Learning a lesson...

Yesterday, U.S. President Barack Obama attempted to lay a new course when it comes to Middle East policy.

By most accounts, his speech -- which was obviously written with the idea in mind that it would be a "watershed" moment in his presidency -- failed.

Today, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu visited the White House to speak with his American counterpart.

Only Netanyahu didn't just speak with him...he spoke to him...it was more like "instructed" him in the realities of Middle East history and policy.

Benajamin Netanyahu (left) explains reality to Barack Obama...

ABC News' Jake Tapper was at the White House and he filed this report:

In Oval Office, Bibi Offers History Lessons to Obama

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu seemed to think he needed to educate President Obama on some issues today, so in the Oval Office he described in some detail to the president a history of the refugee problem in the region dating back 63 years, as well as his view on the need for Israel to be able to defend itself in the context of thousands of years of Jewish suffering.

“We don't have a lot of margin for error,” Netanyahu said to the president. “Because, Mr. President, history will not give the Jewish people another chance.”

Netanyahu, whose father is a retired academic, offered the president repeated history lessons, saying Jews have “been around for almost 4,000 years. We have experienced struggle and suffering like no other people. We've gone through expulsions and pogroms and massacres and the murder of millions. But I can say that even at the dearth of -- even at the nadir of the valley of death, we never lost hope and we never lost our dream of reestablishing a sovereign state in our ancient homeland, the land of Israel.”

Yesterday, President Obama angered Netanyahu by -- for the first time -- stating as a matter of U.S. policy that “the borders of Israel and Palestine should be based on the 1967 lines with mutually agreed swaps, so that secure and recognized borders are established for both states.”

The language everyone understands...

Body language...

"Netanyahu shows no signs of budging on deal": At a White House meeting with the president today, Israel’s prime minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, declared that his country would not withdraw to 1967 boundaries to help make way for an adjacent Palestinian state, which Barack Obama had urged Israel to do in a speech yesterday.

Hard to tell they're not seeing eye-to-eye...

That's what friends are for...

(With friends like him, who needs enemies?)

The headline in the New York Times: "Obama and Netanyahu, Distrustful Allies, to Meet"...

Yes, because Israel's position has been unpredictable, wavered and two-faced...

Puh-leeze.

Fallout...

Less than 72 hours after its messy high seas blockade operation - one that resulted in a number of high-visibility military and "civilian" casualties - Israel is now reaping the whirlwind.

In a high-stakes game of international PR, the "ragtag" Gaza humanitarian supply group (aka: Hamas supporters) backed the Jewish state into a corner - and Israel lost. Given a choice of letting the flotilla supply Gaza (which Israel already does) with not just humanitarian aid but also weapons (possibly) as well, the Israelis acted. Unfortunately, the operation went south in a hurry.

Israeli commandos aboard one of the Gaza flotilla ships...

Ill-prepared for a less-than-warm welcome, the Israelis were forced to respond with violence and things got messy. And they got messy on video and mobile communications devices which beamed the mess around the world several times before the situation ever ended.

The ill-conceived, poorly executed operation(s) left Israel with a black eye, canceled a meeting between U.S. President Barack Obama and Israeli PM Benjamin Netanyahu, and left numerous allies condemning Israel's actions.

The Israeli naval commandos are met by the humanitarian group's "welcoming committee," outfitted with metal clubs and knives...

The worldwide reaction to this weekend's botched raids are a harbinger of things to come. Iran has ramped up its nukes program; Syria is now known to be dabbling with nuclear weapons; Scud missiles have been shipped to Hezbollah in Lebanon; and the entire region is at tripwire tension.

Below is a brief rundown on some of the stories surrounding this story...

