Turkish Prime Minister Erdogan Praised at White House as He Puts Knife In U.S.’s Back
Consider five factors that had no effect on the very warm reception… [more]
More Violence in Benghazi Shows After-Effects of Scandal
As I’ve noted, Libya is starting to fall apart and… [more]
Who’s More Dangerous: Sunni or Shia Islamists?
There is a passionate, but somewhat academic debate, over the… [more]
Turkish Prime Minister Erdogan Praised at White House as He Puts Knife In U.S.’s Back
By Barry Rubin May 19, 2013
Consider five factors that had no effect on the very warm reception given by President Barack Obama to Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan: –While the U.S. government has pressured Erdogan not to visit the Hamas-ruled Gaza Strip, Erdogan announced in the White House Rose Garden that he would do so. An alleged U.S. ally [...]
More Violence in Benghazi Shows After-Effects of Scandal
By Barry Rubin May 18, 2013
As I’ve noted, Libya is starting to fall apart and the Benghazi scandal cover-up prevented the Obama Administration from taking serious action in regard to that country, including retaliation against the terrorist group that the United States knows was responsible. In the last week, there was a car bomb and four attacks on Libyan military posts in [...]
Erdogan’s Kurdish Gambit
By Jonathan Spyer May 17, 2013
Jerusalem Post, 17/5 On May 8th, fighters of the Kurdish PKK militia began to withdraw from their positions in Turkey, bound for their mountain strongholds in Kurdish-ruled northern Iraq. The decision by the PKK to withdraw is the result of orders issued by jailed movement leader Abdullah Ocalan. The re-energizing of the Turkish-Kurdish ‘peace process’ [...]
Who’s More Dangerous: Sunni or Shia Islamists?
By Barry Rubin May 17, 2013
There is a passionate, but somewhat academic debate, over the following issue: Which is the greater threat, the Sunni Muslim Islamists (Egypt, Tunisia, Gaza Strip, and perhaps soon to be Syria) or the Shia Muslim Islamists (Iran, Lebanon, at the moment still Syria)? I would say the answer would be the Iran-led Shia bloc. But [...]
The Israeli Debate over Syria
By Jonathan Spyer May 16, 2013
Tablet Magazine, 14/5: The civil war in Syria has led to a keen debate among the professional echelon tasked with advising policymakers in Israel. This debate has been reflected in a more subdued public conversation and occasionally in spectacular events—like the bombing of Syrian military sites around Damascus. So, what are the dividing lines [...]
The Ultimate Painting for Understanding Modern Jewish History
By Barry Rubin May 14, 2013
The painting below is Moritz Oppenheim’s “The Return of the Volunteer from the Wars of Liberation to His Family Still Living in Accordance with Old Customs.” It was the painting I wanted to have on the cover of my book, Assimilation and its Discontents, but was overruled by the publisher in favor of a post-modernist monstrosity. [Assimilation and [...]
As Benghazi Scandal Builds, Libya Falls Apart
By Barry Rubin May 13, 2013
Even as the Benghazi scandal is growing in the United States, the situation in Libya is deteriorating further. Ignoring the actual threat of revolutionary Islamist militias—and attributing problems to a video—plus the botching of the investigation of the attack—due to the cover-up–has also led to a mishandling of post-attack U.S. Libya policy. As a result, [...]
Trying to Figure Out Syria: An Interview
By Barry Rubin May 13, 2013
Here’s a program on the Canadian Broadcasting Company interviewing me about Syria and the extremely complicated situations and very difficult options facing intervention into that civil war. But I should add that this debate is largely academic. The United States and Europe aren’t going to intervene in Syria, at least not to do more than send more [...]
If You Think America Should Go to War in Syria You Haven’t Been Paying Attention
By Barry Rubin May 10, 2013
“You should be careful what you wish for, as the reasons for war get confused. One person can be very clear in their motives, but others can have different agendas.” –Dougray Scott I am amazed at the current U.S. debate over Syria. Those urging intervention may be driven by humanitarian good intentions, to end the fighting and [...]
Why the Benghazi Issue is Overwhelmingly Important
By Barry Rubin May 9, 2013
There is something terribly and tragically and importantly symbolic about the Benghazi attack that may be lost in the tidal wave of details about what happened on September 11, 2012, in an incident where four American officials were murdered in a terrorist attack. This point stands at the heart of everything that has happened in [...]
