Latest Analysis and Commentary
by Lawrence Kadish • February 25, 2025 at 3:00 pm
Some 60% of American voters want Washington to invest strategically in American-based fusion energy research in the face of significant Chinese funding of this potent technology. It is a "Manhattan Project" moment for our current generation of leaders. (Image source: iStock)
A national survey conducted by the pollster that President Donald Trump trusts, McLaughlin & Associates, finds that the vast majority of American voters want our nation to safeguard its future by conquering the challenge of fusion energy. As opposed to fission, which has powered nuclear reactors for nearly 75 years, fusion creates no radioactivity while harnessing the power of the atom to produce energy that could meet virtually all of our nation's increasing demand for electricity during the remaining decades of this century and beyond. The challenge is to sustain this fusion process in massive magnetic cylinders, requiring a concentration of America's scientific and industrial leadership on a scale not seen since the "Manhattan Project" to build the atom bomb before enemies did during World War II.
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by Guy Millière • February 25, 2025 at 5:00 am
Most Democrats in the US seem to have forgotten the absolute horror of the attack of October 7, 2023. They seem not to understand why most Israelis think that there is no way to coexist with a Gaza Strip in the hands of terrorists thirsty for Jewish blood. These Democrats appear not to see that relocating Gaza Arabs elsewhere has nothing to do with "ethnic cleansing." Trump did not propose to eliminate the Arabs, but to relocate them to safer places. These Democrats also appear to ignore that ethnic cleansing is precisely what is at the heart of the intentions of the members of Hamas, an organization with explicitly genocidal goals. The leaders of the main European countries talk about the "two-state solution" while knowing perfectly well that the only outcome Hamas wants is a one-state solution: the destruction of Israel, not a state alongside Israel... Europe's leaders ignore countless polls showing that the residents of the Gaza Strip, as well as those, in the territories mismanaged by the Palestinian Authority, celebrate the October 7 massacre and want above all else Israel's destruction. That, in fact, seems to be the actual goal of everyone who disagrees with Trump. A Palestinian state would indeed be -- as the Palestinians have openly stated -- a launching pad from which to keep trying to destroy Israel. [I]n reality, Arab leaders do not like the Palestinians any more than the Israelis do, but it is considered impolite to say so. The positions of at least several leaders of the Arab world might become flexible. Trump, however, possibly in a hurry to solve the Iran-Hamas-Israel War, should not under any circumstances "go wobbly". Qatar is reportedly trying to come up with a potentially duplicitous "peace plan" to allow its treasured client and Muslim Brotherhood associate, Hamas, to remain in power in Gaza so it can attack Israel again. No one bothers to explain how the Gazans can continue to live in an area studded with unexploded ordnance, where 70% of the buildings are destroyed, and which Trump has rightly defined as a "demolition site," while leaving nearly two million people to reside there and hundreds of armed terrorists in tunnels. No one admits that massive population displacements have successfully taken place in the past. Millions of Germans were moved from territories conquered by Germany after 1945, with no protests voiced.... Jews who lived in the Gaza Strip were expelled in 2005 by decision of the Israeli government to give the Palestinians there a chance to create a peaceful "Singapore on the Mediterranean." What American Democrats and European leaders should be committed to is preventing Hamas, a terrorist organization, from remaining in power. Netanyahu explains: "[Y]ou can't talk about peace, neither with Hamas or in the Middle East, if this, you know, toxic murderous organization is left standing, any more that you could make peace in Europe after World War II, if the Nazi regime was left standing and the Nazi army was left standing." American Democrats and European leaders still grant legitimacy to the Palestinian Authority (PA) and say that they would like to entrust it with the management of Gaza after the war. They apparently do not want to see that the PA is a corrupt entity that rewards terrorism and supports the atrocities perpetrated by Hamas. They appear to want Gaza to remain a terrorist entity able to attack Israel again and again. Interesting. "The non-terrorists in Gaza move to a place where they can live in peace and dignity. The US and others then rebuild Gaza and recover their costs through the commercialization of 25 miles of what will become pristine beachfront, now open to the world... [P]eace prevails with no American boots on the ground nor expense to the American taxpayer. Hard to quarrel with this if you believe in peace, prosperity and human dignity." — David M. Friedman, former US Ambassador to Israel, X, February 6, 2025. Trump appears determined to profoundly change the Middle East. It is to be hoped at that he will not allow himself to be discouraged, misled or have his impressive visions diminished. If Trump successfully manages to overcome the pressures and obstacles placed in front of him, what he is setting in motion today can magnificently transform the Middle East.
