Palestine 1001 Nights

Hamas is negotiating with Israel. This is what Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas confidently said to a BBC -Arabic reporter in an exclusive interview. How does he know? Abbas asserted that there are "no secrets in Israel".

If things could only be this simple in the Middle East, Mr. Abbas would have known from the get-go that the Oslo Accords were a disaster for the Palestinians, Bush's Road Map for Peace was just another road to nowhere, the Annapolis Peace Conference was dead on arrival, and Obama's promises for "change" do not mean squat when it comes to Israel.

The President of the Palestinian Authority added that the presidential and legislative elections scheduled for January will be postponed and that he would not seek a second term as president. Abbas looked frustrated...he looked like a beaten man.

Meanwhile, the Israeli government in recent days has been scrambling for yet another distraction to offer to the beleaguered Palestinian Authority President: an interim accord that would include a Palestinian state with provisional borders. This way he'll have a quasi-state with temporary borders to show for all the endless negotiations. What a brilliant idea!

Read more & share your thoughts on the Huffington Post
Watch MIR Videos

The Saudi-Iranian Neo Cold War

It's been four months since I described Yemen as a powder keg ready to explode. At the time the entire world was riveted to the television, watching the unfolding events of the "Velvet Revolution" in Iran. The Yemeni keg has since exploded. It is currently on the verge of causing a regional conflict.

For more than a week now, Saudi Arabia has been carrying out military operations on its remote southern border to punish Houthi rebels from neighboring Yemen who crossed over and attacked one of its patrols. Both Yemen and Saudi Arabia have accused Iran of arming the rebels.

Accusations and counter accusations have been flying between the two rival regional powers. On Tuesday, Iran's foreign minister Manouchehr Mottaki warned that, "those who pour oil on the fire must know that they will not be spared from the smoke that billows".

This is not the first time Saudis and Iranians have faced off in the region. The rivalry between the two countries has been playing its course for years, extending from the Persian Gulf (where the name alone is a point of contention, Saudis refer to it as the Arabian Gulf) into Iraq, Lebanon, and the Palestinian territories. Like the United States and the Soviet Union in the Cold War, Saudi Arabia and Iran have been supporting their factions in all these countries, either militarily, financially or both.

Read more & share your thoughts on the Huffington Post
Watch Video

Don't Ask Me About Hasan

Seven messages and counting on my voice mail from different Bay Area reporters, all wanting to know the Muslim community's reaction about the recent heinous killings of Nidal Malik Hasan. All wanting to know what had driven a 39-year-old Muslim to go on a killing rampage, murdering 13 people in Fort Hood, Texas. "He had it all," someone said, "he's an educated man, he's a doctor." Why did he do it?

Apparently, I fit the profile of someone who has these answers: I am a Muslim Palestinian American: I must know what one out of the 1.5 billion Muslims around the globe is thinking at any given time.

"Hey, Jamal...sorry to disturb you so early. But you know the Hasan story is big, and I was wondering if you're willing to come for an interview and talk about how it feels being a Maahzlem (Muslim) and all," a television producer says to me on my cell, while I was driving to work.

"How did you feel being a Christian, with Timothy McVeigh and Adolf Hitler being Christians?" I fired back.

Silence... I probably should not have said that, but there it is.

Read more & share your thoughts on the Huffington Post
Jihadi or psycho?  Daily Kos Poll

Hey there! jamal dajani is using Twitter.

Stay updated with breaking news from the Middle East, blogs, opinions, and pithy comments 24/7. Join today to start receiving jamaldajani's updates.
You will not be disappointed!

Are you a news junkie?
If so...we've got your fix!

Watch Link TV's new Global News Hour with Al Jazeera English World News, followed by Mosaic: World News from the Middle East weekdays 7PM Pacific/10PM Eastern starting June 1st.

Al Jazeera English is broadcast from four strategic centers: Doha, Qatar; Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia; London, England and Washington, DC. Additionally, the Al Jazeera Network maintains more than 70 bureaus across the world.

Unlike other international channels, the Al Jazeera English broadcast shifts as the world turns, providing the most comprehensive and contextual news coverage. Al Jazeera English’s mission is to provide independent, impartial news for a global audience and to offer a voice to a diversity of perspectives from under-reported regions.

Most watched on YouTube:

Al Qaeda's Revenge

The Spring Offensive: Taliban vs. NATO

Will the US Attack Iran?

To the editor:

This is very interesting, thank you for the newsletter. Please keep up the good work. Peace. Jay M.- Washington, DC

Dear Jamal:

I just saw "Occupied Minds" on LinkTV and wanted to tell you how profound it was. I was raised in a Jewish family and it makes me so mad that Jews are oppressing the Palestinians. I just wanted to tell you that I love your sincerity and honesty. Elizabeth S.

To the editor:

Could it be Hassan was set up and not the real shooter? Look at the Korean student that shot some students and was also killed. Why dosen't someone write in giant letters who started and funds Hezbollah, Hamas, Al-Queada? Why is it that people are slaughtered while fake leaders remain alive? Vincent L.

To the editor:

Buying them off? It worked for the Byzantine Empire for over 500 years. Maybe a better way would be to work toward easing poverty and disenfranchisement? -Canada

Dear Mr. Dajani:

The One-State Solution is an absurd notion. Israel shall and will remain the home of the Jewish people. Those who do not like it can get out. David L. -New York

Dear Mr. Dajani:

Thank you for keeping us informed! I made my contribution to Link TV though a small amount but I hope it will help! Mary A.- California

Disclaimer: Mosaic Intelligence Report will put up as many of your comments as possible but we cannot guarantee that all e-mails will be published. MIR reserves the right to edit comments that are published.