By Dorothea Shefer-Vanson MEVASSERET ZION, Israel — Hats off to the weather forecasters! Last week they said that a perfect storm was coming, and this week it did. Sunday was still fairly reasonable, chilly but not too bad. One could still get out and about here in the Jerusalem area with relative ease, and function […]
Storm filled the lake–and everything else Read More »
Dorothea Shefer-Vanson, Middle EastBy Shoshana Bryen WASHINGTON, D.C. — The United States is about to get new secretaries of state and defense and a new director of Central Intelligence. It is devoutly to be hoped that they will not travel in the well-worn grooves of the Israel-Palestinian “peace process.” The “two-state solution,” beloved of the United States and
The shifting patterns of Palestinian politics Read More »
Middle East, Shoshana BryenBy Rabbi Dow Marmur JERUSALEM — The rare occurrence of snow in Israel, including Jerusalem, after days of heavy rain that has even hit the Negev is a hot item here, not only among meteorologists but among pundits in unrelated fields. The weather and its impact has been the main news story on all the
Snow in Jerusalem compared to hurricane in U.S. Read More »
Middle EastBy Ira Sharkansky JERUSALEM –Israel is more than intense argument about political candidates, religion, security, and all the other important issues subject to dispute by Jews who are Talmudic in their style even if they are not religious. Occasionally, it is like other countries, and fascinated with the weather. Over the most recent five days,
Jerusalem snow edges elections in broadcasts Read More »
Ira Sharkansky, Middle EastBy Evelyn Gordon In an interview with The Jerusalem Post last month, Czech Ambassador to Israel Tomas Pojar was asked to comment on recent remarks by Israel’s then-foreign minister, Avigdor Lieberman, who compared European countries’ oft-proclaimed commitment to Israel’s security to their commitments to Czechoslovakia in the 1930s. Pojar replied, correctly, that the parallel
Why Israelis disbelieve international guarantees Read More »
Middle EastBy Rabbi Dow Marmur JERUSALEM — I had the opportunity today to hang up on both Prime Minister Netanyahu and the likely leader of the Opposition in the next Knesset, Shelly Yachimovitch. No, I wasn’t rude: the calls were pre-recorded. Today, exactly two weeks before the elections, is the official launch of the campaign that
Commercials give flavor of Israeli election Read More »
Middle EastBy James Colbert WASHINGTON, D.C. –The Syrian civil war has passed an inflection point and Washington is running to catch up. While it may be too late for the United States to have a decisive impact on the ground, there is still time to salvage an American role in the end game and, hence, an
U.S. has dwindling options in Syria Read More »
Middle EastBy Ira Sharkansky JERUSALEM –Scandals are prominent in Israeli media only two weeks before the national election. Neither is new, and both are being fanned by political activists concerned to use what they can to garner votes for themselves or the party they are supporting, as well by media personalities who know how to recognize
Barak-Ashkenazi feud now figure in election politics Read More »
Ira Sharkansky, Middle EastBy Rabbi Dow Marmur JERUSALEM –What seemed absolutely certain two weeks ago is much less so today: though it’s still likely that Binyamin Netanyahu will head a coalition after the elections on January 22 and thus continue as Prime Minister, other possibilities have now emerged. The leaders of three centrist parties – Sheli Yachimovitch of
Some electoral reverses for Netanyahu Read More »
Middle EastBy Rabbi Dow Marmur JERUSALEM — It’s easier to talk about politics, even to teach it, than to practice it. This was amply demonstrated by Michael Ignatieff, academic and TV personality, who had a less than successful spell as the leader of Canada’s Liberal Party. He spoke about it at the Hebrew University in Jerusalem
Israel democracy needs face-to-face voter contact Read More »
Middle EastBy Peter Huessy In the decade since the attacks of 9/11, the United States and its allies have portrayed terrorism as primarily al Qaeda-centric. This, in turn, has led, logically, to a search for the origin of the terrorism aimed at us. Thus, after 9/11, many American analysts wondered, “Why do they hate
Al Qaeda only one element of worldwide terrorism Read More »
Middle EastBy Rabbi Dow Marmur JERUSALEM — Israel’s largest political block (the unholy alliance between Netanyahu’s Likud and Lieberman’s Yisrael Beiteinu) appears to believe what voters abroad have known for a long time: women can make a difference to the outcome of elections. That’s why it’s accusing its serious rival on the right, Naftali Bennet’s Habayit Heyehudi
What role will women play in Israel’s election? Read More »
Middle EastBy Ira Sharkansky JERUSALEM — The election is boring, but the formation of the next government may be more exciting. Voters are shifting a bit between parties, mostly on account of two new parties in the center and a newly energized party on the right. What is boring is that the major blocs made up
Israel’s election math Read More »
Ira Sharkansky, Middle EastBy Shoshana Bryen WASHINGTON, D.C. –Author Lela Gilbert, a Christian who lived for years in Israel, spoke for many of Israel’s supporters when she said she finds the international community’s attacks on the Jewish State “puzzling, especially when atrocities are taking place every day in Syria” and elsewhere in the Middle East. In an interview
World stands silently by in face of Islamist outrages Read More »
Middle East, Shoshana Bryen