Turkey and Israel Ties at Low Ebb, But Could Recover
Turkish president Recep Tayyip Erdoğan has a rocky relationship with Israel and bilateral relations have currently reached a nadir. But Erdoğan pursues a transactional foreign policy in general and, if interests re-align, he could once again restore robust relations with Israel. A long-time supporter of Hamas, Erdoğan bitterly criticized Israel’s 2008 incursion into Gaza that […]
Israel and Greece in the Aftermath of October 7
On September 1, 1982, Palestine Liberation Organization Chairman Yasser Arafat stepped off the Greek cruise liner Atlantis, which had ferried him and some of his inner circle from Beirut to a marina just south of Athens, exiled by Israel’s invasion of Lebanon earlier that year. He was warmly welcomed on the dock by Greek Prime […]
The Empathy Gap
One of the most striking characteristics of the war in Gaza is a severe deficit of empathy. Israelis and Palestinians indicate that they have no emotion left for the other side. The stress would be too unbearable. In addition, each side tends to dehumanize the other, deny the other’s suffering and promise vengeance and violence […]
Israel and the World After October 7 – An Interview with Bernard-Henri Lévy
ParisThere are few men who feel the pain of distant upheavals as acutely as Bernard-Henri Lévy, 75, a French philosopher, filmmaker and public intellectual. Born to a wealthy Sephardic family in French Algeria, he cut his teeth as an international activist in his support for the war of secession against Pakistan by the erstwhile East […]
Protest, Colonization, and the Ukrainian Nation
Many observers of the pro-Gaza/Hamas demonstrations at college campuses throughout the U.S. have been taken aback by the rhetoric and behavior of the protestors and their advocates. Masked faces and widespread refusals to self-identify display the protestors’ reluctance to face real consequences for their actions. What is most troubling, however, is the contention that Israeli […]
No End to National Security Surprises
The surprise was total and horrific—Israeli men, women and children brutally killed or taken hostage by Hamas on October 7, 2023. Israel’s vaunted intelligence services failed to provide adequate warning, its military—the Israeli Defense Forces—failed to provide adequate security, and Israeli political leadership remained cocooned in their comfortable assumptions about risks to Israeli security posed by Palestinians in […]
Assuring Deterrence in the Mediterranean
It is springtime in the Mediterranean, as cruise ships busily make their way from port to port in some of the popular tourist destinations like Lisbon, Naples, the Adriatic Coast, and the Greek Isles. The Med looks peaceful to the people in the lounge chairs of those ships. However, such tranquility is only guaranteed by […]
Video Interview with Fania Oz-Salzberger
JST columnist Ksenia Svetlova interviews Israeli writer and historian Fania Oz-Salzberger about the position of the center-left in Israel today. Oz-Salzberger co-authored the book, Jews and Words, with her late father, the novelist Amos Oz. Read the full transcript below. Note: This transcript is lightly edited. Ksenia Svetlova: I follow you on Twitter and read your […]
Gaza-lighting: <br>How Israel’s Weakest Foe Became its Worst Enemy
Israel’s version of the Pentagon is a twin-towered office complex in HaKirya, the Compound, bordering what used to be the eastern outskirts of Tel Aviv, until 1948 when the city started expanding and flourishing. On the 14th floor of the complex is a corridor connecting the office suites of the two highest ranking officials. These […]
How the War in Gaza Plays Out in Chile’s Domestic Politics
Several left-leaning Latin American governments have criticized Israel for its response to the October 7 attack, including Mexico, Colombia, and Brazi. But Chile’s young president, Gabriel Boric, stands out for consistent harshness, which extends to his view of Chile’s Jewish community. Ethnic Politics in Chile Chile hosts Latin America’s largest Palestinian community, an estimated 400,000 […]
