[caption id="attachment_549" align="alignright" width="100"] Shoshana Bryen[/caption]
Shoshana Bryen is senior director of the Jewish Policy Center in Washington D.C.
Her books, available on Amazon, include:
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*Essays in Technology, Security and Strategy (with Stephen Bryen and Rebecca Abrams)
*Essays in Technology, Security and Stategy, Vol. 2 (with Stephen Bryen and Rebecca Abrams)
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The Palestinian Authority (PA) has been meeting with American, European and Israeli government representatives to end-run both the American Taylor Force Act (anti-“pay for slay”) and the Israeli law prohibiting financial transfers to the Palestinians in the amount the PA remunerates terrorist “salaries.” [Shoshana Bryen]
P.A. Seeks to End Run U.S. Law Against Paying Terrorists Read More »
Middle East, Shoshana Bryen, USAThe still-tentative agreement between Qatar and Saudi Arabia to reopen political relations and closed borders after four years is part of the Trump administration’s priority to reduce friction among its allies. The goal is to decrease the possibility that American forces will waste time and capability putting out smaller fires, thus leaving them in a better position to deal with broader issues: cybersecurity, improving readiness, boosting NATO, countering China and not participating in civil wars in the Middle East, Southwest Asia, and Africa. Out of Syria. Out of Afghanistan. Out of Somalia. Out of Iraq? [Shoshana Bryen]
Qatar and Saudi Arabia: A Gift of a Different Sort, Maybe Read More »
International, Middle East, Shoshana Bryen, USA
Solarwinds, a network management software company, was recently discovered to have had malware inserted into its products. Its clients’ systems have been compromised for as long as nine months. Someone—possibly the Russians, possibly the Chinese—has been inside the U.S. Department of Defense, the Department of Homeland Security, the Treasury Department and major American industries. The list gets longer every day. [Shoshana Bryen and Stephen D. Bryen}
U.S. Must Make Cyber-Security a Top Priority Read More »
International, Middle East, Shoshana Bryen, Stephen D. Bryen, USAMorocco and Israel have had cooperative relations for years. Israelis of Moroccan descent have traveled back to see where their families lived, and the small Jewish communities of Rabat and Casablanca were generally respected and left alone. There was trade in the amount of $37 million in 2017, and it is growing. Before the pandemic, nearly 50,000 Israelis visited Morocco annually and more than 2,000 Moroccans visited Israel in 2019. Things were going nicely, albeit quietly—so why make it public now? [Shoshana Bryen]
Why Israel and Morocco Made Public Their Friendship Read More »
Middle East, Shoshana Bryen, USAOn March 15, 2019, a terror attack at two mosques in Christchurch, New Zealand claimed 51 lives and wounded another 40 people. A NZ Royal Commission has now released a massive report on the attack, more than 800 pages, the most important point of which is that the terrorist was unknown to authorities until moments before he struck, but that somehow more and better intelligence would help prevent future attacks. In a striking omission, the report fails to consider the role of individual institutions in providing their own security measures—which, in this case, could have saved many lives, maybe all of them. [Shoshana Bryen and Stephen Bryen, The Epoch Times]
Houses of Worship Must Take Own Security Measures Read More »
International, Shoshana Bryen, Stephen D. BryenThe United States is Israel’s ally of first choice. And Israel remains one of the few countries the US can rely on to defend itself by itself and in coordination with American interests. Today, Israel lies in EUCOM – the United States European Command – while some analysts suggest it belongs in CENTCOM – the Central Command, encompassing the Middle East and parts of Southwest and Central Asia. [Shoshana Bryen]
EUCOM or CENTCOM for Israel? Read More »
International, Middle East, Shoshana Bryen, USAWe’re rather familiar with “the Squad,” but what about “the Quint” and “the Quad?” For now, the latter two are more likely than the former to have importance to a potential Biden administration.With the announcement of Tony Blinken as secretary of State and Jake Sullivan as national security adviser, the anti-Israel far left is at bay for now — both men are known to be personally reasonably disposed toward Israel. But if the Quint has an impact on the administration’s Middle East policy, both regarding Israel and Iran, and the Squad joins in, the U.S. position in the region will suffer. [Shoshana Bryen]
