I confess I love Israel. Moments like this, reading Gideon Levy in Haaretz, remind me that the things I love about my Jewish culture–intellectual honesty and sensitivity–are alive in Israel, in the likes of writers like him. Why hasn’t any…
Haaretz reports that Netanyahu will evacuate “outpost” settlements, so-called “illegal” ones, as a “gesture” to Obama. Emphasis mine: The sources said [Defense Minister Ehud] Barak intends to dismantle a number of outposts out of 26 illegal ones. “It is up…
David Sanger in the Times, web-only; his piece begins: “Now that President Obama has established what he called a ‘clear timetable’ for Iran….” I guess you had to be there.
Mustafa Barghouthi responds to the Obama/Netanyahu meeting in an LA Times oped “Can Obama meet Netanyahu’s challenge?”: More recently, Netanyahu has added a new demand: that Palestinians recognize Israel as a Jewish state. This is intended only to confuse and…
Netanyahu senior aide Ron Dermer on the plane from Washington DC to Tel Aviv: “This idea of two states for two peoples is a stupid and childish solution to a very complex problem.” Another top Netanyahu advisor referred to the…
Here’s a video supposedly from outside the White House as Bibi met Obama. Note the One State signs with Code Pink. Note the simulated West Bank “checkpoint,” now a staple of I/P protests. And note the bigger, pro-Israel demo, and…
David Bromwich writes: One inference is plain from the contrary emphases of Netanyahu and Obama at their news conference. The coming six months will see a continued aggressive insistence by Israel’s most uncritical American supporters, tuned to a single theme:…
On Monday night, following the Obama-Netanyahu meeting, Charlie Rose had an interesting half hour with Rashid Khalidi, Bret Stephens of the Wall Street Journal, and Lally Weymouth of Newsweek (and Jim Hoagland in Washington, reporting). The best part of the…
On Tuesday, Benjamin Netanuyahu left his ambiguous meeting with President Obama behind him for greener pastures – the US Congress. There has already been speculation that Netanyahu is planning on using the Congress to block any challenge from the Obama…