Tag Archives: Trump

Once again, and as has been the case for some time now, there are only two central players in Israel’s political arena – Bibi, the flawed human being and Prime Minister Netanyahu, the statesman. Bibi against whom the discontent of the demonstrators and beyond, manifests itself throughout daily life in …

“This is a war against America… “Civilizations have to protect themselves…We are in a crisis in our country and have to decide if American civilization is worth protecting. If it is, we must do whatever it takes to put down the people who would destroy our country.” (Emphasis added) https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SdUNi6dnajY …

Some observations: – There has been a consistent pattern to the “peace process” for 100 years from when the Palestine Arab Executive Committee met in 1921 and declared – “Either us or the Zionists.  There is no room for both” Some form of partition is proposed, the Jewish people go with …

Assessing the overall long-term merits of the “Deal of the Century” is a little like trying to hit a rapidly moving target.  Over the years, I have expressed what are generally considered distinctly hardline, hawkish views on the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. I categorically opposed any notion entailing the establishment of a …

Despite his remarkable success, Netanyahu has been ceaselessly assailed by his political adversaries. Indeed, it is perhaps his very success that has generated such raw rancor against him. I would have preferred to have devoted this week’s column to some other topic—such as the ascendance of blatant antisemitism around the …

We have just completed the three-week holiday cycle that began with Rosh Hashana and ended with Simchat Torah (a rejoicing in the Torah). It has provided a very necessary respite from the constant tensions and anxieties generated by the news – a time for garnering strength and reaffirming priorities. As …

Resigned acceptance of the inevitable? Why is everyone so much more upset with Trump than with Turkey? My first ‘contact’with the Kurds was when I wrote a piece about Mustafa al-Barzani for Sydney University student newspaper Honi Soit in the middle 1970s. Then, as apparently now, the response was deafening disinterest. …

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 …

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, …

We have been hearing for a while from the Trump camp about the ‘Deal of the Century’. Last week Sunday afternoon the White House announced the first part of its Middle East peace proposal, what officials are calling an economic “workshop” to encourage investing capital in the West Bank, Gaza, …

“But why does he have to make provocations with these declarations of his?!” I was shocked to hear this sentence come out of the mouths of my Jewish American relatives. Yes, they were referring to Trump (who they hate) and to the Jerusalem Declaration. I love my relatives but they …

Trump is the creation of Obama. The divisions in American society he is accused of exacerbating are ones largely precipitated by his predecessor’s policies and prejudices.  Why does it seem to a growing number of people that an [Obama] administration professing…to understand Jewish anxieties about the consequences of antisemitism in the Middle …

It is Hol Hamoed Sukkot – the intermediate days of the week-long holiday. The skies are blue here in Israel, and inside the sukkah there is an extraordinary sense of peace. How lovely it would be to shut out the world during this time, but, almost inevitably, the world impinges …

President Trump has created a veritable diplomatic tsunami affecting the political fortunes of the Palestine Liberation Organisation (PLO), Hamas and Jordan – with his decision to cease all future donations to the United Nations Relief and Works Agency (UNRWA) – currently US$360million per annum and comprising about 30 percent of …

Two major developments this past week could see a large part of Judaea and Samaria (West Bank) being reunified with Jordan – as existed between 1950 and 1967 – or becoming a Jordanian enclave – under President Trumps’ yet-to-be- announced “ultimate deal” intended to resolve the100 years-old Arab-Jewish conflict. Those developments …

Yes, my friends, I am here. Working hard on another writing project, and laboring mightily to make sense of the news. Did you ever stand on the side of a highway, with the cars whizzing past? Hard to not feel a bit dazed. In recent days, I have been watching …

The conversation has changed. Almost counter-intuitively, barring an actual indictment or some unexpected event, Prime Minister Netanyahu is so dominant in terms of personality and policy that no other Israeli leader or politician is all that relevant on almost any matter. In some ways Netanyahu has never been stronger and …

It has been two weeks since I’ve posted – an inordinate amount of time for me. But I have been hard at work on my new, upgraded website, which I hope to unveil within days. Today is November 29, kaf tet b’november – an auspicious time to pick up on …

Trump: Giving Peace ‘A Shot’ The President of the United States could have worded his failure only just a little worse. He could have ‘taken a stab’ at peace negotiations before not moving the U.S. embassy to Jerusalem. If I forget thee, O Jerusalem, let my right hand forget her …

Notwithstanding the constant polarisation that especially his domestic words and deeds seem to generate, on some foreign policy matters President Trump seems to have very wide American support. A case in point is his recently announced Afghanistan policy. Candidate Trump campaigned against increasing America’s military role there and was very …