After Jordan, Emirates also furious with Netanyahu Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu not only managed to get into a diplomatic row with Jordan, he also succeeded in angering the Emiratis. Israel
Iran operating new advanced centrifuges, nuclear watchdog finds According to an International Atomic Energy Agency report, Iran is now using IR-4 centrifuges to enrich uranium in violation of the nuclear accord. Iran
Lawsuit filed to close pro-Kurdish party after lawmaker stripped of parliamentary seat Omer Faruk Gergerlioglu, a pro-Kurdish Peoples' Democratic Party deputy known to focus on human rights abuses, was stripped of his parliament seat and a lawsuit was filed to close the party March 17. Turkey
Netanyahu courts Arab voters as 'Abu Yair' Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has adopted a new strategy for the Arab public: cynically rebranding himself as "Abu Yair." Israel
Lapid Criticizes Idle Ultra-Orthodox For Hurting Israeli Economy The absence of the ultra-Orthodox from Israel's job market is a real threat to the state, but the aggressive attempts by Finance Minister Yair Lapid to solve the wrong problem will have the opposite effect. Israel
McKeon, House Cautious on Syria Buck McKeon, Republican chairman of the House Armed Services Committee, says the military’s intervention in Egypt was the right thing to put Egypt’s democratic transition back on track. Egypt
Israeli Intellectuals Support European Sanctions Many Israeli intellectuals are in favor of the European decision by which future agreements with Israel won't apply to settlements in the territories. Palestine
Islamic Clerics Oppose Lebanese Law Protecting Abused Women The death of Roula Yaacoub, a Lebanese mother of five who was beaten to death by her husband, has drawn attention to Lebanese activists’ fight to ensure women’s rights in the face of religious conservatives. Lebanon
Israeli Russian Public Still on Liberman’s Side Despite the trial against former Foreign Minister Avigdor Liberman, or maybe because of it, the Israeli Russian public stands by him. Israel
Saving Egypt's Third Democratic Transition As Egyptians proceed with their third revolutionary transition, they might finally get it right if based on a broad national consensus and inclusivity. Egypt
US Appeals Court Rejects 'Jerusalem, Israel' on Passport A US appeals court rejected an attempt by an American couple to have their son's birthplace listed as "Jerusalem, Israel" on his US passport. Palestine
Iraqi Politicians Need to Reconnect With Society Iraqi politicians local election campaigns are out of touch with the needs of the people. Iraq
Egypt's New Rulers Face Crisis With Ethiopia Over Nile Egypt has sent delegations to Ethiopia to push for a compromise on the dam project and sharing the Nile's waters. Egypt
New Muslim Brotherhood Faction Opposes Violence As violence flares again in Egypt, a new group called the Muslim Brotherhood Against Violence is struggling to find a peaceful path to compromise. Egypt
Cairo’s ‘Little Syria’ Testimony To Despair of War More than 75,000 Syrian refugees in Egypt live on the edge, wondering if they will ever return home. Egypt
EU Boycott Contributes To Israeli Decision on Peace Talks In an Al-Monitor interview, Peace Now chair Yariv Oppenheimer says the Israeli public must force Netanyahu ''to take a historic step forward" and implement the vision of a two-state solution. Israel
