Israel

  Since the early 1990s, and certainly since the Oslo process (1993), the ‘Land for peace’ principle  has been Israel’s dominant policy paradigm, particularly, but not exclusively, with regard to the “Palestinian problem”.  This is something that is difficult to comprehend.  After all, not only was it a formula that …

Just as it is wrong of those who criticise everything President Trump says and does just because it comes from him, likewise it is wrong for his supporters to blindly praise or try and explain away, a very poor decision and/or action. Trump made no secret of the fact from …

FACT : Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said on September 10, 2019:  “Today I’m announcing my intention, with the establishment of the next government, to apply Israeli sovereignty to the Jordan Valley and the northern Dead Sea. This is our essential safety belt in the east” (Ben Sales, “Netanyahu’s push to …

The situation I address here is awash in complexities and troubling aspects. This past Sunday, October 6, President Trump, after a phone conversation with Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, announced a very sudden decision to pull US troops out of northern Syria. This was in the face of Turkish threats …

The Oslo process that resulted in the signature of the “Declaration of Principles” on the White House Lawns on September 13, 1993, was in many ways a point of singularity in the history of Zionism, after which everything was qualitatively different from that which it was before.  It was a …

Hey, I know politics are a fact of life, necessary for civil governance.  But it happens that a consideration of the political situation here is neither inspiring nor uplifting these days.  In fact, it is depressing. I face the prospect of writing once again about our political situation, my friends, …

The feasibility of Trump’s “Deal of the Century” will be dramatically impacted by the nature of the regime east of the Jordan River and its prospective stability. With the media in a furor over the election deadlock and the legal woes of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, some of the other …

From the rabid rants of the myriad of “Bibiphobes”, the uninformed observer would be led to believe that Netanyahu is to blame for every misfortune and every malfeasance on the face of the globe… Let me commence with full disclosure on two matters: First, I am a totally non-observant Jew, …

Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu on Wednesday night received the mandate for forming a new government from President Ruby Rivlin. That the president acted so quickly was a surprise: he had indicated that he would likely wait until next Wednesday, the last day that it was legally possible for him to …

It seems that in those countries where conservatives win elections, opinion polls and exit polling are proving less accurate.  Think about Trump in the US, or Morrison here in Australia.  Or Israel.  Perhaps conservative voters are less likely to publicise their intentions. Never the less this time the Israeli polling …

Arguably, Netanyahu’s gravest strategic miscalculation was not to call elections in May 2016 rather than capitulate to Liberman’s demand to be given the Defense portfolio.   Earlier this month, I wrote a column with the interrogative title: Sept. 17: Will the Right snatch defeat from the jaws of victory…again? Judging …

With regard to the elections and their tortuous aftermath. Of course. As this is a professional posting, I refrain from telling you where the pain is. In any event, you may be feeling the very same discomfort. ~~~~~~~~~ But I want to preface my discussion of what’s going on with …

Maligned, misunderstood, and derided, provocative, emotive and polarizing.  Often condemned, just the mention of the word Zionism is enough to raise the blood pressure of many. This often results in both pro and anti-Israel activists engaging in a battle of words. Frighteningly, this battlefield has expanded way beyond the Social …

The election is upon us now – only two days away – and the situation is not substantially different from what it was when I last wrote.  Neither camp has a clear majority in the polls. Likud and Blue & White are reasonably neck-in-neck.  Maddeningly, each poll is somewhat different, …

Our PM has not only helped restore Jews to geopolitical history, he has placed Israel not just in the corridors of power, but increasingly, at the table of power. For those whose middle-of-the-night dreams include the vanquishing of the Royal Family – the turning away of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu …

 Will the growing use of drones by the Gaza-based terror groups make the billion dollar Iron Dome and anti-tunnel barrier useless—or at least irrelevant?  Departing briefly from the upcoming elections, Sunday’s media headlines conveyed the news that a drone, launched from the Gaza Strip, had attacked an IDF position near …

I have made no secret of it: the current election campaign has not exactly been an enlightening period for Israel. For many of us, this has been a source of great sadness. Our nation is capable of better – of a more elevated campaign. There has been too much back-biting, …

FACT. On September 4, 2019, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu visited the city of Hebron to commemorate the 90th anniversary of the massacre of Jews by Palestinians that occurred on August 23, 1929. “While we are not coming to banish anyone,” Netanyahu said, “neither will anyone banish us. To cite …

There is an idiom that came to my mind this week: “You can run, but you can’t hide.”  It really hit home: There is a whole lot of heavy stuff, worrisome stuff, going on in our part of the world.  The temptation to run from it, figuratively speaking, is huge …

I have a crazy, very difficult week this week (family illness again) but I still want to post a Good News weekend instalment, if only for the sake of my sanity. It’s going to be a bit of a mix this week because I missed a fair bit of the …