US President Donald Trump’s much-anticipated Middle East peace plan was short on surprises but not on US and Israeli claims of “historic” achievement. The initiative announced January 28 would extend Israel’s control over Jerusalem and allow it to annex a good part of West Bank settlements, including the Jordan Valley. The Palestinians, who were not involved in putting the plan together, were offered the conditional promise of demilitarised statehood, a ...
![Israeli honour guards carry the coffin of former prime minister Ariel Sharon in to the Knesset (the Israeli Parliament) in Jerusalem at the end of the day on January 12, 2014 as Israelis came to pay their respects. [AFP]](/sites/default/files/styles/d08_traditional/public/im/iraq/000_Nic6284271.jpg?itok=68f6LenP "Israeli honour guards carry the coffin of former prime minister Ariel Sharon in to the Knesset (the Israeli Parliament) in Jerusalem at the end of the day on January 12, 2014 as Israelis came to pay their respects. [AFP]")
![US Secretary of State John Kerry (L) listens as Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu makes a statement to the press before a meeting at the Prime Minister's Office on January 2, 2014 in Jerusalem. [AFP]](/sites/default/files/styles/d08_traditional/public/im/Israel/000_Nic6281007.jpg?itok=1AImwQSY "US Secretary of State John Kerry (L) listens as Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu makes a statement to the press before a meeting at the Prime Minister's Office on January 2, 2014 in Jerusalem. [AFP]")
