May 2010

PA Prime Minister sets forward Palestinian Strategy:Independence, not Peace / Prof.B.Rubin

A new interview with Palestinian Authority (PA) Prime Minister Salam Fayyad is especially significant because at this precise moment the key question is: Will the PA renew negotiations with Israel either directly or indirectly? Israel has already agreed to talk and made two major concessions at the request of the United States: suspending construction in Jerusalem outside the 1967 borders and agreeing to discuss all issues.

The Future of the 2 State soution/ Maj - Gen.(res ) Giora Eiland

While the outlines of a two-state solution are generally known, the maximum that any government of Israel will be ready to offer the Palestinians and still survive politically is much less than the minimum that any Palestinian leader can accept. The real gap between both sides is much greater than what is perceived, and that gap is growing.

On the Verge of Israeli- Palestinian Talks and what Comes After? prof.B.Rubin

Gradually, the U.S. government is constructing the basis for indirect Israel-Palestinian talks which will be simultaneously meaningless and hailed--at least by the U.S. government--as a great achievement. The latest two developments are the Arab states' approval of the talks and a U.S. pledge to the Palestinian Authority (PA) that there will be no Israeli construction in the West Bank or Jerusalem outside the 1967 line.

Israel is Accused, but Palestinians Rejected a State of their Own 6 Times / DR.Rivka Shpak Lissak

Israel is constantly accused for being responsible for the lack of peace with the Palestinians, and for denying them the state they have right for.

The issue upon which Israel is found guilty is the settlements on the conquered territories which are intended to prevent a Palestinian state.

True, the building of settlements is one of the biggest mistakes done by Israel. Milliards of dollars were wasted on those settlements while it was much better to build them in the Galilee and the Negev who are praying for settlers.

The Declining Situation of the Copts (in Egypt)/ Abel Guindy

This article addresses sectarian violence and discrimination against Egypt's Coptic minority, including the January 2010 attacks in Nag Hammadi as well as other incidents during the previous years. It also points to the government's failure to acknowledge the situation and take action or responsibility. It argues that rather than protecting its citizens, the regime's first and foremost priority has been its own survival.

What do the New Israel- Palestinian Indirect Talks Mean? Prof.B.Rubin

The question of the day is whether the Israel-Palestinian Authority (PA) indirect talks will make progress in the "peace process" or result in failure. One wonders at this point how many naive people believe that peace is at hand, and how many misled people think that the lack of peace is Israel's fault.

What is needed to understand the issue is precisely what is not presented by policymakers, academics, and all-too-much of the mass media: The PA neither wants nor is capable of delivering a compromise peace agreement.

Is the U.S. Diplomatic and Intelligence Community being Brainwashed in dealing with Islamism? Prof.B.Rubin

When I first heard the story that President Barack Obama was barring from national security documents the use of terms like "Islamism," "Islamic fundamentalist," "Islamic radicalism," or any reference of any connection between Islam and terrorist or revolutionary groups; al-Qaida, Hamas, and Hizballah; Iran's regime or al-Qaida, I said to myself, oh that's nothing new. That kind of policy started under Bush.

The Crossroads of Muslim Brothers in Jordan / Juan Escobar Stemmann

As former allies of the monarchy, the Muslim Brothers have played a key role in Jordanian political life at times when the regime has engaged in political openness. However, their moderation in domestic politics has been accompanied by a growing radicalization on foreign policy issues, as a result of their refusal to accept the peace treaty between Israel and Jordan and their staunch opposition to the military intervention in Iraq.

Ahmadinejad Unveils his Grand Strategy: A Nuciear Defensive Umbrella for Aggression / Prof.B.Rubin

Whatever you think of Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad he is not a stupid man. And he's also not acting like an intimidated one. During the latest UN meeting on nuclear issues, when the new International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA)director-general urged Iran to "clarify" its activities, the camera showed Ahmadinejad laughing contemptuously.

The Protocols Strike Again / DR.Israel Bar- nir

A. A Brief Historical Background

The beginning of the previous century saw the appearance of a new “literary” piece by the name The Protocols of the [Learned] Elders of Zion (in the original Russian: Протоколы сионских мудрецов or Сионские протоколы). That document became a best seller. Despite its being literary forgery, it still has a wide market and a solid and loyal readership.

What's Wrong - and Dangerously so - with U.S. Strategic Policy in the Middle East / Prof.B.Rubin

I've just read two interesting articles by David Goldman (better known by his pen name, Spengler) and Lee Smith which have different themes but fit together very nicely and make some incredibly important points.

