Happening with frequency: Explosion near Syria border wounds three Israeli soldiers

'Today's successful hit in the Golan'

Hezbollah is retaliating more frequently than reported.

"...Three Israeli soldiers were wounded by a bomb that hit their jeep in the Golan Heights near the Syrian border on Monday....On Friday evening, an explosive charge detonated near Har Dov in the vicinity of the Israel-Lebanon border......About ten days earlier, a similar incident occurred in the northern Golan Heights, when an Israel army force spotted several persons suspected of attempting to plant a charge near the border fence with Syria....Tensions have risen in the north since an airstrike, attributed by foreign reports to the Israeli Air Force, targeted a Hezbollah weapons convoy in Lebanon.

Dmitry Rogozin @DRogozin

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Comrade @BarackObama, what should do those who have neither accounts nor property abroad? Or U didn't think about it?)http://bit.ly/1ebMXDM 

10:26 AM - 17 Mar 2014

The Use of Force, the Reflexive Resort to Economic Sanctions, and the Trials of America’s Hegemonic Mindset

"... As negotiations toward a “final” nuclear deal between the P5+1 and Iran continue, it is important to consider to what extent the world might be witnessing a fundamental change in American foreign policy.  We are inclined to think that the Obama administration would not have gone as far down the diplomatic road with Iran as it has in the absence of President Obama’s self-inflicted debacle over his declared intention to attack Syria after chemical weapons were used there in August 2013.  This episode drove home—to the Obama administration as well as to most of the rest of the world—that the United States can no longer credibly threaten to use military force in the Middle East for hegemonic purposes.After the American public so resoundingly rebuffed Obama’s call for U.S. military action, his administration was compelled to conclude that starting down the diplomatic road with Iran was politically less costly than pushing for more sanctions and continuing to insist that the “military option” was still “on the table.”  But can the Obama administration really go all the way to a comprehensive realignment of relations with the Islamic Republic of Iran—and, in the process, show that the United States can shift proactively from a counterproductive drive to dominate the Middle East to serious engagement with all important regional powers, and not just slink out of region in defeat?Making such a shift will require Washington to relinquish the self-damaging delusion that the United States can actually maintain hegemony in the Middle East on an open-ended basis.  America’s reaction to the ongoing Ukraine crisis suggests that American elites are having a very difficult time giving up this delusion..."

"Saudi Arabia may be tacitly conceding something in Syria, but it is doubling its bet on ‘wiping out’ the Muslim Brotherhood"

"... The predominant triggers for all this commotion was primarily Egypt and Saudi’s attachment to its Field Marshall’s scourge of the Muslim Brotherhood in Egypt, and secondly, the dramatic Saudi decree disowning jihadists – much to the ire of the ‘jilted’ jihadists in Syria and to their Salafi and Brotherhood colleagues and facilitators in Lebanon....The second trigger probably has been the appointment of Prince Mohammad bin Nayef to replace Prince Bandar in charge of Saudi’s re-orientated Syria policy.  Perhaps here it is right to conclude that the prospect of a visit by President Obama to Riyadh shortly has catalyzed the ‘re-set’ in Saudi policy towards countering takfiri jihadism. Prince Mohammad is both an American favorite, and his credentials precisely lie in the field of counter-terrorism – the new western priority.  But, significantly, both he and his father are also widely known for their detestation of the Muslim Brotherhood.  Saudi Arabia may be tacitly conceding something in Syria, but it is doubling its bet on ‘wiping out’ the Muslim Brotherhood.  If Saudi Arabia persuades others in the region to proscribe the MB, Mohammad bin Nayef may be right in assuming that the Europeans, so well atuned to Gulf interests, may be counted on to act in follow-up....What does this mean in terms of geo-politics? Firstly, it is likely that these GCC tensions will play out directly in Syria, where the frictions between Gulf States are likely to mirror in the antagonisms and conflicts between the various armed insurgent groups – to the benefit of the Syrian army.  Secondly, the loss of GCC coherence will both weaken it as a body, and adversely affect Saudi’s political standing, which derives from its control over this body; thirdly, the hostilities towards Oman and Qatar, far from deterring them from rapprochement with Iran, precisely are spurring them in that direction; fourthly, the assault on the Muslim Brotherhood is deepening PM Erdogan’s loneliness and political vulnerability.  Finally, Saudi Arabia has really extended itself in loading so much of its credibility onto the shoulders of Field Marshal Sisi and the unforeseeable course of events in Egypt..."

"Western and regional governments share responsibility for much that has happened in Libya, but so too should the media"

"... Western and regional governments share responsibility for much that has happened in Libya, but so too should the media. The Libyan uprising was reported as a simple-minded clash between good and evil. Gaddafi and his regime were demonised and his opponents treated with a naïve lack of scepticism and enquiry. The foreign media have dealt with the subsequent collapse of the Libyan state since 2011 mostly by ignoring it, though politicians have stopped referring to Libya as an exemplar of successful foreign intervention.
Can anything positive be learnt from the Libyan experience which might be useful in establishing states that are an improvement on those ruled by Gaddafi, Assad and the like? An important point is that demands for civil, political and economic rights – which were at the centre of the Arab Spring uprisings – mean nothing without a nation state to guarantee them; otherwise national loyalties are submerged by sectarian, regional and ethnic hatreds...."

Yabroud: Check. Ersal: Next

"(Reuters) - Syrian forces backed by Hezbollah militants took full control of the town of Yabroud on Sunday after driving out rebels, helping President Bashar al-Assad secure the land route linking the capital Damascus to Aleppo and the Mediterranean coast.The fall of Yabroud, the last rebel bastion near the Lebanese border, could choke off a vital insurgent supply line from Lebanon and consolidate government control over a swathe of territory from Damascus to the central city of Homs..."

