Israeli Foreign Minister Avigdor Lieberman declared that he does not regard building homes for Israelis in East Jerusalem as the same activity as building settlements in Occupied Territory:
“One thing should be clear: we will never accept the definition of building in Jewish neighborhoods of Jerusalem as settlement activity…We won’t accept any limitation on building in Jewish areas of [East] Jerusalem.”
Lieberman does not speak for the Israeli government bu t his statement reflects the growing pressure by right-wing groups in Israel on Prime Minister Netanyahu. This pressure applies not only to settlement activity, but also to Israeli access to the Temple Mount/Noble Sanctuary. There is no activity whatsoever in peace negotiations between the Israeli government and the Palestinian Authority.
There have been many posts on this blog in recent months about the rise of right-wing parties in Europe. The upswell in right-wing politics is often associated with bad economic conditions. However, there has also been a slight increase in the visibility of left-wing parties, although none have yet achieved electoral victories of note. Left-wing politics receded into the background after the dissolution of the Soviet Union in 1991. This slight increase in popularity also reflects disappointment in economic conditions, but as of yet there has been no clear left vision that unites those parties in Europe.
The Tanzanian government has announced that it intends to go forward in selling a proposed 1,500 sq km “wildlife corridor” bordering the Serengeti national park to “a commercial hunting and safari company based in the United Arab Emirates.” In so doing, the government will evict 40,000 Maasai pastoralists from their traditional lands. In return, the Tanzanian government is promising “development projects” to aid the displaced Maasai. The hunting company is the Ortelo Business Corporation (OBC) which has close ties to the UAE royal family.
World Politics News 
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