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Israel Tag

Posted by William A. Jacobson on May 24, 2011 1 Comment

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu spoke at AIPAC last night. It takes a few minutes for him to get into a groove, but it's worth the watch. The speech was interrupted several times by hecklers who were escorted out. The money line comes at the...

Posted by William A. Jacobson on May 23, 2011 10 Comments

Why are the pre-1967 borders of Israel, which amount to the 1949 armistice lines, so sacrosanct?Once you buy into the narrative of exclusive Palestinian victimization, once you take the Helen Thomas view which is widely accepted in many circles that Israel is an alien European...

Posted by William A. Jacobson on May 23, 2011 9 Comments

The disloyalty card is being played by Jeffrey Goldberg (who took great offense to Benjamin Netanyahu's perceived disrespect towards "my President"), Glenn Greenwald (the evil and disloyal Israel Lobby, again) and Andrew Sullivan (the Israeli-influenced media and the crazy Christians, again).Yet these critics who are so quick to run for...

Posted by William A. Jacobson on May 22, 2011 12 Comments

If you needed proof that Obama's Middle East speech was a mistake and simply would embolden Palestinians to pocket the territorial victory, you didn't need to wait long:Palestinian Authority chief negotiator Saeb Erekat on Sunday said that he agreed with US President Barack Obama's assertion that...

Posted by William A. Jacobson on May 21, 2011 14 Comments

Turkey is threatening unspecified intervention if Israel again uses military action to prevent a flotilla, organized in part by Turkish Islamist groups, from reaching Gaza.  Via AFP:Turkey on Saturday warned Israel against another act of bloodshed in international waters after activists announced plans to send a new...

Posted by William A. Jacobson on May 20, 2011 17 Comments

Some people are referring to this as a smackdown, but I don't think so.  Netanyahu made the case which needs to be made, and has been made before (via Uncoverage):The key thing is, Netanyahu did not use the word "expect" because that would have caused...

Posted by William A. Jacobson on May 20, 2011 30 Comments

Jeffrey Goldberg writes a ridiculous article expressing indignation that Bibi Netanyahu used the word "expect" in connection with U.S. policy towards Israel, Dear Mr. Netanyahu, Please Don't Speak to My President That Way:For whatever reason, I tend to react strongly when a foreign leader disrespects...

Posted by William A. Jacobson on May 20, 2011 28 Comments

Why yesterday for Obama to unload the demand that Israel withdraw to the pre-1967 borders, with some negotiated land swaps?  Contrary to what some are claiming, this is a new formulation.  Under the Obama formulation, Israel has a land mass fixed by the 1949 armistice lines,...

Posted by William A. Jacobson on May 19, 2011 35 Comments

That's pretty much the upshot of Obama coming down firmly on the side of the pre-1967 borders being the end result of a peace agreement, plus some land swapping.While some have contended this merely states prior policy, there is an important shift.  Prior policy emphasized the...

Posted by William A. Jacobson on May 19, 2011 38 Comments

Israel's pre-1967 borders had no geographical or military logic.  Those borders simply were the armistice lines after the Arabs failed to drive the Jews into the sea.The border is not defensible, as it leaves the middle of Israel only about 10 miles wide.  One of the reasons...

Posted by William A. Jacobson on May 19, 2011 12 Comments

Barack Obama is going to speak today about the Middle East.It will be a historic speaking.  He will speak to the world.  He will tell us what we are incapable of knowing without him speaking.  Everyone will watch, and listen, because he is going to...

Posted by William A. Jacobson on May 17, 2011 5 Comments

A return to their good old days in 1929 (almost 20 years before the creation of Israel), when they massacred Jews in Hebron and destroyed an 800-year old Jewish community (h/t):Remember, when a Jew now builds in Hebron, it is an "illegitimate" settlement.--------------------------------------------Follow me on...

Posted by William A. Jacobson on May 17, 2011 6 Comments

The PLO was cozy with Saddam Hussein, in a marriage born of hatred of Israel.  When Saddam was overthrown, Palestinians lost not only an important ally, but also experienced a backlash from Iraqis.Palestinians appear to be making the same mistake again, throwing in with the...

Posted by William A. Jacobson on May 16, 2011 2 Comments

Actually, I'd rather watch sausage being made.International humanitarian law, while it sounds nice, often is nothing more than power politics.  Witness Turkey's attempt to manipulate and influence a draft U.N. report on last summer's Gaza flotilla, sponsored in substantial part by Turkish Islamist organizations:The first...

Posted by William A. Jacobson on May 15, 2011 3 Comments

This is not very surprising, in fact it was predicted days ago.The Syrian government, with the encouragement of anti-Israel Palestinian groups, Hezbollah and the Iranians, has sent hundreds of supposed "Palestinian refugess" surging across the Israeli border in the Golan in an attempt to provoke...

Posted by William A. Jacobson on May 12, 2011 2 Comments

As more details have come out about the decision-making process which led to the raid on Osama bin Laden's compount, it is clear that the decision was tantamount to placing a bet.  As Obama acknowledged during his 60 Minutes interview, there was only slightly better...

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