By Barry Rubin HERZLIYA, Israel — Spain 1936. An army revolt against the democratically elected government sets off a civil war. On one side are the Fascists, led by General Francisco Franco. On the other side is a coalition of democrats both social democratic and liberal; communal nationalists; anarchists, Communists, and independent Marxists. The Western […]
Syrian conflict is this century’s Spanish Civil War Read More »
Middle EastBy Ira Sharkansky JERUSALEM — You have heard of of the Lyndon Johnson-Robert Kennedy feud, and Watergate. Those cases were separate, involving two clusters of individuals in different political parties, with four years intervening between the end of one and the onset of the second, and another two years until Watergate produced the resignation of President
Skullduggery in the IDF’s top echelons? Read More »
Ira Sharkansky, Middle East
By Bruce Kesler ENCINITAS, California — international media usually seeks out and features negative news about Israel or exaggerates it or treats it in a biased manner. So, too, on the issue of African immigrants to Israel. There is a natural, and commendable, empathy for peoples in dire straits or whose experience, by large stretches
Some facts about Israel’s illegal immigration problems Read More »
Middle EastBy Barry Rubin HERZLIYA, Israel — Palestinian Authority (PA) Prime Minister Salam Fayyad says that his regime is short of funds. And meanwhile a reader asks me: “Can you please explain to me why 20 years after Oslo and billions in dollars in foreign aid, the Palestinian Authority (PA) still has not built modern hospitals? Or rather, why
Graft and corruption in the Palestinian Authority Read More »
Middle EastBy Ira Sharkansky JERUSALEM — The Supreme Court ruled that Israel has until July 1 to abandon a row of apartment buildings constructed on land owned by Palestinians in the neighborhood of Ulpana on the fringe of the sizable settlement Beit El. Several members of Netanyahu’s government and more back benchers of Likud said they
Netanyahu wins Ulpana settlement victory, for now Read More »
Ira Sharkansky, Middle East
By Shoshana Bryen WASHINGTON, D.C. — The International Crisis Group defines itself as an “independent, non-partisan, [sic] source of analysis … on the prevention and resolution of deadly conflict.” While presidents and secretaries of state have relied upon it for analysis in places as disparate as Sudan, Iraq, Sri Lanka, and Burundi, it proves to be one-sided
‘International Crisis Group’ proves itself no neutral Read More »
Middle East, Shoshana BryenBy Ira Sharkansky JERUSALEM — Justice Micha Lindenstrauss is nearing the end of a 7-year term as State Comptroller. The Knesset has already selected his successor, and commentators have summed up what has been described as Lindenstrauss’ “tumultuous” term, comparing it to the activities of his predecessors, and contemplating what he has meant for Israel’s
Forum weighs outspokenness of Israel’s State Comptroller Read More »
Ira Sharkansky, Middle EastBy Ira Sharkansky JERUSALEM — There is an old rule of politics, which you can find in one or another textbook, that a ruling party or a coalition that is too big is bad. Small is better, insofar as its members are afraid of losing the whole game if they wander off the reservation. When
Bibi’s coalition has many fault lines Read More »
Ira Sharkansky, Middle EastBy Shoshana Bryen WASHINGTON, D.C. — Few things ought to be as urgent as keeping Iran from acquiring nuclear weapons, yet the West – led from the front by the United States – has fallen into the “peace process” trap that considers talk to be progress and, once a conversation has begun, that there is
Iran’s talk-talk strategy is working Read More »
Middle East, Shoshana BryenBy Shoshana Bryen WASHINGTON, D.C. — It can’t be said that the U.S. is doing nothing about Syria. The administration created the “Atrocities Prevention Board,” which failed the test at Houla. It is supporting the feckless Kofi Annan, who is adding to a resume that includes the genocide in Rwanda and massacres in Bosnia. It
Why is the U.S. doing military exercises with Lebanon, Pakistan and Egypt? Read More »
Middle East, Shoshana Bryen
By Morton A. Klein NEW YORK — Following last week’s Egyptian first round of voting in the country’s presidential election, which has seen the Muslim Brotherhood candidate, Mohamed Mursi, win a plurality of the vote (44%), the Zionist Organization of America (ZOA) has pointed to continuing, alarming developments in Egypt. The ZOA is urging the
U.S. brushes off Muslim Brotherhood’s anti-Israel rhetoric Read More »
Middle East
By J. Zel Lurie DELRAY BEACH, FLORIDA — Bilingual education has always attracted me. I built the first bilingual Hebrew-Arabic primary school for citizens of Israel a quarter century ago. Now there are five bilingual schools in Israel and more on the drawing boards. I have a great-grandson in Palo Alto, Calif. He attends a
Bilingual schools in Israel celebrate Arab and Jewish narratives Read More »
Middle EastBy Gabriel Max Scheinmann WASHINGTON, D.C — A week ago, 28 NATO leaders gathered in Chicago for the first NATO summit in the United States since 9/11. While global attention was focused on the Alliance’s impending withdrawal from Afghanistan, the summit also exposed underlying tensions, most notably the new French president’s campaign promises
U.S. must stop backing Turkey over Israel Read More »
Middle EastBy Barry Rubin HERZLYIYA, Israel –While the Muslim Brotherhood in Egypt claims victory, the election was actually a defeat—at least temporary and possibly less important than it seems—for the Brotherhood and Islamism. Here’s why. The Islamist Camp Note that only about 44 percent of voters backed an Islamist candidate, compared to 75 percent in the parliamentary
Islamists’ percentage dropped in Egypt’s voting Read More »
Middle East