DAILY ALERT

In-Depth Issues:

Secret Order Lets U.S. Raid Al-Qaeda in Many Countries - Eric Schmitt and Mark Mazzetti (New York Times)
    The U.S. military since 2004 has used broad, secret authority to carry out nearly a dozen previously undisclosed attacks against al-Qaeda and other militants in Syria, Pakistan and elsewhere, according to senior American officials.
    A 2004 order signed by Defense Secretary Rumsfeld with the approval of President Bush identifies 15 to 20 countries, including Syria, Pakistan, Yemen, Saudi Arabia and several other Persian Gulf states, where Qaeda militants were believed to be operating or to have sought sanctuary, a senior administration official said.
    The recent raid into Syria was not the first time that Special Operations forces had operated in that country, according to a senior military official.
    Since the Iraq war began, Special Operations forces have several times made cross-border raids aimed at militants and infrastructure aiding the flow of foreign fighters into Iraq.

Arabs Lament Lack of Dialogue on Iran Nuclear Crisis (AFP)
    Arab diplomats complained on Sunday about a lack of dialogue with the West over Iran's nuclear ambitions during a briefing by EU foreign policy chief Javier Solana.
    Jordanian Foreign Minister Salah Bashir said, "the nuclear crisis became a crisis (for the West), but for us the Iranian surge for hegemony has become a crisis."
    Sunni Arab governments like Egypt, Jordan and the six oil-rich Gulf monarchies have repeatedly expressed concerns over what they see as the growing influence of Shiite Iran in the region, namely in Iraq, Syria and Lebanon.

Son of Jewish Refugee Elected New Zealand Prime Minister (JTA)
    John Key, 47, the son of a Jewish refugee, was elected Prime Minister of New Zealand on Saturday.
    Key was raised by his mother, Ruth Lazar, after his father died when Key was seven.
    His mother owes her life to her aunt, who had an arranged marriage in Britain on the eve of the war that enabled Ruth, her mother and several other family members to escape Austria in 1939.

Sharansky Slams Egypt for Jailing Dissident Blogger - Haviv Rettig (Jerusalem Post)
    Democracy advocate Natan Sharansky lashed out at Egyptian authorities Thursday over the continued incarceration of Abdul Kareem Nabil Soliman, 24, an Egyptian blogger who criticized the Egyptian government. Sharansky's statement coincided with a string of demonstrations held at Egyptian embassies worldwide.
    Soliman has served half of a four-year sentence in Borg Alarab prison for insulting Islam and "defaming" Egypt's President Hosni Mubarak.
    His trial in 2006 marked the first time a blogger was tried in Egypt.

News Resources - Israel and the Mideast:

Global Commentary and Think-Tank Analysis (Best of U.S., UK, and Israel):

Observations:

Abbas and Livni Brief Middle East Peace Quartet at Sharm el Sheikh - UN Secretary General Ban Ki-Moon (State Department)

• Representatives of the Quartet met Sunday and heard from PA President Mahmoud Abbas and Israeli Foreign Minister Tzipi Livni, at their request. They were joined by Quartet representative Tony Blair.
• President Abbas and Foreign Minister Livni stated the parties had reached a number of mutual understandings on the principles governing their negotiating process. These include: the need for continuous, uninterrupted, direct bilateral negotiations; the principle that nothing would be considered agreed until everything is agreed; the need to reach a comprehensive agreement addressing all issues, as agreed at Annapolis, rather than just announce agreement on selected items in isolation.
• In addition to describing the structure of the negotiations and indicating areas in which progress has been achieved, President Abbas and Minister Livni expressed gratitude for international support provided during the last year, and requested continued support from the Quartet and all members of the international community.
• They asked that the international community support the parties' sustained efforts in the framework of the Annapolis process, and that, in respect, the agreed principles for their negotiations as described to the Quartet. They asked that all states promote an environment conducive to peace, non-violence, and the two-state solution. They asked the international community to redouble efforts to confront and deny support for extremism, incitement, terrorism, and intolerance. Finally, the representatives stressed that, absent the joint request of the parties, third parties should not intervene in the bilateral negotiations.
• The Quartet reiterated its commitment to supporting the parties' efforts underlined as a commitment to the irreversibility of the bilateral negotiations, pledged to respect the bilateral and confidential nature of the negotiation, and called on all states to adhere to these same commitments.