Category Archives: Uncategorized

Kurdistan Emerges

Posted on March 9, 2014 by jonathanspyer

Jerusalem Post, 7/3 In late February, The Jerusalem Post spoke to prominent Kurdish leader Zubeyir Aydar in the Brussels offices of the Kurdistan National Congress (KNK). Aydar’s official title is vice-president of the Koma Civakên Kurdistan (KCK) (Group of Communities in Kurdistan.  He is … Continue reading →

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The end of the ‘wrong side of history

Posted on March 7, 2014 by jonathanspyer

PJmedia, 4/3   President Barack Obama, in criticizing Russian leader Vladimir Putin’s conquest of the Crimean Peninsula, described Putin as standing on the ‘wrong side of history.’  This curious and arresting phrase has become a common usage among western liberals.  … Continue reading →

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Holding back al-Qaeda

Posted on February 22, 2014 by jonathanspyer

Jerusalem Post, 21/2 Will Israel be dragged into the Syrian conflict?  Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s visit this week to an IDF field hospital where wounded Syrians are receiving treatment served to showcase the Israeli humanitarian effort to respond to the … Continue reading →

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War across the borders – one sectarian war in Iraq, Syria and Lebanon

Posted on February 16, 2014 by jonathanspyer

 A version of this article appeared in the February 2014 issue of Tower magazine: A single sectarian war is currently under way across the Middle East.  This war has a number of fronts, some more intense and active than others.  … Continue reading →

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Salafi insurgency fermenting in northern Sinai

Posted on February 14, 2014 by jonathanspyer

Jerusalem Post, 14/2 Northern Sinai has long played host to a variety of smuggling networks and jihadi organizations. Since General Abd al-Fattah al-Sisi’s military coup of July 3rd, 2013 in Egypt, however, there has been an exponential increase in attacks … Continue reading →

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Geneva II: An exercise in futility

Posted on January 24, 2014 by jonathanspyer

Jerusalem Post, 24/1 The international conference that convened this week in the Swiss town of Montreux in an attempt to find a way toward resolving the war in Syria is one of the more strange international gatherings of recent years. … Continue reading →

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Confrontation in Kiev

Posted on January 8, 2014 by jonathanspyer

Jerusalem Report, January, 2014. Ukraine events showcase Russian strength, Western confusion with the Jews caught on the fringe Kiev’s Euro-Square (the renamed Independence Square) was roiling with anger and confusion in the frozen late afternoon of December 17. Word had … Continue reading →

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Gulf States Scramble to Re-align

Posted on January 8, 2014 by jonathanspyer

Tower Magazine, January, 2014. Evidence is currently mounting regarding a major US policy shift in the Middle East, based on a general rapprochement with Iran. As this strategy takes shape, traditional US allies in the region are becoming increasingly worried. … Continue reading →

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The Road to Teheran

Posted on November 29, 2013 by jonathanspyer

Jerusalem Post, 29/11 Is the US Changing Sides in the regional conflict between Iran and its enemies? A report by respected Washington DC based journalist Hussein Abdul Hussein in the Kuwaiti al-Rai newspaper this week revealed details of an indirect … Continue reading →

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See no Evil

Posted on November 26, 2013 by jonathanspyer

Tablet, 26/11. The agreement announced on Sunday on the Iranian nuclear program gives Iran the ability to continue to make progress towards achieving a nuclear weapon, while offering it significant relief from the sanctions imposed on it because of the … Continue reading →

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