US President Joe Biden's offer of support to Israel amidst the recent attacks by Hamas has shed light on his previous financial support to entities known to maintain friendly ties with the Palestinian terrorist organization. These entities, including the Iranian Islamist regime and Venezuelan socialist dictator Nicolás Maduro, have enjoyed years of financial benefits from eased sanctions under Biden's administration. This financial support merits closer scrutiny in light of the unprecedented wave of terrorism striking Israel. Biden suggests that Hamas attacked Israel to prevent its efforts to normalize relations with Saudi Arabia. The US and Saudi Arabia were working on a framework for the kingdom to recognize Israel in exchange for US security guarantees. However, these efforts are now on hold after the deadly attack by Hamas.
The attacks by Hamas have disrupted a potential three-way deal between the US, Saudi Arabia, and Israel, which aimed to reshape geopolitics in the Middle East. Israel has signed diplomatic deals with several countries, but normalization with Saudi Arabia would be a significant achievement for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.
The conflict between Israel and Palestine is driven by "injustice" towards Palestinians, as expressed by Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas.
In addition, a Senior American lawmaker on a trip to China has stated that the US aims for fair competition with China.
The United Auto Workers union has announced a pause in expanding strikes against Detroit's automakers after a breakthrough concession from General Motors.
Furthermore, an Indian-American couple from Houston has made a $1.75 million donation to kickstart the construction of Texas' inaugural Hindu campsite.
Psychologist and public intellectual Jordan Peterson believes that the ongoing conflict between Israel and Hamas was provoked by Iran in an attempt to derail the Abraham Accords. He argues that the conflict is a manifestation of the oppressor-oppressed narrative, with the Palestinians playing the role of the unjustly oppressed. Peterson suggests that Iran pushed Hamas into carrying out the October 7 terrorist attack on Israel, which resulted in retaliatory strikes on Gaza. He believes that Iran is funding Hamas out of desperation to prevent peace plans in the Middle East, particularly the Abraham Accords signed by the United Arab Emirates and Bahrain in 2020. Peterson sees the Abraham Accords as a breakthrough towards peace and hopes that countries like the United Arab Emirates and Saudi Arabia will continue to support them. He also acknowledges that his controversial tweet supporting Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's response to Hamas may have been seen as a betrayal by some Muslim followers of his work. Overall, Peterson views the conflict as the last gasp of brutal dictators and remains optimistic about the potential for peace in the region.
The article 'Jihadi Marxism' discusses the irony of leftists supporting Hamas, a self-proclaimed genocidal jihadist group. It highlights the contradiction between the leftists' claims of supporting social justice and their support for an organization that engages in violence and oppression. The article also exposes the wealth and luxurious lifestyles of Hamas leaders, who receive significant financial support from countries like Qatar and Iran. It criticizes the United Nations for providing millions of dollars to Hamas through the United Nations Relief and Works Agency (UNRWA). The presence of Hamas leaders in Qatar is questioned, as the country is considered a key U.S. ally. The article concludes by suggesting that Arab funding for academia may soon focus on promoting a new course called 'Jihadi Marxism.'
Liberal hawks like Michael McFaul, Max Boot, and Anne Applebaum are quick to denounce Russian aggression but ignore Israeli crimes. Anne Applebaum retweeted a video of Russian missiles striking a Ukrainian hospital, while Michael McFaul approved a sign demanding that Vladimir Putin be sent to the Hague. Max Boot informed readers that Russia has killed more than 10,000 civilians in Ukraine. However, they have not acknowledged Israel's attacks on hospitals in Gaza, despite evidence of repeated and widespread airstrikes. Liberal hawks claim to support a foreign policy devoted to defending democracy and human rights, but their focus on deterring America's great power adversaries like Russia and China has led them to overlook Israel's actions in Palestine. They argue that preserving freedom requires confronting these adversaries, but fail to address the moral boundaries between freedom and tyranny in countries outside of Europe or East Asia. The article suggests that liberal hawks' support for Israel is rooted in their belief in American primacy and the narrative that America's rise to global pre-eminence ushered in a freer and more law-abiding world. However, the Israeli-Palestinian conflict challenges this narrative, as the US has used its power to deny Palestinians basic rights and has protected Israel from global human rights consensus. The article concludes that if a new generation of Americans rises up against apartheid in Israel-Palestine, it won't be because they extolled American power, but because they confronted the profound injustices committed under America's auspices.
The article 'How the Left Became a Politics of Hatred Against Jews' discusses the shift in the global left's alignment with Hamas and its implications for the fight against antisemitism. The author highlights the need to choose between the fight against Islamophobia and the fight against antisemitism, as well as between virtue-signaling censorship and freedom of expression. The article also mentions the different perspectives on criticism of Israel presented by the IHRA definition of antisemitism and the Jerusalem Declaration on Antisemitism. The author argues that the alignment of the left with Hamas is evidence of its moral and intellectual bankruptcy.
A group of 23 academics have written a letter to U.S. President Joe Biden, calling to halt military aid to Israel, alleging that Israel is perpetrating 'genocide.' The claim is based on South Africa's lawsuit and the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA), which has been accused of offering public relations and legitimacy services to Hamas. The academics' arguments rely on questionable sources and align themselves with Hamas propaganda. The article criticizes the academics for their lack of understanding and their contribution to the global campaign of falsehoods. It also highlights the inherent political and antisemitic bias of some of the signatories, including their inspiration from Prof. John Mearsheimer, who co-authored a book about the Jewish lobby that was labeled as antisemitic. The article argues that the plight of Gaza's residents can be attributed solely to Hamas and that the alternative to the Israeli military action would be far worse. It compares the situation in Gaza to the fight against ISIS in Mosul, where civilian casualties were significantly higher. The article concludes that the academics who demand an embargo on Israel are aligning themselves with Hamas's propaganda machine and that their views contribute to the increasing racism and antisemitism in the discourse on human rights.