Image released by al Qaeda-linked group on January 6, 2008 purportedly shows Adam Gadahn.

Arsalan Iftikhar
AC360° Contributor
Founder, TheMuslimGuy.com

Holy jihad, Batman!

Did Al-Qaeda just officially offer condolences to innocent civilians murdered by their stupid acts of terrorism?

Well, sort of…

According to CNN, Adam Gadahn- also known as ‘Azzam the American’- appeared in a 17-minute video released on Islamist online forums late Friday, offering condolences to the families of innocent people killed in Al-Qaeda attacks.

“We express our condolences to the families of the Muslim men, women and children killed in these criminal acts…” he says in the video.

Wait a minute. Did a member of Al-Qaeda just admit that their acts of terrorism are ‘criminal acts’?

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Obama with Israeli PM Benjamin Netanyahu, left, and Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas two months ago.

Aaron David Miller
Special to CNN

When Barack Obama receives his Nobel Peace Prize next month in Oslo, Norway, one thing seems clear: It won't be in recognition of his skill in advancing Israeli-Palestinian peace.

For much of the past year, the administration has wandered around the not-so-Holy Land without clear direction, an accurate understanding of Israelis and Palestinians, or an effective strategy.

But all is not lost. The past 10 months could be, to use the president's words, a teachable moment, and with the right lessons learned, maybe, just maybe, the president could get back on track.

The lessons:

Keep your enthusiasm under control: In January, President Obama came out harder, faster and louder on Israeli-Palestinian peacemaking than any of his predecessors. The speech in Cairo, Egypt, and his ultimatum to the Israelis on freezing settlements seemed to suggest that this president was going to be tough and fair. No more business as usual.

Meanwhile, back on Earth, the political laws of gravity that make getting anything done on Arab-Israeli diplomacy very hard kicked in, dragging down the president's hopes and words.

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Saudi King Abdullah used his power Monday to overturn a criminal court sentence of 60 lashes and a two-year travel ban imposed on female journalist Rosanna Yami.

Octavia Nasr
AC360° Contributor
CNN Senior Editor Mideast Affairs

King Abdullah of Saudi Arabia has been called "The King of Hearts" by many of his countrymen and women. This is a reflection of what many Saudis believe are his compassionate attempts to reform his ultra-conservative kingdom and bring it up-to-date with the rest of the world.

He used his power Monday to pardon Saudi female journalist Rosanna Yami. By doing so, he saved her from 60 lashes - a sentence handed down by a Saudi criminal court – and a two-year travel ban from the kingdom.

While this is an unusual move for the King, it certainly is not unprecedented. In 2007, he pardoned a woman who was gang-raped but was still sentenced to hundreds of lashes for being in the presence of the unrelated males who raped her.

The journalist’s case started with a controversial Lebanese TV show that explores taboos of the Middle East. When 'A Thick Red Line' featured a Saudi man - Mazen Abdul Jawad - bragging about his alleged sexual escapades, the station's Saudi offices were closed and Abdul Jawad was sentenced to five years in jail and 1,000 lashes.

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In June, President Obama urged a new chapter in ties between the U.S. and Muslims in a speech in Cairo, Egypt.

Cynthia P. Schneider and Nadia Oweidat
RAND Corporation

“Where are the moderate voices from the Arab world?”

This common lament often leads to nostalgic evocations of the Golden Age of Islam, which stretched from the 7th to the 16th century. President Obama recently harked back to this period of Islamic enlightenment, innovation and tolerance in his Cairo speech, in which he attempted to redefine the relationship between Muslims and the United States.

Actually, there is no need to reach back 1,000 years to find Muslim advocates for tolerance and moderation. There is a need, however, to stop silencing the moderates alive today.

The Arab world is rich in literature - including a surge of new novels and non-fiction - that examines all aspects of Arab life and advocates a vision of a multi-cultural society that respects human rights. These works draw on the traditions of the medieval Golden Age, and of the Arab Renaissance of the 19th and early 20th centuries, when Cairo was to the Arab world what Paris was to the West.

Eight decades ago, the seminal scholar Rifa’i Al-Tahtawi, once head of Al Azhar (Obama’s host in Cairo and the equivalent of the Vatican for Sunni Muslims), advocated tolerance towards non-Muslims and engaged in vibrant debates with contemporary European intellectuals. In his 1830 book An Imam in Paris, he argued for an open, moderate version of Islam. At a time when Egypt offered only religious education, he also urged the state to make modern, secular education accessible to all citizens.

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Octavia Nasr | BIO
AC360° Contributor
CNN Senior Editor, Mideast Affairs

A Muslim call to prayer can now be accessed any time and anywhere thanks to social media networks such as Facebook and You Tube.

Across the world, Muslims are creating online communities to discuss and promote their religion. At the same time, this open discussion is exposing and highlighting issues and concerns considered taboo within Islam and the cultures in which they live.

Syrian blogger Ammar Abdel Hamid sees Facebook as a niche for the otherwise voiceless. “The internet came and gave an opportunity for activists for new voices for young people, for democracy promoters, for human rights activists' he says.

In the Arab world, gays and lesbians are taking to the internet to mingle with like-minded people and promote tolerance and understanding. This is especially significant because in their culture they are mainly rejected and still referred to in derogatory terms.

