hillsides sweat oil. Without any coaxing, the sticky black treasure oozes from the layered rock and gathers in pools that bubble as dissolved gases surface. Tulin Daloglu 5/24/13 11:51 AM 8bec0ae2-1592-42d6-852a-2bde508be75f http://www.al-monitor.com/pulse/originals/2013/05/lapids-strategy-to-conquer-israels-premiership.html Israeli Finance Minister Yair Lapid seeks to please the right-wing electorate, in preparation for his long-term ambition: to become prime minister.   5/24/13 3:01 PM http://www.al-monitor.com/pulse/originals/2013/05/lapids-strategy-to-conquer-israels-premiership.html http://www.al-monitor.com/files/live/sites/almonitor/files/contributed/jnt_news_lapids-strategy-to-conquer-israels-premiership/1-RTXYBOO.jpg?t=thumbnail_278 Israel's Finance Minister Yair Lapid arrives for the weekly cabinet meeting in Jerusalem, April 7, 2013. Ben Caspit 5/24/13 11:38 AM 1b54a8eb-58b4-4bbf-8e69-2f0e1784049b http://www.al-monitor.com/pulse/originals/2013/05/jabhat-nusra-hezbollah-syria-conflict-lebanon.html Following recent conflict in Lebanon’s Ein el-Hilweh Palestinian refugee camp, it is becoming ever more apparent that Syria’s conflict, as represented between Jabhat al-Nusra and Hezbollah, is already in Lebanon. 5/24/13 2:39 PM http://www.al-monitor.com/pulse/originals/2013/05/jabhat-nusra-hezbollah-syria-conflict-lebanon.html http://www.al-monitor.com/files/live/sites/almonitor/files/contributed/jnt_news_jabhat-nusra-hezbollah-syria-conflict-lebanon/1-RTXZN6R.jpg?t=thumbnail_278 Palestinian Fatah members carry their weapons as they parade to mark the 65th anniversary of Nakba, at Ein el-Hilweh Palestinian refugee camp near the port city of Sidon, southern Lebanon, May 15, 2013. Nasser Chararah 5/24/13 10:45 AM d0bf44b3-a9d7-4cc4-aac7-f3100f828226 http://www.al-monitor.com/pulse/originals/2013/05/turkey-clash-civilizations-secular.html Turkey’s secular and democratic identity should not be compromised for religious orthodoxy. 5/24/13 1:55 PM http://www.al-monitor.com/pulse/originals/2013/05/turkey-clash-civilizations-secular.html http://www.al-monitor.com/files/live/sites/almonitor/files/contributed/jnt_news_turkey-clash-civilizations-secular/RTXWDCF-001.jpg?t=thumbnail_278 A billboard advertising the TV series "The Magnificent Century" is seen after being damaged by eggs thrown by pro-Islamic protesters in Istanbul, Jan. 9, 2011. Semih Idiz 5/24/13 9:49 AM 48c2879f-0983-4f37-8514-36fb3a70a87c http://www.al-monitor.com/pulse/originals/2013/05/iran-puppet-show-red-hat-satire.html "Red Hat" circumvents restrictions on freedom of speech to critique Iranian government policies that have led to serious economic problems. 5/24/13 1:33 PM http://www.al-monitor.com/pulse/originals/2013/05/iran-puppet-show-red-hat-satire.html http://www.al-monitor.com/files/live/sites/almonitor/files/contributed/jnt_news_iran-puppet-show-red-hat-satire/3461305.jpg?t=thumbnail_278 Iranian girls gather to watch a puppet show during a festival to mark world puppet theater day at the Iranian House of Artists in Tehran, April 23, 2004. Mehrnaz Samimi 5/24/13 9:34 AM eed08f2f-ab7d-4c99-8e7a-29c898148a5a http://www.al-monitor.com/pulse/originals/2013/05/netanyahus-new-rival-for-premiership.html Veteran Labor members are planning to replace party chair Shelly Yachimovich with popular former Israeli chief of staff Gabi Ashkenazi. 5/24/13 1:04 PM http://www.al-monitor.com/pulse/originals/2013/05/netanyahus-new-rival-for-premiership.html http://www.al-monitor.com/files/live/sites/almonitor/files/contributed/jnt_news_netanyahus-new-rival-for-premiership/1-RTR2H8JS-001.jpg?t=thumbnail_278 Israel's then-army chief Lt. Gen, Gabi Ashkenazi testifies at a state-appointed inquiry into the Israeli naval raid on a Gaza aid flotilla in Jerusalem Aug. 11, 2010. Mazal Mualem 5/24/13 8:01 AM 0ce734e0-66f2-4b5c-a5f6-711becdcc08f http://www.al-monitor.com/pulse/originals/2013/05/turkey-syria-transition-act.html The Senate Foreign Relations Committee bill does not signal the imminent arrival of US arms to the Syria opposition. 