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: War and Peace
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 →
Another F-you from the departing Biden administration
It worked so very well for Obama: When President Barack Obama released five Taliban commanders from the Guantanamo Bay prison in exchange for an American deserter in 2014, he assured a wary public that the dangerous enemy combatants would be … 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 →
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 →
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 →
Caroline Glick on what’s going on in Syria
No one really knows what will happen now in Syria. The Assad family has been in charge for over a half century, and now they’re gone. Some of the forces – maybe all of the forces? – vying for post-Assad … Continue reading →
Struggle for power in Syria
There are no good guys among the factions vying for power in Syria. Here’s the situation at present, as best we can tell: Syrian leader Bashar al-Assad is nowhere to be found in Damascus, according to a source, but Syria’s … Continue reading →
Pearl Harbor Day
[NOTE: This is a revised and expanded edition of a post first published in 2006.] Eighty-three years ago today Pearl Harbor was attacked. That’s long enough ago that only a vanishing few remember the day and its aftermath with any … Continue reading →
Body of hostage is recovered by the IDF
The body of hostage Ivay Svirsky has been found by the IDF. Svirsky was abducted alive on Oct 7, 2023, but was killed about four months later and it has been known for quite some time that he was dead: … Continue reading →