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Daybreak: Yet Another Mosque Burned

Plus the U.S-Iran ‘Cold War,’ and more in the news

by
Marc Tracy
December 15, 2011
The vandalized mosque this morning.(Abbas Momani/AFP/Getty Images)
The vandalized mosque this morning.(Abbas Momani/AFP/Getty Images)

• This one, near Ramallah in the West Bank, was marked with graffiti, including, “Mitzpe Yizhar,” the name of an unauthorized settlement recently demolished by the army. [AP/WP]

• Congress passed a sanctions bill more likely to pass muster with the White House that could still affect Iran’s Central Bank. Next up: the Senate. [Haaretz]

• An Iranian defense official hinted his country may move certain elements of its nuclear program to “safer places,” such as, say, under gigantic mountains. [NYT]

• Leading Republican presidential candidate Newt Gingrich has used the language of the Cold War to describe the United States’ competition with the Islamic Republic. [NYT]

• The Emergency Committee for Israel has a full-page ad running in several newspapers around the country, including the New York Times, asking, “Why does the Obama administration treat Israel like a punching bag?” and citing statements from Secretaries Clinton and Panetta and Ambassador Gutman. (See it here.) [Politico]

• Surprise! Fatah-Hamas unification—it’s not really happening. [Reuters/JPost]

Marc Tracy is a staff writer at The New Republic, and was previously a staff writer at Tablet. He tweets @marcatracy.