‘Squad,’ ‘Quad,’ ‘Quint’ All Seek to Influence U.S. Foreign Policy Read More »
International, Middle East, Shoshana Bryen, USAIsrael’s new agreements with the United Arab Emirates, Bahrain and Sudan, new agreements for airline overflights of countries with which Israel has no new peace or economic pacts, a new aviation agreement with Jordan and general Saudi and Egyptian approval have brought what many are calling a “watershed moment.” That “watershed” is the potential splitting of the Arab consensus on “Palestine,” as Arab countries weigh continued rejection of the state of Israel against the realities of life in the Middle East. [Shoshana Bryen]
Watershed Moment for the Middle East Read More »
Middle East, Shoshana Bryen, USAThe focus of Middle East peacemaking changed from requiring Israel to pay the Palestinians in the currency of statehood (“risks for peace”) to a request that the Arab States consider the economic and security needs of their own people in deciding whether and how to approach the State of Israel. The result is the Abraham Accords, broadly accepted by countries that have not signed; a new compact with Jordan; and feelers from other countries. The United States abandoned the untenable position of “neutral party” between Israel, which is our democratic ally, and the Palestinian Authority, which is not. The U.S. has moved to a position of honest broker, which is vastly more appropriate. U.S.-Israel security cooperation, grounded in our commonality, continues through the pandemic. [Shoshana Bryen]
Considering President Trump’s record … Read More »
International, Middle East, Shoshana Bryen, USABy Shoshana Bryen WASHINGTON, D.C. —Think of Iran as a lobster body with two pincer arms. The north pincer is commonly referred to as the “Shiite Crescent” stretching from the body across Iraq, Syria and Lebanon to the Mediterranean Sea. It is both a lid on Iran’s primary enemies Saudi Arabia, Jordan and Israel and
Iran suffers numerous setbacks Read More »
Middle East, Shoshana Bryen
StandWithUs, in conjunction with other Jewish groups, reports that the revised recommendations for an Ethnic Studies Model Curriculum (ESMC) improve upon the original version that was rejected by the State Board of Education but still has its flaws. Enumerating, the pro-Israel group listed the perceived improvements and problems with the current version which, like its predecessor, will go before the State Board of Education for approval. [Our Shtetl San Diego County column by Donald H. Harrison]
Improvements, flaws in proposed Ethnic Studies Curriculum Read More »
Bernhard H. Rosenberg-Rabbi, Shoshana Bryen, Stephen D. Bryen, USAAs the Nov. 3 election nears, political activity is increasing in frequency and intensity. Following are some local political developments: [Our Shtetl San Diego County column by Donald H. Harrison]
A potpourri of local political news Read More »
Donald H. Harrison, Shoshana Bryen, Stephen D. BryenGermany has been a thorn in Washington’s side on many issues from its failure to spend 2% of its very healthy GDP on its own military defense to its trade with Iran — including, some suspect, under-the-table nuclear goods trade — and the promotion of a U.S.-independent European Army. [By Shoshana Bryen & Stephen Bryen]
U.S. troop reduction aimed at Germany, not NATO Read More »
International, Shoshana Bryen, Stephen D. Bryen, USAIn 1955, President Dwight D. Eisenhower proposed to the Kremlin that the U.S. and the USSR each be permitted to conduct aerial reconnaissance of the other’s territory and collect data on each other’s military forces and activities to enhance confidence that neither was planning a surprise attack. Moscow refused, calling it a license for American spying. Intensification of the Cold War made the issue dormant until President George H.W. Bush revived it in 1999 after the collapse of the Soviet Union. The “Open Skies Treaty” was signed and ratified in 2002 and now has 34 members. According to the Arms Control Association, “All of a state-party’s territory can be overflown. No territory can be declared off-limits by the host nation.” In addition, “Observation aircraft used to fly the missions must be equipped with sensors that enable the observing party to identify significant military equipment, such as artillery, fighter aircraft, and armored combat vehicles.” [Shoshana Bryen]
‘Open Skies Treaty’ as outdated as cassette player Read More »
International, Shoshana Bryen, USA