Wednesday, January 29, 2020

While I expected rejection by Palestinians, the reporting I've read has not clarifed the Trump/Kushner peace plan and I've found the whole thing confusing. Hoping you find this analysis courtesy of CAMERA and Honest Reporting with outside links helpful:
      Despite a path to a Palestinian state with its capital in part of eastern Jerusalem, the Palestinians have rejected the plan as a complete non-starter. Arab states including Saudi Arabia, Egypt, Qatar, and the UAE have reacted more positively however.
     In discussions of Jerusalem, a point that is often overlooked is that Palestinians have never had control of or sovereignty over any part of Jerusalem, and it’s never been an Arab capital. There is no historical basis for the insistence on a Palestinian capital in Jerusalem. Yet, this plan generously provides for a Palestinian capital in the sections of Jerusalem to the north and to the east of the existing security barrier (page 17). This is in fact a major concession by Israel.
     This plan conforms to the oft-repeated idea of “a two-state solution based on the pre-1967 borders with land swaps.”
     It has also been made clear that there will be no forced population transfers on either side. 
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European Gov’ts Continue to Fund Terror-Linked NGOs (NGO Monitor) Research shows the close links between eight European-funded NGOs and the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine (PFLP) terror group. This series of reports includes new specifics on government sponsors and terror-linked staff members, including individuals indicted last month for the murder of an Israeli teen.

Are Israel and Turkey On a Collision Course in the Eastern Med? - Pesach Benson (Honest Reporting) The discovery of natural gas in the Eastern Mediterranean Sea is putting Israel on a collision course with Turkey.  Israel is partnering with Cyprus and Greece to build an ambitious pipeline to Europe. But with billions of dollars at stake, Turkey is poised to play the spoiler. What’s behind Turkey’s opposition, and how far will President Recep Tayyip Erdogan go to thwart Israel’s energy alliance?

PA Forces Arrest Cell Targeting Their Intelligence Chief - Avi Issacharoff (Times of Israel)   Palestinian Authority security forces have arrested a group of Fatah members suspected of plotting an attack on the head of the PA's General Intelligence Service, Majed Faraj, and his family

Syrian government forces capture towns in advance on rebel-held Idlib (Reuters)  Syrian government forces have reportedly taken control of several towns in northwestern Idlib province, amid a renewed push by President Bashar al-Assad to recapture the last rebel stronghold.     The Syrian Observatory said Sunday that six towns in the Idlib countryside had fallen to Syrian government forces in the past 24 hours, despite a deal between Turkey and Russia for a January 12 ceasefire. Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said Friday that around 400,000 people from Idlib province were moving towards the Turkish border as a result of the surge in violence. 

U.S. Builds Several New Bases in Iraq near Iran - Arie Egozi (Breaking Defense)
US dropped bombs in Afghanistan at record level in 2019 - Phillip Walter Wellman (Stars and Stripes)
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Friday, January 24, 2020

U.S. Forces in Iraq Are Facing More Attacks from Shiite Militias than ISIS - Jeff Schogol (Task and Purpose)

The Beginning of an Israel-Hamas Truce? - Daniel Estrin (National Public Radio)
Media Ignore, Downplay Infiltration of Armed Gazans Close to Israeli Community - Tamar Sternthal (CAMERA)
Israel Detains Five Finns for Trying to Cross Gaza Border - Said Amouri (Anadolu-Turkey)  

Jordanian Singer Who Performed in Israel Faces BDS Backlash - Ofir Hovav 
(Ha'aretz)
 
Jordanian Vote Shows Why Defensible Borders Still Matter - Evelyn Gordon (JNS)



Pearson pulls GCSE textbook following claims that it 'whitewashed' Jewish history - Camilla Turner (The Telegraph) this newspaper reported accusations that the book was “full of errors, lies and distortions” about the Israel-Palestine conflict.    Pearson confirmed that it has now withdrawn the textbook from circulation, and created an updated version to “improve the balance of sources where needed”.
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Friday, January 17, 2020

