President Barack Obama gets an "F" for his initial effort to promote peace between Israelis and Palestinians, a former U.S. ambassador to Israel said Tuesday.

Martin Indyk, ambassador to Israel under President Bill Clinton, told an Omaha audience the current president is trying hard to re-ignite diplomacy in the Middle East -- trying, in fact, much harder than former President George W. Bush did.

But, he said, the growing mistrust between Israelis and Palestinians, the meddling influence of Iran, the Bush administration's neglect and the Obama administration's missteps have worsened the situation in the past year.

"It's clear that things are not going as he planned," Indyk said...