July 23, 2020

Written in Gratitude, on the 70th Anniversary of the D-Day Landings of 1944.

Soldiers under fire on Queen sector of Sword Beach

A few years after I made aliyah, my parents sold the house that my sister and I had grown up in and moved to a sheltered housing facility for elderly people in north London. My mum and dad are warm and friendly people and they soon made friends with many of the other couples on the estate. Among these were a family by the name of Lamb – Ken Lamb and his wife Meeda. Ken Lamb was Devon-born, and Meeda was Welsh. Ken had worked for many years in the construction trade in London, and he and my … [Read more...]

Why Modern Society Is No Longer Better than Traditional Society

Monument to General Sir Charles James Napier in Trafalgar Square, London.

Times have changed, And we’ve often rewound the clock, Since the Puritans got a shock, When they landed on Plymouth Rock. If today, Any shock they should try to stem, ‘Stead of landing on Plymouth Rock, Plymouth Rock would land on them. In olden days a glimpse of stocking Was looked on as something shocking, But now, God knows, Anything Goes. –Cole Porter The first thing is that everything in the Middle East has changed. And so has the U.S. relationship with it. Why does … [Read more...]

Coming Soon: Nazis, Islamists, and the Making of the Modern Middle East

Nazis, Islamists, and the Making of the Modern Middle East

"This book is a model of original research and the ultimate scholarly study of German Arab and German Muslim cooperation during the first half of the twentieth century, covering both World Wars. It is a major contribution in the field, a magnum opus."-Jacob M. Landau, Hebrew University of Jerusalem "This book presents an abundance of previously un  or under examined material. It is most impressive and greatly advances our knowledge."-Jeffrey Herf, University of Maryland "In this hugely … [Read more...]

Nazis, Islamists, and the Making of the Modern Middle East

Nazis, Islamists, and the Making of the Modern Middle East

During the 1930s and 1940s, a unique and lasting political alliance was forged among Third Reich leaders, Arab nationalists, and Muslim religious authorities. From this relationship sprang a series of dramatic events that, despite their profound impact on the course of World War II, remained  secret until now. In this groundbreaking book, esteemed Middle East scholars Barry Rubin and Wolfgang G. Schwanitz uncover for the first time the complete story of this dangerous alliance and explore its … [Read more...]

Startling Parallels: Obama Appeasement Policy and British Intelligence Files on Hitler

barry-rubin

Last week, President Barack Obama proposed a policy of allying with the Muslim Brotherhood, the Salafists, and al-Qaeda against Syria.What is amazing about Islamism parallels the debate on appeasing--rather than opposing--Hitler based on newly released British intelligence documents.One of the themes then, as now, was to give everyone the benefit of the doubt, no matter what a violent and threatening past he had. Ideology is ignored.The day after Hitler took power, on January 30, 1933, … [Read more...]

New GLORIA Free Books Project: 13 books available for free download

barry-rubin

    As part of the GLORIA Center’s Free Books project, we have published 13 of my books on our site, free and full-text to be read online or easily downloaded. The books are available in HTML and PDF and will soon be available for download in all other formats. We encourage you to share this information with others. If you wish to make a tax-deductible contribution (in the United States, UK, or Israel) to help support this project and other GLORIA activities, please … [Read more...]

The True Perpetrators of The Antisemitic Attacks in Toulouse and Throughout the World

barry-rubin

What a tragic, evil joke. A drive-by shooter in the beautiful, almost magical, city of Toulouse, France, murders three Jewish children and a teacher in front of their school. Various VIPs issue statements about how terrible is this deed, how unspeakable. And yet at that very moment, the next round of murders, the next slanderous and inciting antisemitic lies are being perpetrated by respectable people and institutions. There is no real soul-searching, no true effort to do better, no serious … [Read more...]

Europe and the Palestinians: What’s the Difference Between Ordinary insanity and Middle East Policy Insanity?

barry-rubin

    What is the definition of insanity? Repeating the same behavior and expecting different results. What is the definition of Middle East policy insanity? Intensifying the same behavior that has already failed and expecting a better result. Example: After 60 years of failure by radical Arab nationalism being intransigent, warring on the West, trying to destroy Israel, and seeking to create a utopian Arab society that turns into a ightmare, we are about to get six decades … [Read more...]

Why Did Sarkozy and Obama ‘Dis’ [Disrespect] Bibi?

barry-rubin

During a conversation when they thought nobody was listening French President Nicolas Sarkozy and U.S. President Barack Obama said nasty things about Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. A lot of the analysis about what this tells us I think is rather misleading. Regarding Sarkozy, French-Israel relations have been good and there have not been major problems with Sarkozy. On one hand, Sarkozy has been far friendlier to Israel than his Gaullist and Socialist predecessors. True, he is … [Read more...]

A Case Study From Norway: It is Forbidden to Discuss How Political Enablers of Terrorist Groups Unintentionally Encourage Terrorism Without Being Labelled A Terrorist

barry-rubin

“I do not understand Norway’s position, and I say that as a friend of Norway. If they shoot, if they fire rockets, why doesn’t Norway believe that they are terrorists? What else do they need to do? Let us not forget that Norway and the other Scandinavian countries called in Yasir Arafat and said: `Iif you want a deal, you must first renounce terrorism. You must recognize the state of Israel, and you must commit yourself to peace.’ Why is all this forgotten? What is the difference between … [Read more...]