Israel’s wars repeat the 1980s on steroids
By James M. Dorsey Appalled by Israel’s carpet bombing of Beirut during the 1982 Lebanon war, US President Ronald Reagan didn’t mince his words with then-Israeli Prime Minister Menahem Begin.…
Trump set to inherit a Gaza war he doesn’t want but can’t end
By James M. Dorsey Gaza is gearing up to be a war on President-elect Donald J. Trump’s watch that he doesn’t want but may be unable to end. To read…
Iran jockeys for position as hawks populate Trump’s administration
By James M. Dorsey Iran is signaling its willingness to negotiate a nuclear deal with Donald J. Trump as the president-elect assembles an administration populated by Iran hawks who favour…
BRICS suits Putin, but it is no friend of Israel
From October 22 to 24, Russia’s President Vladimir Putin, as host of the 2024 BRICS summit, welcomed 36 world leaders to Russia . This conference marked the first gathering of the BRICS…
How much of Godsend for Netanyahu is Trump’s return to the White House?
By James M. Dorsey Predicting President Donald J. Trump’s Middle East policy and his attitude toward Israeli Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu amounts to reading tea leaves. The leaves are the…
Netanyahu bets on Lebanon to justify his forever wars
By James M. Dorsey Israel may soon return tens of thousands of evacuees to their homes along the border with Lebanon, with or without a ceasefire with Hezbollah. The return…
The Middle East doesn’t preoccupy Trump, but Trump preoccupies the Middle East
By James M. Dorsey The Middle East may not preoccupy Donald J. Trump. Still, the president-elect preoccupies the Middle East as it attempts to figure out how he will handle…
Trump victory may have a long-shot silver lining
Trump victory may have a long-shot silver lining By James M. Dorsey Donald J. Trump’s electoral victory promises to give Israeli Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu a free hand, at least…
The UAE, backed by Israel, targets influential role in post-war Gaza
By James M. Dorsey United Arab Emirates President Mohammed bin Zayed is manoeuvring to replace Qatar as the main Gulf player in post-war Gaza with the backing of Israeli Prime…
The post-Sinwar scenario
On October 21 two Hamas sources revealed to the media that the idea of appointing a leader to succeed Yahyar Sinwar, assassinated on October 16, had been ruled out, at least…