In 2005, a 12-year-old Palestinian boy was killed in Jenin by Israeli soldiers who said they thought his toy gun was real. But his heart still beats, because his family decided to allow his organs to be donated to six ailing children in Israel.

The release Friday of five Iranians held by the U.S. military in Iraq for two and a half years highlights the long-simmering conflict between the U.S. and Iraqi views of Iranian policy in Iraq.

The Israeli Foreign Ministry's concern over an "unusually harsh statement" by the European Commission over Israel's settlement policy indicates a growing unease between Israel and the EU.

The UN Security Council has warned that the existence of a large Israeli-run espionage network in Lebanon could threaten a fragile peace established between the two countries.

When President Barack Obama formally abandoned the longstanding U.S. "war on terror" — perceived by some as a codeword for "war against Islam" — there were hopes of a new relationship with Muslims. But the ground realities, both in the United States and in Western Europe, have not caught up with the widespread political euphoria.

The peace process in the Middle East is not likely to bear fruit as long as Netanyahu and Ahmadinejad are in power.