Obama sticks to Mideast vision in AIPAC speech

US President Barack Obama on Sunday refused to back away from his new Middle East peacemaking proposals that have angered Israel, as he addressed the Jewish state's staunchest American supporters amid a deep rift in US-Israeli ties.

But Obama, speaking to the pro-Israel lobbying group AIPAC, sought to reassure Israel's backers of his commitment to the Israel three days after he endorsed a longstanding Palestinian demand on the borders of their future state, drawing a rebuke from Israeli leader Benjamin Netanyahu. (Reuters)