Iranians will go to the polls this Friday to choose the successor to centrist President Hassan Rouhani, who is winding down his second four-year term and cannot run for reelection. The polls will take place in an atmosphere of widespread public apathy, as voters choose from a list of presidential …
Read More »The Biden Administration’s Iran Policy: All Carrots, No Stick
Secretary of State Antony Blinken… stated at his inauguration hearing that he had “deep concern about the designation” of the Houthis as a terrorist organization, in that “at least on its surface it seems to achieve nothing particularly practical in advancing the efforts against the Houthis and to bring them …
Read More »Islamic Jihad: We’ll hit back if Israel continues Gaza strikes
Terror leader issues threat if Israel doesn’t stop retaliating for balloon-borne attacks, end blockade on enclave; says Gaza groups have already formulated plan of action A senior member of Palestinian Islamic Jihad said Saturday that Gaza terror groups have sent a message to Egyptian mediators warning of a violent response …
Read More »Two decades on, Israel confronts legacy of ‘forgotten’ south Lebanon occupation
Now that the 18-year period is recognized as a campaign, with a medal for its soldiers, some security zone veterans look back and find unexpected relevance for them and the country On the night of May 24, 2000, Brig. Gen. Benny Gantz passed through a gate in the fence between …
Read More »Head of defense panel: Iran’s Raisi will be a ‘big challenge’ for Israel, West
Ex-Mossad deputy chief Ben-Barak says hardliner’s election as president is proof of Iran’s radicalization on nuclear, terror policies; Putin quick to congratulate ultraconservative The head of the Knesset’s Foreign Affairs and Defense Committee said Saturday that the election of hardliner Ebrahim Raisi as Iran’s president would present a challenge for …
Read More »Iranians Vote in Presidential Election Marked by Low Turnout
Iranians voted Friday in a presidential election marked by a low turnout and a lack of formidable rivals to the candidacy of Iran’s ultraconservative judiciary chief Ebrahim Raisi. There were no official estimates of the turnout from Iran’s Interior Ministry as polling stations closed at 2 a.m. Saturday local time. …
Read More »Germany’s Failed Hezbollah Ban
In retrospect, Germany’s much-vaunted Hezbollah ban appears to have been little more than a publicity stunt aimed at silencing critics of the German government’s pro-Iran foreign policy. Hezbollah has effectively evaded the ban by transferring many of its activities to charities and cultural centers controlled by Iran. Iran’s main base …
Read More »Turning Engagement Into a Regional Dialogue Mechanism in the Middle East
Dialogue seems to be in vogue in today’s Middle East. Iranian and American negotiators are in Vienna to find a way to restore the 2015 nuclear deal that President Donald Trump withdrew from in 2018. Iranian and Saudi security officials recently held meetings in Baghdad to mend their relations. and …
Read More »Iran’s Engineered Election Leaves Reformists With No Good Options
Iranians will go to the polls this Friday to choose the successor to centrist President Hassan Rouhani, who is winding down his second four-year term and cannot run for reelection. The polls will take place in an atmosphere of widespread public apathy, as voters choose from a list of presidential …
Read More »Palestinian attempts West Bank car-ramming and stabbing attack, is shot dead
No Israeli casualties as female alleged assailant targets soldiers northeast of Jerusalem; attacker reportedly wrote on Facebook: ‘I don’t have much time left in life’ A female Palestinian assailant attempted to commit a car-ramming and stabbing attack Wednesday in the central West Bank before being shot, the Israel Defense Forces …
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