The Middle East is rapidly changing, and in some cases, for the better. One of the themes prevalent around the time of the Abraham Accords was that such was unthinkable just a few years prior. In this week’s Action Update, we start with an even more “once unthinkable” reality in which we presently find ourselves.
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Category: Updates
The Action Update: A Regional Defense Against Iranian Aggression
In last week’s Action Update we promised to elaborate a bit more on what we’re hoping to see from President Biden during his mid-July trip to the Middle East. The trip is important, and a lot of work needs to be done in a short period of time, so this week we’ll only be covering two topics: the President’s trip to the Middle East and a new bipartisan bill aimed at creating a regional security infrastructure to confront Iran.
The Action Update: Iran Targeting Israelis Abroad
The Middle East has a habit of causing one to wake up in the morning and do a double-take as they scroll through the newsfeed on their phones. Unsurprisingly, the worst offender in this and many, many other contexts, is Iran. So, in this week’s Action Update we start with the latest out of Tehran.
The Action Update: Oil, Threats & Hate
Often, it’s hard to keep track of who’s battling who and what alliances have formed in the Middle East. Sometimes it’s as simple as good vs. evil (e.g., Hamas vs. Israel). And sometimes, the age-old concept that ‘my enemy’s enemy is my friend’ applies. Things in the region are rarely easy and never clean, but that’s part of the reason we distribute these weekly missives: to make sense of a messy Middle East. With that in mind, this week we’re going to touch on Turkey, Iran and Iraq.
The Action Update: Freedom Is Not Free
Here at home, on Memorial Day, we exercise the freedoms bequeathed to us by the fallen, while bearing in mind that the debt that enables our backyard barbeques can never be repaid. For the best amongst us, Memorial Day is made more personal by their having witnessed the heroism and sacrifice of the greatest of our fellow citizens.
The Action Update: Rep. Massie Refuses to Condemn Antisemitism
In the past week, we’ve seen: a Republican lawmaker vote against a resolution condemning antisemitism; Iran, once again, threaten revenge for the killing of an Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps (IRGC) leader; and an increasing sense that certain members of the Republican party share more of their foreign policy attitude with The Squad than with the American electorate. So, let’s dive right in.
The Action Update: The Nazis Are Here in the USA
For years, experts in the field from across the political spectrum have been warning about the startling and brutal rise in bigotry across the country. And in recent years, these comments ceased being a warning about what’s to come and have now become expressions of horror concerning what has arrived. It is with the heaviest of hearts that this week, we start here at home, with the hatred-fueled, horrific massacre of ten innocent people in Buffalo, NY.
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The Action Update: Brutal Terror Attacks Against Israelis
The decisions and actions of some in Washington often leave Americans scratching their heads. And this week, we’re going to discuss one of those moments in the context of senators’ attitudes towards Iran. However, before we get into the Potomac oddities, we’ll first dive into the troubling news out of Israel.
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The Action Update: Mossad Foils Iranian Effort to Kill American, Israeli Officials
This week’s Action Update has a little something for everyone. Intrigued by the efforts of Israel’s foreign intelligence service to protect innocent people? We’ve got you covered. Interested in some high-level policy analysis? There’s some of that as well. And of course, want to end on a good note? We do that do. So, without further ado…
The Action Update: Rockets Fired at Israel
We work in politics, so we endeavor to be diplomatic. But there’s no diplomatic way of articulating the current situation: The Biden Administration’s Middle Eastern foreign policy approach is a slow-burning failure. And as you’ll see below, that belief isn’t rooted in one’s party or ideology – no one thinks that Team Biden’s approach to Iran, Hamas, Hezbollah, etc… is working. So, the question is simple: When is the Biden Administration going to get it together? As far as we’re concerned, the longer they wait to right the ship the more likely the risk of a wider conflagration.