While in #Lebanon, Dimitri Lascaris caught up with Laith Marouf, a #Canadian of #Palestinian#Syrian origin. Marouf has long been an outspoken #defender of the Palestinian cause & a prime target of #Canada's #ZionistLobby#CIJA. During their visit to the Beqaa Valley, Lascaris & Marouf talked about #Zionists' extraordinary efforts to silence Marouf.
We've got a #Czech-focused podcast for you this week. We're discussing what happened when the Wall Street Journal rather patronisingly described Czechia as 'a small ex-Soviet satellite state'. Plus, why the Czech government is so much less scared of China than others in Europe.
#JosephLieberman, the doggedly independent 4-term #US#senator from #Connecticut who was the Democratic nominee for VP in 2000, becoming the first Jewish candidate on the national ticket of a major party, died March 27 in NYC. He was 82.
The cause was complications from a fall, his family said in a statement.
[Foreign Policy Live Podcast]: Is the World Prepared for More Terrorism?
Counterterrorism analyst and regular FP contributor Colin P. Clarke shares his insights with Ravi Agrawal. Clarke also serves as a senior research fellow at the Soufan Center.
During #Biden’s speech on #healthcare yesterday he was interrupted by protesters advocating for #Palestinians in #Gaza. Instead of ignoring them & moving on, #POTUS responded, “They have a point; we need to get more care into Gaza.” He added, “Everybody deserves healthcare.”
Remarks by #Gallant & #LloydAustin before the meeting underscored the divide. While both noted their countries’ commitment to #Israel’s #security, Gallant emphasized what he said was the urgent need to destroy #Hamas, secure the release of Israeli #hostages & “ensure Israel’s military edge & capabilities.”
#LloydAustin focused on the dire consequences the #war has had for #Palestinian#civilians. “The number of civilian casualties is far too high, & the amount of #HumanitarianAid is far too low,” he said. The safety of #Palestinians in #Rafah, where >1 million people are holed up, was a “top priority,” he added.
#Palestine / If Biden Wants Israeli-Palestinian Peace, He Must Break With the Past (Prof Avi Shlaim, December 22, 2020)
Shlaim argued back in 2020 that only by breaking from past failed policies of coddling Israel can #Biden capitalize on new regional dynamics to make meaningful progress toward a two-state solution.
Shlaim suggested that the traditional U.S. approach of unconditional support for Israel, while posing as an "honest broker" in peace negotiations, has been incoherent and self-defeating. The Oslo peace too was a charade that allowed Israel to continue expanding settlements while paying lip service to a two-state solution that became increasingly untenable.
#Palestine / If Biden Wants Israeli-Palestinian Peace, He Must Break With the Past (Prof Avi Shlaim, December 22, 2020)
Shlaim argued back in 2020 that only by breaking from past failed policies of coddling Israel can #Biden capitalize on new regional dynamics to make meaningful progress toward a two-state solution.
Shlaim suggested that the traditional U.S. approach of unconditional support for Israel, while posing as an "honest broker" in peace negotiations, has been incoherent and self-defeating. The Oslo peace too was a charade that allowed Israel to continue expanding settlements while paying lip service to a two-state solution that became increasingly untenable.
Each [of the 7] was given an initial 45 days for a snr ofcl to provide “credible & reliable written assurances” that it will use #UnitedStates defense material in accordance w/ #InternationalHumanitarianLaw & other laws.
The #LawOfWar imposes specific requirements on #targeting, protection of #civilians & treatment of #POWs.
The top U.S. #intelligence ofcl on Mon warned that the #war in #Gaza could embolden #terrorist groups, which are aligned in their opposition to the #UnitedStates for its support of #Israel.
“The crisis has galvanized #violence by a range of actors around the world. And while it is too early to tell, it is likely that the Gaza conflict will have a generational impact on #terrorism,” #ODNI#AvrilHaines, told an annual hearing on #GlobalSecurity#threats.
Many veterans of the #Trump admin have a similar warning for #Ukraine as it battles #Russia’s invasion. “US support for Ukraine would end,” said a snr US official who served under Trump & #Biden.
“The point is, he saw absolutely no point in #NATO,” Kelly said. “He was just dead set against having troops in #SouthKorea, again, a deterrent force, or having troops in #Japan, a #deterrent force.”
The US ambassador to Singapore was recently the subject of a report about his various shortcomings in running the embassy.
A Singapore foreign policy hawk (Bilahari Kausikan, known for his acerbic wit) said of Kaplan: “He is not–in my opinion at least–the worst political appointee the US has sent to us”
AHAHAHHAA
(Kaplan's main claim to fame is his founding of a mediocre SF grilled cheese restaurant, The Melt. And the Flip camera)
#Trump Says Little on #Gaza, & Nothing About What He’d Do Differently
In the ~5 months since #Hamas invaded #Israel on #Oct7, igniting the most divisive #ForeignPolicy crisis of #Biden’s presidency, Trump has said noticeably little about the subj.
“So you have a war that’s going on, & you’re probably going to have to let this play out. You’re probably going to have to let it play out, because a lot of people are dying,” #Trump said in an interview w/Univision a month after the attack. His main advice to #Netanyahu & the #Israelis …was to do a better job w/ “public relations,” because the #Palestinians were “beating them at the public relations front.”
#Trump’s hands-off approach to the bloody #MiddleEast conflict reflects the profound #AntiInterventionist [#isolationist] shift he has brought about in the #Republican Party over the past 8 yrs & has been colored by his feelings about #Netanyahu, whom he may never forgive for congratulating President #Biden for his 2020 victory.