On Tuesday, the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace hosted a discussion titled hearing Palestine: Economic Challenges and Political Implications. The Palestinian economy made significant advances in recent years under Prime Minister Salam Fayyad’s institution building program, yet questions remain regarding the sustainability of such progress in light of the ongoing, and seemingly long-lasting, diplomatic stalemate with Israel. The discussion featured Robert Danin, Eni Enrico Mattei Fello, Council on Foreign Relations; ...

On Thursday, the Berkley Center for Religion, Peace, and World Affairs at Georgetown University hosted a discussion entitled ‘The Rise of Islamist Parties in the New Middle East’. The panel featured Dr. Jocelyne Cesari, Director of the Harvard Islam in the West Program and Dr. Nathan Brown, professor of political science and international affairs at George Washington University. The discussion was moderated by Dr. Aaron Lobel, President of America Abroad ...

Dimi Reider wrote an entry in a series of posts in the New York Review of Books blog concerning the fate of democracy in Israel. The article discusses several legislative proposals, some passed and some pending ratification that are largely in opposition to basic democratic principles including freedom of assembly, speech, asylum, association and the right to an independent judiciary. Reider lists examples of such laws including a new amendment to a 50-year-old law targeting ...

Al-Jazeera reported that Israeli air strikes in the Gaza strip have killed a total number of 23 Palestinians since violence erupted in the Palestinian territory on Friday. Islamic Jihad, a Palestinian militant group blamed for rocket fire into Israel, claimed that two of the dead were members. Israel justifies the attacks saying that it is “hitting back at scores of rocket attacks.” The violence erupted when the Israeli army carried out ...

According to The Guardian, as many as six global powers have agreed to return to the negotiating table with Iran in order to “restore international trust in Tehran’s stated intentions." E.U. Foreign Policy Chief Catherine Ashton sent a letter to Iran’s chief nuclear negotiator Saeed Jalili stating that negotiations should commence as soon as possible. Speaking for the Western bloc comprised of the U.S., U.K., France, Russia, China, and Germany, ...

On Wednesday, Israeli soldiers raided two Palestinian news stations in the occupied West Bank seizing transmitters the military said were “interfering with air traffic communications.” Palestinian Prime Minister Salam Fayyad visited Watan TV, one of the raided TV stations, called the Israeli offensive “oppressive and monstrous” and “violated all international laws.” Spokesman for the Palestinian Authority Ghassan Khatib stated that the Palestinian communications ministry determined that they had complied with ...

Israel agreed to release alleged Islamic Jihad operative Khader Adnan who, at the onset of  his detention, began a hunger strike that he continued for 66 days--the longest hunger strike in Palestinian prisoner history. Adnan's legal representation reported that he had agreed to end the hunger strike after reaching an agreement with Israeli authorities guaranteeing his release in April, should "no new additional substantial evidence" emerge against him. Adnan, a baker by profession, is alleged to be ...

On Monday, leaders of the rival Palestinian factions Fatah and Hamas announced an end to the political stalemates which has divided the two movements in the past. The agreement announced from Doha, Qatar called for the formation of a unity governemnt led "initially" by Western-backed Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas and the subsequent election of a cabinet made up of independent technocrats. Leader of the Hamas movement Khaled Meshaal said that the Palestinians and Hamas "were happy with ...

On Thursday, the Middle East Institute in concert with Freedom House hosted a discussion panel on the implications of the Arab Spring for US policy and interests in the Middle East region. The discussion panel was also charged with introducing a planned and authored by numerous scholars in cooperation with MEI entitled, The Arab Spring: Implications for US Policy and Interests. Discussants on the panel were scholars who participated in ...

POMED is excited to be a participating organization in J Street's upcoming national conference. The event, called "Making History," will take place March 24-27 in Washington, DC. To see last year's impressive conference schedule, click here. To register for the 2012 conference, click here (more details on speakers and panels will be available soon). We hope to see you there!