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Hanania argues that the U.S. government pretends American Arabs don’t exist when counting the U.S. Census, which determines the boundaries of Congressional districts.

Ray Hanania
New America Media

The first question I always get from “Americans” is, “Why do you keep calling yourself ‘Arab-American?’ You are American!”

It represents the rock and the hard place where American Arabs have been pushed by the lack of education among most Americans.

It’s aggravated by what I also call the U.S. government’s split personality when it comes to American Arabs. On the one hand, they want to know us. On the other, they don’t. Here’s what I mean.

The only time the United States government wants to know about American Arabs is when they are “profiling” us at airport and border security to “protect” the country from “the terrorist threat.”

But when it comes to counting people in the U.S. Census (so they can participate and share in government programs like grant funding awards, defining the borders of election districts for Congress, state legislatures or municipal councils), the U.S. government pretends American Arabs don’t exist.

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A political cartoon published in the Palestinian newspaper Al-Quds.

Octavia Nasr
AC360° Contributor
CNN Senior Editor Mideast Affairs

President Barack Obama will deliver a message to the Muslim world on Thursday. He chose Cairo, Egypt, as his podium. Not surprising, when you consider Egypt’s size and stature in the Muslim world. Population of about 60 million, and home to Al-Azhar Mosque, the authority on Islam and the launching point of thousands of Islamic clerics and scholars spread all over the world from Afghanistan to Zimbabwe. Add to that the role secular Egypt plays in the region especially on the Palestinian-Israeli front and the media access where everyone, including Israeli journalists, is welcomed and provided the forum to beam the speech quickly and widely across the world.

Professor Shibley Telhami of the Brookings Institute just led an opinion poll tracking sentiments between media and identity in the Arab Middle East. He says poll results show President Obama right now enjoying a clear popularity in the region in comparison to his predecessor President George W. Bush.

The poll conducted in six moderate Arab countries in April and May shows President Obama as someone “Arabs admire and want to love,” says Telhami. “Their negative views of him are very low… however, they’re still skeptical of the U.S. administration and its foreign policy.”

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Octavia Nasr
AC360° Contributor
CNN Senior Editor Mideast Affairs

What do you call a US-born child of a Jewish American mother and Muslim Iranian father? If you caught ‘Arusi Persian Wedding’ on PBS’ Independent Lens you’d know that this person’s name is Alex Tehrani. Through his sister Marjan Tehrani’s independent film, you would’ve also met Alex’s wife Heather and her Christian conservative father and a slew of Iranian relatives and friends. You would’ve also attended an “Arusi” or traditional Persian wedding.

Here is some background: Alex’s father, an Iranian immigrant to the US, took his Jewish bride to Iran in the 70’s for a traditional Persian wedding. Alex lost his mother in 1984, but reminisces every time he looks at “happy pictures” from that trip. So it is no surprise that when Alex finally got his Iranian passport after a wait of twenty six years, he wanted to take his wife Heather back to Iran for an “Arusi” as well. So the film begins with this decision which will set Alex and Heather on a life-changing journey. Alex’s sister, Marjan, tags along and chronicles the journey. The result is ‘Arusi Persian Wedding’

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Saudi King Abdullah has appointed a woman as Deputy Education Minister in the Saudi government.

Octavia Nasr
AC360° Contributor
CNN Senior Editor Mideast Affairs

When a group of Saudi women started sending petitions directly to their King last year asking for permission to drive cars in their ultra-conservative kingdom, they had no idea their monarch wanted to give them a lot more than that.

In an unprecedented move, King Abdullah started the week with a major cabinet reshuffle and the appointment of a woman as a Deputy Minister. Nora bint Abdullah al-Fayez is now the highest-ranking woman ever to serve in the Saudi government. In making such an historic move, the King sent a clear message to his people and anyone else who's paying attention, that he wants reform in key areas such as education, health, justice and women participation in government.

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Editor’s Note: Israel’s moderate Foreign Minister Tzipi Livni’s and her conservative rivals are both claiming victory in Israel’s elections. Exit polls show Livni’s Kadima Party edging out Benjamin Netanyahu’s Likud Party. The polls also show strong support for smaller hardline parties, though. And that could make it difficult for Livni to form a government.

Kadima's Tzipi Livni won more support than was predicted in the Israeli elections.

Octavia Nasr
AC360° Contributor
CNN Senior Editor Mideast Affairs

A scan of Arab media shows a region that’s very interested in Israel’s general elections. Here are some of the headlines in Arab newspapers: “Israeli Elections: Between the Right and the Right”, “Hardliners will dictate who wins Israeli polls” and “Exit polls give Livni a narrow lead.”

Israeli elections are leading news shows and online discussions. Residents of the Middle East are curious about the results but have no illusions about the future. The overwhelming majority believes that any Israeli government, new or old, won’t have their interest on its agenda. They do however acknowledge that “some Israeli leaders are worse than others.” As Abdel Wahhab Badrakhan writes in the UAE’s Al-Ittihad newspaper, fundamentalist candidate Avigdor Lieberman “would like to wipe Arabs out, Adolf Hitler style.” Badrakhan and others fear that someone like Lieberman joining the new government coalition will be devastating for all Arabs.

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