I feel obliged to note that Israel and Gaza agreed to another truce on Tuesday – with both sides insisting that it will prove more lasting than their eight previous ceasefire agreements. Alas, this might only mean that, in about two or three years, Gaza will be rocketing Israel and Israel will be bombing Gaza… Read more.
Israel
Groundhog-Day Flare up Between Israelis and Palestinians
Truth be told, I have mixed feelings about commenting on this latest flare up between the Israelis and Palestinians for dominion over the Promised Land. After all, commentators (like me) have been no more able to make sense of this conflict between the Israelis and Palestinians than envoys (like U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry) have… Read more.
Instead of Peace Israel Settling for Apartheid…?
Last July, U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry made quite a show of announcing his Mideast peace initiative: ‘All of the core issues are on the table for negotiation, with the goal of reaching a final status agreement over the course of the next nine months,’ Kerry said. ‘The time has come for a lasting… Read more.
One Small Step Towards De-nuking Iran
Iran struck an historic agreement today with the United States and five other major nuclear powers: namely, China, France, Germany, Russia, and the UK – all represented by their respective foreign ministers. It calls for Iran to temporarily suspend developing its nuclear program in exchange for these powers (specifically the United States) temporarily suspending (only… Read more.
Don’t Blame Israel for Repatriating Africans!
The flak Israel is getting for repatriating Africans who entered the country illegally is as unfair as it is uninformed. Israel has launched a forced repatriation of Eritrean migrants that amounts to a grave violation of their human rights because of the risk of persecution in their reclusive homeland…. (Reuters, July 16, 2013) Human rights… Read more.
Israel Bestows Highest Honor Upon Obama
Israel has become [as sacred a cow in American politics as Mom, apple pie … and guns] because, on the one hand, evangelical Christians consider its security key to their salvation; and on the other hand, politicians of every stripe consider pandering about its security key to their election. (“Americans More Jewish than Jews in… Read more.
American Jews more Pro-Israel than Jews in Israel?
It was truly surreal watching Republicans interrogate Chuck Hagel about his support for (or loyalty to) Israel during last week’s Senate hearing on his nomination to serve as defense secretary. In fact, Israel figured so prominently that I felt moved to title my commentary on the hearing, Was Hagel Nominated as Defense Secretary for the… Read more.
Obama Dissing Israeli PM Netanyahu?
Nobody in his right mind doubts that President Obama fully appreciates the existential threat Israel faces by having Iran, which seems hell-bent on building nuclear weapons, continually threaten to wipe it off the map. In point of fact, he has repeatedly vowed that the United States will not allow Iran to build those weapons, let… Read more.
Despite drumbeat, Israel will never attack Iran
No doubt the rhetoric now being hurled between the United States/Israel and Iran smacks of an unnerving echo of that which was hurled between the United States/Britain and Iraq before the ill-fated invasion of that country in 2003 – complete with UN nuclear inspectors (then and now) on a wild-goose chase to find weapons of mass destruction.… Read more.
Israel’s Mossad strikes again
Two years ago, agents from Israel’s revered Mossad were caught on CCTV in Dubai carrying out a hit on a senior Hamas leader. They were universally ridiculed, and I duly piled on: It’s bad enough that these spies can be seen in Technicolor going into public bathrooms and coming out in their laughable disguises (some… Read more.