CAIRO, Saturday June 7 (Islamonline.net) - Experts and analysts concluded Saturday, June 7, that Washington’s decision to review its post 9-11 public diplomacy strategy in dealing with the Arab and Islamic world is an admission of its failure and an attempt to improve its much smeared image.

The U.S. State Department announced Friday, June 6, appointing Edward Djerejian, former ambassador who served in Syria and Israel, to lead a new team whose mission will be to design programs for improving communication with Arabs and Muslims.

The diplomat will lead a team of between 10 and 12 members, all well versed in public diplomacy, public relations, the media and the Arab and Muslim world.

"The group will study the efficacy of the department's public diplomacy efforts aimed at this region and recommend new ideas and policy initiatives," a State Department statement said.

The original campaign was launched following the September 11 attacks in New York and Washington.

Beers, who resigned earlier this year for health reasons, was criticized for poorly explaining U.S. policies, which many Muslims believe are anti-Arab and pro-Israeli.

Critics also said the campaign ignored the roots of Arab and Muslim anger at the United States.

In part because of the criticism, U.S. lawmakers have demanded a review of the effort.

Ahmad Youssef, Director of Cairo-based Arab Studies and Researches Institute, denied the new review signal a change in the American stance towards Muslims and Arabs.

"Washington adopts clear policy towards Arab and Muslims and it has even become clearer during the military campaign on Afghanistan and the war on Iraq," he told IslamOnline.net.

"The Bush administration is aware of how much Muslims and Arabs hate U.S. policies," he added.

The expert asserted that the new review of the American public and diplomacy strategy only aims at "improving the American image."

Youssef told IOL the new decision coincides with the unstable situation in both Iraq and Afghanistan and in the wake of the Riyadh attacks which claimed the lives of several Americans.

"The U.S. is seeking to tune down popular opposition to its policies, absorb resistance in Iraq and Afghanistan and guard its interest in the Middle East," said the expert.

Hassan Abu Taleb, Assistant Director of Ahram Center for Politics and Strategic Studies, an Egyptian think-tank, told IslamOnline.net that the tendency proves the failure of its old propaganda strategy.

"The old American media strategy lacked credibility and ran counter to justice and international conventions," he argued.

"It also contradicted with media reports that Arabs and Muslims were coming under unjustifiable security campaigns inside the U.S.," Abu Taleb told IOL.

"The American propaganda is one of the means of laying pressures on Arab countries," he said.

"Some countries succumb to American media pressure, some bow to economic pressure and others fear military actions," the expert asserted.

"Washington thinks that Arabs and Muslims cane be influenced through the media but the Arab and Islamic worlds would not relinquish opposition to American policies unless America stops siding with Israel in its conflict with Arabs," Abu Taleb told IOL.