Of the two Cornell undergraduate students studying abroad in Israel this semester, one was forced to seek shelter during an air raid last week and the other has been relocated to a city further from the Gaza Strip, a site that has been the target of Israeli missile strikes.

As Israelis and Gazans fire missiles at each other in the Middle East, hundreds of Cornellians took to Ho Plaza Monday for dueling demonstrations in support of each side of the conflict, bringing with them flags, chants and barbs of their own. 

In what some have called a dramatic shift in foreign policy, the Obama administration announced yesterday that they will decommission plans for two Bush-era missile shield defense bases in Eastern Europe. The bases were scheduled to be built in Poland and the Czech Republic in response to the perceived threat of Iranian procurement of nuclear weapons.

Vice President Joseph Biden stated in an interview with CNN that there is less concern about the “Iranian potential” as he called it; he believes they do not have the ability to launch a long-range missile at the U.S. now or in the near future.

Prof. Christopher Way, government, expounded on the potential risk.

TEHRAN, Iran (AP) — Iran test-fired more long-range missiles overnight in a second round of exercises meant to show that the country can defend itself against any attack by the U.S. or Israel, state television reported Thursday.

The weapons have "special capabilities" and included missiles launched from naval ships in the Persian Gulf, along with torpedoes and surface-to-surface missiles, the broadcast said. It did not elaborate.

A brief video clip showed two missiles being fired simultaneously in the darkness trailed by red plumes of fire and smoke.

The report came hours after Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice warned Iran that Washington will not back down in the face of threats against Israel.