US Intel: "Assad has as good as won"

'Despite the meager results of Secretary of State Kerry’s six hours of talks with Russian Foreign Minister Lavrov on March 14^th, State Department officials are not despairing of a diplomatic solution to the Crimea crisis. Kerry is calling the talks “constructive.” Contrary to the media build-up, officials never saw the session with Lavrov as “last ditch’ or “make or break.” One official summed things up to us: “We were certainly hoping for more, but Kerry was able to use his already good relationship with Lavrov to offer a number of very specific ideas for greater autonomy for Crimea. These will form the basis of further talks after the referendum.”  Critics on the Hill, however, believe that the referendum will only harden Moscow's position in having the Crimea return to Russian sovereignty.  This is not to say that that situation is not extremely volatile. There is deep concern in Washington that President Putin has misread the determination of the West to impose costs on him or – much worse – that he will intervene in Eastern Ukraine if civic disturbances continue there. The Administration’s hope is that the increasingly tough approach adopted by German Chancellor Merkel – who is seen in Washington as the pivotal player – will convince Putin to have second thoughts. As an NSC analyst commented to us: “We have a good understanding about Lavrov but we hardly any read of Putin.” There is a sense of foreboding that, once sanctions start to be imposed, attitudes will harden in Moscow and the crisis will turn into a prolonged one – with implications on other issues in the US-Russia relationship like Syria, Iran, North Korea and nuclear disarmament. With new P5+1 talks due with Tehran next week, US officials are at present encouraged that the Russian attitude remains cooperative.  Regarding Syria, US attention has dropped precipitately, with the result that US intelligence analysts are warning that Assad is making military gains that will be near impossible to reverse. One analyst commented to us: “Assad has as good as won.” ...'

Qatar's 'ace in the hole'

"... Today, gratitude has turned to bitterness in places like Egypt, Libya, Tunisia and elsewhere, where Qatar’s support for one brand of Islam is viewed as unwelcome interference by millions.
Doha, however, still believes in the long-term viability of its bet. It obviously thinks it has more to gain than lose. It continues to view Saudi Arabia as a regional rival. The emir and his father do not forget that Riyadh opposed the 1995 coup that brought Hamad to power.
With the Middle East in turmoil, the outcome of the Iranian nuclear negotiations still uncertain, the fighting in Syria raging and Egypt in transition, the Qatari rulers view the Muslim Brotherhood as their ace in the hole. They are not prepared to throw it away."

Libya drifts

"... In the nearly three years since Libyans fought to end 42 years of often brutal and bizarre rule by Moammar Gadhafi, the weak central government that replaced him has proved incapable of tackling the mounting problems. Now the nation is as fragile as it’s ever been since Gadhafi’s ouster and death, and Libyans themselves are showing less enthusiasm for the trappings of democracy..."

Masked gunmen attack army bus in Cairo

"... An officer was killed and three others injured when gunmen opened fire on an army bus in Cairo. The Egyptian army said the Muslim Brotherhood was behind the attack, according to Reuters news agency on Thursday..."

"... well, this is a different Hezbolla"

"... “A Hezbollah with modern surface-to-air systems, with modern U.A.V.’s, with modern cybercapabilities, well, this is a different Hezbollah,” the senior military official said, one that could have “much more appetite to taste another conflict with Israel.”

This is how it's done!

This author has a good strategic mind.

"... Before getting to what power-sharing in Syria might actually look like, the parties would try to establish a sustainable cease-fire. The United States and Europe could probably get the opposition and its supporters from the Sunni Gulf states to stand down; Iran could do the same with Mr. Assad.
The next step would be to speed the delivery of civilian aid. Given that Iran and Hezbollah have personnel on the ground in Syria, their cooperation on such an effort would be much more effective than Russia’s. Aid delivery would not only help Syrians in need, but such a good-faith effort on Mr. Assad’s part would improve the climate for substantive negotiations on the actual transition plan.
A diplomatic approach to Iran would not sit well with many in the Syrian opposition. But they also have to face facts: With or without Iran, the United States and its allies will remain wary of any political deal unless the moderate opposition substantially purges its ranks of jihadists, who are infiltrating Syria in increasing numbers...."

Ongoing Thuggery

"Egypt’s prisons are full to bursting. More than 20 men may be packed into a police cell three metres squared. People who have been released say there are inmates still inside who have been there for six months in facilities designed to hold people for a few days. Some of them are under 18. At first the police rounded up members of the Muslim Brotherhood and supporters of Mohamed Morsi. The net has now widened to include campaigners who called for a ‘no’ vote on the constitutional referendum, liberal activists and journalists..."

CIA's Brennan: "Syria has a real army"

"...“Syria has a real army,” Brennan said in reply to a question from Al-Monitor about how long Assad might stay in power. The Syrian military, he added, has benefited from years of training and equipping by Russia and is “a large conventional military force with tremendous firepower.”While acknowledging the proficiency of some of the Islamist fighters battling the Assad regime, Brennan noted that “internecine fighting” among the rebels has hurt their cause.“Assad has been able to stand back and watch their fighting,” Brennan said..."

'We have lied so much that these 'hypocrits' don't believe us anymore!'

"... Not only have international condemnations of the arms shipment been "few and feeble," Netanyahu said, but at the same time "handshakes and smiles" were seen in Tehran as European policy chief Catherine Ashton met with Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif.Netanyahu accused the international community of "hypocrisy against Israel," keeping largely silent following the exposure of the arms ship but readily issuing "blunt and sharp" denunciations of Israel..."

Pakistan’s new-found enthusiasm for military action against the Taliban ... yield fast-track rewards

"... Highly-placed sources told The Express Tribune that friendly countries have injected another sum of $750 million in the PDF – an account opened to channel money from abroad. The last tranche was received in February that stabilised the dwindling official foreign currency reserves.It is the first time that any country has generously given $1.5-billion assistance to Pakistan within one month, as Islamabad never received such an amount as ‘upfront’ payments. The US, which remains the largest contributor, always gave amounts in tranches spreading over several years. Under its five-year, $7.5-billion Kerry Lugar aid package, Washington gave less than $2.5 billion in government-to-government assistance in over three years.
However, it was not clear whether the money received is a grant or depositary loans aimed at temporarily bailing out the country..."

Saudis slams terrorism charges by Iraqi PM

"... "Nouri al-Maliki knows very well, more than anyone else, the clear and categorical position of the kingdom against terrorism... and is aware of the kingdom's efforts to combat this phenomenon locally and globally," the AFP news agency quoted the official as saying..."

Syrian Arab Army dramatic advances in the West, pressured al Qaeda & co. to deal

"BEIRUT — The deal that saw the release over the weekend of 13 Syrian nuns who'd been abducted in December by anti-government fighters happened largely because rebel forces fear they are about to lose control of the area where the nuns were being held...."

Saudi Arabia and the Muslim Brotherhood: exposing the lies!

 

"This book is issued (see top, right) by the Ministry of Education in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia.  It is titled: "Jihad for God" and includes essays by Abu Al-A`la Al-Mawdudi, Hasan Al-Banna, and Sayyid Qutb.  It is hilarious to see Saudi papers AND Western newspapers talking about the historical enmity between the Saudi Kingdom and the Muslim Brotherhood."