Spengler shows that current U.S. military strategy in Afghanistan, Iraq, and the Palestinian Authority consists of creating heavily armed local armies, then withdrawing with the dubious expectation that they will be moderate, democratic, and pro-American.

Turkey:Between Ataturk's Secularism and Fundamentalist Islam/ Harold Rhode

From the remnants of the Ottoman Empire, Atatürk founded a modern democratic state by forging the entirely unprecedented notion in the Islamic world of a secular Turkish identity. Moreover, this identity was to be based on the Western notion of loyalty to a geographic entity rather than religious solidarity.

The Middle East:Well- Intentioned Conciliatory Policy meets Revolutionary Islamic Threat / Prof.B.Rubin

For a half-century, Middle East politics were dominated by Arab nationalist regimes and movements, defined by the struggle among them for regional hegemony. Now the area has moved into a new era in which the central feature is the struggle between Arab nationalist regimes and revolutionary Islamist forces. Yet many Western policymakers have failed to understand this transformation. This article discusses the nature of the central conflict, including the identity of the Islamist side and the balance of forces.

Obama's Talk with Mahmoud Abbas: A Recital of U.S. Policy/ Prof.B.Rubin

The White House released what it calls a "Readout of the President’s Call with President Abbas of the Palestinian Authority" which summarizes President Barack Obama's telephone conversation with Palestinian Authority (PA) leader Mahmoud Abbas. Let's analyze it.

"The President congratulated President Abbas on the start of Israeli-Palestinian proximity talks."

Israel Finally Learned the Rules of the Region / DR.Guy Bechor

We are currently facing an odd situation the likes of which we have not seen for many years: Israel’s enemies are in panic, or is it paranoia, for fear that Israel will be attacking them. Hezbollah is convinced that it will suffer a blow at any moment, Hamas is still licking its wounds, Syria is concerned, and Iran’s foreign minister already declared that Israel is a “nation of crazy people” with “mad leaders” who may launch a strike.

On the Verge of Israeli-Palestinian Authority Talks and What Comes After?Prof.B.Rubin

Gradually, the U.S. government is constructing the basis for indirect Israel-Palestinian talks which will be simultaneously meaningless and hailed--at least by the U.S. government--as a great achievement. The latest two developments are the Arab states' approval of the talks and a U.S. pledge to the Palestinian Authority (PA) that there will be no Israeli construction in the West Bank or Jerusalem outside the 1967 line.

Arab- Muslim Waves of Immigration to Palestine (the Land of Israel )/ DR.Rivka Shpak Lissak

Palestinians are not the Indigenous people of the Holy Land

The Palestinian narrative, which is now widely accepted as a fact of history around the world, is the result of a systematic indoctrination through propaganda.
The Palestinians are neither the "Indians" nor the "Africans" of the Holy Land.
Most Palestinians immigrated to the Holy Land between the 19th and 20th centuries, during the Ottoman rule (1516 – 1918) and the British Mandate rule (1918 – 1948).

Accepting Israel as the Jewish State / Daniel Pipes

Accepting Israel as the Jewish State
Should there be a Jewish state? That is the central question. It does not help anyone to distract from it.

When a major Arab state would finally sign a peace treaty with Israel, it was long assumed, the Arab-Israeli conflict would end. The Egypt-Israel peace treaty of 1979, however, buried that expectation; it had the perverse effect of making other states and also the Egyptian populace more anti-Zionist.

Moscow Stabs U.S. in Back / Prof.B.Rubin

If America's Middle East position collapses in the forest will anyone hear it? The answer is either: apparently no, or just barely. As I've predicted Russia is coming back into the region and it is going to play a very bad role. Moscow is linking up with the emerging Islamist alliance of Iran, Syria, Hamas, and Hizballah.

Meanwhile, the Obama Administration praises Russia for allegedly supporting sanctions against Iran. Russian support, at best, consists of throwing a bucket of fluid over the sanctions' plan to water it down.

Rising Tension between Iran and the Gulf States / Zvi Mazel

The Arab Gulf states are feeling compelled to adopt an appeasement policy toward Tehran while with increasing dread they helplessly follow the nuclear crisis, epitomized by Iranian determination and aggression in the face of American weakness.

The U.S. Government knows Iran helps Al-Qaida but does nothing about it / Prof.B.Rubin

Here's a story that should mark the pivotal moment in U.S. foreign policy. It should be on the lips of every White House and State Department official. It should fundamentally transform the nature of Obama Administration foreign policy.

