The serious terror-funding allegations against the World Vision head in Gaza
August 5, 2016 | Jamie Hyams
Israeli authorities announced on August 4 that they had arrested Mohammed El-Halabi, the manager of operations in the Gaza branch of the international charity World Vision on suspicion of using his position to funnel millions of dollars to the terrorist organisation Hamas.
Qatar aid to Hamas/ PA losing West Bank control
August 4, 2016
This Update discusses the recent provision by Qatar of US$31 million to pay the salaries of civil servants in Hamas-controlled Gaza – and what it reveals about the reality of the situation in Gaza. It also includes the key findings of a new study indicating the Palestinian Authority (PA) appears to be losing control over the key cities of the West Bank.
Media Week – Clark in the dark; Terror vision; Blue news
July 29, 2016 | Allon Lee
Reflecting on the challenges posed by Islamist terror and radicalisation, Australian Financial Review (July 16) senior writer Andrew Clark said that “existing laws which prohibit Australians from fighting for non-aligned military forces – whether Islamic State, Hezbollah, the Kurdish Peshmerga, or the Israeli Army – must be enforced more tightly.”
Europe faces an Islamist terror wave
July 29, 2016
This Update analyses Europe’s efforts to deal with the wave of near daily murderous attacks over recent weeks – especially since the July 14 Nice attack – when a truck driver killed 84 people in Nice by driving into crowds celebrating France’s national day, up until the murder of an 84-year-old priest, Fr Jacques Hamel, inside his church near Rouen on Tuesday (the several attacks in between are noted in this timeline).
Media Week – A capital conspiracy; Vehicular man (and woman) slaughter
July 22, 2016 | Allon Lee
The Chilcot Inquiry into the former Blair Government’s decision to sign up to the Second Iraq War never mentioned Israel as one of the reasons for going to war. Yet the Canberra Times (July 8) apparently knows better, claiming in an editorial the real reason Iraq was invaded had “more to do with protecting Israel’s interests than in shutting down Saddam’s so-called terrorist links or preventing him from manufacturing crude weapons of mass destruction.”
This is a dangerously deluded conspiracy theory.
Exclusive: Settlement ‘expansion’ fails to even match natural growth
July 21, 2016 | Ahron Shapiro
Since Israeli Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu took office in 2009, on average, demand for housing in settlements for natural growth has exceeded supply of new housing.
The aftermath of Turkey’s failed coup
July 20, 2016
This Update deals with analysis of what happens now with Turkey – both domestically and in terms of its foreign relations – in the aftermath of the failed coup attempt on Friday. (A good general summary and backgrounder on the coup and its aftermath comes from American scholar Michael Rubin.)
US Political Party Platforms Shift on Israel
July 15, 2016 | Aaron Torop
Every four years when the Democratic and Republican parties officially nominate their candidates for president, they also amend their platforms, the official party position on a wide range of issues. Even though the platforms are non-binding and do not directly affect US foreign policy, they do express the overall beliefs and goals of each party.
The Iran nuclear deal (JCPOA) after one year
July 15, 2016
One year ago this week, the Iran nuclear deal known as the JCPOA (Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action) was signed in Vienna. With all that has happened over the past year, much analysis is being written about the realities and implementation of various aspects of the agreement. This Update features just a few examples.
Egyptian FM in landmark visit to Israel/ Palestinian incentives for killing Jews
July 14, 2016
This weekend saw a visit to Israel by Egyptian Foreign Minister Sameh Shoukry. That may not ostensibly seem surprising given that Israel and Egypt have had full diplomatic relations for almost four decades, but in fact was a highly unusual step – the first such visit in nine years. As such it was a sign of the changing strategic environment and warming security ties between Jerusalem and Cairo – as the pieces in this Update discuss.