US Intel: 'The focus on Ukraine is allowing Assad to make substantial military gains"

'President Obama is trying to prevent Ukraine from becoming the single policy issue that defines his presidency. However, the perception is rising in the White House that, rightly or wrongly, the crisis has become a personal contest which can only be settled between Obama and President Putin.  NSC officials tell us that this is both an advantage in that it lends weight to the exchanges between the two men and a drawback in that it involves Obama more intensively in the management of the crisis than he would otherwise wish. This week he has attended for example to budgetary matters and to the Middle East Peace Process. However, with a visit looming to Brussels at the end of the month for EU and NATO meetings, the White House knows that all eyes are on the Ukraine crisis. As an NSC official commented to us: “Against all the odds, Obama continues to believe that he can do a deal with Putin. His telephone exchanges lead him to conclude that Putin is intent on building a position of strength from which he will then negotiate.” From talking to other high-level contacts in Washington, our sense is that Obama’s conviction that a deal is doable is not widely shared. Even in the State Department there are senior officials who are much less optimistic that Putin is interested in negotiating. The Pentagon is also skeptical, but its military moves in the Baltics and Black Sea should not, as a senior strategist there commented to us, be seen as preparations for belligerence (See Dempsey's comments). “We are supporting diplomacy, not undermining it,” was his comment. In summary, therefore, Obama remains committed to diplomacy but is facing rising discontent at home, with pressure increasing to be tougher. Ironically, in the P5+1 negotiations on Iran, Russian experts are taking part in ongoing exchanges with the Iranians alongside US officials. State Department official tell us that they remain cautiously optimistic that an end agreement is possible. On Syria, by contrast, Intelligence Community analysts are worried that the focus on Ukraine is allowing the regime to make substantial military gains. As one commented to us: “The price of maintaining Crimea in Ukraine may be losing Syria.” Obama is due in Saudi Arabia at the conclusion of his European visit, so attention is back to the mideast'

Our friends, the Syrian rebels

"... Al-Qaeda affiliated rebels in Syria have taken control of Yarmouk camp, ceasing the flow of aid to tens of thousands of civilians who are trapped and living in desperate conditions.Jabhat al-Nusra, a rebel group that swears its loyalty to al-Qaeda, has seized checkpoints inside primarily Palestinian neighbourhood of Damascus, ending a fragile ceasefire that was being negotiated by the regime and the opposition, residents of Yarmouk said..."

Al Qaeda, the US, Israel & some Arabs alliance: more evidence

"... Jordan denies the existence of the international operations command centre, which monitors the Syria conflict and oversees the distribution of weapons and funding to allied rebel units fighting against forces loyal to Mr Al Assad.None of the Western or Arab states that have intelligence and military staff working at the MOC has publicly acknowledged it, but the centre’s existence has become an open secret.The night of Tuesday, February 25, appears to have been one of the command centre’s most fraught periods, as a sense of panic set in at the prospect of an Al Qaeda faction getting its hands on the weapons stockpile.The command centre has not intervened in this way when other regime storage facilities in Deraa province have been overrun, and has been content to let the rebels share out any weapons they capture.This time, however, as fighting around the Tal Al Jabiyeh facility raged and the prospect of it falling into rebel hands came closer to reality, the command centre bluntly demanded guarantees from rebel forces that they hand over to it any weapons stored in a white, reinforced concrete bunker with thick metal, electrically operated shutters blocking its east facing entrance.Rebels were told if they failed to give that guarantee, an Israeli airstrike would immediately be called in on the area to destroy the entire compound and everything in it.This ultimatum was passed on, through an intermediary, to Jabhat Al Nusra’s emir in Deraa province. The Nusra leader agreed to leave weapons in the bunker alone, as did all of the other rebel units in the area.In the early hours on Wednesday, February 26, four hours after the first call, rebels were contacted again by the Amman command centre and told to expect an “international operation” directed at the weapons bunker.With the rebels pushing to take control of the Tal Al Jabiyeh, the operations room immediately halted all weapons supplies to the assaulting forces, apparently in a successful effort to delay their advance on the bunker..."

'The Saudis and Pakistan’s strategic shift on Syria'

Saudis whipping sectarian warfare in the Mideast. In the FT.

"At the behest of Saudi Arabia, Pakistan has made a strategic shift from its so far neutral position on Syria’s civil war – to one that portends to back the Syrian rebels and even provide them with arms through Riyadh.
The shift will have serious regional consequences as it has already deeply antagonised Iran, which supports the Syrian regime, and angered Pakistan’s large Shia community which could prompt further sectarian conflict. It is also bad news for Afghanistan, where Pakistan-Iran rivalry may restart once US troops leave that country.
Saudi Arabia is on a diplomatic offensive to woo all those Muslim states who have held a neutral position – to one where they fall in line with the Gulf Arab states that want an interim government in Damascus and the resignation of President Bashar al-Assad. All the Gulf states are petrified of Iran, fear its potential nuclear weapons capability and deeply distrust the Americans for their recent overtures to Tehran.
However, if Saudi Arabia which practices Wahabbism – an extreme form of Sunni Islam – gets its way, it could put more Muslim states on a collision course with Shia Iran. It would also involve them in taking sides in the Shia-Sunni divide that has escalated recently and has already plunged the Middle East and Pakistan into sectarian bloodbaths.
Further divisions along sectarian lines are dangerous in what is already a fragile Muslim world, because they further polarise Islamic countries and turn Shias into more of a persecuted minority everywhere. That means the plight of other minorities in Arab states such as Christians and Jews could be further jeopardised.
Media reports say that the Saudis would buy small arms from Pakistan’s arms industry and that it would recruit more Pakistani retired soldiers and policemen for the Gulf state of Bahrain that has been facing long months of unrest as Shia protests against the Sunni ruling family have escalated ..."

Lest we forget who supported (our friends) the Northern Alliance & who supported the Taliban!

"... More recently the entire region from Pakistan to Lebanon has been affected by profound, seismic changes during the course of the last three decades.  As Giandomenico Picco has noted, these began in the late 1970s, in the Pakistan-Afghanistan-Iran triangle, when Saudi Arabia entered the war in Afghanistan, and a bitter Sunni-Shi’i struggle ensued (little noticed by the West)—as Iran backed the Northern Alliance against the Saudi supported Taliban..."

Lest we forget who supported (our friends) the Northern Alliance & who supported the Taliban!

