July 13, 2012

In-depth

Ehud Olmert could be Israel’s comeback kid

His acquittal leaves the former prime minister well-placed for a return to politics, something that could change the future of the peace process, writes Nir Eisikovits in Christian Science Monitor.

Olmert will almost certainly refocus Israel on the Palestinian question. Whether or not he could defeat Mr. Netanyahu in a general election remains to be seen. But Olmert’s return to politics would mark an interesting shakeup of the Israeli political scene and would, at the very least, present Netanyahu with a formidable challenge and force him to broaden the set of issues he presents to the Israeli public.

The Islamist ascendancy

Charles Krauthammer of the Washington Post traces the history of the Middle Eastern nations, which led to today’s post-revolution Islamist ascendancy.

Many Westerners naively believed the future belonged to the hip, secular, tweeting kids of Tahrir Square. Alas, this sliver of Westernization was no match for the highly organized, widely supported, politically serious Islamists who effortlessly swept them aside in national elections. This was not a Facebook revolution but the beginning of an Islamist one. Amid the ruins of secular nationalist pan-Arabism, the Muslim Brotherhood rose to solve the conundrum of Arab stagnation and marginality. “Islam is the answer,” it preached and carried the day.

Daily Digest