America on the Children's Crusade: Think They're Attacking you Because They Really Want to Make a Deal? A friend of mine who used to be a high-ranking U.S. government official made a very interesting remark: Intelligence does not settle disputes in gover
The Big Freeze: U.S. Policy on Peace Process comes to Dead Halt and Likely to Remain that Way Here it is. The president of the United States on several occasions and notably in his UN speech and high officials repeatedly have announced that the
How and Why Engagement with Sudan Shows Precisely What's Wrong with Obama Administration Foreign Policy The Obama Administration apparently thinks that its policy of engaging repressive radical anti-American dictators has been working so well as to exten
Palestinian Prime Minister Rejects "Mickey Mouse" State. Perhaps Palestinian Authority Prime Minister Salam Fayyad complains about Israel's offer to the Palestinians. "By all indications they have a Mickey Mouse sta
The Window of Opportunity is Now Closed and Locked Down: Passing Goldstone Resolution Marks End of Peace Process Era It means the first make or break test for Obama's foreign policy. There is no easy way out. The president must either block a disastrous UN resolution
How the West's Enemies Are Saving It When people are very pessimistic, I say to them: Don't worry our enemies will save us. By that I mean that the enemies of peace, progress, and d
Mubarak's and Arab States' Peace Plan: Israel Gives Everything, Arab States Think About It Here's what he said in his briefest explanation of this policy: "I affirmed to President Obama in Cairo that the Arab initiative offers recognition
Analysis: Iran-Syria Alliance in Harmony Ahmadinejad's visit came on the eve of the return of two senior US officials, Jeffrey Feltman and Daniel Shapiro, to Damascus. Their visit is part of
Afghanistan Show's Iran's Stake in Regional Insecurity A month ago, US President Barack Obama announced a new strategy to address the current crisis in Afghanistan and Pakistan. Obama's plan to 'disrupt,
President Obama: You've Paid for the Report, Now Read It What can this report teach U.S. policymakers? Regarding Iran, their government has massive evidence of its continuing role as "the most
Here Comes Hillary; There Goes Lebanon Suddenly, the United States has awoken to the fact that in one month Lebanon is likely to be taken over by a radical government and hijacked into the
The Unbearable Lightness of Wishful Thinking Congratulations, the conflict is over! Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad isn't a radical, aggressive Islamist and Holocaust denier but a peacenik!
A New Government In the Israeli political game, there are some things too important to play with. Has the new Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu safeguarded Israel's se
HELPING HILLARY WHILE KEEPING ISRAEL SAFE Secretary of State Hillary Clinton has arrived in Israel on the first of what will no doubt be many visits. Beyond the simple self-interest of making
ALL ISRAELI-BUT NO PALESTINIAN--LEADERS WANT TO END THE CONFLICT What is the most important theme of Israeli politics, policy, and thinking today? It is pretty simple but you will rarely see it explained in much of
ISRAEL'S ELECTION IN INTERNATIONAL PERSPECTIVE Many people don't understand what's happening now in Israeli politics, so here's a brief, and non-partisan, appreciation. Compared to the past, there'
Why We Hear the Muslim World All Too Well Message to New York Times: Read your own op-ed page. The Times and other American media and educational institutions are giving increasing amounts o
CHOOSING SIDES: EGYPT AND TURKEY STRIKE A POSE Two of the region's most important countries-Egypt and Turkey-are at a crossroads right now. Egypt has the chance to again be the Arab world's central
VIRTUALLY UNNOTICED: A TOTALLY NEW MIDDLE EAST It can certainly be claimed that no world area is more closely-even obsessively-watched than the Middle East. This is quite understandable for many re
