Published by Reuters By Hams Rabah and Dominic Evans AMMAN (Reuters) – When Syrian refugee Lara Shahin fled Damascus at the start of Syria’s conflict she thought her family would be back within months to help rebuild the country. Nine years later, an election dismissed as a sham by refugees across the region is set […]
As Assad tightens grip on Syria, many refugees lose hope Read More »
Middle East
Published by Reuters By Jeffrey Heller JERUSALEM (Reuters) -U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken pledged on a Middle East mission on Tuesday that Washington would rally support to rebuild Gaza as part of efforts to bolster a ceasefire between its Hamas Islamist rulers and Israel. But Blinken made clear that the United States intended to
Blinken pledges U.S. support to rebuild Gaza, prevent return to war Read More »
Middle East
Published by Al-Araby Following a deadly 11-day war between Israel and Hamas, Egypt has boosted its credentials as a key mediator between the two parties. On 21 May, Egypt successfully brokered a ceasefire to end the devastating conflict, which left 274 Palestinians, including 66 children, and 12 Israelis dead, and saw over 1,000 homes in
Is Egypt changing its stance towards Palestinians? Read More »
Middle East
In response to a series of troubling antisemitic incidents recently at San Diego State University, the San Diego office of the Anti-Defamation League reached out to the administration with an offer to work with the university’s Center for Inclusive Excellence to develop an innovative professional learning opportunity for the faculty and staff. The goal was to help faculty to better recognize the warning signs of antisemitism and to be better equipped to address issues of hate and bias when they arise on campus. [Tammy Gillies]
ADL Director Explains Program with SDSU on Antisemitism Read More »
Middle East, San Diego County, Science, Medicine, & Education, USA
In 2020 the Trump administration decoupled the Palestinian Authority (PA) from the process of achieving peace elsewhere in the Middle East. It happened when Trump emissary Jared Kushner promulgated the proposal that resulted in the Abraham Accords. The Emirates (UAE), Bahrain, Sudan, and Morocco have all signed on to this breakthrough in Middle East diplomacy. This bottom up approach, through non-aggression and enhanced trade, R&D, and tourism, has withstood the latest warfare between jihadist Hamas forces in Gaza and Israel, which “ended” with a pause in hostilities on May 21. [Steve Kramer]
Drive to Rebuild Gaza Means Rebuilding Hamas Read More »
Middle East, Steve Kramer, USA
Hamas made an error when it sent rockets to Jerusalem. Thousands of rockets and other missiles came from Gaza, mostly in the area around Gaza, but occasionally more widespread. A few came to northern Israel from Lebanon. Plus violence in Jerusalem, Acco, Lod, and other mixed cities. [Ira Sharkansky, Ph.D]
Tallying the Israel/Gaza War’s Political Aftermath Read More »
Ira Sharkansky, Middle East
StandWithUs is relieved that the fighting between Israel and the Iran-backed terrorist group Hamas seems to have ended with a ceasefire. We extend our deepest condolences to all those who lost loved ones in Israel as well as to the families of Palestinian civilians killed as a result of Hamas terrorism. We see this conflict as a horrific tragedy for Israelis and Palestinians alike. More than anything, we join people of good will who yearn for a future of justice and peace, where all people in the region can be free of the genocidal racism, extremism, and violence of Hamas. [Roz Rothstein]
StandWithUs CEO Reflects on Israel/ Gaza War Read More »
Middle East, USA
It is hard to be against a peace agreement. Really hard. But the Biden Administration is giving it a go. White House Press Secretary Jen Psaki slammed Donald Trump’s policies in the Middle East and called the Israel-United Arab Emirates-Bahrain Abraham Accords “DOA.” “We felt there was not a constructive action by the prior administration, aside from putting forward a peace proposal that was dead on arrival. We don’t think they did anything constructive really to bring it into the long-standing conflict in the Middle East.” [Shoshana Bryen]
OpEd: Biden’s Mideast Policies Emboldened Iran, Hamas Read More »
Middle East, Shoshana Bryen, USA
For most people, it may be difficult to understand why residents sitting on the border to Gaza choose to live there. How could someone put themselves and their family at risk? It’s hard to imagine, especially when you have only 15 seconds to get into a “safe room,” a bomb shelter from the time a tzeva adom, red alert, is sounded, but there is a reason. [Debbie Kornberg]
Why Israelis Continue to Live Next to Gaza Despite the Danger Read More »
Middle East, San Diego County, USA
The Gaza war has seen thousands of missiles fired at Israel, the bulk of which have been shot down by Israel’s Iron Dome air defense system. But Hamas “terrorists” – which is how the US government defines them – have also deployed some new sea-going weapons that have the attention of Israeli intelligence. These weapons are of three types – commando underwater swimmers using swimmer vehicles that are used to smuggle weapons into Gaza and for commando operations; semi-autonomous small boats stuffed with explosives and; the latest, a large unmanned underwater vehicle, or UUV. [Stephen D. Bryen]
New in the Terror Arsenal: Underwater Weapons Read More »
International, Middle East, Stephen D. Bryen, USA
No one should have the illusion that once a ceasefire is established, Israel and the Palestinians should or can negotiate a peace agreement. Given the decades-long deep hatred and distrust, a process of reconciliation must precede such negotiations to achieve an enduring peace. [Alon Ben-Meir, Ph.D]
No Mideast Peace Without Prior Reconciliation Read More »
Alon Ben-Meir, Middle East
Published by Reuters By Nidal al-Mughrabi and Dan Williams GAZA/JERUSALEM (Reuters) -Israel and Hamas will cease fire across the Gaza Strip border as of 2 a.m. on Friday (2300 GMT on Thursday), the Palestinian Islamist faction and Egyptian state TV said, bringing a potentially tenuous halt to the fiercest fighting in decades. Israeli Prime Minister
Israel and Hamas agree Gaza truce, to be monitored by Egypt Read More »
Middle EastRep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-New York) and a group of like-minded colleagues wanted to sink the proposed $735-million sale of a Boeing-built arms guidance kit to Israel. The Joint Direct Attack Munitions (JDAM) kit converts unguided or “dumb” bombs into precision-guided munitions. The goal, according to Politico, is “leverage to push the Israelis to drop their resistance to a ceasefire.” [Shoshana Bryen]
Withholding Weapons from Israel Makes the US Weak Read More »
Middle East, Shoshana Bryen, USA
The Anti-Defamation League (ADL) on Thursday released preliminary data from its Center on Extremism revealing an increase in online and real-world incidents of antisemitism in the United States since the most recent outbreak of violence between Israel and Hamas. [ADL Press Release]
ADL: Antisemitic Incidents Linked to Recent Mideast Violence Read More »
Middle East, USA