Epstein Secrets

ile Hamas put estimates at 200,000. In another apparent step toward reconciliation, Hamas chief Khaled Meshaal and Fatah leader Mahmoud Abbas met in Cairo on January 9th—the first such meeting in almost a year. Though this is the latest indication of a Palestinian rapprochement, it is also a telling m

ity continue, but without noticeable progress. Following a meeting with Assad on December 24th in Syria, UN—Arab League Joint Special Enjoy to Syria Lakhdar Brahimi held a third trilateral meeting with US and Russian diplomats on January 11th in Geneva. According to press reports, Brahimi was quoted after the me

s Islamist allies such as Turkey and Qatar would provide badly needed aid and help bolster its legitimacy. But after the Egyptian coup this summer, Cairo has openly said it is cracking down not only on the Brotherhood, but Hamas as well. In addition to destroying tunnels, Egypt has also severely lim

tlement. Whatever the case, the attempt to include Iran in the talks should come as no surprise -- for months, UN Special Representative for Syria Lakhdar Brahimi has privately and publicly lobbied Western and Arab countries to allow Iran into the Geneva process. While Secretary of State John Kerry has said t

een in decline. Against this backdrop of political and economic turmoil, the 12th summit of the Organization of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) convened in Cairo on February 5th with a number of key players in the region in attendance- among them President Gül of Turkey, Emir Hamad al-Thani of Qatar, and Saudi

war and the general volatility permeating the region. Despite the lack of progress of an international peace initiative spearheaded by Special Envoy Lakhdar Brahimi, a new plan by Syrian opposition leader Moaz al-Khatib - comprising a dialogue with President al-Assad based on the principle of the regime's departu