| What recognizing Jerusalem means for US role as Mideast mediator Posted: 06 Dec 2017 01:17 PM PST ![What recognizing Jerusalem means for US role as Mideast mediator]( "What recognizing Jerusalem means for US role as Mideast mediator") As a presidential candidate, Donald Trump pledged – to the roaring approval of evangelical Christians and some pro-Israel donors – to buck longstanding policy and quickly move the US Embassy in Israel from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem if he became president. President Trump made partial good on the embassy pledge with his announcement Wednesday recognizing Jerusalem as Israel's capital and directing the State Department to begin the process of moving America's diplomatic headquarters there.
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| Russia's doping plot: Symptom of a deeper Olympic malaise? Posted: 06 Dec 2017 12:58 PM PST ![Russia's doping plot: Symptom of a deeper Olympic malaise?]( "Russia's doping plot: Symptom of a deeper Olympic malaise?") Russia has been given the ultimate Olympic red card, forced to sit out the 2018 Winter Games. The humiliating punishment comes just four years after their athletes won more medals than any other country in Sochi – a feat aided by systematic Russian doping and manipulation of drug-testing samples. The fact that the lumbering International Olympic Committee finally decided to take action has been hailed in the West as a gutsy if overdue move, and a coming-of-age moment for the global anti-doping movement.
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| Olympic-class athletes find their voice of integrity Posted: 06 Dec 2017 12:20 PM PST ![Olympic-class athletes find their voice of integrity]( "Olympic-class athletes find their voice of integrity") If you happen to watch the Winter Games this February in South Korea, take an extra close look at the athletes. Most will, of course, exhibit the finest qualities of sports, such as excellence, discipline, and teamwork. Top athletes around the world were a leading force behind the Dec. 5 decision of the International Olympic Committee (IOC) to ban Russia from the event over its state-sponsored doping program in the 2014 Winter Olympics.
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| Berlusconi's improbable return to politics: Why Italy is giving him another look Posted: 06 Dec 2017 10:37 AM PST ![Berlusconi's improbable return to politics: Why Italy is giving him another look]( "Berlusconi's improbable return to politics: Why Italy is giving him another look") Just a few years ago, it seemed safe to assume that Silvio Berlusconi's political career was over. The billionaire businessman was forced to resign as Italy's prime minister in 2011 over his management of the country's debt crisis and revelations of risqué parties involving actresses and models. Meanwhile, Italian politics moved on under a center-left government and a rising, upstart Five Star populist movement.
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