US President Donald Trump appears determined to profoundly change the Middle East. It is to be hoped at that he will not allow himself to be discouraged, misled or have his impressive visions diminished. Pictured: Trump and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu hold a press conference at the White House in Washington, DC on February 4, 2025. (Photo by Bryan Dozier/Middle East Images/AFP via Getty Images)
February 4, 2025, the White House, Washington, DC. President Donald J. Trump is at a press conference with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. Trump says that Hamas must be eliminated, and that "the US will take over the Gaza Strip", dismantle "all of the dangerous unexploded bombs", "get rid of the destroyed buildings" and "create an economic development". He adds that Gaza's Arabs should go to other countries and "be able to live in comfort and peace". Netanyahu seems happy and moved. Trump, he says, is "the greatest friend Israel has ever had in the White House" and details every act Trump did to help Israel during his first term. Many journalists in the room appear surprised and shocked by what Trump said; some seem angry. Negative reactions were on the way. "This is an insane proposal" said Chris Van Halen, (D-Maryland) who added that Trump wants "ethnic cleansing".
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by Khaled Abu Toameh • February 24, 2025 at 5:00 am
Some people in Israel are demanding that Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu step down and agree to Hamas's demand to end the war in the Gaza Strip.... These Israelis fail to understand that the October 7 massacre is just another phase of the Islamists' Jihad (holy war) against Israel. Since its violent, brutal takeover of the Gaza Strip in 2007, Hamas has done nothing to help the local residents. Instead of building hospitals, schools and economic projects, Hamas, with the help of Iran and Qatar, has devoted huge resources to manufacturing weapons, such as rockets and missiles, and building a massive network of tunnels throughout the Gaza Strip. Hamas, in a document published shortly after the October 7 attack, openly admits that it is opposed to the presence of Jews in Israel. The document frankly admits that the conflict did not start as a result of the Holocaust, or when Israel declared independence in 1948, or on October 7, 2023, but 105 years ago, "including 30 years of British colonialism and 75 years of Zionist occupation." The document goes on to explain that Hamas "is a Palestinian Islamic national liberation and resistance movement. Its goal is to liberate Palestine and confront the Zionist project." Hamas's 1988 charter emphasizes the importance of Jihad as the main means for the Islamic Resistance Movement (Hamas) to achieve its goals... Significantly, the charter quotes Hassan al-Banna, who founded the Muslim Brotherhood in Egypt in 1928, as saying: "Israel will arise and continue to exist until Islam abolishes it, as it abolished what went before." Hamas is the Palestinian branch of the Muslim Brotherhood. US President Donald J. Trump would do well to designate the Muslim Brotherhood, the font of all the Islamic jihadist organizations, as a Foreign Terrorist Organization. Such an act would make it difficult for those countries that promote and finance jihadi terrorists to keep on doing so. What happened on October 7 should be seen in the context of Qatar's, Iran's and Hamas's continuing Jihad. The massacre on October 7 was just another phase in the Islamist groups' efforts to eliminate Israel. After the October 7, massacres, the Qatari government media consistently praised the massacres, and weeks ago vowed more of them. Anyone who believes that Hamas would abandon Jihad as a result of a ceasefire agreement is engaging in extreme self-deception. Hamas has not yet accomplished its mission of destroying Israel. Hamas's main goal, especially now, is to remain in power after the war.... Any deal that keeps Hamas in power would pave the way for the Islamist murderers, rapists and baby-killers to carry out still more massacres against Israelis. Regrettably, there is no alternative to eradicating Hamas.
The October 7, 2023 Hamas invasion of Israel was part of Hamas's Jihad to destroy Israel and replace it with an Islamist state. The Jihad does not aim to free prisoners or remove settlements and checkpoints, but to murder Jews and obliterate Israel. Iran and Hamas do not care if tens of thousands of Palestinians lose their lives, so long as it is permitted to pursue their Jihad against Israel. Any deal that keeps Hamas in power would pave the way for the Islamist murderers, rapists and baby-killers to carry out still more massacres against Israelis. Pictured: Hamas terrorists parade a coffin, containing the remains of an Israeli hostage whom they murdered, in front of a crowd of supporters in Khan Yunis in the Gaza Strip on February 20, 2025. (Photo by Abood Abusalama/Middle East Images via AFP)
Some people in Israel are demanding that Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu step down and agree to Hamas's demand to end the war in the Gaza Strip, as if Hamas's October 7, 2023 attack on Israel was just another round of fighting with the Iran-backed Palestinian terrorist group. These Israelis fail to understand that the October 7 massacre is just another phase of the Islamists' Jihad (holy war) against Israel. Hamas did not attack Israel on October 7, 2023, just because it wanted to release Palestinian convicts from Israeli prisons or improve the living conditions of the Palestinians under its rule in the Gaza Strip. The attack, resulting in the murder of 1,200 Israelis and the wounding of thousands more, as well as the abduction of more than 250 to the Gaza Strip, came as part of Hamas's Jihad to destroy Israel and replace it with an Islamist state.
