On April 2, prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu described Qatar as “a complex country”.  The epithet seems a trifle inadequate.  Qatar is close to mirroring  Winston Churchill’s famous description of Russia –  “a riddle wrapped…

By James M. Dorsey As he embarked on a Middle East tour, Indonesian President Prabowo Subianto this week offered to accept an estimated 1,000 wounded Gazan Palestinians and “traumatised, orphaned…

By James M. Dorsey Israeli Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu’s multi-pronged strategy to crush the Palestinian resistance to Israeli occupation by destroying Hamas is doomed to failure with or without the…

By James M. Dorsey This week, US President Donald J. Trump put Israeli Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu on a pedal stool for the second time since he returned to the…

By James M. Dorsey Logic suggests it may only be a matter of weeks before Donald J. Trump pressures Israeli Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu to end the Gaza war. The…

By James M. Dorsey Israeli journalist Zvi Yehezkeli pinpointed the core of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict as he reflected on a post-interview conversation with Yasser Arafat, the late chairman of the…

It is now common practice to refer to Ahmad al-Sharaa as Syria’s interim president.  Following the fall of former president Bashar al-Assad, Sharaa was appointed on January 29, 2025 by the…

By James M. Dorsey The United Arab Emirates is betting that recent anti-Hamas protests in Gazan towns, supported by influential tribes and clans, will strengthen Abu Dhabi-based Mohammed Dahlan’s chances…

By James M. Dorsey Israelis and Palestinians have moved in diametrically opposed and mutually exclusive cycles for much of the past six decades. A significant segment of Israeli society favoured…

Egypt is currently playing a crucial role in two of the most significant efforts related to the Gaza conflict.    As a mediator, along with the US and Qatar, of…