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AAI in the News

The Reliable Source

By Lloyd Grove
Washington Post
Posted on Friday March 28, 2003

[Excerpt]
This Just In

President Bush is expected to join Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon—as well as headliners Jerry Seinfeld, Tony Bennett and Norah Jones—at the May 19 “Israel at 55” rally marking the beleaguered Jewish state’s anniversary at MCI Center. This will be the first time for Bush to stand alongside the polarizing Sharon at such a celebratory event. Israeli Embassy spokesman Mark Regev told us the joint appearance is simply a demonstration of an age-old friendship between two nations, but James Zogby of the Arab American Institute worried: “Given the perception that we are the military occupiers of Baghdad and that we have contributed to what’s happening to the Palestinians, this is not the best of times for our country in the Middle East. If the president is celebrating with Ariel Sharon, that will be followed closely in the Arab world, and that’s a precarious position for the president to be in.”