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by Con Coughlin • February 23, 2025 at 5:00 am
Ever since Hamas launched its murderous assault on Israel in October 2023, Hamas leaders, together with their supporters in Qatar and Iran, have calculated that any outcome from the Gaza conflict that enables Hamas to remain in control of the enclave counts as a victory. This agenda for its long-term-client, Hamas, explains why Qatar, which claimed to be a neutral player during the ceasefire negotiations in Doha, has been so keen to oversee a deal that favours Hamas at the expense of Israel's long-term security. This is the same country, after all, that helped to facilitate the deal with the first Trump administration that resulted in the return of the Taliban to power in Afghanistan. If Trump and Netanyahu are really serious about achieving lasting peace in Gaza, they must abandon the disastrous ceasefire deal -- and especially the well-intended but painfully out-of-his-depth U.S. Special Envoy to the Middle East Steve Witkoff, who has mindlessly promoted it. Regrettably, Witkoff is on his way to wrecking Trump's election triumph by equally disastrous negotiations in Ukraine, where the US is punishing the victim, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, and rewarding the aggressor, Russian President Vladimir Putin. If Trump succeeds in torpedoing his month-old presidency, the blame goes to Witkoff.
If Trump and Netanyahu are really serious about achieving lasting peace in Gaza, they must abandon the disastrous ceasefire deal -- and especially the well-intended but painfully out-of-his-depth U.S. Special Envoy to the Middle East Steve Witkoff, who has mindlessly promoted it. Pictured: Trump meets with Netanyahu in the White House in Washington, DC, on February 4, 2025. (Photo by Andrew Caballero-Reynolds/AFP via Getty Images)
Nothing better illustrates the dire shortcomings of the flawed ceasefire deal agreed between Israel and Iran-backed Hamas than the terrorist organisation's despicable mistreatment of the Israeli hostages it has so far agreed to set free. By far the most grotesque exhibition of Hamas's contempt for the hostages was their handling of the handover of four Israelis murdered as a result of the October 7, 2023 attacks. Not only was the handover ceremony staged as a propaganda rally for Hamas, it later transpired that one of the slain hostage bodies was not that of Shiri Bibas, as had been agreed in the ceasefire deal. In addition, the Israeli authorities revealed that Bibas's two sons, Ariel (four years old at the time of his abduction) and Kfir (9 months old), whose bodies were returned at the same time, had been murdered by Hamas, and not killed in Israeli airstrikes as the terrorist group had claimed.
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by Amir Taheri • February 23, 2025 at 4:00 am
The talk party suggests that Iran should offer to freeze its nuclear program for two to three years, at the end of which it would decide which direction it should take. Those who market the above analysis assume that the US, and for that matter Israel, will stand by and see how the Iranian adversary bounces back from the edge of doom. Khamenei, who controls law and order forces, has put them on partial alert to nip any revolt in the bud. This is accompanied by a massive crackdown against potential dissidents, especially in Tehran, with reports of arbitrary arrests. All this does mean that the "Supreme Guide" isn't prepared to perform another of his "heroic flexibilities" by accepting a deal with the "Great Satan" to sit out Trump's four-year tenure, a game that led seven consecutive US presidents up the garden path, allowing the Islamic Republic of Iran to approach its golden jubilee.
Iran's "Supreme Leader" Ali Khamenei, who controls law and order forces, has put them on partial alert to nip any revolt in the bud. This is accompanied by a massive crackdown against potential dissidents, especially in Tehran, with reports of arbitrary arrests. Pictured: Khamenei meets with President Masoud Pezeshkian in Tehran on August 27, 2024. (Image source: khamenei.ir)
With the Trump administration sending conflicting signals about its intentions on dealing with Iran, the Iranian leadership is once again divided on how to respond. One faction is trying to paint a grim picture in which the US will give Israel enough support to inflict a heavy defeat on Iran to complete the defeats already inflicted on Tehran's allies in Iraq, Syria, Lebanon and Yemen. Such a humiliation will encourage the regime's opponents both inside and outside the country to take to the streets and seize power while a demoralized Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps will do what it did in Syria, that is to say, run for economic crisis cover to save its skin. The same faction argues that the current economic crisis has sapped the will and energy of the regime's dwindling support base, making regime change a real possibility for the first time. So, how to negotiate such a dangerous bend of the road?
