Hostage deal rumors
It’s now a week till Trump’s Inauguration Day – which is also Martin Luther King Day, by the way – and once again there are rumors that a hostage deal is nigh. We’ve heard such rumors before. Are they real … Continue reading →
Category Archives: Israel/Palestine
Two excellent and informative videos about Israel’s wars
If you’ve got the time, these two videos are rewarding. I ordinarily listen to these sorts of “talking heads” videos at a faster than normal speed. The first is a Caroline Glick interview on the topic of Lebanon and the … Continue reading →
Trump and the hostages
Recently Trump has reissued his warning to Hamas about the hostages: When pressed by American political commentator Hugh Hewitt on the specific meaning behind his warning, Trump elaborated with characteristic intensity: “If those hostages aren’t released by the time I … Continue reading →
Jimmy Carter dies at 100
I’ll start with RIP, as well as the observation that I voted for him twice. And yet I think he did a lot of harm as president. The harm was not driven by animus towards America, however; it was just … Continue reading →
Hamas won’t give Israel a list of living hostages
You would think it was the very least Hamas could do: provide a list of living hostages who might be freed in any deal with Israel. But apparently even that is too much, according to Hamas: On Wednesday, Israeli officials … Continue reading →
Happy Chanukah, and some reflections
[NOTE: This is a slightly edited version of a previous post.] This is the second night of Chanukah, and I wish everyone a happy one. Chanukah is about a successful revolt and a miracle of light: The miracle of the … Continue reading →
More on those exploding pagers and Hezbollah
One of the goals of the exploding pagers planted by Israel’s Mossad on Hezbollah operatives was to cultivate fear. I think that goal was met. The exploding pagers have seemed like a turning point from more conventional urban warfare against … Continue reading →
Caroline Glick interviews Lee Smith on Trump and Netanyahu and the lawfare against them
I’ve discussed this before, but Lee Smith is on point about it. The parallels are strong:
Continue reading →Is a hostage release plan actually in the works?
It’s been about fourteen and a half months since the Israeli hostages were taken to Gaza. It has been a nightmare for their families and friends, and although there is probably some comfort in the fact that the war has … Continue reading →
Hostage release negotiations – looking up?
Israel may be getting a big Chanukah present – and more than eight of them. There’s room for very cautious optimism: “We are the closest to a hostage deal since the last one,” Defense Minister Israel Katz told the Knesset … Continue reading →
Israel has taken advantage of the chaos in Syria to destroy much of that country’s military capability
Well, that was quick: Within the first 24 hours, air defense systems and numerous fighter jets were neutralized. This allowed 350 Israeli Air Force fighter jets to operate without interference in Syrian airspace, targeting 320 strategic objectives. The targets were … Continue reading →
Syria: Iran’s loss is whose gain?
We certainly don’t know who the ultimate winner in Syria will be. But I think we can safely say a couple of things. The first is that the situation is fraught with peril. The second is that Iran looks like … Continue reading →