Around 300 Israeli Druze are for the first time to be allowed into Syria for a religious visit after they were given permission by the interior ministry, the head of Israel's Druze community said on Thursday.

With Christianity dwindling in its Middle Eastern birthplace, Pope Benedict has convened Catholic bishops from the region to debate how to save its minority communities and promote harmony with their Muslim neighbors.

Amid greater political stability and increased efforts to attract visitors, Middle East tourism is outstripping the markets in Asia and Europe. When it comes to the Middle East, more than a few people might be surprised to learn of the region's latest achievement: stature as the fastest-growing tourism destination in the world.

Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas faces an impossible choice: walk out of the talks with Israel and the chance for a peaceful two state solution to the Palestinian-Israeli crisis, or accept the continuation of illegal Israeli settlements eroding even further Palestinian land in the West Bank.

Co-Author: Sam Schneider

On the occasion of the international Day of Peace, French Education Minister and government spokesman, Luc Chatel, will receive Tuesday in Paris a delegation of 22 young Israelis and Palestinians participating in the operation "Kids Creating Peace".

This slim volume by a Voice of America director during the early years of the Reagan administration (March 1982 - August 1982) says some reasonable things, but from a rather naïve point of view. It's about U.S. public diplomacy, the subject of dozens of reports since 9/11.