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by Majid Rafizadeh • February 22, 2025 at 5:00 am
Adding to the regime's apprehensions, Iran's Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei recently repeated the need to enhance Iran's military capabilities. His statement exposes the real intentions behind Iran's diplomatic overtures.... The regime has absolutely no interest in abandoning its nuclear ambitions or curbing its support for terrorist groups; rather, it seeks to buy time and resources precisely to maintain its long-term strategic goals. The only way to curb Iran's aggressive ambitions is through sustained economic sanctions, military deterrence, dismantling its nuclear program, and especially regime change. No one must ever again receive 74 lashes or prolonged imprisonment for a song protesting women's mandatory head coverings. Girls must be able to go to school again without fear of being gassed. People must be able to practice the religion of their choice without being flogged or imprisoned. And no woman or girl must ever again be murdered or flogged for declining to wear a headscarf.... In 2024 alone, 975 Iranians were executed – a "horrifying escalation." The world must not make the same mistake -- leaving a fanatic regime in power to wield its fanaticisms -- ever again.
Iran's Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei recently repeated the need to enhance Iran's military capabilities. His statement exposes the real intentions behind Iran's diplomatic overtures.... The regime has absolutely no interest in abandoning its nuclear ambitions or curbing its support for terrorist groups; rather, it seeks to buy time and resources precisely to maintain its long-term strategic goals. Pictured: Iran's President Masoud Pezeshkian looks on as a 'Qasem Soleimani' missile is displayed during a military parade in Tehran, on September 21, 2024. (Photo by Atta Kenare/AFP via Getty Images)
In 2015, the Iranian regime successfully manipulated the West into believing that it was ready to embrace moderation and diplomacy. Under the so-called "moderate" president, Hassan Rouhani, Iran engaged in negotiations that led to the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA), known as the "Iran nuclear deal." This agreement provided Iran's ruling mullahs with significant sanctions relief, unfreezing billions of dollars in assets, allowing it to resume selling oil on global markets, and the ability legitimately to have as many nuclear weapons as they liked in just a few years – well after the deal's father, President Barack "not on my watch" Obama was safely out of office -- which just so happens to be this coming October 2025.
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by Drieu Godefridi • February 21, 2025 at 7:00 am
On CBS television recently -- in a scene straight out of the Stasi, East Germany's secret police for political repression -- three German prosecutors being interviewed explain that their job is to suppress "unacceptable opinions." The question, however, clearly is not actually about repressing all false information – just that, it seems, which displeases the so-called "left" as well as many of Europe's newcomers. As one of the three German prosecutors put it, "Freedom of expression is fine, but there are limits." There are, and they are carefully laid out in the 1969 US Supreme Court decision Brandenburg v. Ohio... The so-called "left", nevertheless, appears to have reinvented itself in a form that rejects everything that is not itself. Marie-Thérèse Kaiser, a politician from Germany's right-wing political party Alternative für Deutschland... had posted on social media in 2021, questioning the socialist mayor of Hamburg's decision to welcome Afghan refugees, by citing statistics about Afghan men's involvement in gang rapes in Germany. The court ruled that her statements violated the "human dignity" of Afghan refugees as a group.... The court did not contest the validity of the statistics. She was therefore convicted not for peddling "false information," but for telling the truth. The good news is that the funding of this industry of lies by the US government is over. You can be skeptical of certain practices in Islam without being "phobic" and refuse to allow biological men (xy) to take part in women's (xx) competitions without being "hateful". Let us hope this trend will jump the pond.
On CBS television recently, three German prosecutors being interviewed explain that their job is to suppress "unacceptable opinions." When the journalist asks them for an example of such an unacceptable opinion, one of the prosecutors replies "reposting false information." (Images source: iStock)
A cultural war appears to be brewing between Europe and the United States. At the Munich Security Conference on February 14, 2025, U.S. Vice President J.D. Vance surprised attendees by downplaying external threats to Europe, instead emphasizing what he called "the threat from within" Europe. Vance argued that the greatest danger to European democracy stems from its own leaders' retreat from fundamental values, such as freedom of speech and democratic principles. He lambasted European governments for suppressing free speech, citing examples like Sweden's conviction of a Christian activist for burning a Quran, Germany's crackdowns on anti-feminist online comments, and the UK's restrictions on religious expression near abortion clinics. Vance compared these actions to "Soviet-style" censorship, suggesting Europe is abandoning the liberties it once championed during the Cold War.
