Three Scenarios in the Gaza War
Today seems to be the day for presenting three scenarios. Tony Karon, writing at Time.com, presents three scenarios under which the Gaza War might end. The first scenario is regime change in Gaza: Given Israel's long-term goal of ousting Hamas in Gaza, some key military and political leaders have urged that it expand the goals of its current operation, and use ...Posted in Outside The Beltway on January 16, 2009 12:48
True North
From the Toronto Star: OTTAWA–Canada stood alone before a United Nations human rights council yesterday, the only one among 47 nations to oppose a motion condemning the Israeli military offensive in Gaza. The vote before the Geneva-based body shows the Stephen Harper government has abandoned a more even-handed approach to the Middle East in favour of unalloyed support of Israel, according to ...Posted in Outside The Beltway on January 14, 2009 11:39
Tactics and Strategy in Gaza
Very nearly since the beginning of the hostilities between Israel and Hamas that flared up two weeks ago and are ongoing critics have been saying that, not unlike the Israel-Hezbollah War in 2006, Israel was fighting towards a tactical victory and a strategic loss in Gaza. In a short piece for the Center for Strategic and International Studies, the ...Posted in Outside The Beltway on January 11, 2009 14:48
Hamas’ War Crimes
In a short New Atlanticist piece on "Hamas' War Crimes," I remind people that, while Israel isn't the only party in the ongoing conflict in Gaza whose conduct deserves scrutiny. By flouting rules designed to protect noncombatants from the ravages of war, they themselves are making it more probable that their own people will be killed. From their perspective, that's ...Posted in Outside The Beltway on January 11, 2009 08:07
Hamas Is Not An Iranian Proxy
Ever since the Israeli attacks on Gaza began, some of the more hawkish elements among the punditry, such as Robert Kagan, have been claiming that Israel is not attacking Hamas so much as it is attacking Iran. Kagan states:Israel has just embarked on a land invasion of the Gaza Strip after a week of aerial bombing. Gaza is bordered ...Posted in Outside The Beltway on January 7, 2009 10:52
Israeli Ground Forces Move Into Gaza
As no doubt everyone knows by now, the IDF has moved tanks and troops into Gaza to attack Hamas directly.Israeli tanks and troops launched a ground offensive in the Gaza Strip Saturday night with officials saying they expected a lengthy fight with Hamas militants in the densely populated territory after eight days of punishing airstrikes failed to halt rocket attacks ...Posted in Outside The Beltway on January 4, 2009 00:36
No, This Isn’t the Crisis
In the comments thread to James's post about the recent Israeli offensive against Hamas in Gaza, a commenter wondered if that were the crisis that VP-Elect Joe Biden warned about. No, it isn't. Foreign policy has a way of overwhelming most American presidencies. Our constitution is written that way and Barack Obama's presidency is very unlikely to escape ...Posted in Outside The Beltway on December 28, 2008 14:02
Israel Attacks Hamas in Gaza
[caption id="attachment_29276" align="alignright" width="300" caption="Smoke rises over the main Hamas security complex following an Israel air strike in Gaza December 28, 2008. Israel launched air strikes on Gaza for a second successive day on Sunday, piling pressure on Hamas after 229 people were killed in one of the bloodiest 24 hours for Palestinians in 60 years of conflict with the ...Posted in Outside The Beltway on December 28, 2008 08:30
Pulling Out: Debating Middle East Disengagement (Affirmative)
On January 23, 1980 President Jimmy Carter enunciated what became known as the Carter Doctrine. He stated, "An attempt by any outside force to gain control of the Persian Gulf region will be regarded as an assault on the vital interests of the United States of America, and such an assault will be repelled by any means necessary, including ...Posted in Outside The Beltway on December 15, 2008 12:52
Mahdi Army Transforming into Salvation Army?
The Mahdi Army might soon be the Iraqi equivalent of the Salvation Army, Gina Chon reports for the Wall Street Journal. Anti-American cleric Muqtada al-Sadr -- long a thorn in the side of the U.S. military and Iraqi government -- intends to disarm his once-dominant Mahdi Army militia and remake it as a social-services organization. The transformation would represent a significant turnabout ...Posted in Outside The Beltway on August 5, 2008 12:14
Fulbright Scholarships Restored for Gaza Students
A bureaucratic SNAFU almost cost seven Palestinian students their ability to study abroad on prestigious Fulbright scholarships. The U.S. has reinstated the Fulbright scholarships of seven Gaza Strip students blocked by Israel from leaving the Hamas-ruled territory, the State Department said Monday. The students were informed Thursday that their scholarships for the upcoming academic year would be deferred because ...Posted in Outside The Beltway on June 2, 2008 14:35
Rachael Ray, Donut Terrorist
Dunkin' Donuts has pulled an ad spot featuring Rachael Ray wearing a scarf around her neck because some thought it was a subtle nod of support to Palestinians. Does Dunkin’ Donuts really think its customers could mistake Rachael Ray for a terrorist sympathizer? The Canton-based company has abruptly canceled an ad in which the domestic diva wears a scarf that ...Posted in Outside The Beltway on May 28, 2008 07:51
More Allegations in Olmert Corruption Case
Prosecutors in Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert's ongoing corrpution case have added taking cash bribes from a U.S. businessman to Olmert's ever-expanding list of allegations:State Prosecutor Moshe Lador, speaking at a Supreme Court hearing, said investigators suspected New York businessman Morris Talansky had given Olmert "dollars, in cash and in envelopes, during brief meetings from time to time". Olmert's attorneys were ...Posted in Outside The Beltway on May 19, 2008 13:58
McCain’s Hamas ‘Hypocrisy’
Jamie Rubin, formerly Bill Clinton's State Department spokesman, takes to the pages of the Washington Post to call out John McCain for hypocrisy in claiming that Barack Obama wants to "appease" Hamas. Riffing on John Kerry's famous gaffe, the piece is subtitled, "McCain Was for Talking Before He Was Against It." McCain is the last politician who should be ...Posted in Outside The Beltway on May 16, 2008 08:49
“Hamas’ Worst Nightmare”
Sean Hackbarth reports on a recent weblogger conference with John McCain. I don't know if my colleague James participated in this one, though I know that he has in the past. What Hackbarth highlighted from the conference, and no doubt everyone else will, too, is this:Jennifer Rubin asked if Obama has given an unhelpful signal to Hamas? McCain ...Posted in Outside The Beltway on April 25, 2008 13:13
