I think the Israelis are serious with their threat...because they don't pay any attention to the international opinion, nor to international laws and conventions, like the Geneva Conventions, that they've signed, which forbid collective punishment

The ongoing conflict between Arabs and Jews in the Middle East is one of the more intractable conflicts of our times - but, by looking at the conflict through the eyes of two outsiders, film director Peter Kosminsky hopes to tell the human story behind the bloody headlines and failed peace talks.

Abbas, perhaps remembering these history lessons, apparently came to the conclusion that the status quo needed to be shaken up. To his credit he did not chose a violent option for this action. Abbas’s goal of going to the UN was to peacefully shake things up.

Hasbara is a form of propaganda aimed at an international audience, primarily, but not exclusively, in western countries. It is meant to influence the conversation in a way that positively portrays Israeli political moves and policies, including actions undertaken by Israel in the past.

“Public Diplomacy” trophy, given by Moroccan French-speaking magazine “Diplomatica,” was awarded to Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas. The award...represents a support to peace initiatives, coexistence and dialogue, with the aim of achieving independence in a climate of fair and comprehensive peace.

...the outcome [Palestine's admittance to UNESCO] has obliged Washington, under U.S. law, to cut its $80 million annual financial contribution to Unesco, weakening an important vehicle of U.S. "soft power" influence through the projects supporting U.S. goals in Iraq, Afghanistan and elsewhere.

Monday's vote to admit Palestine as a full member of Unesco, the U.N. cultural arm, was a sharp reminder of just how limited Washington's influence -- hard, soft and smart -- has become in respect of the Middle East's most intractable conflict.

America's objections to the Palestinian move ring hollow across much of the world, and especially the strategically vital Middle East region. Its withholding of UN payments in response is nothing short of a combination of the absurd and the vindictive. As former Senator Tim Wirth has pointed out this will be sapping to America's soft power capacity.