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by Daniel Greenfield • February 20, 2025 at 5:00 am
The State Department has spent nearly two decades selling the myth that empowering the LAF [Lebanese Armed Forces] will weaken Hezbollah, but after $3 billion in spending, Hezbollah is more powerful than ever, while American taxpayers are stuck with financing its auxiliary force in the hopes of defeating it. Hezbollah won't disarm, nor will the LAF disarm it or prevent it from attacking Israel, because Lebanon's entire balance of power depends on aiming Hezbollah's weapons at Israel. The $3 billion dollars that America squandered on the LAF... didn't counter Shiite Islamic rule, it enabled it. Steube's PAGER Act would cut off further funds to the LAF until the "Lebanese Armed Forces ceases coordination and support with Hezbollah" and the "Lebanese Armed Forces cease coordination and support with Iran". Lebanon's government is a Hezbollah puppet regime. The LAF is a puppet army.
Lebanon's government is a Hezbollah puppet regime. The Lebanese Armed Forces (LAF) is a puppet army. The $3 billion that America squandered on the LAF, like the even larger sums wasted on arming and training the Iraqi military, didn't counter Shiite Islamic rule, it enabled it. Pictured: Soldiers of the LAF organize displaced persons outside the village of Kfar Kila, in southern Lebanon on February 18, 2025. (Photo by Rabih Daher/AFP via Getty Images)
In 2006, after a Hezbollah invasion, Israel launched a military campaign against the Islamic terrorist group. After a month of fighting, the Bush administration forced a ceasefire under UN Security Council Resolution 1701 that required the disarmament of Hezbollah and its replacement by the Lebanese Armed Forces (LAF) and a United Nations "peacekeeping" force. How can Hezbollah claim victory, President George W. Bush wondered, when they were "going to be replaced by a Lebanese Army and an international force?" The answer was quite obvious. The LAF and UNIFIL didn't replace Hezbollah, they were co-opted by it. And nearly two decades later, Hezbollah had far more firepower and attempted to launch its own version of Oct 7 until Israel neutered it with its pager operation.
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by Khaled Abu Toameh • February 19, 2025 at 5:00 am
One of the group's senior officials, Osama Hamdan... also threatened that Hamas would not allow any non-Palestinian party to enter the Gaza Strip. Iran's ruling mullahs have already lost their strategic ally with the collapse of the Syrian regime of Bashar al-Assad. Losing the Gaza Strip would therefore be another severe blow to the Iranian regime, whose declared goal is to annihilate the "Zionist entity." Similarly, Hamas's longtime patrons and funders in Qatar will do their utmost to ensure that the terrorist group remains in power. Hamdan's statements are a clear indication that Hamas intends to maintain its control of the Gaza Strip at any cost. They are also a sign that Hamas is determined to continue its terror attacks against Israel. Any deal that allows Hamas to remain in power would be disastrous for Israel, the Palestinians, and Arab states threatened by the Iran-led "Axis of Resistance." It would also undermine the Trump administration's credibility in the eyes of many in the Middle East. The Trump administration will appear as if it is only good at making empty threats. There should be no reconstruction of the Gaza Strip as long as Iran's proxies remain in power. The idea of allowing the Palestinian Authority to return to the Gaza Strip as a civilian body that pays salaries and funds projects should be rejected by the Trump administration. Even if the PA is permitted to deploy its own security forces in the Gaza Strip, it does not mean that they would be able to disarm Hamas and other terrorist groups. The PA did not do so when it was in control of the Gaza Strip between 1994 and 2007, and the assumption that it would do so now is catastrophically wrong.
Any deal that allows Hamas to remain in power would be disastrous for Israel, the Palestinians, and Arab states threatened by the Iran-led "Axis of Resistance." It would also undermine the Trump administration's credibility in the eyes of many in the Middle East. Pictured: Terrorists in Gaza on February 15, 2025. (Photo by Moiz Salhi/Middle East Images/AFP via Getty Images)
The Iran-backed Palestinian terrorist group Hamas has reportedly expressed readiness to cede control of the Gaza Strip and hand it over to the Palestinian Authority (PA), headed by Mahmoud Abbas. This assurance, however, does not mean that Hamas is willing to lay down its weapons or dismantle its military wing, Izz a-Din al-Qassam Brigades. Hamas wants the PA to return to the Gaza Strip only to pay salaries and fund various projects, including the reconstruction of the devastation. That arrangement would still exempt Hamas of its duties and responsibilities towards the two million residents of the Gaza Strip and allow the terror group to rearm, regroup and rebuild its military capabilities.