5/24/13 12:53 PM http://www.al-monitor.com/pulse/originals/2013/05/turkey-syria-transition-act.html http://www.al-monitor.com/files/live/sites/almonitor/files/contributed/jnt_news_turkey-syria-transition-act/1-RTR3EBD8.jpg?t=thumbnail_278 US Sen. Bob Menendez, D-NJ, chairman of the Foreign Relations Committee, listens during Federal Reserve Board Chairman Ben Bernanke's semiannual monetary policy report to congress, in Washington, Feb. 26, 2013. Pinar Tremblay 5/24/13 9:32 AM 55dad33b-58bd-4ee2-bbf9-f0d86bd12e1c http://www.al-monitor.com/pulse/originals/2013/05/israels-egypts-and-hamas-joined-interest-in-the-sinai.html The threat posed by Salafists and other jihadists in the northern Sinai has resulted in Hamas, Egypt and Israel recognizing their mutual interests. 5/24/13 11:57 AM http://www.al-monitor.com/pulse/originals/2013/05/israels-egypts-and-hamas-joined-interest-in-the-sinai.html http://www.al-monitor.com/files/live/sites/almonitor/files/contributed/jnt_news_israels-egypts-and-hamas-joined-interest-in-the-sinai/RTXZQ8D.jpg?t=thumbnail_278 A member of Hamas' security forces stands guard in front of the closed gate of the Rafah crossing with Egypt, in the southern Gaza Strip, May 17, 2013. Shlomi Eldar 5/24/13 3:27 AM 209f5167-36ef-4e56-9ca8-155d0d3313dc http://www.al-monitor.com/pulse/originals/2013/05/john-kerry-resumed-negotiations-palestine-israel.html Palestinian reconciliation must precede an Israeli-Palestinian settlement. 5/24/13 11:48 AM http://www.al-monitor.com/pulse/originals/2013/05/john-kerry-resumed-negotiations-palestine-israel.html http://www.al-monitor.com/files/live/sites/almonitor/files/contributed/jnt_news_john-kerry-resumed-negotiations-palestine-israel/RTXZXEL.jpg?t=thumbnail_278 US Secretary of State John Kerry boards his plane in Amman, Jordan, May 23, 2013. Clovis Maksoud 5/24/13 9:46 AM 1f117e05-203b-4159-9850-fe4c44c24d93 http://www.al-monitor.com/pulse/originals/2013/05/mohammad-khazaee-iran-ambassador-syria.html Mohammad Khazaee, Iran’s ambassador to the United Nations, discusses Iran’s position on Syria in an email interview with Al-Monitor. 5/24/13 11:28 AM http://www.al-monitor.com/pulse/originals/2013/05/mohammad-khazaee-iran-ambassador-syria.html http://www.al-monitor.com/files/live/sites/almonitor/files/contributed/jnt_news_mohammad-khazaee-iran-ambassador-syria/RTR2EY9Q.jpg?t=thumbnail_278 Iran's Ambassador to the UN Mohammad Khazaee speaks before the UN Security Council at the UN Headquarters in New York, June 9, 2010. Andrew Parasiliti 5/24/13 9:00 AM 939a33d4-9a3c-4d24-bc97-70002c603c15 http://www.al-monitor.com/pulse/originals/2013/05/lod-mixed-city-of-jews-and-arabs.html Jewish and Arab activists join hands fighting crime, poverty and mutual mistrust in efforts to rescue Lod.   5/23/13 6:16 PM http://www.al-monitor.com/pulse/originals/2013/05/lod-mixed-city-of-jews-and-arabs.html http://www.al-monitor.com/files/live/sites/almonitor/files/contributed/jnt_news_lod-mixed-city-of-jews-and-arabs/Lod.jpg?t=thumbnail_278 Women walk past a Hebrew graffiti that reads "Love" in the Rakevet neighborhood in Lod, May 15, 2012. The backstreets of Lod, a mixed Arab-Jewish city just 20 minutes from the tree-lined boulevards of Tel Aviv, reveal a seamy underside of Israel that few visitors get to see, tucked away behind Ben Gurion airport off the main highway to Jerusalem and the occupied West Bank. Daniel Ben Simon 5/23/13 11:03 AM 5aaea05f-79ef-4a24-b8ca-4aa71c166515 http://www.al-monitor.com/pulse/politics/2013/05/kuwait-authorities-reach-out-to-tribes.html Kuwaiti authorities have recently taken the initiative to reach out to the country’s tribes, to discourage them from supporting the growing opposition. 