Israel’s historic peace treaty with the United Arab Emirates, its third with an Arab country since 1979, shatters what was long regarded as a sacrosanct convention. In plain language, Israel can enjoy the fruits of peace with an Arab state without having to cede territory it conquered during the Six Day War or agree to […]
France has circulated a draft resolution at the United Nations Security Council calling for the extension of the mandate held by the United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL). Ideally, it should be renewed because that international peacekeeping force has played a fairly useful and constructive role in southern Lebanon since its formation in 1978. […]
China’s ambitions in the Middle East are laser sharp, driven by economic interests, a policy clearly reflected in its burgeoning relationship with Iran, the preeminent Shi’a power in the region. Unlike the United States or Russia, China has little or no desire to project its political or cultural influence in the region. China regards Iran […]
The ripple effects of the catastrophic explosion that levelled the port of Beirut on August 4 have shaken Lebanon to its core. The blast killed 158, wounded about 6,000 and left upwards of 300,000 homeless. Causing $10 billion to $15 billion in damage, it was felt 150 miles away in Cyprus, and was the biggest […]
Politically speaking, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu was in a much better place a few months ago than he is today. Netanyahu, the leader of the right-wing Likud Party and Israel’s longest-serving prime minister, was riding high after forming a national unity government with his centrist rival, Benny Gantz of the Blue and White Party, and […]
Thirty years ago yesterday, Iraq invaded Kuwait, sparking an international crisis that culminated with the first Gulf War. On August 2, 1990, 120,000 Iraqi troops, spearheaded by an armored force of hundreds of tanks, thundered into Kuwait in a universally condemned invasion. In one fell stroke, Iraqi President Saddam Hussein gained control of 20 percent of […]
Observers are still scratching their heads over the uncertain outcome of Israel’s latest armed clash with Hezbollah late last month. Israel and Hezbollah have been bitter enemies since the 1980s, having fought a guerrilla war until Israel’s unilateral withdrawal from Lebanon in 2000 and a month-long war in 2006. On occasion, they have clashed in […]
With a United Nations arms embargo against Iran expiring on October 18, U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo has let it be known that the United States will “exercise all diplomatic options” to extend it indefinitely. It’s doubtful whether the United States will succeed in depriving Iran of new weapons. Two major powers oppose Washington’s […]
During the first week of July, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan announced that Hagia Sophia, a popular museum in Istanbul that was originally a cathedral and then a mosque, would be repurposed as a mosque again. In a rhetorical flourish, he added that Hagia Sophia’s reconversion was a precursor to “the liberation” of the Al-Aqsa […]
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s much-vaunted election campaign pledge to unilaterally annex parts of the West Bank has so far turned out to be little more than a rhetorical flourish. Netanyahu assured supporters he would begin implementing his promise on July 1. Seventeen days on, nothing seems to have happened, and he has been reduced […]