US Disengaging from Middle East
by Batya Jerenberg
A foreign policy expert and adviser to three presidents, Elliott Abrams, who served in three Republican administrations including that of former president Donald Trump, said that the United States is disengaging from the Middle East.
The Biden administration has shifted its focus to “the Ukraine war and on the competition with China. And it seems like they do not want to invest so much in solving the problems of the Middle East.”
This includes, first and foremost, being wilfully blind to the global danger that Iran presents, which is the most pressing issue in the region. “What is the US policy toward Iran? Non-existent, in my opinion. There is no policy and, in the meantime, every month the Iranians keep progressing and getting closer to achieving a nuclear weapon,” he said.
Sunni Arab allies have taken notice of American inaction against their foremost Shiite foe, which also includes ignoring Iran’s support for terrorism and aggressive actions against them. Concluding that it can no longer rely on Washington has led Riyadh to resume relations with Tehran in March through Chinese mediation, as a way to “hedge” its bets in protecting itself.
In addition, in contrast to past decades when they saw Israel “as a country that has lots of influence in Washington,” they have noted the current strain between the Biden and Netanyahu administrations and may conclude that it doesn’t pay to be openly friendly with the Jewish state.
On the other hand, the leading Arab country, Saudi Arabia, “has what they want,” which is an under-the-table security relationship with Israel. And they are convinced that Israel will act against Iran if Jerusalem feels the nuclear danger is too great, thereby removing Riyadh’s main regional enemy.
Food for Thought. by Steven Shamrak
Zionism is the Jewish National Independence Movement!
It is the only Independence Movement that is not supported by the Jew-hating political Left, and obviously by other anti-Semites. The true Jewish Zionist objective has not been achieved yet. Against all odds, the Jewish people were able to establish the Jewish state, survive the War of Independence and re-unite Jerusalem. All of this, in spite of the enemies of Israel and international Jew-haters in Europe and the US! By creating a plan and executing it, Israel will be able to accomplish its primary national goal – reunification of Eretz-Israel.
The Dubai Police released the photos and names of the eight suspects in the murder of Israeli citizen Gassan Shamsiyah, who was stabbed 35 times, apparently regarding a long-time dispute between two families. All the suspects have Israeli citizenship and the suspects belong to an Acre crime family. The suspects arrived in Dubai from a European country as tourists.
Even France has Begun Worrying about Iran
France accused Iran of violating an UN Security Council resolution endorsing the 2015 nuclear deal after it carried out a long-range ballistic missile test. "These activities are all the more worrying in the context of the continuing escalation of Iran's nuclear program", French foreign ministry spokesperson said.
Enemy Population Supports 'Better' Terror Group
Representatives from Hamas won a plurality of seats on Birzeit University’s student council, in a clear example of the terror group’s growing popularity among Palestinians living in Judea and Samaria. Because Palestinian Prime Minister Mahmoud Abbas has refused to hold national elections since 2006, the university vote constitutes a rare opportunity to measure the sentiments of Palestinian voters.
Israel’s Autonomous Aerial Drone Hunter
The Goshawk (known in Hebrew as “Angry Bird”), is being developed by Israeli firm Robotican, in partnership with the Israeli Air Force. Flying at 120 kilometers an hour, the Goshawk calculates the weapon’s route to the target, borrowing methods developed for missile defense and aerial combat. Using its on-board camera it zeroes in on the target and captures it in specialized nets, before either dropping it and going to the next task, or transporting it to a designated area.
The Temple Mount is the Jewish Holy Place
Jordan’s Foreign Ministry condemned National Security Minister Itamar Ben Gvir's "incursion" into the Al-Aqsa Mosque compound a week ago. “The visit breaches international law and the historical and legal status quo of Jerusalem and its holy sites,” he said. During the visit to the Temple Mount, Ben Gvir stated, "I am happy to visit the Temple Mount, the most important place to the people of Israel." The Temple Mount was left in the hands of the Waqf following Jerusalem’s reunification in 1967, a decision of then-Defense Minister Moshe Dayan. The Waqf has taken advantage of this and removed every sign of ancient Jewish presence at the most Jewish holy site. The US State Department also criticized National Security Minister Itamar Ben Gvir’s visit to the Temple Mount. (Enemies of Israel never say what international law Israel violates. They are just feeding Jew-haters with idiotic accusations. Phoney and undeclared laws only apply to Israel.)
