By Shoshana Bryen WASHINGTON, D.C. –A new tactic in the war against Israel is “delegitimization,” the effort to say that Israel is different from, and less than, other countries. It is, for example, the only member of the United Nations that has to insist upon its “right to exist.” And what other countries do as […]
U.N. envoy puts onus on Israel, not Hamas, in rocket attacks from Gaza Read More »
Middle EastNEW YORK (Press Release)–The Conference of Presidents of Major American Jewish Organizations expressed its sympathy for the families of the people killed and its prayers for Congresswoman Gabrielle Giffords and all of those wounded in Saturday’s shooting attack in Arizona. “We share in the shock and sorrow at the senseless murderous attack in Tucson. We
By Ira Sharkansky JERUSALEM–The shooting of Representative Gabrielle Giffords and the collateral killing of Judge John Roll and several others has generated a great deal of commentary. Much of it deals with the capacity of incendiary political rhetoric to trigger violence from those who are on the fringes of sanity or utterly unhinged. Israelis are
Israelis focus on Giffords’ Jewishness, compare Tucson rampage to Rabin assassination Read More »
Ira Sharkansky, Middle East
By Gary Rotto SAN DIEGO — My friend Tyree, posted the following on her Facebook page: “Can’t stop thinking about Giffords’ staffer who was killed or the other two injured. That could have been me… or a countless number of my friends and colleagues. Just at a day at the office. Just another event.
Congresswoman Davis reflects on the attempted assassination of her friend and colleague Read More »
USAWASHINGTON, D.C. (Press Release) – The United States Attorney for the District of Arizona, Dennis K. Burke, announced Sunday that his office filed a federal complaint against Jared Lee Loughner. The complaint was signed by Magistrate Judge Michelle Burns in Phoenix. Loughner is suspected of shooting U.S. Representative Gabrielle Giffords, Chief Judge John Roll, Giffords’ staff member
Five charges brought against Tucson suspect Jared Loughner in shooting rampage Read More »
USAWASHINGTON, D.C. (Press Release)–The following statement was issued by the State Department for Secretary of State Hillary Clinton: “We are very concerned about the initiation of demolition of the Shepherd’s Hotel in East Jerusalem. This disturbing development undermines peace efforts to achieve the two state-solution. In particular, this move contradicts the logic of a reasonable
Clinton criticizes Israel for Shepherd Hotel demolition Read More »
Middle East
By Barry Rubin HERZLIYA, Israel — Amazing. The New York Times has a long piece about how Turkey is becoming an important factor in Iraq. Fair enough. But it includes the following paragraph: “A surprising feature of Turkey’s success is the image it has managed to project in Iraq. On the road from Erbil to
Turkish action series ‘Valley of the Wolves’ is anti-American, anti-Semitic Read More »
Middle East, Theatre, Film & Broadcast, USASAN DIEGO—We add to our collection of reactions to the shooting rampage in Tucson alphabetized statements from organizations and individuals, without regard to their rank. From the standpoint of this newspaper, we think one lead ought to be pursued vigorously by investigators. The suspect, Jared Lee Loughner, reportedly had posted that one of his favorite
Reaction pours in to shooting rampage in Tucson Read More »
USASAN DIEGO–Organizations and individuals are reacting with sadness to the shooting of Congresswoman Gabrielle Giffords and other people at a campaign event outside a supermarket in Tucson, Arizona. Giffords is a member of the Jewish community. Here are some of the comments: President Barack Obama spoke at the White House: “As many of you are aware,
Reaction to shooting of Congresswoman Gabrielle Giffords of Arizona Read More »
USABy Barry Rubin HERZLIYA, Israel — There has been a great deal of discussion in the United States about the Constitution–despite the fact that it was promulgated over two centuries ago–and whether it is relevant to contemporary America. Indeed, the U.S. Congress took the step–which amazingly turned out to be controversial and supposedly partisan–of actually
U.S. Constitution as relevant today as in 1789 Read More »
USABy Ira Sharkansky JERUSALEM–Sorting out claim and reality is often at the center of the puzzle that an observer of politics must ponder. The puzzle may be especially severe when contending parties or governments are dealing with sensitive issues touched by religion and nationalism. Welcome to this tiny portion of the Middle East. In case
Is anyone–on either side–serious about the peace process? Read More »
Ira Sharkansky, Middle East
By Rabbi Dow Marmur JERUSALEM — The same day as the Knesset decided to investigate left-leaning NGOs, an important conference took place in Jerusalem on democracy in Israel. Its formal purpose was to honour Yaron Ezrahi, like many of his colleagues and students who participated, a distinguished Israeli political scientist with an international reputation and
Is Israel forfeiting its right to call itself a democracy? Read More »
Middle East
By Isaac Yetiv, Ph.D LA JOLLA, Calif. — In my last article, I offered a “simple and fair” solution to the problem of “immigration.” I will attempt to do the same for other difficult issues (the economy, education, entitlements, health care, tax code, national security, foreign policy, US-UN relations.) But before that, it is absolutely
New Congress should change the rules of the game Read More »
USABy Barry Rubin HERZLIYA, Israel — PART ONE: Using animals as intelligence agents As the proud owner of three cats (or vice-versa as it often seems), I have not yet deployed them for intelligence use. However, to read various Middle Eastern newspapers, you would think that Israel is the world leader in having animal espionage
Some light-hearted tips for Arab propagandists Read More »
Middle East