Ian Buruma was personally invested in writing Stay Alive: Berlin, 1939-1945. His interest in wartime Berlin stemmed from his father’s experience as a Dutch forced laborer in Germany’s capital from 1943 to 1945. Leo Buruma, whose mother was Jewish, was a law student in German-occupied Holland when he was compelled to work in a factory […]
Israel and the United States have reached an inflection point in their decades-long relationship. As its international isolation grows, Israel can no longer be certain that it can rely on its greatest ally unequivocally. Until three years ago, Israel could count on bipartisan congressional support, with most Democrats and Republicans backing hefty aid packages to […]
Voters in the U.S. midterm elections on November 3 largely repudiated President Donald Trump and his Republican Party as the Democrats wrested control of the Senate and the House of Representatives. One of the most watched congressional races took place in the northern state of Michigan, where Abdul El-Sayed, a progressive Democrat, faced Trump’s hand-picked […]
With the midterm elections in the United States only a day away, the U.S. embassy in Ottawa is sticking to its implausible claim that Canada has been interfering in its democratic process. To the best of my knowledge, this marks the first time in the annals of Canada-U.S. relations that such an incendiary allegation has […]
Shortly after Adolf Hitler’s accession to power as Germany’s chancellor in 1933, the noted Hollywood screenwriter Herman Mankiewicz wrote The Mad Dog Of Europe, an anti-Nazi script that, he hoped, could be turned into a movie. As hard as he tried, he and his allies failed to convince studio moguls, many of whom were Jewish, […]
Israel finds itself in a very familiar place following the general election on October 27. Pundits touted it as one of the most consequential in Israel’s history and a referendum on Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s leadership. But with about 90 percent of the ballots having been counted, Israel seems to be back where it was […]
As Israelis cast their ballots in today’s general election, some voters may wonder whether Israel may soon be at war with Iran, its greatest enemy, yet again. Since 2025, Israel and Iran have fought two wars. In both instances, the United States joined Israel in attacking Iran. In bold air campaigns,Israel and its American ally […]
Residents of Toronto head to the polls on October 26 to reelect Mayor Olivia Chow for a second term or to elect city councilman Brad Bradford as her successor. It is a tight race and could go either way, judging by the latest polls. The major issues on the table range from affordable housing and […]
It took Germany six decades to come to terms with the harsh treatment that the Nazi regime meted out to German army deserters during World War II. Upwards of 22,000 German soldiers were executed after Wehrmacht military courts pronounced them guilty of desertion and “undermining the military spirit.” Whether this is an accurate figure is […]
Syria was thrust into a new era toward the end of December in 2024 with the fall of President Bashar al-Assad’s secular Baathist regime and his replacement by an Islamist political order led by President Ahmed al-Sharaa, a former jihadist who fought against U.S. forces in Iraq. This ideological transformation, one of the most significant […]