Israel Faces Pressure on Gaza After Raid - The day after a raid that left nine activists dead, Egypt reopened its border with Gaza to allow aid to flow through. / U.N. Council Condemns ‘Acts’ in Raid (NY Times)

Pressure Rises on Israel Over Raid - Israel said it won't prosecute anyone accused of attacking its soldiers during a raid on an aid ship and said its forces would stop two more vessels heading for Gaza. Egypt opened its border with the territory. / Turkey Slams U.S. Response to Israel (Wall Street Journal)

Israeli raid puts Obama in difficult spot / Egypt opens border with Gaza Strip (LA Times)

The Big Question: How should the U.S. respond to Israel? - Some of the nation's top political commentators, legislators and intellectuals offer their insight into the biggest news of the day. (The Hill)

Within Israel, Finger-Pointing and Lessons Learned. (PajamasMedia)

The Terror Finance Flotilla - The convoy of ships allegedly trying to bring aid to the Gaza Strip was organized by a group belonging to an officially designated terrorist organization. (The Weekly Standard)

Has Israel lost lone regional Muslim ally Turkey? (BBC News)

ONGOING: To find out what is happening – almost to the minute – check The Jerusalem Post’s news feed.

Arms ship? What arms ship?

What's an arms ship? We don't know any arms ships!

According to the Associated Press, "Israeli officials tallied up hundreds of tons of weapons seized from a commandeered ship Thursday as Lebanon's Hezbollah guerrillas denied Israeli claims that the arms were meant for them."


Everything wasn't "ship-shape"

Hezbollah has, of course, denied any connection. Of course.

Israel accused Iran of violating a UN arms embargo by hiding 36 containers filled with a wide range of weapons among hundreds of containers of civilian cargo on a ship heading to Syria.

"The bulk of the shipment included rockets intended to hurt Israelis and kill as many civilians as possible," said Israeli prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu. "This constitutes a war crime. The UN General Assembly should have investigated and condemned this crime and the UN Security Council should have convened a special session to debate this incident. Iran intends to commit this war crime again in the future."

According to a very reliable source, he was "told that the ship was not unique; most of the arms have been tagged for Beirut and Syria and then redirected. I asked why now?" He didn't get an answer...but is expecting one, soon.

"Israel accused Iran on Thursday of violating a U.N. arms embargo by hiding 36 containers filled with a wide range of weapons among hundreds of containers of civilian cargo on a ship heading to Syria."

"The bulk of the shipment included rockets intended to hurt Israelis and kill as many civilians as possible. This constitutes a war crime. The UN General Assembly should have investigated and condemned this crime and the UN Security Council should have convened a special session to debate this incident," Netanyahu said. "Iran intends to commit this war crime again in the future.

But there are two solid bets as to "why now?"

1.) Iran fears Israel (and/or the U.S.) could try and put an end to its nuclear weapons program. The Obama administration has been trying to get Russia to take Iran's uranium, but that effort has gone nowhere. Meanwhile, the Iranian "street" is getting restless - further worrying the Imams - and Iranian Baluchs are setting off bombs with or without the help of (pick one): the CIA, the Mossad, Pakistan, that cranky old man down the street. The internal chaos is only fueling the urgency of the Mullahs' desires/efforts to develop nukes - which they've promised to rain down on (pick one): the infidels, the Jews, that cranky old man down the street. "Arming-up" might signal that the Iranian leadership thinks its final battle is drawing closer.

2.) Iran plans to draw attention away from its nuke efforts (thus buying more time) by supplying arms throughout the Middle East, but particularly in Lebanon where another Hezbollah offensive against Israel would kick into high gear in coming months. In addition to serving as a diversion, it also would be a key test of the new administration's resolve - and ties with Israel.

Either way, this is a signal we should all be paying attention to - closely.



According to JTA, "The German-owned ship operated by a Cypriot company was en route from Iran to Syria with a planned stop in Beirut, according to Israel's Foreign Ministry. It carried arms including Katyusha rockets, assault rifles, grenades and mortar shells, as well as an advanced anti-aircraft platform, Israel Radio reported."