FATAH VS HAMAS: BE MY BROTHER OR I'LL KILL YOU There was an election on Hamas's mind when it cancelled the ceasefire with Israel, leading to the Gaza war. But it wasn't the February Israeli electio
Israel, Hamas and the Nazis: A More Accurate Historical Comparison Number of Jews in Continental Europe, 1939: 6 million Number of Palestinians in Gaza 2009: 1.2 million Number of Jews still alive in Continental E
ENDING THE GAZA WAR: CHOICES, NOT SOLUTIONS Last December, Hamas unilaterally ended its ceasefire with Israel and escalated the kind of cross-border attacks continually attempted even during the
Turkey: Antisemitism Gets Out of Control This has been sent to me by a very reliable friend who has agreed to distribution as long as his name is not used. You are invited to post or send to
On the Ground in Gaza Israel didn't want to attack the Gaza Strip from the ground or from the air. Hamas, which had long broken the ceasefire, canceled it altogether. Then
Hama's Strategy: The Rockets or the Media Nothing is clearer than Hamas's strategy. It gives Israel the choice between rockets and media, and Hamas thinks it is a situation of, "We win or you
KNOW WHO YOU'RE DEALING WITH KNOW WHO YOU'RE DEALING WITHBy Barry RubinThe Obama Administration-elect is planning how it is going to engage with Syria and Iran-to try to split the
DEFENDING YOURSELF AGAINST TERRORISM: A DIFFICULT TASK DEFENDING YOURSELF AGAINST TERRORISM: A DIFFICULT TASK By Barry Rubin
Giving Until It Hurts Giving Until It HurtsBarry RubinOctober 8, 2008 In response to a casual question, U.S. Secretary of Defense Robert Gates dropped a historical bombshe
The Trouble with Russia The Trouble with Russia Barry Rubin The return of Russian power in the Middle East, next to Iran's nuclear weapons' campaign, is the region's most im
"Time is on my side, Yes it is!" "Time is on my side, Yes it is!"Barry RubinSeptember 28, 2008 So sang the Rolling Stones. But which side has time working in its favor?
Method in Their Madness Method in Their MadnessBarry RubinSeptember 15, 2008 One evening you're walking down a street. A robber jumps on you to steal your wallet.
Things We're Not Told Things We're Not ToldBarry RubinSeptember 5, 2008 In the olden days, when night watchmen patrolled the streets of towns, they had a standard chant: "
The Arab World's Intellectual Mess: A Case Study The Arab World's Intellectual Mess: A Case StudyBarry RubinSeptember 10, 2008 MEMRI has released report Number 1847 on September 8, 2008, entitled, "
Waiting For Something Waiting For SomethingBarry RubinSeptember 7, 2008 If I had to nominate the funniest cartoon I've ever seen, it was a very simple one showing a driver
Fifty First Negotiations Fifty First Negotiations Barry Rubin August 7, 2008 For those who don't know, "Fifty First Dates" is a comedy film undistinguished except by its bri
AP Falsely Reports Israel Building New Settlement AP Falsely Reports Israel Building New Settlement Barry Rubin July 28, 2008 The AP falsely reported that Israel is building a new settlement on the
Being a Terrorist Means Never Having to Say You're Sorry Being a Terrorist Means Never Having to Say You're Sorry Barry Rubin July 22, 2008 The number-one mistake people make trying to understand the Middl
Obama Blames 9-11 Attack on "poverty and ignorance, helplessness and despair" Mr. Obama, Meet Mr. JihadiBy Barry Rubin July 17, 2008Barack Obama says regarding his thoughts after 9/11: "The essence of this tragedy, it seems
What's in a Name What's in a Name Barry Rubin July 5, 2008 We all know--though the Western media often doesn't--that radical Arab nationalists, Islamists, and terror
Olmert's Dilemma and Israel's Multi-front Negotiations: Explaining Israel's Diplomatic Strategy Olmert's Dilemma and Israel's Multi-front Negotiations:
The Fall of Lebanon The Fall of LebanonBarry RubinMay 24, 2008 "If you have tears, prepare to shed them now....Oh, what a fall was there...Then I, and you, and all of u
What Happened to the Middle East's Jews What Happened to the Middle East's Jews By Barry Rubin Uh-oh!