"... More recently the entire region from Pakistan to Lebanon has been affected by profound, seismic changes during the course of the last three decades.  As Giandomenico Picco has noted, these began in the late 1970s, in the Pakistan-Afghanistan-Iran triangle, when Saudi Arabia entered the war in Afghanistan, and a bitter Sunni-Shi’i struggle ensued (little noticed by the West)—as Iran backed the Northern Alliance against the Saudi supported Taliban..."

Al Qaeda & Saudia 'pushing back Syrian regime in Qalamoun

McClatchy:

"... But progress has been slow, as hundreds of ISIS fighters, as well as a unit of radical fighters from Saudi Arabia, have bolstered the rebel forces, according to Syrian activists who maintain close contact with radical groups that are fighting to topple the regime of President Bashar Assad..."

Read more htp://tchydc.com/2014/03/04/220092/isis-joins-other-rebels-to-thwart.html#storylink=cpy

Syria on track

OPCW:

"... "Nearly one third of Syria's chemical weapons material has now been removed or destroyed," the Special Coordinator told the Council. "This is good progress and I expect further acceleration and intensification of effort."

Egypt court bans Palestinian Hamas group

"... Hamas is an offshoot of Egypt's Muslim Brotherhood, which has been declared a terrorist group by Egypt's army-backed government and has faced a security crackdown since the military ousted one of its leaders, Mohamed Morsi, from the presidency last July...."

Merkel: 'The US is lying!'

'b' at MoA:
'...Yesterday I doubted that a certain Obama administration "leak" to the New York Times was truthful:While Merkel and other EU politicians seems to want to calm the situation down the White House feels domestic political pressure to do more of "something". That is likely why we see this "leak" in today's New York Times:

'... Chancellor Angela Merkel of Germany told Mr. Obama by telephone on Sunday that after speaking with Mr. Putin she was not sure he was in touch with reality, people briefed on the call said. “In another world,” she said..."

This does not sound like typically Merkel but rather strange for her. I doubt that she said that the way the "people briefed on the call" told it to the Times stenographer. It is rather an attempt to discredit Merkel and to make it more difficult for her to find a solution with Russia outside of U.S. control.The German government, through the conservative, Merkel supporting daily Die Welt, denied the correctness of that quote. Die Welt writes (my translation):

"...The chancellery is unhappy about the report in theNew York Times. Merkel by no means meant to express that Putin behaved irrational. In fact she told Obama that Putin has a different perspective about the Crimea [than Obama has]....'

The US & EU allies recognize that their options in Ukraine are 'extremely limited'

'US attitudes to the Ukraine crisis are vacillating wildly. Having feared initially at the beginning of the week that the Ukraine crisis might take on almost global dimensions, US officials started to believe that it could be contained within manageable proportions. Now, alarm is beginning to rise again – as President Obama and Secretary of State Kerry have made clear. The immediate source of concern is the military maneuvers on Ukraine’s borders and the status of armed units inside Crimea.  Although Obama has received assurances from President Putin of respect for Ukraine’s territorial integrity, the consensus among Intelligence Community analysts is that the units inside Crimea are controlled from Moscow and could potentially be used as precursors to a full Russian takeover of Crimea.  Putin’s request to the Russian parliament to allow the deployment of forces inside Crimea have set alarm bells ringing. The White House does not for the moment share the more alarmist views of Russia’s intentions and is disinclined to take action that would propel the US toward “owning” the Ukraine problem. However, any out-and-out move by Russia to invade Ukraine would quickly change that calculus, albeit with the recognition that US and wider Western options are extremely limited.  Kerry is in frequent telephone contact with his Russian counterpart Sergei Lavrov to keep information flowing and the crisis from escalating. Ukraine is far from the only item on the US foreign policy agenda. Syria is no closer to a settlement and, as the February 27^th  NATO ISAF meeting showed, the exit strategy from Afghanistan is in disarray. With Kerry due to address the AIPAC conference and Israeli Prime Minister scheduled to meet Obama on March 4^th, Iran will be a major topic next week. Administration officials will make the case that progress is being made in the P5+1 talks and that they will not agree to any deal that leaves Tehran with a nuclear “breakout” capability. While there will be plenty of skepticism that a deal of this sort is achievable, the White House is confident that it will be able to manage the debate in Washington. Meanwhile, the political upheavals in Venezuela and Thailand are causing concern. The Administration has little attachment to the Maduro government, but has no interest in seeing instability in that country. It is working in partnership with Colombia to mediate.'

Kerry comes out clean on Iraq

"... “You just don’t in the 21st century behave in 19th century fashion by invading another country on completely trumped up pre-text,” 

Wait a minute! Sorry Kerry was talking about Putin & Ukraine.

My bad!

Meanwhile, the little rulers of Bahrain continue to fight 'vandals'!

"... The Interior Ministry said on its Twitter feed: "Police dispersed a breakaway group of vandals that diverted from the funeral route in Daih."

IDF to the rescue of Neo-Nazis in Ukraine!

"... Delta, a Ukraine-born former soldier in the Israel Defense Forces, spoke to JTA Thursday on condition of anonymity. He explained how he came to use combat skills he acquired in the Shu’alei Shimshon reconnaissance battalion of the Givati infantry brigade to rise through the ranks of Kiev’s street fighters. He has headed a force of 40 men and women — including several fellow IDF veterans — in violent clashes with government forces."

G'town University & the promotion of 'minorities' studies'

"... The fellowship was established by a generous grant from the American Druze Foundation. Its aim is to promote specialized academic research on Arab minorities generally..."

Reports: Iraq signs arms deal with Iran

"... The Obama administration pressed the Iraqi government on Monday to explain the media reports."We've certainly seen those reports. If true, this would raise serious concerns," Jen Psaki, State Department spokeswoman, said.She said that "any transfer of arms from Iran to a third country is in direct violation" of the UN embargo."We are seeking clarification on this matter from the government of Iraq and to ensure that Iraqi officials understand the limits that international law places on arms trade with Iran," Psaki said.Some in Washington are nervous about providing sensitive US military equipment to a country they worry is becoming too close to Iran. Several Iraqi legislators said Maliki had made the deal because he was fed up with delays to US arms deliveries..."

No objectivity on Syrian conflict

McClatchy

"... After reviewing more than 38 million Twitter posts about the Syrian conflict, a team of Middle East scholars from The George Washington University and American University concluded that rather than an objective account of what’s taken place, social media posts have been carefully curated to represent a specific view of the war. It said the skewing of the social media view of the conflict has been amplified by the way more traditional news outlets make use of the postings – for example, passing along social media posts written in English over those written in Arabic.."

