The US in the Middle East Today

by Charles Naas Not even a month in office, Secretary of State John Kerry took his first official trip to the troubled Middle East and immediately felt first-hand the pressures and metamorphosing power relationships in the region. He began his visit… Continue Reading

AIPAC on the Defensive

The 2013 American Israel Public Affairs Committee (AIPAC) Policy Conference wasn’t quite the same show of arrogant power that it usually is. There seems to have been a note of unusual concern among the 13,000 or so assembled activists. And… Continue Reading

Chuck Hagel Friend Requests Ehud Barak

by Marsha B. Cohen Newly confirmed Secretary of Defense Chuck Hagel is scheduled to meet with Israel’s Defense Minister Ehud Barak on Tuesday morning, March 5. There’s more to this meeting than one might infer from harrumphing members of the right… Continue Reading

After Unprecedented Fight, Hagel Confirmed as Obama’s Pentagon Chief

via IPS News Ending a long and controversial battle, the U.S. Senate Tuesday voted 58-41 to confirm former Republican Sen. Chuck Hagel as President Barack Obama’s new secretary of defence. The confirmation, which followed a more-lopsided 71-27 vote to end… Continue Reading