Israeli, Palestinian leaders welcome Obama assurances

MICHAEL FINNEGAN AND RICHARD BOUDREAUX; Los Angeles Times JERUSALEM – Despite months of warnings by John McCain that Barack Obama’s stance toward Iran threatens Israel, political leaders in the Jewish state welcomed the Democrat’s assurances Wednesday that he would work to block Iran from acquiring nuclear arms. Obama navigated a thicket of regional tensions on a daylong visit to Israel and the Palestinian territories. But Israeli leaders across the political spectrum voiced no misgivings about his commitment to their nation’s security – above all in countering the threat from Iran. On a day of talks with Israeli President Shimon Peres and Prime Minister Ehud Olmert, Obama declared solidarity against “an Iranian regime that sponsors terrorism, pursues nuclear weapons and threatens Israel’s existence.” “A nuclear Iran would... [read full story]