Nusrah Front, the 'moderate' terrorist organization

"... the US media will now suddenly start peddling articles to the effect that Nusrah Front was unfairly classified as a terrorist organization and that it is in fact a moderate terrorist organization that the US government can do business with."

Why Western “experts” on Hizbullah cannot predict its response

"...And I am equally confident that if any committed observer is asked “will Hizbullah really respond to Israel’s attacks on Monday?” he or she will tell you that as the first such attack since the end of the July War in 2006, Hizbullah has no choice but to respond, irrespective of how deeply mired it is in the Syrian conflict and in safeguarding Lebanon from terrorist infiltration. It has to respond because confronting Israel will always constitute the larger part of its raison d’etre, even if its mission has expanded over the years. And it will respond because to not respond would upset its doctrine of deterrence and “balance-of-terror” with Israel which it painfully earned after two decades of blood and sacrifice. Hizbullah will respond because there is no precedent of Hizbullah not retaliating for an Israeli attack (I am not including assassinations here) and it is highly unlikely that it would want to set a new precedent for its enemies. We just have to wait and see when and how it will do so, because no matter how committed we are as observers we are not privy to Hizbullah’s military strategy. ."

'Regulating' killings & assassinations

"... The fact that we’re witnessing internal debate about the use of indiscriminate violent tactics – which is, of course, a result of jihadis being on the receiving side of suicide bombing – is significant. Several Islamist groups have issued statements condemning Isil’s campaign of suicide bombings and assassinations from an Islamic perspective, pointing out that the religion rejects the killing of innocent people. Some jihadis have gone so far as to call for “Islamic regulations” on such tactics, which might lead to major changes within several groups...."

Al Qaeda's 'rehabilitation'

"... GUANTANAMO BAY NAVY BASE, Cuba -- A long-held Saudi captive pleaded guilty Thursday to terror charges for serving as a personal shopper and facilitator for al-Qaida militants plotting suicide bombings of ships in the Arabian Sea.Under the plea deal, Ahmad al Darbi, 39, could go to a Saudi Arabian prison in four years, serve five more years and then get out for good behavior ..."

al-Qaeda going after al Qaeda

"... A Syrian rebel commander, who fought alongside al-Qaeda founder Osama bin Laden and was close to its current chief Ayman al-Zawahiri, was killed by a suicide attack in Aleppo, intensifying in-fighting between rival armed groups.Observatory chief Rami Abdel Rahman said he died along with six others when a fighter from the rival Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL) group blew himself up at an Ahrar al-Sham post in al-Halq.Al-Suri's death occurred against the backdrop of bloody rebel infighting between an al-Qaeda-breakaway ISIL and an array of armed opposition groups...."

'A sectarian cloak for Middle East wars'

"... The rise in sectarianism does not present an immediate threat to US interests in the Gulf. Sectarianism is deeply embedded in the DNA of Salafi-jihadism and the al-Qaeda worldview. Gulf funding and volunteers in the Syria conflict are creating new strains of al Qaeda-ism that could eventually threaten Gulf regimes and US interests...."

'Epicentre in Syria'

"... “There was a time where we would have been talking about a Syrian conflict with a danger of spillover, and then we talked about a proxy war in Syria and now I think it’s looking more like a regional war with an epicentre in Syria.”

"We will reach reconciliation truces without foreign intervention, we don't have to go to Geneva for this,”

WaPo;

"... The local agreements are at the center of President Bashar al-Assad’s “national reconciliation” efforts and come as his government is accused of derailing talks between the two sides in the Swiss city of Geneva. Although the fine print differs, for the most part the agreements allow the areas to stay in rebel hands and for desperately needed food supplies to enter, as long as heavy weaponry is given up and rebels agree to stop attacks. In some areas, foreign fighters have been asked to leave. The war-weary suburbs that have agreed to the cease-fires have been subject to the Syrian army’s siege tactics for months, cut off by army checkpoints and pummeled with heavy artillery and airstrikes. “This is about saying that we will reach reconciliation truces without foreign intervention, we don't have to go to Geneva for this,” Yezid Sayigh, an analyst at the Carnegie Middle East Center, said of the government effort."..."

Plagiarism in Wall Street Journal??

"Regarding this article in the Wall Street Journal about changes in Saudi Arabia: is it not an English language version of an article that had appeared exclusively the day before in Al-Quds Al-`Arabi?

Framework in Place for P5+1, Iran Final Nuclear Negotiations

"... It is reported in multiple sources (including Fars News), that Catherine Ashton will visit Tehran March 9-10, ahead of the March 17-20 negotiations that will take place in Vienna. It appears thatAshton and Iranian Foreign Minister Javad Zarif will be holding monthly meetings as the talks progress...."

Robert Malley back at the White House

"... Now, Mr. Malley is coming back to the White House, administration officials said on Tuesday. This time, he will manage the fraying ties between the United States and its allies in the Persian Gulf, a job that says a lot about how America’s role in the Middle East has changed.
As a senior director at the National Security Council, Mr. Malley will help devise American policy from Saudi Arabia to Iran. It is a region on edge, with the Saudis and their Sunni neighbors in the gulf fearful that the United States is tilting away, after decades of close ties with them, toward a nuclear accommodation with Shiite Iran.
With his many contacts throughout the Arab world, Mr. Malley, who has been program director for the Middle East and North Africa at the International Crisis Group, would seem well suited for such a post. But he has also been something of a lightning rod in a field that can be culturally and ideologically treacherous.In 2008, Mr. Malley was forced to sever his ties as an informal adviser to the campaign of Barack Obama when it was reported that he had met with members of Hamas, the militant Palestinian group, which the State Department classifies as a terrorist organization.The meeting, Mr. Malley said in a letter to The New York Times, was hardly a secret and came in the course of his work with the I.C.G., a nonprofit group focused on preventing conflict. Still, he felt obliged to distance himself from Mr. Obama to avoid misperceptions of the “candidate’s position regarding the Islamist movement.”Mr. Malley also came under fire for writing an article, with Hussein Agha, that argued that some of the blame for the failure of the Camp David talks lay with the Israeli leader at the time, Ehud Barak, and not just with the uncompromising position of the Palestinian leader, Yasir Arafat, which was the conventional wisdom then...."

Same 'operator'

"... An explosion believed to have been caused by a car bomb tore through a Syrian refugee camp at a border post on the frontier with Turkey on Feb. 20, ...Towns near Bab al-Salameh have also seen sporadic clashes between the rebels fighting Assad and fighters from an al Qaeda splinter group, the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL). Abu Osama, a camp administrator, said the explosion happened behind his office and at least 20 tents were reduced to rubble. "Some of the bodies and tents melted from the explosion," he said over the phone..."

