In the lull after the media frenzy around Irene, it is a good time to reflect on the Israeli-Palestinian situation. In a few weeks, the Palestinians will submit a resolution to the UN General Assembly that asks that Palestine be declared a new nation-state. Regardless of where you might stand on this issue, there are a lot of practical problems with the resolution. Besides the fact that the US will veto it in the Security Council, it is politically meaningless as long as Hamas and Fatah…

Last week, two international mediators declared impasse and walked away from the conflicts they were assigned to mediate. In Lebanon, Saudi Foreign Minister Prince Saud al-Faisal attempted to mediate a serious conflict between Lebanese Prime Minister Saad al Hariri and Hezbollah. In the Ivory Coast, Kenyan prime minister Raila Odinga mediated the continuing crisis caused by the presidential election between Alassane Ouattara and Laurent Gbagbo.



These conflicts are complex and…