Another Appeal to Obama to Pressure Israel

"Nobel Winner Urges Obama to Act"
A22, Thursday 12/11/08
By Walter Gibbs

This brief touches on comments made by Nobel Peace Prize winner Martti Ahtisaari, who's had success forging peace in Namibia, Kosovo and Northern Ireland. For some, these credentials are enough for Obama to heed his advice on the Middle East. "The credibility of the whole international community is at stake. We cannot go on, year after year, simply pretending to do something to help the situation in the Middle East." Perhaps it is not pretending, but hitting a wall that may be impossible to break through.

It's unclear if Ahtisaari sees as the center of the region's problems the Arab-Israeli conflict. If he does, his advice for Obama to prioritize this problem may prove dangerous. After all, when progress on this track stalls or falls apart, Israel – as the military and economic power, and close ally of the U.S. – is liable to get the blame.