Mostly about Iran

Iran's Only Female Olympic Medalist Defects (BBC News) Iranian female Olympic medalist Kimia Alizadeh, who won a bronze medal in taekwondo at the Rio Olympics in 2016, says she has defected. "I am one of the millions of oppressed women in Iran whom they've been playing for years," she wrote on social  media.  "I wore whatever they told me and repeated whatever they ordered. Every sentence they ordered I repeated. None of us matter for them, we are just tools."
Iran Chess Referee Fears Returning Home after Photo with Headscarf Not Visible - Raf Sanchez (Telegraph-UK)  "There are many people in prison in Iran because of the headscarf. It's a very serious issue," she said, claiming she was in fact wearing a headscarf.
Soleimani's Replacement Has Blood on His Hands - Struan Stevenson (The Herald-Scotland) While Soleimani focused on proxy wars in Syria, Yemen, Lebanon and Iraq, Ghaani's job was to bolster terrorist militias in Pakistan, Afghanistan and Africa.
Understanding the Situation in Iran (Asia Society Podcast)
Impact of Soleimani's Death Is Playing Out in Unexpected Ways (Guardian-UK)  Conversations with representatives of regional powers over the past week reveal a mix of surprise that Qasem Soleimani was killed and relief at an aftermath that, in their minds, has sharply weakened Iran's regional hand. 

Iraqi Protesters Clash with Iranian-Backed Militias in Wake of Soleimani's Killing - Azhar Al-Rubaie (Washington Institute for Near East Policy)


Hamas Must Choose: Egypt or Iran? - Shlomi Eldar  (Al-Monitor) 

Gas Begins Flowing from Israel to Egypt (Globes) Israel's Minister of Energy Yuval Steinitz and Egypt's Minister of Petroleum Tarek El-Molla announced Wednesday that gas has begun flowing from Israel's Leviathan field to Egypt. Israel will now be able to export some of its natural gas to Europe via Egypt's liquefied natural gas (LNG) facilities. 
Keep an Eye Out for Israel Derangement Syndrome - Juliet Moses (Spectator-Australia)

New Evidence Reveals ISIS Hierarchy - Sarah El Deeb (AP-Stars and Stripes)
Text - Judge, Jury and Executioner: The ISIS Bureau of Justice and Grievances (Syria Justice and Accountability Center)



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Friday, January 3, 2020

This year is off to an interesting start. Yesterday, we learned that the US finally acted against General Qassem Soleimani, a man at least partly responsible for 100's of American deaths. It's my understanding that a Hizbullah leader was also killed in the Soleimani strike. As per pundits, this could lead to greater threats against the U.S. and American people. While many were unhappy with the Iranian nuclear agreement, JCPA, time will tell if the new American initiatives make the world safer. Libya, Iraq, and Afghanistan are still unstable despite or because of American involvement and lack of clear strategies.  We now have to contend with both physical and digital threats. How will what's happening now in Syria, Pakistan, Turkey, Israel, Iran, Bahrain, Iraq, etc. affect us this year? 


According to a newly-released report from Dutch intelligence and security agency AIVD, 2020 will not bring an end to terror attacks. Rather, more jihadist activity should be expected, not only in the Netherlands, but throughout Europe and the West.

Terror-linked and boycott promoting NGOs behind potential ICC investigation (NGO Monitor)  In some instances, the European funding to Palestinian NGOs was explicitly earmarked for their activities vis-à-vis the ICC. 

Is Building Homes a War Crime? - Zina Rakhamilova (Honest Reporting - video)


Gaza’s weekly protests suspended for 3 months - Khaled Abu Toameh (Jerusalem Post)  The decision, which goes into effect January 3, is seen by some Palestinians as the beginning of the end of the protests, first launched in March 2018 by several Palestinian factions, including Hamas.

On Twitter:
Bill Roggio
✔@billroggio
This is more than a decade too late. The Bush & Obama admins knew what Soleimani and Muhandis were up to, but were too fearful to strike. These two are responsible for the deaths of at least 600 U.S. soldiers and tens of thousands of Iraqis soldiers, police, and civilians. https://twitter.com/LongWarJournal/status/1212936099561115649

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