In Iran, change may yet come

Next Friday, Iranians will vote in their country’s 10th presidential elections.

Two issues will dominate. First and foremost the economy, followed closely by Iran’s relations with the outside world.

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In-depth: Why is Israeli-Arab Shoah denial rising?

Two in five Arab citizens of Israel believe that the Holocaust did not take place, according to newly released research from the University of Haifa.

This represents a sharp rise in Holocaust denial among Israeli Arabs since the university conducted a similar poll two years ago. The figure then was 28 per cent. It is now 40.5 per cent.

Israel’s Holocaust organisations have reacted with concern. The finding is “alarming”, said Dan Michman, chief historian at Yad Vashem, which last year launched an Arabic website to counter denial in the Arab world.

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Analysis: This is the least Netanyahu can do to keep Obama happy

If this works, Barack Obama and Binyamin Netanyahu will be competing to take the credit for coming up with the idea first. If it works.

While everyone was waiting for a major bust-up between the Israeli government and the White House over Mr Netanyahu’s reluctance to commit to a two-state solution, both leaders seemed to agree to lay their differences aside, for now, and to focus on a more immediate and much smaller objective: removing the settler outposts.

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Analysis: Shocking pic shows another Daniel Pearl

“They were able to keep secret the place of his detention because nearly 30 accomplices wrapped themselves in silence: the silence that killed Ilan. Today, there is a new silence that has enveloped the trial: the trial that has been closed to the public and press. At Choc, we have decided to revisit this sad case at length. And to publish this horrifying photo, which — far better than words — tells of the ordeal suffered by a human being who fell into the grasp of barbarism.”

This is how the editors of Choc explained their decision to publish a photo of Ilan Halimi in captivity.

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Analysis: Iran is not on the radar - yet

There is more than a hint of disingenuousness to the protestations that last week’s exercise of the entire Israeli Air Force and next week’s national Home Front drill are both routine annual exercises.

Armies, of course, routinely carry out exercises — but part of that routine is to play out certain scenarios, and it is those scenarios which give an indication as to the army’s intentions and concerns.

So what can we learn from the scenarios in these two exercises?

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Analysis: Hyping the Israeli threat pays off

Two weeks ahead of its elections, Lebanon is conducting a wide-ranging crackdown on alleged Israeli spies. In sharp contrast to previous, smaller-scale operations, the current wave of arrests is being spearheaded not by Hizbollah or the army, but by the Internal Security Forces (ISF), an American-trained agency commanded by partisans of parliamentary majority leader Saad Hariri.

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Analysis: The Pope had no chance of keeping everyone happy

When Pope Benedict XVI left the Holy Land, he probably felt like that woman who applied for a new job. “I see you were last employed by a psychiatrist,” said the employer to the applicant. “Why did you leave?” “Well,” she replied, “I just couldn’t win. If I was late to work, I was hostile. If I was early, I had an anxiety complex. If I was on time, I was compulsive.”

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Analysis: An opportunity for Israel, if it’s smart

Israel, and its supporters, are squirming. For the past few weeks, Washington has slowly been ratcheting up the pressure on the Jewish state, releasing increasingly alarming details of the demands President Obama intends to put to Prime Minister Netanyahu when they meet in Washington next week. Mr Netanyahu must accept Palestinian statehood; settlements must be frozen; more responsibility for security must be granted to the Palestinians. Most ominously, President Obama’s efforts to stop the Iranian nuclear programme will be linked to progress in the Palestinian peace process.

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Analysis: Leaders must build a rapport before the work begins

What does Israel want from PM Netanyahu’s first meeting with President Obama? There are four main themes: assess US thinking, get along, inform US policymakers of Israel’s concerns, and persuade Mr Obama on the issues.

The single most important aspect of this meeting is that it is the first between the two as their countries’ leaders. They will have to see if they understand each other, though both will make a big effort to portray the encounter as a success. Mr Netanyahu has to defuse the negative stereotype of himself as uncooperative on peace.

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Analysis: A one and three-quarter state solution may be Bibi’s best offer

The White House has all but spelt it out. If Binyamin Netanyahu doesn’t commit himself to a two-state solution in his meeting with Barack Obama on Monday, he may as well save the airfare. Bibi is an astute enough observer of American politics to understand that this time, no amount of lobbying by congressional allies or senior Jewish Democrats is going to change the administration’s policy. He is going to have to find a way to deliver the goods.

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