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by Daniel Greenfield • February 18, 2025 at 5:00 am
[T]he ultimate responsibility lay with USAID. The $40 million on the tarmac was part of a much larger scheme under which USAID and the State Department provided over $1.7 billion in funding to the UN, which then shipped $2.9 billion in cash to Afghanistan. Under the guise of humanitarian needs, $1.7 billion was provided to the UN, which used some of the money to buy dollars to fly into Afghanistan, to trade for Afghan currency, which the U.S. had also arranged to have printed on behalf of the Taliban. The cash is not provided to the Taliban or DAB by the UN, but by the groups funded by the UN. During the intermediate step, DAB held "auctions" of the dollars which elements linked to the Taliban, including the Haqqani network allied with Al Qaeda, reportedly "win." The auctions prop up the Afghan currency and keep the Taliban in power. Putting the money into UN pooled accounts allowed USAID to claim that they "do not provide assistance to or through the Taliban", they just put money into "pooled UN accounts..." The State Department responded to these revelations by falsely claiming that there are no sanctions on Afghanistan, that banks refuse to carry out wire transfers because of "the lack of profitability" and that "to the best of our knowledge, no electronic financial delivery systems are currently scalable to meet the liquidity needs of the UN" requiring it to instead convert billions of dollars into paper notes and ship them by plane. None of this is true or even a plausible lie. The Taliban money laundering scheme was not an exception. It was how USAID, the State Department and the UN have operated for too long, not only in Afghanistan, but in Syria, Yemen, Gaza and many other terrorist areas around the world, using plausible deniability and chains of organizations to avoid accountability and direct responsibility for aiding terrorists. Americans have become the financiers of their worst enemies. It's time for that to stop.
The Taliban money laundering scheme was not an exception. It was how USAID, the State Department and the UN have operated for too long, not only in Afghanistan, but in Syria, Yemen, Gaza and many other terrorist areas around the world, using plausible deniability and chains of organizations to avoid accountability and direct responsibility for aiding terrorists. Pictured: Money changers count US dollars and afghani banknotes in Kabul, Afghanistan on December 7, 2021. (Photo by Ahmad Sahel Arman/AFP via Getty Images)
In 2022, the DAB Afghanistan Bank showed off photos of $40 million in stacks of hundred dollar bills sitting on the tarmac at Kabul International Airport. The Taliban-controlled central bank described this as one of three shipments of "humanitarian aid" amounting to over $100 million. DAB, Afghanistan's central bank, was headed by Noor Ahmad Agha, a "specially designated terrorist" who had been named as the "financier of bomb-making", including the IEDs which had killed over 1,000 American soldiers, and sending money to a sanctioned figure was illegal. Despite that, someone had sent a massive fortune in U.S. cash to the Taliban's terror bank.
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by Bassam Tawil • February 17, 2025 at 5:00 am
"Abbas claims to have ended the 'Pay for Slay' program – but it's just a rebranding... Terrorists and their families will still receive payments, just through a 'foundation' under Abbas's control instead of a ministry. The new foundation remains tied to the PA, making this a deceptive move, not real reform. The PA must truly end terror payments and incitement - not just change how they guise them." — Misgav Institute for National Security and Zionist Strategy, X.com, February 12, 2025. The Palestinian Authority has made it clear that it is making this change not because it believes it is wrong to fund terror, but because it needs US money. The Arabic version of the decree clearly states that the main goal is to "restore international aid programs that were suspended in the past years, which we need to implement development and economic recovery programs." While several international media outlets continue to argue that Abbas halted the payments to the terrorists, Monica al-Jaghoub, a senior official with the PA's ruling Fatah faction (headed by Abbas), denied the claims. The reality is that Abbas did not -- and never will -- stop the payments to terrorists and their families.
