Israeli Minister Urges Sanctions Against US

PM appeasing government's extreme right, writes Christopher Hitchens

(NEWSER) - Benjamin Netanyahu is a hostage to the extreme right of Israel’s government, and the Obama administration is trying to appease him—a decision the US “will come to regret.” The US offer of “ security incentives and fighter jets ” following a proposed temporary freeze in settlement-building makes Christopher Hitchens wonder: Why does America “acquiesce so wretchedly in its own disgrace at the hands of a virtual client state?” More»

Obama administration simultaneously fights construction

(NEWSER) - When President Obama meets with Benjamin Netanyahu at the White House today, he’ll probably pressure the Israeli PM to stop illegal construction in the West Bank. But even as the administration fights those settlements, the US government is giving millions in tax breaks to groups that help build them, the New York Times reports. At least 40 US groups have collected more than $200 million in tax-exempt donations to use specifically for Israeli settlements. More»

Israeli PM confronts fallout from deadly raid

(NEWSER) - Benjamin Netanyahu has cut short a visit to Canada and canceled a planned meeting with President Obama to return to Israel in the wake of this morning's deadly raid on aid-laden ships bound for Gaza . The Israeli PM "realized that he had to be there in order to manage the fallout," a source tells the Washington Post of the commando action, which has drawn international condemnation. More»

Netanyahu talks tough, but US pressure keeps building suspended

(NEWSER) - Benjamin Netanyahu has struck a hawkish tone on settlements since returning to the Israeli premiership, and his cabinet ministers insisted as recently as Monday that "there is no choice but to continue building." But quietly, his government has agreed to Barack Obama's demand to end new construction in the West Bank, maintaining a moratorium on new bids since coming to power in March. For the Los Angeles Times, it's a sign that Netanyahu is trying to get peace talks back off the ground. More»

(NEWSER) - President Obama’s election has increased America’s standing in the world, new polling shows. Global attitudes toward the US have been bolstered by Obama’s election to levels not seen since the Clinton administration, the New York Times reports. In Indonesia, for instance, where the president spent part of his childhood, 73% of respondents said their opinion of the US improved with Obama’s election. More»