'Netanyahu, loses the only other Middle East leader ready to publicly sabotage Iran & Syria'

debka.

"... The live wire of the Saudi royal house’s drive against President Barack Obama’s détente with Tehran has been dropped....Prince Bandar bin Sultan, Saudi Arabia’s National Security Adviser and Intelligence Director, has not been seen for more than a month....He was reported by debkafile’s US and Saudi sources Wednesday, Feb. 19, to have been removed from the tight policy-making circle in Riyadh.For Israel’s Binyamin Netanyahu, this counts significantly as the loss of the only other Middle East leader ready to publicly decry Obama’s policies on Iran and Syria as promoting the negative forces in the region and damaging to America’s own interests. Bandar was widely reported in the Middle East to be in secret ties with Israeli intelligence on Saudi and Israeli moves against Iran...There has been no official word from Riyadh disclosing any change in Bandar’s status....Our sources report that the prince, a long-serving ambassador to the United States, vanished off Saudi and Middle East radar screens in mid-January, shortly before he was scheduled to visit Washington to arrange Obama’s forthcoming trip to Riyadh in the last week of March.Bandar never arrived in Washington and no one in Riyadh was ready to answer questions about his whereabouts....US sources were more forthcoming - although less complimentary....In some reports he was dismissed as “hotheaded” or “erratic.”The Saudi intelligence chief crossed the Americans by supplying weapons and money to Syrian rebels belonging to Islamist militias – though not al Qaeda....He was the driving force behind the formation of the Islamic Front coalition, which last month beat the Free Syrian Army backed by Washington into the ground.Some Gulf sources say he is paying the price for the kingdom’s failure in Syria....Bandar promised King Abdullah that he would take care of getting rid of Bashar Assad....He not only fell down on this task, but he generated a clash between the Obama administration and the Saudi throne on the Syrian issue, say those sources.The most striking evidence of his comedown came from his absence from the secret conclave held recently by Middle East intelligence chiefs to coordinate their positions on Syrian with Washington....Instead of Bandar, his seat was taken by his leading adversary on Syria, the Saudi Interior Minister, Prince Mohammed bin Nayef.Prince Mohammed is a favorite at the White House and a close friend of Secretary of State John Kerry and CIA Director John Brennan.The Saudi interior minister, by taking Bandar’s place at this important forum, may also be stepping into his shoes as intelligence chief – albeit without the formality of an official notice from Riyadh."

Bandar's out ... again!

The US & minions trying a new hand for a new round of violence. WaPo.

"... The spymasters’ conclave featured Prince Mohammed bin Nayef, Saudi Arabia’s minister of the interior, who will now supervise the kingdom’s leading role in the covert-action program. He replaces Prince Bandar bin Sultan, the Saudi intelligence chief, who has been suffering from a back ailment and whose leadership of the program was seen as uneven..."

Local law enforcement in Los Angeles are given courses towards 'understanding Shiite extremism & Hezbollah'

AA, here; 

"... The Emergence of Iranian Power: Iran & Hezbollah 

February 18, 2014 - 0800– 1700 HOURS 

 

COURSE DESCRIPTION: This Course examines the emergence of Iranian power 

in the Middle East and its link with Hezbollah. Topics include: Understanding Shiite 

Extremism, Persian and Iranian history and geography, security organizations, 

Hezbollah leadership, operations in the U.S. and emerging threats. 

 

COURSE OBJECTIVES: 

 Develop an understanding of Shiite Extremism 

 Examine Iran as an emerging Mid-East Power 

 Examine Hezbollah as a Terrorist Group & Para-Statal Entity 

 Develop Pre-Incident Indicators of Terrorist and other Threat Activity Related to 

U.S. conflict with Iran and its Lebanese Surrogate ..."

Beirut, Baghdad, Sinai, Libya ... Same perpetrator

... and NO: The reason is NOT Hezbollah's role in Syria!

WSJ: Obama revisting plans to aggress Syria

"... The Obama administration, exasperated by stalled talks over Syria and seeking ways to pressure the regime and its Russian allies, plans to revisit options ranging from expanding efforts to train and equip moderate rebels to setting up no-fly zones, according to officials briefed on the deliberations...."

FSA sacks it's Chief

"... The rebel Free Syrian Army has fired Selim Idriss as its military chief calling him "ineffective" and lacking in experience to lead military operations on the ground....They also said he had bad relations with other rebel forces fighting on the ground...."

'The deal is within grasp'

'Even as he pursues a crowded agenda of top-level meetings in South Korea and China followed by a visit to Indonesia, Secretary of State Kerry is facing calls for urgent action on the rapidly deteriorating situation in Syria. With the UN mediation efforts close to failure and amid reports of the growing influence of the most extreme groups and of a new inflow of sophisticated weaponry to the Syrian Revolutionaries Front (SRF) from the Saudis and UAE, Administration officials have come to a crossroads. As he returns to the US via the UAE next week, Kerry will be meeting regional figures to explore options. Our sources report, however, that the SRF leadership will meet with Congressional leaders in Washington next week to put their case for more US support to their efforts.  They will likely to receive a mixed reception, as Congress remains split on this issue. ...  Turning to Iran, a new round of P5+1 talks resumes on February 17^th. US officials close to the talks remain confident that some kind of deal is within grasp. With the annual conference of the America Israel Public Affairs Committee due to be held in Washington in early March and to be addressed by Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu the Administration will hear robust criticism of its approach, but the White House has now successfully deflected pressure for new sanctions against Iran and, for the time being, can pursue a deal relatively untroubled by political pressure.'

Lang: "The jihadis came to Syria to die for their faith. They should be assisted in that ambition!"

"... Zbig  was finally allowed to say a few words.  He stressed the need to settle the issues between Russia and the US on some viable basis and started to suggest what sounded like an appeal to modify the "regime change" theme so pervasive among the R2P/neocon crowd (including Obama).  Todd then cut him off.
US policy should change.  US policy should become a process of reconciling the existing government with what is left of the Syrian National Council and the Free Syria Army.  This should include amnesty for "ralliers' to the government, a cease fire against the nationalist secularist rebels, and a complete opening up of the country to international relief efforts wherever the jihadis do not rule and control. Once that is accomplished the re-united Syrian patriot forces should collaborate in exterminating the jihadis.  The jihadis came to Syria to die for their faith.  They should be assisted in that ambition.
Saudi Arabia?  Israel?  Ignore them. 

