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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

    Turkey’s True Friends

    Joshua W. Walker, Ph.D. candidate, Princeton University and former Turkey desk officer, State Department (Today’s Zaman)
    April 14, 2008

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

    The recent decision by Turkey’s chief prosecutor to call for the closure of the AK Party and a ban on 71 of Turkey’s most senior democratically elected leaders, including Prime Minister Recep Tayyip ErdoÄŸan and President Abdullah Gul, for "anti-secular activities" against the Turkish Republic has now become a full indictment that threatens Turkey’s democratic character. …

    Banning Turkey’s democratically elected government and leaders is an abuse of justice that will do irreversible harm to Turkey’s democratic process, European dreams and strategic interests. Therefore, now is not the time for Turkey’s friends to look the other way. Turkey’s domestic politics are a notoriously complex beast, but it is not acceptable in today’s world for the United States and Europe to sit on the sidelines in silence. Clearly, interfering in a sovereign nation’s domestic debates is in the interest of neither the United States nor the European Union, but when so much is at stake in terms of Turkey’s place in the Middle East, Europe and the world, something needs to be said. …

    Given the West’s emphasis and interest in Turkey’s democracy and reform process, a simple reaffirmation of their commitment to the citizen’s choices in free and fair elections would send a powerful message to an on-edge country. … Actively reiterating support for Turkey’s democratically elected government is in both the United States and Europe’s best interest and will have a calming effect on Turkey. The country’s economy and stock market have already been rocked by the domestic political uncertainty emanating from Ankara. To make matters worse, continued conflict and unrest in Turkey’s southeastern province and northern Iraq have only been heightened in the prevailing political climate. Therefore, it is time for Turkey’s true friends to let their voices be heard for democracy. Access the full article>>