American journalist Mark Perry reported in March that Gen. David Petraeus, the head of US Central Command (CENTCOM), asked the Obama administration to include the West Bank and Gaza in CENTCOM's area of responsibility. Petraeus denied the report, but Perry's article nonetheless set off a debate about the military's view of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.
Al Jazeera's Gregg Carlstrom spoke with Perry about his reporting and the prospects of engagement with Hamas and Hezbollah.
Forget for a moment that Obama's domestic approval ratings are at their lowest - less than 50 per cent - or that he has disappointed many around the world by failing to fulfil major objectives, like the closing of the Guantanamo Bay prison.
By scoring a victory of this scale - one that has eluded American presidents for close to 100 years - Obama could not only bring the bounce back to the step of his administration, but provide himself the bandwidth to focus on some of the changes he campaigned on.
Americans are being told to expect the war against the Taliban in Afghanistan to last well over another year.
The head of US Central Command, General David Petraeus, says the current operation in Marjah is only in its initial stages and the months ahead will be difficult. He was speaking on NBC's Meet The Press.
"They'll be tough. I have repeatedly said that these types of efforts are hard and they're hard all the time. I don't use words like optimist or pessimist I use realist but the reality is that it's hard and we're there for a very, very important reason and we can't forget that.
He's the man who oversaw the surge in Iraq. Now he's responsible for both that country and Afghanistan.
General David Petraeus, head of US Central Command, came to the Senate Foreign Relations Committee on Wednesday with a warning for senators to expect an increase in violence in Afghanistan once the extra US troops go in there.
"As in Iraq our troopers and their partners in Afghanistan will have to fight their ways into enemy strongholds and clear enemy controlled population centres. As in Iraq, the situation is likely to get harder before it gets easier. Violence likely will increase initially particularly in the spring as the weather improves."
![[QODLink]](http://english.aljazeera.net/mritems/Images/2012/2/14/2012214152428124734_16.jpg "Bandwidth breakdown: Mobile rates could rise")
