Subtle US messages fall on Netanyahu and Israel’s deaf ears
By James M. Dorsey A US decision to dial back its reinforced military presence in the Middle East suggests that America’s commitment to defend Israel could be less ironclad than…
Jordan struggles to stay out of the Middle East’s increasingly precarious fray
By James M. Dorsey Iran, Hezbollah, and Israel have successfully evaded an all-out Middle Eastern conflagration more than a month after Israel killed a senior Hamas official in Tehran and…
For Israel, losing the battle for hearts and minds is worse than failing to defeat Hamas
By James M. Dorsey Israel hasn’t just lost the battle for hearts and minds in much of the world, including significant constituencies in Western countries. It has scored a significant…
Netanyahu and Hamas share disregard for Israeli and Palestinian lives
By James M. Dorsey Let’s be clear. Hamas’ alleged execution of six Israeli hostages constitutes a war crime. The hostages were killed in line with new Hamas guidelines that violate…
The Saudi Price for Normalization
On August 14 the US digital news medium, Politico, published an exclusive report. It was based on accounts from three separate sources who had been privy to talks between the Crown Prince of…
Jockeying for position in post-war Gaza
By James M. Dorsey Former Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert and onetime Palestinian foreign minister Nasser Al-Kidwa have put forward a proposal designed to keep a two-state solution to the…
US anti-settler sanctions barely scratch the surface
By James M. Dorsey This week’s US sanctioning of an Israeli-government-backed vigilante settler group constitutes a weak shot across Israel’s bow as the United States and Europe mull also sanctioning…
ICC is advised: Reject arrest warrant request
It was on May 20, 2024 that Karim Khan KC, a British jurist and chief prosecutor of the International Criminal Court (ICC), applied to the court to issue international arrest…
Binyamin Netanyahu is as much an ideologue as he is an opportunist
By James M. Dorsey A recent evolution in critics’ thinking about Israeli Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu’s drivers suggests that he is motivated as much by ultra-nationalist ideology as by political…
Escalating Middle East tensions raise multiple questions
By James M. Dorsey Sunday’s escalation of hostilities along the Israeli-Lebanese border raises more questions than it provides answers. Israeli said it launched airstrikes against 40 targets in southern Lebanon…