Nathan Guttman

Having won in Iraq, President George Bush has embarked on the campaign for a second term in the White House - mindful of the fact that the sluggish U.S. economy is voters' prime concern.

The daughters of Leon Klinghoffer, killed by Abul Abbas's men during the hijacking of the Achille Lauro, demand that he be brought to the U.S. to face charges. The daughters, Lisa and Ilsa, have vigorously pursued a campaign to have Abul Abbas prosecuted since the murder.

The United States believes it can indict captured Palestinian leader Mohammed Abbas (better known as Abul Abbas) for murder, and that his immunity under the Oslo Accords applies only in Israel and the PA, not in the U.S.

While the U.S. administration is receiving Israel's and the Palestinians' comments on the road map for peace in the Middle East first hand, Capitol Hill is also witnessing persuasive efforts among members of Congress.

U.S. tells Palestinian PM-designate to stand up to Arafat's pressure on new cabinet appointments.

U.S. Secretary of State Colin Powell said yesterday that the United States has concerns over the policies of Iran and Syria, but Washington has no "war plan" to attack the two, or other nations.

How did the U.S. work to keep Israel outside the Iraq conflict - and even prevent leaks about the agreements between the two countries?

Meetings here between the prime minister's bureau chief Dov Weisglass and U.S. administration officials on the road map, ended without any agreements yesterday. However, an understanding was reached that the U.S. will consider Israeli reservations about the proposed framework for reaching peace with the Palestinians.

How did the U.S. work to keep Israel outside the Iraq conflict - and even prevent leaks about the agreements between the two countries?

"Of course Syria doesn't have any chemical weapons," the Syrian foreign ministry's spokeswoman Bouthaine Shaban declared yesterday in an interview broadcast by a Lebanese TV station.

The American campaign against Syria over the past two weeks has seemed to take a one-step-forward, two-steps-backward course. Observers who have become accustomed to the firm, no-nonsense messages sent to Iraq by the U.S. administration over the past year could not help but notice the entirely different style of the statements leveled at Syria - threats one day, calming declarations the next.

The Americans want to try those regime leaders who are caught alive in an international court, to prove to the world and to the Iraqi people that justice will be served against those responsible for the oppression and the war crimes.

American Jewish groups maintain quiet contacts with nearly every Iraqi opposition group, and have met with the prominent opposition leader Ahmed Chalabi. One of the objectives was to persuade the Iraqis of the need for good relations with Israel.

Combat has quieted criticism of the war but American Jews are still in a quandary.