Fox news analyst David Asman asked a provocative question in a recent blog post: Is President Obama funding terrorism by offering to provide $400 million of humanitarian aid to Hamas-controlled Gaza? The President made the offer in a meeting last week with Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas, who lost authority in Gaza after a bloody Hamas coup in 2007. The aid package is aimed at improving living conditions in Gaza and strengthening the Palestinian Authority, which is open to negotiations with Israel, relative to Hamas, which refuses to recognize the …
The US Government looked on in shock this week when Turkey defied its traditional allies including the United States and Israel, and voted against UN sanctions for Iran. Ankara had already tried to stall a fourth round of sanctions by negotiating a flawed nuclear deal with the atomic ayatollahs. U.S. defense secretary Robert Gates has said that Turkey’s strategic drift away from the West is due, in part, to the European Union’s reluctance to accept them into the alliance. Turkey has been a key NATO ally since the ‘50s, and …
As the U.N. Security Council finally prepares to vote on the long-awaited Iran sanctions resolution, Tehran has escalated its efforts to undermine sanctions efforts. President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad warned today that if a fourth round of sanctions is imposed, Iran will drop its nuclear fuel swap deal with Brazil and Turkey and rule out future talks on the nuclear issue. Ahmadinejad whined: “I have said that the US government and its allies are mistaken if they think they can brandish the stick of resolution and then sit down to talk with …
Turkey may no longer be the friend the United States once knew. The Washington Post reports that thousands gathered in Istanbul on Saturday, shouting “Damn Israel!” in protest of the clash between Israeli forces and “peace activists” on a Turkish-flagged ship. The protest, together with dangerous shifts in Turkey’s foreign policy and inflammatory rhetoric from its prime minister, lead to questions about the country’s posture toward the West. The Washington Post reports: The incident occurred as Turkey has been strengthening ties with Muslim governments in the region — becoming more …
The storyline of the Gaza embargo has been written by now, defined by the Turkish so-called “peace activists,” clearly a misnomer if ever there was one. But misnomers and public relations is in large part what the convoy and the attempt to break the Israeli embargo was all about. In terms of information warfare, the activists have won so far, hands-down. Israel needs to do all it can to capture the information offensive. This can be done in several ways if only the media would be responsible enough to listen: …
The international hullabaloo over the tragic deaths provoked by violent “peace activists” seeking to undermine the Israeli arms blockade on Gaza has set back efforts to contain and neutralize the threats posed by the Palestinian Islamist terrorist group Hamas and its chief foreign bankroller, Iran. The United Nations Security Council, which was focused on intense negotiations over imposing another round of sanctions on Iran due to its nuclear defiance, now has been diverted to focus on Israel’s alleged transgressions against anti-Israel activists who clearly were spoiling for a fight. Politico’s …
A motley crew of Turkish Islamists, European leftists and Israeli Arab leaders yesterday succeeded in provoking a bloody clash with Israeli forces that were enforcing an arms embargo against Hamas terrorists in Gaza. Six ships with more than 600 “peace activists” left Cyprus bound for Gaza but were intercepted by the Israeli Navy and special forces commandos before they could land in Gaza. The first five ships complied with Israeli forces, but the passengers aboard the sixth vessel, the Mavi Marmara, attacked Israeli commandos with steel poles, knives and pepper …
Early Monday morning in the international waters of the Mediterranean Sea, helicopters lowered Israeli Commandos onto a Turkish-flagged ferry carrying 600 passengers determined to break Israel’s blockade of Gaza. Beset by activists armed with poles, knives and guns, the Israelis defended themselves, and the resulting violence left at least nine dead. Hours later, the International Atomic Energy Agency released a report claiming that Iran now has enough nuclear fuel, with further enrichment, to make two nuclear weapons. These two stories are not unrelated. And they ought to serve as a …
The Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development, a group often seen as an exclusive club of rich countries, voted unanimously on Monday to admit Israel. The admittance of Israel, along with two other new members (EU members Estonia and Slovenia) brings OECD membership to 34 countries. OECD membership rewards the many efforts by the three to reform their economies, including in such areas as combating corruption, protecting intellectual property rights and ensuring high standards of corporate governance. Those areas are also important factors used by The Heritage Foundation and The …
The Obama administration has stumbled into a nasty spat with Israel that is based on incompatible views of how best to advance prospects for peace between Israel and its Arab neighbors. For President Barack Obama, peace is best achieved through patiently engaging adversaries, assuring them that their dignity will be respected, educating them on how best to recognize and advance mutual interests, and promoting negotiations to encourage compromise on every issue. For Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, who has seen several peace negotiations collapse with disastrous consequences, peace must be …
