All Blog Posts from World Watch

Turkey's president has sought to allay Western fears that his country — NATO's only majority-Muslim member — is shifting its affinity from Washington and Europe toward Iran.

Increasing closeness between Turkish leaders and Iran, and Turkey's quest for better ties in the broader Muslim world, have fueled concerns in the West that this key U.S. ally is moving gradually to the East.

But Turkey's president used a speech Monday at the opening of an Islamic nations' summit in Istanbul to try and ease worried Western minds.

President Abdullah Gul told the Organization for the Islamic Conference's Committee for Economic and Commercial Cooperation (COMCEC) that Turkey's foreign policy maneuvers in the West and in the East are "complementary to each other, not contradictory."

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Israel has unexpectedly released two Syrian men who spent 25 years in Israeli jails, the longest terms ever served by Syrians in custody of the Jewish state, Syria's state-run news agency reported Friday.

Bisher Suleiman Ahmad Maqt, 44, was freed suddenly despite having 12 years left to serve on his sentence. Also released was Assem Mahmud Ahmed Wali, who had two years left.

It was not clear yet why the men were released and whether the move was connected with an expected prisoner exchange between Israel and the Islamic fundamentalist movement Hamas, which is holding captured Israeli soldier Gilad Shalit inside the Gaza Strip.

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This story was filed by CBS News' George Baghdadi in Damascus.

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Syrian President Bashar al-Assad and Saudi King Abdullah Bin Abdullaziz vowed Thursday after two days of ground-breaking talks in Damascus to open a new chapter in bilateral relations after years of enmity.

The Saudi king's two-day visit to Damascus was the first of its kind since 2005, and the sweetening in the relationship could have significant repercussions for the region.

Washington is hoping to engage Syria in a new round of peace talks with Israel. The Obama administration and its Arab allies hope to diminish the influence of Iranian-backed groups Hezbollah and Hamas in regional affairs. Syria wields significant influence over these militant organizations, which are classified by Washington as terrorist groups.

The changing dynamic could also help to stabilize Iraq, which borders both countries, and to end a political stalemate in Lebanon — where both Riyadh and Damascus have great influence, but have for years been on opposite sides of the fence.

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Saudi Arabian King Abdullah Bin Abdullaziz arrives in Damascus Wednesday to take Saudi-Syrian relations to new heights after years of bitter tension; a landmark shift in diplomacy which analysts predict may push Lebanon's political elite to find consensus on a national unity government.

The visit is the first of its kind since 2005, when bilateral relations hit rock bottom in 2005 following the assassination of Lebanese prime minister Rafik Al-Hariri, who was close to Riyadh. Syria was accused of the murder and, under intense regional and international pressure, withdrew the troops from Lebanon it sent to end the civil war there. Damascus denies any involvement in Hariri's murder.

A sweetening in that relationship could have significant repercussions for the region. Washington is hoping to engage Syria in a new round of peace talks with Israel. The Obama administration and its Arab allies want to diminish the influence Iranian-backed groups Hezbollah and Hamas have over regional affairs. Syria wields influence over these militant organizations, classified by Washington as terrorist groups.

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This story was filed by CSB Radio News correspondent Robert Berger in Jerusalem.

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Former Arkansas Governor and presidential hopeful Mike Huckabee is on a solidarity visit to Israel.

Huckabee visited disputed Jewish communities in East Jerusalem and blasted the Obama administration for demanding a freeze on Israeli settlement expansion.

"How would the government of the United States feel if Prime Minister Netanyahu began to dictate which people could live in the Bronx, which ones could live in Manhattan, which ones could live in Queens, and say, you know, we only allow certain people to live in these neighborhoods," said the Republican, who now hosts his own show on the Fox News Channel.

Washington sees the settlements as an obstacle to peace, and the Obama administration has exerted increasing pressure on President Benjamin Netanyahu to stop expansion, but Huckabee said Jews should be allowed to build in their own land.

Most Israeli settlements exist inside Palestinian territory, however, with the exception of East Jerusalem, which is squarely under Israeli
control though home to many Israelis of Arab descent.

Palestinian leaders hope the capital of a future Palestinian state will be in Jerusalem.

Meanwhile, the pressure coming from Washington does seem to be having some results.

Israeli officials say they have quietly frozen new building projects in the West Bank in response to U.S. pressure.

The Obama administration has demanded a complete freeze on settlement expansion.

Israel hopes a compromise involving a halt to new projects will help heal the rift between the two countries, but current building projects are continuing and Israel won't halt any construction in disputed East Jerusalem.

Amid strong U.S. pressure for a settlement freeze, there is growing skepticism among Israelis about America's stance in the Middle East peace process.

A poll published Friday in The Jerusalem Post shows that 64 percent of Israeli Jews believe Israel cannot trust international pledges for its security in return for dismantling settlements and withdrawing from the West Bank.

Furthermore, Israelis want a quid pro quo: 71 percent believe that Palestinians must freeze West Bank construction if Israel is forced to do the same.

The settlement issue has led to a deepening rift between Israel and Washington since hawkish Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu assumed power three months ago. The Obama administration is demanding a complete freeze on settlement construction in the West Bank and disputed East Jerusalem.

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George Mitchell, the Obama administration's Middle East envoy, arrives in Damascus on Saturday to see if he can garner Syrian President Bashar al-Assad's support for America's new broad-based, comprehensive peace drive in the region.

Mitchell, an architect of the Northern Ireland peace agreement, is also to visit Israel and the Palestinian territories this weekend, where he'll try to kick-start peace talks with the Palestinians and discuss the recent spat between Israel and Washington over continued Israeli construction in east Jerusalem.

Diplomats at the U.S. Embassy in Damascus tell CBS News Mitchell is expected in the Syrian capital Saturday night and that he will start his official meetings Sunday morning.

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Syrian President Bashar al-Assad and Turkey's Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan said on Wednesday that peace in the Middle East will only be achievable if Israel gives back the territories it has occupied.

The Turkish leader made it clear that Ankara was ready to act as an intermediary to bring Syria and Israel — long-time foes — to the negotiating table.

A joint statement from the Turkish and Syrian leaders stresses the need for "a genuine Israeli political will to make peace based on the implementation of international resolutions and Israel's withdrawal from occupied Arab lands."

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World leaders from more than 100 countries wrapped up the 15th summit of the Non-Aligned Movement in the Egyptian resort city of Sharm el-Sheikh on Thursday with a pledge to "continue our support to the fundamental right to self-determination."

Leaders at the two-day summit — billed as the largest gathering of nations outside the U.N. General Assembly — also underscored their commitment to ending the Israeli occupation of Palestinian territory through a peaceful solution to the Middle East conflict.

At a speech delivered before the Summit's end, Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak said the gathering affirmed the significance of the massive bloc of states — more than half in the world — as well as the "importance of the values and principles that they defend."

"The success of this Summit is not the end of the road. We must work together, hand in hand, to follow up on its decisions and outcomes," he added.

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U.S. Middle East envoy George Mitchell arrives in Damascus on Friday for talks with Syrian President Bashar al-Assad, to see if the time is right to jump-start Syria-Israel peace talks.

His visit comes a week after President Obama pledged in his speech to the Muslim world in Cairo to pursue a broad-based, comprehensive peace agreement in the Middle East.

Mitchell will be the highest-ranking administration official to visit Syria since 2005, in the most concrete sign yet of rapprochement between Washington and Damascus — a radical departure from the Bush administration.

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