The US needs to engage — not isolate — Russia and Iran & Drop 'regime change' in Syria!

"... The breakdown in Geneva should not be a return to military options and regime change, and a possible slippery slope to US military intervention. There is more life in the diplomatic option in Syria, including with Russia, Iran and the regional countries on the front lines of Syria-based terrorism. The United States needs to engage — not isolate — Russia and Iran as well as its regional allies, to address the terrorist threat that is now a matter of “homeland security.”..."

The Judicial 'Farce'!

"... In an afflicted country in which much of the population subsists on twelve hours of electricity a day, more useful projects could no doubt be undertaken than an expensive and politically motivated judicial farce with a predetermined end."

WSJ: Saudi weapons & US cash for a new round

"... The weapons will flow across the border into southern Syria from the warehouses in Jordan and across the northern border from Turkey, the Western diplomat said. Rebel leaders said the shipments to southern Syria are expected to be more substantial because opposition fighters are more unified in that area and there is a lower risk the weapons will fall into the hands of al Qaeda-inspired groups—a big concern for the U.S.With the rebels still deeply divided and infighting growing, the new aid is aimed squarely at the more moderate and secular rebels of the Free Syrian Army (FSA) that the U.S. has always favored...Western and Arab support for the new groups won’t go to the Islamic Front, an alliance of conservative, religious rebel factions that is helping the northern front rebels fight the more radical ISIS.The Southern Front is under the leadership of Bashar al-Zoubi, who has a direct line to Western and Arab intelligence agencies in a military operations room in Amman, rebels say..., ... But any push toward the capital from the south faces formidable challenges. An arc south of the capital is the domain of the army’s Fourth Division, elite troops led by Maher al-Assad, the president’s brother. Closer to the capital, Syrian forces are fortified by elements of the Iranian-backed Hezbollah militia from Lebanon.The regime has been ruthless in snuffing out any hint of escalation by rebels in the south....At the meeting between leaders of the Southern Front and Western and Arab intelligence agencies last month, rebel leaders said they were given salaries for their fighters and equipment such as military rations and tents.Rebels said the U.S. spent $3 million on salaries of fighters in the Southern Front, delivering the payments in cash over two meetings in Jordan—one on Jan. 30 and the other late last year.The opposition will also ask Congress next week for weapons to help rebels fight al Qaeda.... But Congress remains sharply divided about the conflict in Syria. Some lawmakers favor stepped-up support to moderate opposition groups, but others question the wisdom of providing heavy weapons..."

Israel's Growing Role in Southern Syria

"... There are also many reports -- repeatedly dismissed by Jordanian authorities -- of a clandestine "operations room" in Amman where Jordanian military and intelligence officers coordinate military assistance to local rebel groups alongside Saudi and Western advisors. If such reports are correct, the Israeli part of the effort should be viewed as complementing but not necessarily coordinated with the Jordanian endeavor..."

Saudi-ISI' sponsorship: 'Iran-Pakistan Border Incidents Continue'

Iran-Pakistan Border Incidents Continue

"... It is interesting that descriptions of Jeish Al-Adl now describe them as being funded by Saudi Arabia and assisted by Pakistan’s ISI. There also now are references to them having al Qaeda connections. The Saudi connection usually is described as coming from Bandar’s growing unease over improving US-Iranian relations...."

"Cautious optimism"

"... Turning to Iran, the Administration has achieved a modest victory is persuading the Democratic sponsors of tougher sanctions to delay their bill to allow the diplomatic negotiations – which resume on February 18^th – to proceed.  State Department officials concede that they are operating against a very skeptical climate in Congress and that, if Tehran adopts what are perceived to be delaying tactics, the sanctions proposals would be re-introduced at very short notice. Within the State Department negotiating team, cautious optimism that a deal is reachable remains the consensus sentiment – in contrast to most analytic and political opinion which is much more pessimistic. The open question, which receives little attention, is what happens if negotiations fail. From conversations we have held in official circles, our sense is that a policy of containment is just as likely as one of military coercion. ..."

Human Rights Watch & Amnesty International: MIA on Syria!

"... As expected, Human Rights Watch and Amnesty International are silent about the massacre in Maan because the victims are Alawites ..."

Israeli NS Adviser: "The Russians are providing missiles to one of the most dangerous enemies of the State of Israel"

"... “I think it’s important that in this dialogue with the Russians, we are telling them the truth: They are providing one of the most dangerous enemies of the State of Israel, namely Hezbollah, with capabilities that might endanger Israel’s ability to defend itself, and we will not let it happen,” he added..."

Iran, 'Open for Business'?

"... Oil minister Bijan Zanghaneh met energy executives including those from Chevron and Shell. He plans to hold a conference in London this year where some of those attending will be the same executives who were being warned about the pitfalls of Iranian investment by Mr Harrell last week. London, meanwhile, is also going to be the venue for a test case on the whole issue of the legality of sanctions on enterprises.In Iran, businessmen say the Russians and the Chinese are vying to offer barter deals for oil before European companies arrive with the technology the Iranians want. American companies, meanwhile, are complaining they may lose out because of the US administration’s punitive stance. The Homa Hotel in Tehran, which aims for a corporate clientele, reported a rise in European guests by 30 per cent from last year. Trade delegations had gone to Iran from China, India, Turkey, Georgia, Kazakhstan, Italy, Austria, Sweden and even Ireland. “We are quite encouraged by the interest, we hope it will continue to rise,” stated Mehrdad Jalalipour, director of Iran’s Trade Promotions Organisation.But the prize, high-profile visitor has been Recip Tayyip Erdogan. After a gap of two years during which relations plummeted over Tehran’s support for the Assad regime in Syria’s civil war while Ankara was backing the rebels, the Turkish prime minister has been to Iran again, declaring that it was his “second home”. Rouhani will reciprocate by going to Ankara..."

Turkey & Erdogan on the brink

"... Erdogan was always a loose cannon. Now he has become unmoored. Paranoia is endemic in Turkish politics because so much of it is founded on conspiracy. The expression "paranoid Turk" is a pleonasm. Islamist followers of the self-styled prophet Fetullah Gulen infiltrated the security services and helped Erdogan jail some of the country's top military commanders on dubious allegations of a coup plot. Last August a Turkish court sentenced some 275 alleged members of the "Ergenekon" coup plot, including dozens of military officers, journalists, and secular leaders of civil society. Now Gulen has broken with Erdogan and his security apparatus has uncovered massive documentation of corruption in the Erdogan administration. Erdogan is firing police and security officials as fast as they arrest his cronies. There is a world difference, though, between a prosperous paranoid and an impecunious one. Turkey cannot fund its enormous current borrowing needs without offering interest rates so high that they will pop the construction-and-consumer bubble that masqueraded for a Turkish economic miracle during the past few years. 
The conspiracy of international bankers, Opus Dei and Illuminati that rages in Erdogan's Anatolian imagination has triumphed, and the aggrieved prime minister will not go quietly. As Erdogan abhors old allies who in his imagined betrayed him and seeks new ones, the situation will get worse..."

