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Kerry's Visit Leaves Israelis Indifferent

Mazal Mualem wonders why the optimism left by President Barack Obama turned into indifference toward his secretary of state.
U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry speaks to U.S. foreign service workers during his visit to the U.S. Consulate General in Jerusalem April 8, 2013. REUTERS/Paul J. Richards/Pool (JERUSALEM - Tags: POLITICS) - RTXYDPV
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The three-day visit by Secretary of State John Kerry to Israel, which ended on Tuesday, April 4, was covered by the Israeli media with indifference bordering on disregard, especially after the great optimism left behind by President Barack Obama at the end of his visit, two and a half weeks earlier.

Kerry’s two meetings with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, which lasted a total of seven hours, as well as his meeting with President Shimon Peres, merited minor coverage relative to such an event. Reports of the meetings were relegated to marginal sections of the news broadcasts.

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