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Trump has everyone running in circles when it comes to his Middle East policy

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  By James M. Dorsey Hi and welcome, Thank you for joining me today. If you appreciate hard-hitting, fact-based analysis, please consider upgrading to a paid subscription. Paid subscribers can access the full archive, exclusive posts, and polling. They can leave comments, join debates, and know they are supporting independent writing, reporting, and analysis that lets the chips fall where they fall. You can contribute by clicking here . To listen to the podcast or watch the video, please click here.   Thank you for your support and loyalty, take care, and best wishes. US President Donald J. Trump has foreign governments, domestic constituencies, journalists, and pundits running in circles as they attempt to identify his Middle East policy. The confusion is evident in contradictory responses to Mr. Trump’s election by some of his pro-Israel supporters and early polling in the Middle East. In a twist of irony, pro-Israel conservatives are campaigning against some of Mr. Trump’s ...

US-backed Israeli efforts to curb freedom of expression are likely to backfire

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  Credit: Doctors of the World By James M. Dorsey Hi and welcome, Thank you for joining me today. If you appreciate hard-hitting, fact-based analysis, please consider upgrading to a paid subscription. Paid subscribers can access the full archive, exclusive posts, and polling. They can leave comments, join debates, and know they are supporting independent writing, reporting, and analysis that lets the chips fall where they fall. You can contribute by clicking here . Thank you for your support and loyalty, take care, and best wishes.   US President-elect Donald J. Trump and Israeli Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu may soon diverge in their approaches to a resolution of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. Yet, the Trump administration is set, as a ceasefire takes effect in Gaza, to cement suppression of criticism of the Jewish state, a pillar of Israel’s long-standing effort to manipulate US and international public opinion and squash public censure. ...

Trump puts Israelis and Palestinians on a knife’s edge

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  By James M. Dorsey Hi and welcome. Thank you for joining me today.  If you appreciate hard-hitting, fact-based analysis, please consider upgrading to a paid subscription. Paid subscribers can access the full archive, exclusive posts, and polling. They can leave comments, join debates, and know they are supporting independent writing, reporting, and analysis that lets the chips fall where they fall. You can contribute by clicking here. To listen to the podcast or watch the video, please click here Thank you for your support and loyalty, take care, and best wishes. Israeli Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu may welcome two Middle East policy goals articulated by US President-elect Donald J. Trump in response to the Gaza ceasefire but may not like what it will take to achieve them. The same is true for the Palestinians, including the West Bank-based, internationally recognised Palestine Authority and Hamas. The ceasefire demonstrated to Mr. Netanyahu that Mr. Trump can twist his...

The Middle East’s New Jigsaw Puzzle

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  Hi and welcome, If you appreciate hard-hitting, fact-based analysis, please consider upgrading to a paid subscription. By doing so, you help ensure the survival of independent journalism and analysis. The Turbulent World depends on your support. Subscribing will allow you to l isten to the podcast, and/ or watch the video associated with this story. To subscribe, please  click  here .  Thank you for your support and loyalty, take care, and best wishes. Decimating Hezbollah and ousting President Bashar al-Assad were the first steps in a Middle Eastern power struggle that is likely to define not only who wields the most influence in Syria but also who will emerge as regional hegemons. Turkey, Israel, and Iran are prime candidates, with countries like Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, and Qatar playing catch up, at least in Syria. The line-up in Syria reflects the likely longer-term divvying up of influence regionally in a complex jigsaw puzzle. Turkey, Iran, Is...