It is often said in the Arab world that the road to Jerusalem goes through Washington, with the implicit assumption that only the Americans can bring the Israelis to the negotiating table. But there is a distinctly different dynamic emerging from the waning days of the U.S. presidency of George W. Bush. The road to Washington may in fact pass through Jerusalem.

The American Israel Public Affairs Committee, one of the most powerful lobby groups in the United States, just concluded its annual Washington conference. It drew a long line of administration officials and the presidential candidates to its doorsteps, all touting orthodox lines on what it means to be pro-Israel – messages carefully crafted to please the lobby.

Israelis are Talking to Hamas: Religion at the Cutting Edge

A Mufti, a Christian and a Rabbi

In between speaking at two seminars in Israel regarding the future of peace and conflict in the region, I slipped out of the country into Jordan and then on to Syria.