Middle East

Satire: Divine Donald the Doctor

Trump plans to require this type of scrubs on all the doctors on the staff of Walter Reed National Military Medical Center after he renames it the Trump Panacea Hospital and Casino. I pity the hospital laundry tasked with getting the blood and bodily excretion stains out of that fabric. [Laurie Baron]

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Lawrence Baron, Middle East, Opinion, Science, Medicine, & Education, Staff and Bylined Contributors, Trivia, Humor & Satire, USA

AJC urges Trump to press for release of longstanding American captives held in Iran

The future of talks with the regime remains unclear, but when the United States gets back to the negotiating table with Iran, the organizations argue that “[t]he United States must send a clear message: the wrongful detention or hostage-taking of Americans will never be tolerated, forgotten, or deprioritized. Our adversaries must understand that harming or holding Americans carries sustained diplomatic consequences, and our citizens must know that their government will relentlessly pursue their return.” [Press Release]

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International, Middle East, Press Release, USA

Blame for civilian deaths shared by all belligerents in Middle East war

We have strong reason to be concerned about Israel’s military response to Oct. 7. Thousands of civilians were killed in bombing in large part because Hamas built its operations where the people of Gaza live, attend school and receive medical care, so civilian deaths were all but guaranteed. However, it very much appears that Israel went way too far with its attacks, and in the current war American planes killed an estimated 160 schoolgirls, presumably by mistake. [Bruce S. Ticker]

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Bruce Ticker, International, Israel, Jewish History, Middle East, News Media, Opinion, Staff and Bylined Contributors, USA

An excellent book about Maimonides

Maimonides composed his landmark philosophical work, The Guide for the Perplexed (Moreh Nevukhim in Hebrew), in Judeo-Arabic, written in Fustat (Old Cairo), Egypt. The treatise aimed to reconcile Jewish theology with Aristotelian philosophy and was addressed to his student, Rabbi Joseph ben Judah of Ceuta. [Rabbi Dr. Israel Drazin]

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Books, Poetry & Short Stories, International, Israel, Israel Drazin-Rabbi Dr., Jewish History, Jewish Religion, Middle East, Science, Medicine, & Education, Staff and Bylined Contributors

I’ve seen this before: When old hatreds find new voices

I was not born carrying hatred; it was placed gently in my hands, like an heirloom no one thinks to question. As a child in Morocco, I inherited stories about Jews long before I ever met one. They were shadows in conversations, warnings disguised as wisdom, conclusions handed to me without evidence. I accepted them the way a child accepts the horizon, distant, unquestioned, and always there. [Mustapha Ezzarghani]

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Antisemitism, Israel, Jewish History, Middle East, Science, Medicine, & Education, Staff and Bylined Contributors, USA

AI utilized to mass-produce online antisemitic messages

“Generative AI has dramatically lowered the barrier to producing and distributing antisemitic content,” said CyberWell Founder & CEO Tal-Or Cohen Montemayor. “What once required coordination, creativity, basic technical skills and time can now be created instantly and shared at scale. …” [Press Release]

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Antisemitism, International, Israel, Middle East, News Media, Press Release, USA

Shiite Islam practices taqiyya (deception) when dealing with non-believers

“Let not the believers take the disbelievers as allies instead of the believers. Whoever does so will have no relationship with Allah – unless you take precautions against them”. (Quran 3:28; 2:173; 2:185; 4:29; 22:78; 40:28.) [Alex Gordon]

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Alex Gordon, Israel, Lifestyles, Middle East, Opinion, Staff and Bylined Contributors, USA

Distrust for Netanyahu-led government sours some Israelis’ outlook

Bad decisions, miscalculations and hubris have caused Israel’s current government to lead the country along a path that seems to bring only more death and destruction. No attempt ever seems to be made to seek peace by negotiation or any diplomatic means of settling disputes. Admittedly, countries that openly proclaim their desire to eradicate Israel and all Jews everywhere should be regarded as a threat, but Israelis should be given an alternative to living by the sword alone. [Dorothea Shefer-Vanson]

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Dorothea Shefer-Vanson, Israel, Middle East, Staff and Bylined Contributors

Seeing the Iranian struggle in the Passover story

For 2,500 years, Jews lived in Iran, long before the rise of Islam. There were periods of relative stability, even prosperity, but they were never truly equal. At best, they were second-class citizens. At worst, they were targets. There were times when Jews were forced to mark themselves as Jews, when false accusations spread easily, and when they were reminded that no matter how long they had lived there, they did not fully belong. [Chloe Levian]

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Antisemitism, California, Jewish History, Jewish Religion, Middle East, Opinion, Staff and Bylined Contributors, USA