Did Palestinian Authority (PA) President Mahmoud Abbas halt payments to Palestinian terrorists and their families? Or is he just trying to fool the Americans to persuade them to resume financial aid to the PA? The reality is that Abbas did not -- and never will -- stop the payments to terrorists and their families. Pictured: On July 23, 2018, at a ceremony honoring Palestinian terrorists, Abbas said: "We will neither reduce nor withhold the allowances of the families of martyrs, prisoners, and released prisoners... if we had one single penny left, we would spend it on the families of the martyrs and the prisoners." (Image source: MEMRI) Did Palestinian Authority (PA) President Mahmoud Abbas halt payments to Palestinian terrorists and their families? Or is he just trying to fool the Americans to persuade them to resume financial aid to the PA? On February 10, the American media outlet Axios reported: "Abbas has issued a decree revoking the system of payments to families of Palestinian prisoners in Israeli jails or to families of Palestinians who were killed or wounded during attacks against Israelis."
The payment program is known as "Pay for Slay." PA officials told Axios that they hope Abbas's decision will improve relations with the Trump administration and with Congress and lead to the resumption of US financial aid to the PA.
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by Robert Williams • February 16, 2025 at 5:00 am
Sudan's Growing Crisis: Famine, Displacement, and Unprecedented Suffering Stopping Iran's growing foothold in Africa is not just about Israel's security — it's about protecting U.S. economic and military interests. The consequences of inaction will be felt at home, from higher energy prices to increased global instability. The time to act is now. "The war has lasted too long, cost too many lives, and caused immense suffering. What we seek to do, alongside our partners, is call for a humanitarian pause to allow aid to reach those in need." — Reem al-Hashimy, Minister of State for International Cooperation at the UAE Ministry of Foreign Affairs, February 14, 2025. Iran is establishing another Hamas-like entity in Sudan, mirroring its creation of the Iraqi Popular Mobilization Forces. This group, known as "Kizan," maintains ties to Hamas, Hezbollah, and African branches of Al Qaeda. If Iran's allies gain full control over Sudan, Iran will have effectively tightened its grip on Israel's southern flank, adding yet another hostile front to the region. The Biden administration's failure to act decisively has emboldened Iran and endangered both Israel and American strategic interests. President Donald Trump, as a leader committed to restoring U.S. strength, must confront the Iranian infiltration in Sudan head-on. [I]t is imperative that Trump - for US interests! - publicly recognize the efforts of Al Nahyan in advancing this vision, acknowledging his leadership and unwavering dedication to peace and prosperity in the region.
The UAE has taken a significant step in alleviating the suffering of the Sudanese people by announcing a $200 million aid package, in a high-level humanitarian conference held in Ethiopia. Pictured: Humanitarian aid supplies destined for Sudan are loaded onto a cargo plane in Dubai, UAE on May 8, 2023. (Photo by Giuseppe Cacace/AFP via Getty Images)
Amid Ongoing Humanitarian Crisis, Addis Ababa, February 14, 2025: The United Arab Emirates (UAE) has taken a significant step in alleviating the suffering of the Sudanese people by announcing a $200 million aid package, in a high-level humanitarian conference held in Addis Ababa. The conference, organized by the UAE in collaboration with the African Union, the Intergovernmental Authority on Development, and Ethiopia, is taking place on the sidelines of the 38th African Union Summit. A Call for Action: Mobilizing Support for Sudan's Dire Humanitarian Needs
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by Amir Taheri • February 16, 2025 at 4:00 am
No Middle Eastern nation would unroll the red carpet for an Iranian delegation coming to foment revolution. In Europe, even those who once did seek the mullahs now shun them with disdain. No one in Asia expresses an interest in seeking revolutionary instruction from Tehran. Tehran hopes to act as Man-Friday to its two giant allies China and Russia that have also chosen Africa as the future battleground against Western hegemony. For almost three decades, Tehran spent over $30 billion exporting revolution and ended up with nothing. In the process, hundreds of individuals, including the late Gen. Qassem Soleimani and associates like Nasrallah and Bashar al-Assad, made huge sums of money. With that gambit closed, we witness new efforts to keep the gravy train on rail, this time with destination Africa.
Tehran hopes to act as Man-Friday to its two giant allies China and Russia that have also chosen Africa as the future battleground against Western hegemony. Pictured: Then Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi arrives for a state visit at the Robert Gabriel Mugabe International Airport in Harare, Zimbabwe on July 13, 2023. (Photo by Jekesai Nijikizana/AFP via Getty Images)
Imagine that you have between $3 to $5 billion to spend on seeking and securing clients for your product in a variety of markets, Not bad, eh? But what happens when events beyond your ken suddenly close those markets to you? One solution is to try and develop new products capable of making inroads in different markets. Another is to seek new markets for the old product. This is the conundrum that the ruling mullahs in Tehran face today. Thanks to the late Hamas leader, Yahya Sinwar, who opened the gates of hell on October 7, 2023, Tehran, a self-designated exporter of revolution, lost its markets not only in Gaza and the West Bank but also in Lebanon and Iraq. Then it was the turn of the then unknown Ahmad al-Sharaa to cakewalk his way into Damascus and force the peddlers of Khomeinist revolution to run for cover. Next, the Khomeinist product lost its market share in Iraq and the chunk of Yemen held by Houthis.