Neoarabs: "Israel is our only hope against the enemy. We will condemn them, but we pray for them.”

"...  " Hoenlein, who maintains close contacts with some Arab leaders, often cites them anonymously as corroborating witnesses. When I ask him about Israel’s newfound alliances with Saudi Arabia and the Gulf countries, he speaks of “the diminution of America’s role that you hear about in all the different countries: What we did in Egypt and in Morocco and in other places hurt the evaluation of where America stands. I heard from their leaders myself: Israel is our only hope against the enemy. We will condemn them, but we pray for them.”"

Daily menu: 'Al Jazeera, in hot waters'

Lies and deception have this tendency to bite in the ----!

"... CAIRO — Egyptian authorities on Wednesday charged 20 journalists who work for the Al Jazeera satellite news channel, including five who hold foreign citizenship, with being agents of the Muslim Brotherhood and accused them of plotting to defame Egypt and of running a terrorist cell out of a luxurious Cairo hotel..."

Al-Qaeda disowns ISIL & renames JAN as 'sole & exclusive representative'

 "... Al-Qaeda's general command has disavowed all links with the Islamic State in Iraq and the Levant (ISIL), according to a statement posted online.The statement, published late on Sunday, reiterated a previous peremptory statement in which the group's chief Ayman al-Zawahiri ordered ISIL to disband and return to Iraq, and adding that Jabhat al-Nusra was al-Qaeda's official branch in Syria...."

Al-Qaeda fighters in Syria killing each other

 Al Jazeera English

"... The Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant, which has links with al-Qaeda, said it carried out the attack on Tawhid, a brigade aligned to the Islamic Front coalition, a group fighing the ISIL in Aleppo and beyond.In another attack late on Saturday in Hama, the leader of the powerful Suqour al-Sham group, Abu Hussein al-Dik, was killed by the ISIL, according to sources spoken to by Al Jazeera..."

ICG: "Nostalgia for the days of repressive regimes has surged"

"... Change in itself is now seen as a risk not worth taking while stability and security have become the number one goal. But, this, the only thing the old order had to offer, is now unattainable: Egypt continues to impose a curfew in the Sinai as its army deals with a low-level insurgency. Libya is growing more lawless by the day, as the recent kidnapping of the prime minister and deadly clashes in the centre of Tripoli and Benghazi showed. Nostalgia for the days of repressive regimes has surged, nowhere more so than in Cairo where general Abdul Fattah al-Sisi, the army chief and minister of defence, is heralded as the demi-god of “a Pharoahnic people”. In other places such as Saudi Arabia, Gaza or Jordan, citizens resign themselves to their current rulers.
This has led the Arab people’s desire for dignity and feeling of empowerment to turn into a sense of apathy..."

'The US & it's fixed and transitory 'allies': Not a merry bunch!

"...  It is proving as unreliable a partner for its longstanding state allies (dropping President Hosni Mubarak in Egypt, criticizing the Khalifa dynasty in Bahrain, and now estranging Saudi and Israel) than it has been for its more transitory non-state ones (the Palestinian Authority, March 14 in Lebanon, or the Iraqi tribal "sahwa")..."

International Crisis Group : The Arab World into the Unknown

International Crisis Group

"... For now, US aloofness and mixed signals have spelled significant mayhem. Friends are baffled, left to their own devices and having to improvise hectically. A clear example is Syria where the US contracted out to Turkey, Saudi Arabia and Qatar the task of dealing with the armed opposition, and now seems keen to withdraw further. Foes such as the Syrian regime, Hizbollah and the Iranian Republican Guards are equally perplexed, tempted to overreach in the absence of a clear US point of reference that has served in recent decades—for better or worse—to structure the regional balance of powers, whether by securing the Gulf, pushing back on Soviet designs, negotiating peace deals with Israel, or containing alleged “rogue” states. New players have jumped into the void, adding to the confusion more than producing decisive outcomes. Syria – which has fallen victim to a mix of Iranian hubris, Saudi adventurism, Qatari ambition, Russian obstructionism and French brinksmanship, not to mention its own leadership and a host of other complicating factors – best encapsulates this state of affairs..."

Senior DoD Official: "We are not going to use military means to prevent Iran from acquiring nukes"

"... American foreign policy continues to project a seemingly contradictory strategy. In his State of the Union Address President Obama – as we suggested last week – concentrated primarily on domestic issues. When he spoke of international affairs, he focused on the end of a decade of war, declaring that “America must move off a permanent war footing.” The message for the audience at home, therefore, is one of “coming home” and a de-emphasis on the military as the main instrument of US power projection.  By contrast, the message to the international audience as reflected in Secretary of State Kerry’s intervention at the Davos World Economic Forum and which will be reinforced by him and Secretary of Defense Hagel at this week’s Munich Security Conference is that the US remains as engaged in the world as ever. Obama will further echo this theme when he visits Brussels and other European capitals following the US-EU Summit at the end of March. When we broach this apparent inconsistency with White House, State Department and Pentagon contacts, they explain that both aspects contain elements of the truth. A senior Defense Department official gave a practical example: “We remain as committed as always to preventing Iran for acquiring a nuclear weapon. We know, however, that we are not going to use military means to execute this aim. Instead we will use a mix of coercion through sanctions and incentives via diplomacy. We are not walking away.” State Department officials are equally insistent that the framework for a Middle East peace agreement due to be presented by Kerry in the coming weeks will underline the unique capability of the US to deliver results. Some of the obstacles Obama faces come from his own party. ...  Meanwhile over the two most pressing dramas of the moment – Syria and Ukraine – US officials concede that the limitations of US influence are all too visible."

Netanyahu & Co.: This US Administration is anti-semitic

"... The remarks by Strategic Affairs Minister Yuval Steinitz, who is close to Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, followed recent accusations by Israel's defence minister that Kerry was being "messianic" ....
Steinitz seized on the top U.S. diplomat's remarks as a threat against Israel ... "The things ... Kerry said are hurtful, they are unfair and they are intolerable," Steinitz told reporters..."