Mike Pompeo announces new comprehensive US policy toward Iran
May 25, 2018 | AIJAC staff
On Monday, May 21, US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo gave a key speech in Washington outlining a new comprehensive US strategy for confronting problematic Iranian behaviour across a variety of areas – not only nuclear, but also missiles, support for terrorism, destablising neighbours, involvement in the Syria and Yemen conflict
A tragic day on Gaza’s border
May 15, 2018
Yesterday was the bloodiest day so far of the six weeks of Hamas-led violent protests along the Gaza border known as the “Great March of Return.” In all, more than fifty Palestinians were killed – the exact numbers are still unclear – and many more wounded (according to the Hamas-controlled Gaza Ministry of Health), as a result of repeated efforts to breach the border fence at numerous points and other acts of violence, including several shooting attacks.
After the US-UK-French attack in Syria
April 18, 2018
As reader are undoubtedly aware, on Saturday, 105 missiles were fired by American, British and French military units at Syrian chemical weapons research and storage sites, in punishment for the latest Assad regime chemical weapons attack in Douma on April 7, which killed at least 75 people. This Update looks at the significance of that attack for the future situation in Syria.
More on the Gaza “March of Return”
April 13, 2018
This Update follows up on the previous one in analysing the ongoing violence along the borders of Gaza – orchestrated under the rubric of the so-called “Great March of Return” – which began on March 30, had a second major flare-up last Friday, and is expected to continue until mid-May.
Who will lead Palestinian Authority after Abbas?/Bibi goes to Washington
March 9, 2018
Amid reports that 82-year-old Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas is seriously ill, today’s Update looks at potential successors. There is much reported activity going on behind the scenes, with Pinhas Inbari reporting that Fatah’s various military warlords are rearming to strengthen their positions in case of violence breaking out. Plus, we include analysis of Israeli PM Binyamin Netanyahu’s Washington visit to address the annual America-Israel Public Affairs Committee (AIPAC) conference and meeting with US President Donald Trump…
Abbas calls for International Conference at UNSC
February 23, 2018
This Update looks at the speech given by Palestinian Authority (PA) President Mahmoud Abbas on Tuesday at the UN Security Council in which, among other things, he called for an international peace conference on Israeli-Palestinian issues. The speech itself is here in full – some of the most controversial passages are highlighted here. (Though this report claims that Abbas also made the statement, “No one has held Israel accountable when it occupied our territories in 1948” which is not part of the official text distributed and may have been an extemporaneous addition.) There were also notable responses to Abbas from Israeli Ambassador Danny Danon and US Ambassador Nikki Haley – which unfortunately Abbas did not stay in the chamber to hear.
This weekend’s Israeli-Iranian clashes in Syria
February 12, 2018
As readers will be hopefully aware, there was a major escalation in the undeclared conflict between Israel and Iran over Syria on Saturday. An Iranian drone entered Israeli airspace and was then shot down, (video of the drone being shot down can be seen here); then Israel attacked the drone’s controlling base in Eastern Syria near Palmyra, but lost one F-16 jet over Israel to a massive barrage of Syrian anti-aircraft missiles on the way back (footage of the jet’s crash is here – both pilots were hurt but survived.) In retaliation, Israel then struck a series of 12 additional sites in Syria, including numerous Syrian anti-aircraft sites, as well as “four Iranian targets that are part of Iran’s military establishment in Syria.
Israel’s air campaign in the Sinai
February 8, 2018
This Update deals with the alleged revelation, reported in the New York Times over the weekend, that Israel has secretly been conducting extensive airstrikes against ISIS-linked Islamic militants in Sinai over the past two years, with the agreement and cooperation of the Egyptian government.
Iranian Protests
January 11, 2018
This Update looks at the implications of current Iranian protests.
We lead with Iranian-American Ray Takeyh’s article “The Islamic Republic of Iran is doomed” in Politico Magazine.
Reactions to Trump’s Jerusalem announcement
December 15, 2017
Following up on our previous Update analysing US President Donald Trump’s announcement that his government was keeping a campaign promise to recognise Jerusalem as Israel’s capital, this Update looks at the reaction to Trump’s announcement, particularly in the Arab world and amongst Palestinians.