The Dark Side of Amnesty International / Ben Dror Yemini

Human rights are too important an issue to be left in the hands of human rights organizations. This isn't the first time that I've written that. It's just that this issue is becoming increasingly important. This time, the organization at hand is Amnesty, once again Amnesty, which has conferred legitimacy on jihad. One is hard put to believe the words one reads.

Israel and the question of a Nuclear-Free Zone in the Middle East / Dori Gold

Back in 1980, Israel itself proposed the establishment of a nuclear-free zone in the Middle East. The establishment of a nuclear-free zone would have required a degree of recognition and peaceful relations between all the countries of the Middle East as a prerequisite to discussing its implementation.

Chapter 6:The Population of the Land of Israel under Crusader Rule(1099 - 1260/90)/ Dr.Rivka Shpak Lissak

Eastern-Christians Formed the Largest Ethno-Religious Group

Part no. One

Introduction

Chapter 6 :The Population of the Land of Israel under Crusader Rule(1099 - 1260/90) / Dr.Rivka Shpak Lissak

Part No. Two

Settlement Distribution during the Crusader Period

Prof. Kedar (Jews and Samaritans in the Kingdom of Jerusalem) and Prof. Ellenblum (Frankish Rural Settlements in the Latin Kingdom of Jerusalem) charted the country’s settlements during the Crusader period (1099-1260).

The largest group – the Eastern Orthodox Christian – was concentrated in several areas: the western Galilee, the coastal plane, around Jerusalem, and the south of Judea. There was also a Christian enclave in the eastern Galilee in places holy to Christianity.

The Obama Administration's Middle East Desaster: A Brief Summary / Prof.B.Rubin

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Chapter 5: The Population of the Lan of Israel under Crusader Rule (1099 - 1260/90 )

Part No. Three

The Jewish Population

Introduction

Chapter 5:The Population of the Land of Israel under Crusader rule(1099 - 1260/90 )

Part No. Three

The Jewish Population

Introduction

Nakba Day and the Fraud / Ben Dror Yemini

The Palestinians have been holding the title of “refugees” for over six decades w They have succeeded in creating a unique historical narrative for themselves w This myth is growing, so it should be shattered and the real facts presented: the Palestinian population before the first Aliya was sparse, hundreds of thousands of Jews were also expelled from Arab countries, and there is no precedent anywhere in the world for the right of return w

Obama's Administration wants to engage "Moderate" Hizballah / Prof.B.Rubin

For the last year I’ve been following the efforts of the Obama Administration to find someone to engage in Hizballah, the Lebanese terrorist group which is a client of Syria and Iran, deeply involved in terrorism, seeks to take over Lebanon, and wants to wipe Israel off the map.
What’s not to like?

The spearhead here has been John Brennan, assistant to the president for homeland security and Counterterrorism. That’s President Barack Obama, who would seem to bear some responsibility for what Brennan says.

Here’s how Reuters quotes him:

A Lethal Obsession:Antisemitism from Antiquity to the Global Jihad,by Robert.S.Wistrich / Reviewed by Winston Pickett

Anti-Semitism has become such a pervasive and dominant feature in the mainstream discourse that it poses a particular challenge when addressing it in the public space. Calling something anti-Semitic, while it may be "objectively" accurate, can be counterproductive simply because the vast majority of the public, including writers, opinion-formers, and journalists, badly misunderstand this particular form of group hatred.

War Crimes and Propaganda Crimes / Ben Dror Yemini

Israel will never kill as many innocent people as European armies have. So who are they to preach to us?

"We will conquer Rome and then all of Europe. When we are done with Europe, we will conquer both the Americas, and we will not give up Eastern Europe either." The speaker in need of such a large territory went on to say that all the Jews should be annihilated.

Islamic Cleric to Pope:Let's Kill the Jews Together / Prof.B.Rubin

It’s a pity that the Palestinian Authority’s (PA) chief Islamic judge Taysir Tamimi will be criticized for rudeness rather than incitement to genocide. And the whole political context of Tamimi’s statements shouldn’t be missed either: he is an appointee of the PA. When he demands that Israel be wiped out either he’s speaking for his bosses or if not they should fire him. Of course, they won’t because in large part he is.

U.S Government has Pushed Lebanon into Iran's Arms / Prof.B.Rubin

Not long ago, Lebanese Druze leader Walid Jumblatt was a lion in standing up to the threat that Hizballah and its Iranian and Syrian sponsors would gain hegemony over Lebanon.

Now, he's a lion siding with Hizballah, Iran, and Syria. He identifies Israel as Lebanon's immediate enemy but--guess what?--also views the United States as Lebanon's enemy. So who is Lebanon's friend and protector? Iran and Syria.

