Hopes are high for a fresh wave of Arab awakening in the new year.
![No negotiations can take place until Israel acknowledges that it is an occupying power, writes Clovis Maksoud [AP]](/wp-content/uploads/2014/01/201412183150142734_20.jpeg?resize=270%2C180&quality=80)

Clovis Maksoud is a former ambassador and permanent observer of the League of Arab States at the UN and its chief representative in the US for more than 10 years. Author, journalist and professor, he also founded and served as director of American University’s Center for the Global South.
Hopes are high for a fresh wave of Arab awakening in the new year.
![No negotiations can take place until Israel acknowledges that it is an occupying power, writes Clovis Maksoud [AP]](/wp-content/uploads/2014/01/201412183150142734_20.jpeg?resize=270%2C180&quality=80)
Former Arab League diplomat says Israel should acknowledge that it is an occupying power.
