December 4, 2012

In-depth

The End of the Forty-Year Peace Between Israel and Arab States

Writing in the New Republic, Robert Satloff warns that the U.S. must act to safeguard the four-decade state of non-war between Israel and its neighboring nations.

Don’t blame yourself if you didn’t realize that the Middle East has enjoyed four decades of peace. But that is precisely what has transpired between Israel and Arab states since the Yom Kippur War of 1973. In its first twenty-five years of independence, Israel was characterized by multi-state war with intermittent bouts of unsuccessful diplomacy. Six Arab armies invaded Israel in 1948; Israel fought four Arab armies in June 1967; twelve Arab armies participated in the 1973 war. In the forty years since, Israel has fought no wars against an Arab state, and its history has been characterized by frequently successful diplomacy with intermittent bouts of terrorism and asymmetric war against non-state actors. 

 

Israeli-German Relations Strained after Abstention

Merkel has become exasperated by what she sees as Netanyahu's reluctance to compromise, says Ralf Neukirch of Der Spiegel. 

Germany's stance on this issue shows just how deeply frustrated its government is with the Netanyahu government's policies. The UN vote was a defeat for Israel. In the end, 138 of the 193 UN member states supported the Palestinians' petition, including France and 13 other European Union member states. Germany's abstention weighed particularly heavy because it meant that Canada and the United States were the only major Western nations to vote on Israeli's side.

Israel Asked Jordan for Approval to Bomb Syrian WMD Sites

Israel is concerned over the fallout for Amman in the wake of an attack in Syria, writes Jeffrey Goldberg in the Atlantic. 

The U.S. is not the only country worried about the possible use of chemical weapons. Intelligence officials in two countries told me recently that the Israeli government has twice come to the Jordanian government with a plan to take out many of Syria's chemical weapons sites. According to these two officials, Israel has been seeking Jordan's “permission” to bomb these sites, but the Jordanians have so far declined to grant such permission.

Daily Digest

• Times of Israel: Hamas official: Mashaal to retire by end of the month
• Haaretz: Tension mounts in East Jerusalem as Israel prepares settlement construction
• Jerusalem Post: Netanyahu refuses to rescind settlement decision
• Ynet: Sources: US behind European protests over settlements
• New York Times: Mr. Netanyahu’s Strategic Mistake
• Washington Post: Obama warns Syria amid rising concern over chemical weapons
• Wall Street Journal: Al Qaeda comeback in Iraq and Jordan

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