All Backchannels
Assad pulling Syria troops out of cities by Tuesday?Kofi Annan seems to think so. But there are strong grounds for doubt.
Netanyahu says Iran sanctions aren't working. His UN ambassador disagrees.Who to believe?- To the victor in Egypt's presidential race: a terrible economyThe Muslim Brotherhood has fronted a candidate. A former ally of Mubarak may even run. But whoever wins will start with less than half the foreign reserves Egypt had before the revolution.
- Dubai kicks out US democracy NGO, tooThough far more deftly than Egypt did.
Weapons flowing from Iraqi Sunnis to Syria's rebels?So says a fairly credible CNN report.- Why Israel is even less likely to strike Iran nowObama appears to be hemming in Israel at every turn. Case in point: A report in which unnamed US officials allege that Israel has obtained access to bases in Azerbaijan, on Iran's border.
Iraq's ominous trendline of violenceTerrorism is up in Iraq, as are political tensions.
NATO fatalities in Afghanistan: 22 percent this year at hands of Afghan Army, policeGen. John Allen urged Congress yesterday to 'stay the course' but offered little encouraging data.
A faulty argument for staying on in AfghanistanMarc Thiessen of the Washington Post's op-ed page is promising doom when US troops pull out of Afghanistan. There is no reason to believe he's close to correct.
Netanyahu gives Obama the Book of Esther. Biblical parable for nuclear Iran?Esther tells of a Persian plot against the Jews that was thwarted through cunning and the intercession of a gentile king. Purim, the holiday that celebrates the story, starts tonight.
Joe Scarborough implies General Dempsey unfit to lead joint chiefsThe morning talk-show host says Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Gen. Martin Dempsey's comments that Iran is a rational actor should be a firing offense.
Senator McCain calls for war in SyriaSenator John McCain took to the senate floor and made an impassioned plea for a US-led war effort. He's probably not going to get what he's asking for.- Inside AIPAC and out, Obama's opponents turn up the heatAttack ads from lobbying groups, warnings of nuclear doom from GOP hopefuls, and saber-rattling from the punditocracy surround AIPAC's annual meeting.
Iran debate: If Obama doesn't bluff, he's not a good poker playerPresident Obama's interview with The Atlantic can be seen as a preemptive strike to control the nuclear Iran narrative ahead of Israeli leader Benjamin Netanyahu's visit next week.
Update on Iraq: Not quite freedom on the marchThe crackdown on political protest in Iraq, from Baghdad to autonomous Kurdistan, shows that the country is far from a flourishing democracy.
If Israeli voters get their way, no attack on Iran without US helpSo says a new poll.- Something beautifulCary Huang's Scale of the Universe.
Why an apology on Afghan Quran burning mattersBecause it might save lives.- Afghan troops keep killing US troopsTwo more US soldiers were killed in a gunfight with an Afghan soldier today, bringing the total to six Americans killed in incidents since Qurans were burned at a US base.
Egypt moves to defuse crisis over NGO trialsWhat exactly is happening isn't clear yet. But it seems fairly certain that Egypt's ruling junta is backing away from the prosecution of NGO workers that led to the worst US-Egypt diplomatic crisis in decades.
