You’ve already read the first post of the FPA Middle East Blog’s newest contributor. Now let me introduce her to you formally: Anna Smushkovich is a graduate of New York Law School and Hunter College in New York City. She specialized in Foreign Policy and the Middle East while in College. She has traveled extensively throughout […]
Finally the Middle East is engaging in peaceful warfare. Israel and Lebanon have been fighting over who can create the best and largest dish of Hummus. Israel is currently edging ahead with a sattelite dish of over 4 tons of freshly made Hummus. The Hummus was made by an Arab-Israeli restaurant owner, Ibrahim, in the […]
U.S. economic and military aid to Israel has largely helped the country develop and maintain a technological edge over its enemies. Rarely, has this support been called into question. However, comments from the U.S. special envoy to the region seem to indicate the country may consider withholding some of the funds unless the peace process […]
When most people consider volunteering, they think about sacrificing one’s time to to help others without the expectation of personal gain, except for a warm and fuzzy feeling inside. Nope. Not Israelis. A new organization in Israel is touting volunteerism, claiming success in organizing groups of individuals to refurbish a synagogue and preparing meals for […]
As for China, long on an energy buying binge in world markets to feed its impressive economic growth, Iran sits at the center of its long term, geo-energy landscape. For Beijing’s rulers, any damage to its geo-energy interests in Iran would be seen as a direct blow to the country’s long-term economic prosperity.
Hi. My name is Derek Catsam. I am the Senior Blogger for the Foreign Policy Association’s Africa Blog. We are undergoing immense growth and transition at the FPA Blogs. One of these is to consolidate our many fine blogs (which make up the largest network of foreign affairs blogs anywhere) into coherent, managable categories. This blog will be combined […]
I wonder what Hezbollah Chief Hassan Nasrallah has to say about this. An ongoing feud between Israeli and Lebanese chefs ratcheted up another notch this week, with a new world record broken outside of Jerusalem for the creation of the largest tub of hummus. The dish, created in Abu Gosh in Israel, comes months after […]
Operation Cast Lead -the Israeli strike on the the Gaza Strip one year ago- continues to dominate Israeli foreign relations, particularly with the United Nations. Some of Israel’s air strikes damaged UN facilities, including schools and a UN Relief and Works Agency facility. Israeli officials said Hamas terrorists were harbored in some of these compounds. […]
Alright. I know that’s a cheap Star Trek reference. That said, I did get the Star Trek movie for Christmas, err, Hanukkah. White House Chief of Staff Rahm Emmanuel allegedly told an Israeli diplomat the administration would reduce its involvement in the peace process unless serious progress is made in the coming months. Emmanuel allegedly blamed […]
Gaza smuggling tunnels are usually stigmatized as aiding the transfer of weapons from Egypt into Gaza for use in terror attacks. On a near-weekly basis, reports emerge of Israeli air strikes on these tunnels to prevent the additional weapons entering the Strip. However, some of the tunnels in and out of the Gaza Strip are used […]
The recently failed airline Christmas terror attack led to significant revisions in Transportation Security Administration travel guidelines and turned all eyes toward Israel as a model for security. Due to the multi-pronged threats facing Israel, security officials in the country use strict personal and baggage screening systems that led Ben Gurion Airport outside of Tel […]
The United Nations Relief Works Agency (UNRWA) was established in December 1949 to aid the people who had been displaced by the 1948 Arab-Israeli War. UNRWA was supposed to be a temporary fix to deal with the newly minted “Palestinian Refugees”, a term which the world became quite familiar in the following sixty years. Camps […]
U.S. efforts to bolster the peace process have traditionally considered the status of Jerusalem as one of the final pieces of the puzzle. Critics of this approach point out that the holy city’s status remains a critical controversial aspect of negotiations that would risk negating any previous compromises obtained in negotiations. Even though Israel agreed […]
Mickey Mouse caused quite a stir, particularly in his starring role from a 2006 photograph of the effects of the second Lebanon War. The New York Times revisits this image that previously obtained significant criticism for a perceived one-sided view of the conflict. Without giving any context on the origins of the doll, the photograph […]
The 2010 fiscal year omnibus appropriations bill signed into law last month coupled with the supplemental appropriations bill from last summer mark a slight boost in foreign operations funding and imposes some interesting limitations on the use of funds for Israel and the Palestinian Authority, Israel receives $2.78 billion in FY2010 for Foreign Military Financing, […]