Worldcrunch
The Israeli army has imposed itself as the most powerful in the region in the wars waged since Oct. 7. But this military hegemony does not come with any political solution: This is Netanyahu’s weakness at a time when Trump is visiting the wealthy princes of the Gulf.
Donald Trump surprised everyone by meeting Ahmed al-Sharaa, the Syrian president, a former jihadist. It’s all about Trump’s gut and what Saudi Crown Prince MBS has planned for the region’s future.
The West’s treatment of Pro-Palestinian protesters has shattered the image of democracies as bastions of free expression. But the West’s contradictions hold lessons for the Arab world.
U.S. President Donald Trump is on a Gulf tour that is adding to Israel’s worries about its strongest ally: the U.S. has negotiated the release of an American hostage with Hamas, and a ceasefire with the Houthis, without involving Israel.
As Spain prepares to mark the 50th anniversary of dictator Francisco Franco’s death and the return of democracy, fascism is returning around the world. It’s proof, as philosopher Walter Benjamin said, that nothing that has once happened should be considered lost to history.
The defeat inflicted on Hezbollah and the weakening of the pro-Iranian axis has shifted the power balance toward Israel, which is continuing its offensive with a ground incursion into southern Lebanon, and dreams of building a “new Middle East.” But we’ve seen this playbook before.
Almost 10 months after the Oct. 7 attack, the Middle East appears to be on the verge of a second act of tragedy. This new escalation of the conflict could result in regional war on a massive scale.
Mediation efforts are ongoing to halt the escalation between Israel and Lebanon’s Hezbollah, which could degenerate into all-out war at any moment. But diplomacy seems powerless in the face of the logic of war.
By sanctioning violent settlers in the West Bank, U.S. President Biden aims to reassure voters unhappy with his support for Israel, and to push Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu to accept a ceasefire agreement.
Israel’s judicial reforms by its far-right government have been met by widespread protests. Now the country risks breaking long-formed bonds with key allies in the West.
The current spiral in the Middle East is a stinging reminder for the world, and particularly the United States under Joe Biden, that the violence will always return.
TEL AVIV — When the coalition agreement is signed and the next Israeli government is officially formed as expected next month, it will have exactly 107 days to pass the state budget that will chart the country’s economic course. So even while the rest of the world may focus on the profiles of the incoming […]