As fighting between Gaza and Israel continues, US President Joe Biden spoke with Israeli Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu Monday evening, sounding slightly different sentiments than in the two’s previous convos last week. According to the White House, President Biden “expressed his support for a cease-fire,” signaling for the first time …
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Operation Guardian of the Walls Enters 9th Day
Israeli bombardment of Hamas-owned military targets in Gaza continued Monday night, with dozens of underground tunnels, rocket launch pads and buildings said to be housing Hamas commanders leveled by heavy aerial attacks. According to updated figures released by the Israel Defense Forces on Tuesday morning, 130 Hamas operatives have been …
Read More »The Long Arm of the Strongman
How China and Russia Use Sharp Power to Threaten Democracies Democracies have struggled and autocracies have grown in strength in the past decade and a half. During this period, dictatorships have intensified and modernized their systems of repression. Governments in virtually every region, many ostensible democracies among them, have become …
Read More »Israel says 160 terrorists killed in Gaza since beginning of operation
A total of 65 launchers, which can fire between four-nine rockets within seconds, have been destroyed in the past three days. The IDF has killed at least 160 Hamas and Islamic Jihad terrorists since the beginning of Operation Guardian of the Walls began last week, the military said on Tuesday. …
Read More »Inventing Crisis in Moldova: All Geopolitics Is Local
Summary: Despite relaxed relations between Moldova and Transdniestria, Russia has recently raised the alarm the frozen conflict might turn hot. Is it a serious threat or just a manufactured crisis? The U.S. politician Tip O’Neill is credited with the phrase “all politics is local.” UK prime minister Neville Chamberlain, too, …
Read More »Palestinians disappointed by int’l community’s stance on escalation
Israeli Defense Minister Benny Gantz: “Israel is not preparing for a cease-fire. … Only when we achieve complete quiet can we talk about calm” Since Monday night, the situation has been boiling over in Gaza as Palestinian movements in Gaza respond to what they call the “violent Israeli aggression against …
Read More »Iran reveals its strategy advising Hamas on war against Israel
What is important here is that the conversation with Ghaani comes as Iranian media published a unique look at Israel’s air defense systems, asserting that Israel is showing new vulnerabilities. Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps Quds Force head Esmail Ghaani spoke with Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh over the weekend and …
Read More »How much does Hamas’s rocket arsenal cost?
The arsenal of 14,000 rockets is believed to be worth millions. In the ongoing fight between Israel and Hamas about which side can outlast the other and who will seem more desperate for a ceasefire first, a key issue is cost. It is well-known that Iron Dome interceptors cost far …
Read More »Syrian refugees’ long walk: why Amal is more than a puppet
A giant puppet of a young Syrian girl will travel nearly 8,000 kilometers (5,000 miles) from the Turkish-Syrian border to the United Kingdom. At 3.5 meters (12 feet) tall and with a carbon fiber head full of dark braids, huge, questioning eyes and a love for Turkish delights, Amal is …
Read More »Mercenaries, foreign fighters threaten Libya’s fragile transition
Both sides of the Libyan conflict have so far failed to agree on the departure of foreign fighters from Libya as required by the country’s political settlement document known as the road map; it appears the issue rests with Moscow and Ankara. Libya’s foreign minister has repeatedly called for foreign …
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