Blair Banks $20M in First Year as Ex-PM

Mahmoud Abbas would submit a letter, but not force a vote

(NEWSER) - The international community is hammering out a deal that would spare the US from having to veto Palestine’s move for statehood . There are several ideas floating about, but all revolve around the premise that Mahmoud Abbas would deliver a letter to the Security Council requesting statehood, but would not actually force a vote, US, European, Israeli and Palestinian diplomats tell CNN . “We don’t need to see a vote right away,” one Palestinian diplomat said. More»

If Palestinians wait much longer, it will be too late: Reza Aslan

(NEWSER) - Palestinians plan to push for full statehood in the UN later this month, and the US vows to block them. Reza Aslan offers five reasons in the Los Angeles Times why America should buck Israel ("it is not political suicide") and change its mind:

• Failed talks: Twenty years of negotiations toward a Palestinian state have gone nowhere, even as the number of Israelis in the West Bank has tripled in that time to 300,000. "A few more years and practically nothing will remain."

Ignore the cynics, Obama urges

(NEWSER) - Barack Obama gave his second speech to the UN General Assembly today, and spent most of his time calling for support for the US’ latest stab at peace in the Middle East. “Peace must be made by Israelis and Palestinians, but each of us has a responsibility to do our part as well,” Obama said, according to Politico . “Now I recognize many are pessimistic about this process,” he allowed. “But consider the alternative.” More»

Ban on weapons remains in force

(NEWSER) - Israel will allow goods to enter Gaza by land but will continue to ban the importation of weapons and will maintain its naval blockade on the area, CNN reports . Rather than listing what's allowed in , Israel will permit everything other than " weapons and material that Hamas uses to prepare and carry out terror ," PM Benjamin Netanyahu tells Reuters . The move comes 3 weeks after Israeli troops stormed aid ships and 10 pro-Palestinian activists died. More»

Tony Blair brokers a deal

(NEWSER) - Israel is expected to agree to a deal brokered by Tony Blair to loosen up its much-reviled Gaza blockade today. Under the plan, Israel will create a list of prohibited goods, rather than a narrow list of approved goods that can pass its blockade, and that prohibited list won’t include building materials for UN-sponsored projects, the Guardian reports. Israel may also allow EU monitors to watch its checkpoints. More»