Copyright 2013 Jewish Policy Center Wed, 22 May 2013 20:10:01 -0400 http://blogs.law.harvard.edu/tech/rss Jewish Policy Center :: Writings http://www.jewishpolicycenter.org mbrodsky@sitedomain (Jewish Policy Center) webmaster@sitedomain en-us http://www.jewishpolicycenter.org/blog/2013/05/jihadis-kidnap-seven-egyptian-security-personnel-in-sinai Wed, 22 May 2013 11:09:00 EST Militants abducted seven members of the Egyptian security forces at gunpoint last Thursday in the Sinai peninsula. The Egyptian government sent more military personnel to the area which holds a history of attacks targeting security forces. Local sources s http://www.jewishpolicycenter.org/blog/2013/05/conservative-former-pm-wins-in-pakistan-election Tue, 21 May 2013 15:33:00 EST Nawaz Sharif, the deposed former prime minister and conservative politician set to take over as Pakistan's next civilian leader, met with army leader General Ashfaq Kayani for three hours on Saturday. Representatives of Sharif's political party, the Pakis http://www.jewishpolicycenter.org/4300/tension-on-the-syrian-israeli-border Tue, 21 May 2013 09:00:00 EST Matthew RJ Brodsky appears on CCTV News where he describes Hezbollah's growing role in the Syrian civil war and Israel's rationale for preventing the transfer of more sophisticated weapons to the terrorist group. He explains how Russia and Iran continue to be the Assad regime's chief weapons supplier with Hezbollah being the regime's main provider of manpower. It is in Iran's interest to make sure that as many high-quality surface-to-surface and surface-to-air missiles are in Hezbollah's possession if Assad falls from power. He goes on to say that the Geneva 2 conference to be held in June under U.S. and Russian sponsorship represents a rolling back of America's previously articulated foreign policy that stated Assad must "step aside" and that the conference is unlikely to end the conflict. http://www.jewishpolicycenter.org/4286/russia-playing-a-losing-hand-like-a-winner Tue, 21 May 2013 09:00:00 EST Russia has the worst of red lines: like King Cnut, Putin is trying to stop the tide of Sunni-Shiite fighting within the borders of Syria, where he plans to control the outcome. In 1982, Hafez Assad killed perhaps 40,000 Syrians in Hama in an attempt to bury the Muslim Brotherhood. But the Brotherhood emerged like cicadas 30 years later. How many remain in Chechnya, Dagestan, and Ossetia, waiting for an opportunity to rise? http://www.jewishpolicycenter.org/blog/2013/05/rafsanjani-challenges-conservatives-for-iran-presidency Tue, 14 May 2013 15:31:00 EST Former President Ali Akbar Hashemi Rafsanjani registered to compete in Iran's upcoming presidential race on Saturday. The well-known 78-year-old former president is viewed as a relative moderate and could pose a challenge to the religious establishment's http://www.jewishpolicycenter.org/blog/2013/05/syrian-rebels-release-un-peacekeepers-in-golan-heights Mon, 13 May 2013 13:54:56 EST A Syrian rebel group, Yarmouk Martyrs Brigade, released four U.N. peacekeepers Sunday. The Filipino soldiers were abducted last Tuesday in the Golan Heights. The freed peacekeepers appeared to be unharmed as they passed through the Israeli checkpoint of B http://www.jewishpolicycenter.org/4255/more-than-a-matter-of-words Mon, 13 May 2013 09:00:00 EST The recent Israeli airstrikes outside of Damascus have refocused the United States' attention on the Syrian civil war. In the wake of the attacks, the phrases – "red line," "game-changer," and "enormous consequences" – have permeated the lexicon of the conflict, with each resonating differently in Washington and Jerusalem. "I've stated repeatedly, publicly that red line, and that is we're not going to accept Iran having a nuclear weapon," President Obama said in a September 2012 interview with Telemundo. "I've been very clear about my position." But the administration has long suffered from mixed messaging on Iran; Syria is merely the latest example. It augurs poorly for security guarantees Team Obama offers Israel at a time when Israel requires a steadfast ally in America. http://www.jewishpolicycenter.org/4251/mistaking-cause-and-effect-in-syria Fri, 10 May 2013 09:00:00 EST Russia's President Vladimir Putin called Prime Minister Netanyahu during Mr. Netanyahu's visit to China, surely a diplomatic oddity.  (Chinese Premier Li Kegiang answers the hotline in Beijing and says, "Oh, sure. Hey, Bibi, it's for you.")  President Oba http://www.jewishpolicycenter.org/blog/2013/05/morsi-reshuffles-cabinet-in-egypt Thu, 9 May 2013 16:23:00 EST Egyptian President Mohamed Morsi appointed nine new ministers in a cabinet reshuffle, increasing the power of Islamists in his government. He promised the new cabinet would make solving the country's economic difficulties a top priority and called on Egyp http://www.jewishpolicycenter.org/blog/2013/05/iranians-jailed-for-terror-plot-in-kenya Wed, 8 May 2013 10:46:00 EST A Kenyan court sentenced two Iranians to life in prison on Monday for planning attacks on Western targets. According to the prosecutor, Ahmad Mohammed and Sayed Mousavi designed "acts intended to cause grievous harm" in Nairobi and Mombasa. Kenyan authori http://www.jewishpolicycenter.org/4247/israel-game-changer-with-hezbollah Wed, 8 May 2013 09:00:00 EST Israel's recent airstrikes in Syria reflect its understanding of the new reality in the Middle East. For more than a decade, Israel watched as massive arms shipments passed from Iran and Syria to Hezbollah in Lebanon. Their complaints went unheeded by the international community — and the unstated rules were that Israel could not launch a pre-emptive strike despite the mountain of evidence it had gathered. Israel's actions in Syria are not just about preventing the transfer of game-changing weapons — they are about changing the rules of the game in how it engages with Hezbollah and Syria. Moreover, the strikes represent an eye toward a confrontation with Iran over its nuclear program in which Tehran may look to use Hezbollah as a tool in its arsenal. http://www.jewishpolicycenter.org/blog/2013/05/neo-nazi-begins-trial-in-germany Tue, 7 May 2013 13:22:00 EST The only surviving member of the neo-Nazi group, National Socialist Underground (NSU), Beate Zschäpe, appeared in a Munich court Monday. Accused of targeting Mediterranean immigrants, the NSU's actions show that racism may be deeper and more widespread in http://www.jewishpolicycenter.org/4230/the-fourth-great-war Mon, 6 May 2013 09:00:00 EST The administration's policy on Syria has been a series of visceral reactions to graphic events and horrific casualties, offset by a gigantic distaste for confrontation. Without a definition of America's strategic interests, such as a defeat for both Iran and the Sunni jihadists, the chance remains that America might be dragged into another front in the Fourth Great War. A war in which neither side is our friend. http://www.jewishpolicycenter.org/blog/2013/05/gaddafi-son-makes-court-appearance-in-libya Thu, 2 May 2013 16:06:00 EST Saif al-Islam Qaddafi, son of the deposed dictator Muammar Qaddafi, made a court appearance in the western Libyan town of Zintan on Thursday. Seated behind bars and flanked by two masked policemen, Libya's former heir apparent appeared smiling and in good http://www.jewishpolicycenter.org/4224/never-mind-that-red-line-in-syria Thu, 2 May 2013 09:00:00 EST At first blush, it appeared that the Obama administration finally agreed with the intelligence assessments of its allies—Britain, France, and Israel—namely, that the Syrian regime used chemical weapons against the opposition. But no sooner had the intelligence letter been delivered did the administration begin walking away from its own assessment. The President is now laying the groundwork to remain on the sideline, ensuring that he will never have the kind of definitive proof he claims to require by setting the bar so high it will never be reached. Obama's waffling has made further escalation of the conflict a near certainty. The real problem is the lack of a coherent policy in Syria now—over two years into the Syrian civil war. Absent a clear policy, no clear strategy to end the conflict has emerged, and the tactics employed have been dilatory and procedural.