Earlier this week blogger Philip Weiss posted a letter sent to me by an activist named Ira Glunts.  I don't know Mr. Glunts and have never heard from him before, but since he has elected to make his letter public, it seems appropriate for me to respond in kind.

Glunts' letter (which you can read on Weiss' blog) expresses his outrage at APN for our recent statement and Action Alert supporting a statement made February 12th by Rep. Gary Ackerman (D-NY) about the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.

Today's Ma'ariv includes a report with extensive comments by Amos Gilad, Israel's lead negotiator with Hamas (through Egyptian mediation). Gilad is clearly frustrated by Olmert's decision to condition the cease-fire on the release of Shalit. And he speaks plainly about that. Just as remarkable are the comments he makes about the dwindling number of allies that Israel has in the Arab world, and the need not to alienate Egypt.

If you're reading this blog, you probably seldom read the Jerusalem Post, which is why you may have missed the Post's interview with Elliott Abrams, the Bush White House Mideast policy czar - his first interview since he left his position as deputy assistant to the president and deputy national security adviser for global democracy strategy.

The Post got the scoop because its reporter Ruthie Blum Leibowitz is Abrams' sister-in-law. That probably has something to do with why I find the interview so satisfying and so frustrating at the same time.

I am now a regular contributor to GlobalSecurity.org

My first contribution was an analysis of yesterday's Israeli elections. Here it is: