Free Republic

In the wake of the 9/11 terrorist attacks on the U.S., Saudi Arabia was under intense scrutiny since 15 of the 19 hijackers were Saudis. In Feb. 2002, Crown Prince Abdullah of Saudi Arabia proposed to Israel "full withdrawal" from the territories in return for "full normalization." In a flash, Abdullah transformed the discourse from Saudi involvement in terrorism to Saudi peacemaking. However, by the time the Abdullah trial balloon reached the Arab summit in Beirut in March 2002, the initiative had been modified and its terms hardened. It watered down "full normalization," rewarded Syria with a presence on the...

WASHINGTON, Dec 18—During the campaign, President-elect Obama emphasized the need for greater diplomacy and a willingness to engage with hostile regimes. This commitment to “return to diplomacy” will not be enough to break the deadlock in the Middle East. Obama should break from traditional U.S. posture and support peace initiatives originating with Arab countries, urges a new paper by the director of the Carnegie Middle East Program. Marina Ottaway explains that the United States lacks the legitimacy and capacity to monopolize leadership in the peace process. The new administration should signal its support for three key Arab undertakings: Syrian–Israeli negotiations...

It's not what you'd think. One of Osama bin Laden's sons -- a former member of al-Qaeda -- has gone public in urging his father to end his terrorism and focus on peace. Omar says more and more Muslims agree: Omar bin Laden has a message for his father, Osama: "Find another way." The son of the most-wanted man in the world spoke Sunday to CNN in a quiet, middle-class suburb about an hour outside Cairo, Egypt. Omar bin Laden, who works as a contractor, said he is talking publicly because he wants an end to the violence his father...

BANGKOK (Reuters) - Fresh violence flared in mainly Muslim southern Thailand on Monday, only hours after the Air Force dropped an estimated 100 million origami "peace birds" to quell unrest which has claimed nearly 500 lives. Police said a bomb exploded at an intersection near a market in the southern province of Narathiwat on Monday morning, injuring at least one soldier. Overnight, the home of a teacher in the same province, one of three near the Malaysian border plagued by violence, was burned to the ground. In neighboring Yala, a school building was slightly damaged by fire, although nobody was...