Akiva Eldar

Nine years after the outbreak of the Al-Aqsa intifada, a solid Palestinian leadership is waiting for Israel.

Israel is returning to the era of the 'White Paper,' which was written during the early days of the intifada to disseminate then-prime minister Barak's 'no partner' theory.

Is it possible that people as direct and honest as Begin and Ya'alon would remain for a moment at the side of a prime minister genuinely committed to a policy that blatantly contradicts their basic beliefs - beliefs that are grounded in Likud's political manifesto?

PM wants Jews in the U.S. government to be blind to settlements and deaf to Arab complaints.

Who authorized the Americans - this administration or previous ones - to do business with Palestinian land?

Obama must directly address the Israeli people and present to them the cost of refusing peace.

As long as Abbas boycotts the peace process, Obama is prevented from exposing his substantive differences with Netanyahu.

We can only hope that when Obama said that "now is the time" to move forward with a two-state solution - he means that he will force a solution by the end of 2009.

What chutzpah on the part of Obama. He just entered the White House and already has something to say.

To show the rules of the game have changed, Obama must demand that Netanyahu carry out his part of a deal he signed with Clinton and Arafat.

Like a spoiled child, Israel is in no rush to willingly surrender real estate it has held for decades.

If I were a Palestinian, of any age, I would declare an all-out war on all terrorist groups and fulfill the demand of the Jews to recognize the State of Israel as the state of the Jewish people.

An imaginary conversation between the pair after Obama sends Clinton to Iran after meeting with Netanyahu.

Reciprocity is a fair concept if not used against a weaker side, and 'political restraints' cannot serve as an excuse when used against you by a stronger side.

'My dear friend: Since Avigdor Lieberman's taking office I am beside myself.'

After more than three years at the helm, one could have expected Olmert to know that he would continue to have no Palestinian partner for a deal that included less than all the territories, with mutual border adjustments.

Prime Minister-designate Benjamin Netanyahu is not seeking excellent backup players to help him fight his biggest enemies. He needs cheerleaders to fend off pressures from his closest friends.

Netanyahu promised to form the best possible cabinet, and his party has at least two candidates for defense minister whose horizons are much broader than those of Moshe Ya'alon.

Meshal, like Netanyahu, rejected Abbas' demand to include the principle of two states for two peoples in the policy statement of a Palestinian unity government.

In democracies, situations arise in which a real leader serves the nation's interests from the opposition. This is one of those times.