(New York Times) David D. Kirkpatrick - As President Trump moved last month to recognize Jerusalem as the capital of Israel, an Egyptian intelligence officer quietly placed phone calls to the hosts of several influential talk shows in Egypt, telling them that strife with Israel was not in Egypt's national interest and that instead of condemning the decision, they should persuade their viewers to accept it. Pro-government news media across the Arab world were strikingly muted about the status of Jerusalem. Shibley Telhami, a scholar at the University of Maryland and the Brookings Institution, said Arab leaders signaled that - while they may not like the decision - they "will find a way to work with it," and "with a White House that is prepared to break with what had been taboos in American foreign policy."
2018-01-08 00:00:00Full ArticleBACK Visit the Daily Alert Archive