Jumblatt is no coward but he's also no fool. If the Obama Administration won't stand up against tyrants and Islamists he sees no reason to sacrifice himself in a losing battle.

The PLO between Anti- Zionism and Antisemitism / Prof.B.Rubin

Part TWO

IV. MYSTERIES AND PARADOXES

The PLO between Anti- Zionism and Antisemitism, Background and Recent Developments / Prof.B.Rubin

The PLO between Anti-Zionism and Antisemitism, Background and Recent Developments
Part One
(The research was published in 1993, but many of its parts are as actual as if they were written today)

Abstract

The question of the attitude towards Jews and antisemitism by the Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO) is extremely controversial. A useful examination of the issue is not to find the PLO "guilty" or "innocent" of antisemitism but to explore how the group's attitude toward such matters has affected its strategy, ideology, and behavior.

The Fantasy of Hizbullah Moderation / Brig.- Gen.(ret) DR.Shimon Shapira

John Brennan, President Barack Obama's advisor for homeland security and counterterrorism, recently stated that the administration was looking for ways to build up "moderate elements" within Hizbullah. The fact that Hizbullah is part of the Iranian security apparatus did not seem to affect his analysis of the organization.

Peace Making in the Middle East - Variations on a Theme / DR.Israel Bar-nir

The arrival of George Mitchell, President Obama’s special envoy, in the Middle East, raises again the question that accompanies the mission of every American mediator sent to the region - what exactly is he looking for there? Mitchell’s accomplishments in his previous involvement in the Israeli Arab conflict were not something to write home about. Einstein defined insanity as repeating the same experiment time and again, expecting different results.

The Middle East in May 2010:An Assessment /Prof.B.Rubin

Why am I writing so much about U.S. policy lately and less about developments within the region itself lately? Because in a real sense not that much is happening right now in the region. A colleague remarked to me today that the world's political weather is set by the U.S. president. This seems very true right now.

Why Should we be surprised that Intellectuals have Failed to Defend Democratic Values / Prof.B.Rubin

Something's missing. Or at least it seems to be missing. Today when liberty is at threat from Western left-wing ideologues, revolutionary Islamists, and sometimes from governments themselves, we--or I, at least--keep expecting some mass protest, some upsurge of criticism and exposure, among the intellectuals. Since this is a group I belong to (I say this in sadness rather than to brag), it is especially painful for me to admit this fact.

Bring Jordan into Equqtion / DR.Guy Bechor

Israel should shift responsibility for West Bank’s Palestinians to Jordan .

The Palestinian Nationality as a Colonialist Movement of the Arab League / DR.Yohai Sela

The word Palestine has no meaning in the Arabic language, neither do the words Jordan and Lebanon – all are taken from the Hebrew language. The word Jordan describes the descending river water from north towards the Dead Sea; the word Lebanon describes the typical white color of the region during winter months; and Palestine is a word originated in the geographical phrase Pleshet relating to the southern coastal plane of Israel, that was invaded by nations of the sea when they entered Israel about 3,000 years ago.

President Obama's Advisor Explains Islam to Muslims / Prof.B.Rubin

The president’s advisor on terrorism, John Brennan, who I’ve dubbed the worst foreign policy official in the Obama Administration, has made a new statement that is very interesting and deserves serious debate, not just dismissal or endorsement.

You can see his basic line as it has developed, with full administration support, over the last year:

Behind the Axis: The North Korean Connection / Jonathan Spyer

North Korean spokesmen reacted furiously last week to claims by Foreign Minister Avigdor Lieberman that Pyongyang is supplying weapons technology to Iran and Syria. Representatives of the regime of Kim Jong-Il described Lieberman as an "imbecile." The official Korean Central News Agency in a memorable phrase accused the foreign minister in an official statement of "faking up sheer lies."

Book Review: Zeyno Baran, The Other Muslims: Moderate and Secular / Prof.B.Rubin

Zeyno Baran, The Other Muslims: Moderate and Secular. (Palgrave-Macmillan), 190 p., $21.60
By Barry Rubin

This is a book people have been waiting for, Zeyno Baran’s, The Other Muslims: Moderate and Secular. What Baran, a senior fellow at the Hudson Institute, has done is to pull together ten essays by genuinely moderate Muslims in Europe and the United States about what’s going on regarding the internal struggle within Islam and what’s wrong with how the West deals with it.

Crossovers:Anti-Zionism and Anti-Semitism / Shlomo Sharon and David Bukay

Crossovers: Anti-zionism and Anti-semitism
Congratulations to the authors Shlomo Sharan and David Bukay.
Book Report by Jenny Grigg