—Voices from the Sensible Center—

Interpreting the Middle East for North Americans—
Interpreting North America for the Middle East

Special Reports

2 ABC's of the PLO—There are few organizations in the world whose name alone stirs up as much emotion as the Palestinian Liberation Organization. All the more reason, therefore, for cool heads to present some of the facts and explode some of the myths.

3 The Tilt Towards Morocco—The Reagan Administration is making no bones about its support for Morocco in its fight against Algerian-backed guerrillas in the Western Sahara. But there is concern being expressed in Congress that the U.S. will get too involved, and the House Foreign Affairs Committee has already taken some counter-actions.

4 Iraq: Will Market Slip Away?—The little-publicized boom in Iraq-U.S. trade may soon come to an end, recent signals indicate. Among these is a slow-up in Iraqi development spending because of the war with Iran, and resistance in Congress to helping a country which Israel regards as one of its worst enemies.

4 Lobby Activities—In the wake of its annual conference, the National Association of Arab Americans is asking President Reagan and key members of Congress to suspend the planned sale to Israel of an additional 11 F- 15 jet fighters. In the meantime, AIPAC, the proIsrael lobby, held its own annual conference, which featured "strategy workshops" for nationwide delegates and meetings with members of Congress.

Regular Features

2 Editorial—There are some clear parallels between the British-Argentine conflict over the Falklands and the Arab-Israeli conflict. Some U.S. politicians might do well to ponder them.

6 Facts For Your Files—Chronology of U.S.-Middle East Relations Upcoming Events

7 Book Review—In his book, The Water Problem in Israel and Its Repercussions on the Arab-Israeli Conflict, Subhi Kahhaleh traces the history of early Zionist and Israeli efforts to increase their water supply at the expense of Arabs living in the West Bank and Syrian Golan Heights. Israel has now reached a critical point regarding its access to adequate supplies, says the author.

8 Personality—Ambassador William A. Crawford, Executive Director of the National Committee to Honor the Fourteenth Centennial of Islam (ICF), has been making information on Islam available to Americans for nearly three years. His own mission is nearly finished, but ICF will live on.