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In-Depth Coverage

Original Commentaries

08/07/08
How to Deal with Jerusalem  —Lt. Col. (Res.) Ron Shatzberg, Project Director, Economic Cooperation Foundation. Interview with Middle East Bulletin.
08/07/08
How to Deal with Jerusalem  —
08/05/08
Why Did Maliki Call for a Timeline?  —by Christopher Kojm who teaches at the Elliott School of International Affairs at George Washington University and is a former senior advisor to the Iraq Study Group. Original Commentary for Middle East Bulletin.

Setting the Record Straight

Already Divided

“Even the Arab minority in the city has shown its preference for living under Israeli rule, as many have moved to the Israeli side of the security barrier being built around Jerusalem. Their choice is reasonable, as Jerusalem offers the quality of life of a modern western city while only a few kilometers away the norm is a third world standard of living, chaos and religious intolerance. An undivided Jerusalem is the best guarantee of a better life for all Jerusalemites.”
—Nathan Diament, Director of Public Policy, Union of Orthodox Jewish Congregations of America, July 23, 2008 versus
  • “Those who believe that Jerusalem should not be divided, and mean by that that the Arab neighborhoods should not be separated from the city, should be the first to insist that an active policy be adopted by the government and the municipality to improve the lot of local Arab residents. Barring that, Jerusalem will continue to remain a divided city.”
    —Moshe Arens, former Israeli defense and foreign minister (Likud), “A Story of Neglect,” Haaretz, July 28, 2008

    • Middle East Analysis

    Historic Visits

    July 30, 2007

    Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak and Syrian President Bashar Assad (AP)

    November 19, 1977: Anwar Sadat becomes the first Arab leader to officially visit Israel. His meeting with Prime Minister Menachem Begin led to a series of Egyptian-Israeli diplomatic efforts, culminating in the 1978 Camp David Peace Accords.

    July 18-19, 1994: Jordanian and Israeli delegations meet at Ein Avrona for the first of a series of bi-lateral talks which result in the signing of the Jordanian-Israeli peace treaty on October 26, 1994.

    November 6, 1995:     King Hussein of Jordan and President Hosni Mubarak of Egypt deliver eulogies at the funeral of the late Prime Minister Yitzhak Rabin. High level representatives of Oman, Morrocco, Qatar, Tunisia and Mauritania were also present.

    March 12, 1998:     Suleyman Demirel becomes the first president of Turkey to visit Israel, leading a 108-member delegation. Visit marks a "new morning" for Turkish-Israeli economic cooperation.