Why taxes are low in the Middle East. The Islamic Republic of Iran conjures up many images, but "tax haven" may not be one that immediately springs to mind.
The other day I was chatting with an Iranian friend who has just moved to Britain and had his first encounter with the British tax system. He was wondering: "Do I really have to pay? " Back in Tehran, they have a kind of council tax, though my friend's family, in common with many others, hasn't paid it for years and the authorities haven't seriously tried to collect it, either. Last month, Tehran's grand bazaar went on strike in protest at government plans to increase taxes there. But it's not just the money: the merchants don't fully accept the idea of letting inspectors pry into their accounts. Will Israelis ever accept the Arab Peace Initiative? After 16 years of Israeli-Palestinian bilateral negotiations for peace there is a growing realisation that there is very little likelihood of a bilateral Israeli-Palestinian negotiated agreement.
This realisation seems equally evident in Jerusalem, Ramallah, Brussels, Moscow and now in Washington. Everyone appears to be searching for a new formula for peace and in that search the Arab Peace Initiative has once again reappeared as a possible saviour. Prison-house of language - Kanishk Tharoor.