This week, both Denmark and Britain upgraded the status of the delegation of their Palestinian representatives. Both European nations moved their delegations from the third-ranked “general delegation” up to “mission.” While this means very little on the ground, it is a sign of warming relations between parties. And that is not all. Denmark and Britain […]
The White House officially nominated Hebrew-speaking, Middle East expert Dan Shapiro to serve as the next U.S. ambassador to Israel, the White House announced today. Speculation swirled last month that Shapiro would get the nod to replace James Cunningham in Tel Aviv. Shapiro is a trusted White House aide who serves as the National Security […]
The Sufa border crossing between the southern Gaza Strip and Israel was opened today, in an unexpected move that could signal an ease of the blockade that keeps construction materials used to fortify terrorist infrastructure out of Hamas’ hands. Israel began an embargo on the Gaza Strip to prevent bomb- and rocket-making supplies from reaching […]
David Ben-Gurion famously stated that the state must have a monopoly on the use of force. Israel’s monopoly is currently being undermined in the West Bank. On February 28th, Havat Gilad was razed by Israel. Havat Gilad, or Gilad’s Farm in English, is a small outpost of just “six families, some youths, three rabbits, two […]
Hamas is a terror organization that targets civilians via any available vehicle. Since seizing the Gaza Strip over five years ago, Hamas as launched thousands of rockets and mortar shells at Israeli civilians, not the military. Hamas and other Palestinian terror organizations have sent suicide bombers — including handicapped persons — to attack Israeli civilians […]
For those curious about whether Israel is more of a liability than an asset to the United States, consider what we have to lose. Aside from the shared values, the stability of having the only democracy in the Middle East as an ally and Israel as a foothold for the United States in the region, Israel provides more intelligence […]
Shortly after Hosni Mubarak stepped down from the Presidency of Egypt, Iran requested permission from Egypt to cross through the Suez Canal. This had not happened since the Iranian Revolution and the fall of the Shah over thirty years ago. Obviously, many people – Israel most particularly – were concerned. This would bring the Iranian […]
Benjamin Netanyahu recently stated that “The Palestinians aren’t ready to reach a final-status agreement to end the conflict, in light of the instability in the region,” referring to the current unrest raging throughout the Middle East. In light of this, he had been reportedly considering a Palestinian state with temporary borders in order to work […]
The Israelis and the Palestinians often interact like a crotchety elderly couple, sniping at one another and dismissing their shared future. The New Yorker has another spin on this relationship in a rather good editorial cartoon:
Several rockets launched from the Gaza Strip landed in southern Israel this week, as extremists continue to attack civilians even though a substantive IDF reaction will likely eviscerate terrorist infrastructure and go well beyond the destruction and casualties from Operation Cast Lead. Immediately following Christmas 2008, Israel launched a military campaign to stop attacks on […]
Just like in the ABC News show “What Would You Do?,” the results of the Israeli version of the show demonstrate the complexities of society and competing internal values. In this episode, an (actor) coffee merchant refuses to serve Arabs, with some Israelis lambasting the seller while others sympathize with his views. To add further […]
On the Joy Behar show, Helen Thomas defended her blatantly anti-Semitic remarks telling Jews to leave Israel and go back to Germany and Poland where six million of their ancestors were systematically murdered based solely on their religious beliefs. Thomas makes the ignorant remarks that Jews were no longer persecuted after World War II and […]
Israeli Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu proposed a sweeping economic package late last week to appease criticisms that his government assists the rich more than the struggling middle class, although the reforms really represent his effort to retain power after the next round of elections that will be held in 2013 at the latest. The recent […]
Hosni Mubarak’s fall has been widely feared as providing an opportunity for the anti-West Muslim Brotherhood to turn Egypt into a foothold of radical Islam, but a far graver threat could emerge in the very near future — hostile joint Palestinian and Egyptian organization, which today materialized as opposition to the Egyptian embargo on the […]
The cramped bathroom at this week’s Herzliya Conference sums up the Middle East situation quite nicely — Dire Straits. The 1980s rock band has not been a major player in peace process negotiations or efforts to thwart the Iranian nuclear program, but a Dire Straits concert montage continuously streamed into the facilities immediately outside the […]