5/23/13 6:04 PM http://www.al-monitor.com/pulse/politics/2013/05/kuwait-authorities-reach-out-to-tribes.html http://www.al-monitor.com/files/live/sites/almonitor/files/contributed/jnt_news_kuwait-authorities-reach-out-to-tribes/Kuwait tribes.jpg?t=thumbnail_278 An election campaign tent for candidate Mohammed al-Juwiehel is seen burning in Kuwait City, Jan. 30, 2012. Tribesmen torched the campaign tent of a candidate who insulted their tribe, days ahead of the election to choose the Gulf state's fourth parliament in six years. Hamad al Jasser 5/23/13 10:26 AM http://alhayat.com/Details/516093 9c46d19b-3f24-43cd-a4fa-825f34248f76 http://www.al-monitor.com/pulse/culture/2013/05/syriac-monastery-turkey-new-road.html Despite a drawn out conflict over who owns the land where the holy Syriac Mor Gabriel Monastery is located, the Turkish government has laid out plans to repair the road leading to it. 5/23/13 5:47 PM http://www.al-monitor.com/pulse/culture/2013/05/syriac-monastery-turkey-new-road.html http://www.al-monitor.com/files/live/sites/almonitor/files/contributed/jnt_news_syriac-monastery-turkey-new-road/Mor Gabriel.jpg?t=thumbnail_278 A Syriac Christian monk walks up the steps at the ancient monastery of Mor Gabriel, 15 km (9 miles) away from the town of Midyat, in Mardin province in southeast Turkey, Jan. 13, 2009. Nese Karanfil 5/23/13 10:23 AM http://www.radikal.com.tr/turkiye/mor_gabriele_yeni_yol_yapiliyor-1134299 0937aec0-dad9-49c4-ba1f-a5d231a71627 http://www.al-monitor.com/pulse/culture/2013/05/turkish-chaldeans-return-erdogan-peace-process-kurds.html Turkish Chaldeans who have emigrated abroad are the first to heed Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan’s call for the country’s minorities to return following the recent peace process with the Kurds. 5/23/13 5:47 PM http://www.al-monitor.com/pulse/culture/2013/05/turkish-chaldeans-return-erdogan-peace-process-kurds.html http://www.al-monitor.com/files/live/sites/almonitor/files/contributed/jnt_news_turkish-chaldeans-return-erdogan-peace-process-kurds/Chaldean.jpg?t=thumbnail_278 Iraqi Christians attend an Easter mass at the St. Joseph Chaldean Church in Baghdad, March 31, 2013. 5/23/13 11:53 AM http://www.taraf.com.tr/haber/keldaniler-donuyor.htm 6319851d-6c7d-4399-8132-8f003bdf5080 http://www.al-monitor.com/pulse/politics/2013/05/egypt-sinai-abducted-soldiers-released.html The seven Egyptian soldiers kidnapped in the Sinai have finally been released, but there are signs that some kind of a deal was made with the kidnappers. 5/23/13 5:44 PM http://www.al-monitor.com/pulse/politics/2013/05/egypt-sinai-abducted-soldiers-released.html http://www.al-monitor.com/files/live/sites/almonitor/files/contributed/jnt_news_egypt-sinai-abducted-soldiers-released/Egyptian soldiers.jpg?t=thumbnail_278 Soldiers who were kidnapped last week sit before a news conference by President Mohammed Morsi after their release, in Cairo, May 22, 2013. Mohammad Fawzi 5/23/13 10:16 AM http://www.assafir.com/Article.aspx?EditionId=2467&ChannelId=59411&ArticleId=1793&Author=محمدفوزي 23409b06-4c76-487d-867d-38fbab6b6fc2 http://www.al-monitor.com/pulse/politics/2013/05/erdogan-turkey-washington-russia-syria-conflict.html Many fear that concessions made by Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan to the US and Russia will only serve to prolong Syrian President Bashar al-Assad’s time in power. 5/23/13 5:43 PM http://www.al-monitor.com/pulse/politics/2013/05/erdogan-turkey-washington-russia-syria-conflict.html http://www.al-monitor.com/files/live/sites/almonitor/files/contributed/jnt_news_erdogan-turkey-washington-russia-syria-conflict/1-RTXZPER.jpg?t=thumbnail_278 US President Barack Obama and Turkey's Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan (R) walk from their joint news conference in the Rose Garden of the White House in Washington, May 16, 2013. Emre Uslu 5/23/13 10:30 AM http://www.taraf.com.tr/emre-uslu-2/makale-esad-in-kimyasali-ankara-yi-zehirlemis.htm 374f1597-edb6-4b69-b202-d4ed315ffbf0 http://www.al-monitor.com/pulse/originals/2013/05/report-condemns-exclusion-of-women-in-public-sphere.html Though Israel prides itself as being enlightened, the Attorney General Yehuda Weinstein has recommended criminalizing the exclusion of women from the public sphere. 5/23/13 5:37 PM http://www.al-monitor.com/pulse/originals/2013/05/report-condemns-exclusion-of-women-in-public-sphere.html http://www.al-monitor.com/files/live/sites/almonitor/files/contributed/jnt_news_report-condemns-exclusion-of-women-in-public-sphere/1-RTR2A8AD.jpg?t=thumbnail_278 Israel's Attorney General Yehuda Weinstein attends the weekly cabinet meeting in Jerusalem, Feb. 14, 2010. Akiva Eldar 5/23/13 10:16 AM