Quotes of the Week:
"Those who oppose our statement that Zionism is a guiding value are turning themselves into opponents of the State of Israel. I really hope we don't hear them." - Itamar Ben-Gvir, Minister of National Security, referred to a proposed resolution promoted by government Minister Yitzhak Wasserlauf of the Otzma Yehudit party to assert Zionist values in all government offices.
International Anti-Zionists are Antisemites
- German diplomat Sven Kühn von Burgsdorff, who represents the European Union in Judea, Samaria and Gaza, said during a visit to Samaria, “There is no such thing as Area B and C, it’s all Palestine.” Areas A, B, and C are three administrative zones in Judea and Samaria established under the Oslo Accords. Area A is under Palestinian Authority civil and security control. Area C, roughly 60% of the area, is fully under Israeli civil and military control. (If he is right, Israel must ignore the rules of the Oslo Accords, and start removing enemies from the Jewish land.)
- The European Union condemned Israel’s decision allowing Jews to return to the evacuated Homesh settlement in the northern West Bank. “The European Union is gravely concerned by and condemns the decision of the Israeli authorities to allow Israeli citizens..." (Antisemitic hypocrites are never concerned when Jews are killed by enemies of Israel they support.)
- The US is angry at a 65% tax on hostile Israeli NGOs, receiving foreign contributions. Under the proposed bill, the NGOs will lose their not-for-profit status. This did not go over well with US Ambassador to the UN Human Rights Committee, Michele Taylor, who said publicly that “Israel must ensure that human rights organizations and other non-governmental organizations can operate freely, without economic or legal pressures being applied to them that would harm their activities.” (Undermining Israel by their "activities" is not a problem? Foreign governments do not make contributions to pro- Zionist NGOs.)
- The Biden Administration has demanded that the Israeli government drop judicial reform from its agenda in exchange for mediating the normalization talks between the Jewish State and Saudi Arabia. (This is an interference into internal politics of a sovereign state. The US would not make this kind demand to any other country. Biden does not care that proposed judicial reforms would make the Israeli supreme court more like the US!)
Biden Administration Rebuked Israel Again
The State Department issued a two-paragraph statement stating that the administration was “deeply troubled” by the visit of right-wing (Zionist) national security minister Itamar Ben Gvir to the holy site, and by a recent Israeli government decision to let Israelis settlers return to an area in Judea and Samaria ((aka the “West Bank”) near where the settlement of Homesh was before the “disengagement” under Prime Minister Ariel Sharon in 2005. (The Jew-haters are quiet when hundreds of rockets are fired at Israel from Gaza, and Jews are attacked and killed by 'poor Palestinians’ every day. Iran also condemns Ben Gvir’s visit to the Temple Mount.)
European Built Illegal Structures using Humanitarian Funds
The consulates general of Belgium, France, Italy, Spain, Sweden and the United Kingdom, and the representative offices of Denmark, Finland, Germany and Ireland, as well as the EU office to the West Bank and Gaza, slammed Israel for the recent demolitions of an EU-funded school and other structures, that were built (illegally on Jewish land) with humanitarian help in Judea and Samaria. (European anti-Semites have never been concerned when synagogues and Jewish homes were demolished, uprooting Jewish communities.)
US Ultimatum to Netanyahu - Political Blackmail
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has agreed to shelve the Non-profits legislation, which aims to limit the aid foreign governments and bodies provide to Palestinian Authority Arabs, after the White House made it clear to the Prime Minister that if he is interested in a meeting with President Biden and assistance in advancing normalization with Saudi Arabia, he would need to shelve the legislation. (President Biden does not care about peace in the Middle East and security of Israel. The main priority to keep Israel under US control.)