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by Majid Rafizadeh • February 15, 2025 at 5:00 am
The problem, of course, is that after seeing what happened when Libya's General Muammar Ghaddafi gave up nuclear weapons in 2003 and Ukraine gave up nuclear weapons in 1994, no one with an IQ above single digits would ever agree to give up nuclear weapons again – especially after so many decades of immense investment and just "weeks" from the project's successful completion. Regrettably, like Russia, Iran has a long track record of deceit, obstructing investigations, and stalling to buy time. Iran's regime also has the potential to wait four years until Trump's term in office is over, then pick up where it left off. The mullahs seek to lull the United States into a false sense of security. They undoubtedly hope that diplomatic engagement will allow them time to race to nuclear weapons breakout, or, at worst, another weak agreement that will enable them to rebuild their military. Whenever Iran gains financial or political leverage, it uses it against America and its allies. Since October 2023, Iran and its proxies have attacked US troops in the region more than 200 times. Iran's nuclear facilities must be taken out, sanctions must be intensified, and the Iranian people's fight for freedom must be supported. Trump must not waste this opportunity.
Iran's nuclear facilities must be taken out, sanctions must be intensified, and the Iranian people's fight for freedom must be supported. Trump must not waste this opportunity. Pictured: A Fattah hypersonic ballistic missile is displayed during the annual military parade in Tehran, on September 22, 2023. (Photo by AFP via Getty Images)
"I want Iran to be a great and successful country but one that cannot have nuclear weapons," US President Donald J, Trump posted on Truth Social last week. "I would much prefer a Verified Nuclear Peace Agreement which will successfully let Iran grow and prosper." These sentiments, while commendable, especially considering a distasteful alternative for Iran, are unfortunately delusional. The problem, of course, is that after seeing what happened when Libya's General Muammar Ghaddafi gave up nuclear weapons in 2003 and Ukraine gave up nuclear weapons in 1994, no one with an IQ above single digits would ever agree to give up nuclear weapons again – especially after so many decades of immense investment and just "weeks" from the project's successful completion.
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by Nils A. Haug • February 14, 2025 at 5:00 am
Zionism is simply the right of the Jewish nation to live peacefully in its ancestral home -- the land promised them in millennia past. Canaan is their inheritance, and has served as their sanctuary for nearly 4,000 years in a world that largely despises them. The great British statesman Winston Churchill said in 1922 that Jews had returned to Palestine, as it was called then -- based on its revised name, given by the Roman Emperor Hadrian, who was trying to sever Judea from the Jews -- "as of right and not by sufferance, and that this was based on their ancient historical connection." The biblical Song of Deborah praises those tribes who participated in the battle under the leadership of Barak, the son of Abinoam, and scorns those who did not: "Why did you sit at home among the sheepfolds?" the song asks; "Why did Dan stay home?"
The great British statesman Winston Churchill said in 1922 that Jews had returned to Palestine, as it was called then -- based on its revised name, given by the Roman Emperor Hadrian, who was trying to sever Judea from the Jews -- "as of right and not by sufferance, and that this was based on their ancient historical connection." Pictured: Prime Minister Churchill makes a speech on the radio for VE Day, on May 8, 1945. (Photo by Keystone/Getty Images)
"Even an ancient vision has its moment of birth," wrote the Israeli poet Nathan Alterman (1910-1970). Alterman lovingly described Israel: "The surroundings of the Kinneret have been a kind of symbol of earthly beauty to us...." Alterman's vision of Israel, Eretz Yisrael, and her natural beauty, seems to have been given birth through a deep commitment to an ancient promise made by the Creator to the patriarch Abraham, forefather of all Jews. This covenant was repeated to his son Isaac and then grandson Jacob, again by the Creator. Moses emphasized this promise at Sinai when he declared to the twelve tribes that G-d would restore to them the land of their ancestors. In this way, the area to be possessed became known to the world at large as the "promised land." The biblical book of Bereshit (Genesis) records the extent of the land, Zion.
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