Israel

The latest terrorist plot against Israel may have resulted from a need to reassert al Qaeda's position among other jihadist groups, especially in Syria, but that doesn't make the threat of attacks against the West any less real.

Concerned about the possible drift of al-Qaeda affiliates to areas adjacent to the Golan Heights border, Israel finds itself obliged to increase its assistance to local rebel militias in southern Syria.

Regional circumstances point to both the possibility and the need for enhanced Arab-Israeli efforts to address challenges in the security, energy, food/water scarcity, and public-health domains.

The Israeli leader showed himself capable of making bold policy reversals when he felt the country's welfare as a democratic Jewish state was at stake.

The announcement of the agreement, just weeks before scheduled peace negotiations in Switzerland, will be seen as an expression of extra diplomatic support for Damascus by Moscow and of gratitude by the Assad regime to an ally.

A Moroccan parliamentary proposal that would ban normalization with Israel has progressed further than expected but is unlikely to pass.

Given the complexities and dynamics of the Syrian conflict, it is distinctly possible that Israel could be drawn into the fighting. Perhaps more important, the risk of spillover will likely extend years into the future, since the war's aftermath will not include near-term peace between Syria and Israel. How can

The agreement is neither a "breakthrough" nor an "abject surrender" but rather "a cap for a cap," with a limited rollback on each side for the next six months.

Israel may feel compelled to act if the Obama administration does not follow the Geneva deal with robust implementation, strict sanctions enforcement, and speedy negotiation of an even stronger final arrangement with Iran.