Latest Article from Soeren Kern

Jihadists Target Spain

September 27, 2016  •  Gatestone Institute

Islamic militants are stepping up a propaganda war against Spain. In recent months, Islamic State and other jihadist groups have produced a flurry of videos and documents calling on Muslims to reconquer al-Andalus.

Al-Andalus is the Arabic name given to those parts of Spain, Portugal and France occupied by Muslim conquerors (also known as the Moors) from 711 to 1492. Many Muslims believe that territories Muslims lost during the Christian Reconquest of Spain still belong to the realm of Islam. They claim that Islamic law gives them the right to re-establish Muslim rule there.

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Latest Article from Jonathan Schanzer

The International Community Must Focus on Palestinian Unity to Kick-Start Peace

September 20, 2016  •  Newsweek

A Palestinian court in Ramallah earlier this month suspended the local elections that were scheduled to be held in both the West Bank and the Gaza Strip on October 8. This marks eleven years since the last elections held in both territories. As long as the West continues to ignore this political stagnation, the future prospects for a viable Palestinian state will only become more remote.

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Latest Article from Tevi Troy

America's Next Crisis Manager

September 26, 2016  •  The Wall Street Journal

As Hillary Clin­ton and Don­ald Trump clash on the de­bate stage Mon­day night, view­ers should con­sider how each might han­dle a dis­as­ter as presi­dent. One of the top­ics slated for debate is "se­cur­ing Amer­ica," and indeed, ter­ror­ism re­cently struck New York, New Jer­sey and Min­neapolis. Hur­ri-canes and pan­demics also loom as un­pre­dictable threats in the pres­i­den­tial purview.

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Latest Article from Michael Rubin

Did the Defense Department Lie About Closing Lajes?

September 22, 2016  •  Newsweek

The Pentagon continues to reduce forces at Lajes Field in the Azores, a strategic archipelago in the mid-Atlantic. A year ago, the base was already a ghost town. After US taxpayers had spent millions of dollars on housing, schools, and other critical infrastructure, most laid vacant. Dinner at the base restaurant was like a scene from "The Shining."

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Latest Article from Michael Freund

When will American Jews stop ignoring the Bnei Menashe Jews?

September 22, 2016  •  Jerusalem Post

Having recently celebrated his 90th birthday, Mendel Kingbol has a great deal for which to be thankful.

Residing in Afula, he fulfilled a life-long dream when he made aliya from the northeastern Indian state of Mizoram a decade ago.

With an abiding faith in God, 43 beautiful grandchildren living throughout the Jewish state, and several great-grandchildren too, Kingbol would appear to have every conceivable reason to bask in a sense of contentment as he enjoys his golden years.

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Latest Article from Clifford May

'Political correctness' finds a new target

September 21, 2016  •  The Washington Times

In "Nineteen Eighty-Four," George Orwell's classic novel about a totalitarian and dystopian future, the ruling Party develops "Newspeak" as way to limit freedom of expression and thought. So, for example, "goodthink" refers to thoughts approved by the Party. That which is not "goodthink" is apt to be "crimethink."

In the real world of today, we use a different but no less Orwellian vocabulary. On university campuses and in the mainstream media we now have a growing body of rules, both written and tacit, mandating that only "politically correct" views be expressed.

I maintain that "political correctness" has as much to do with what is correct — i.e. true — as "ethnic cleansing" has to do with personal hygiene.

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Latest Article from Asaf Romirowsky

Greens Should Follow Germany's Lead And Reject Israel Boycotts

September 20, 2016  •  Huffington Post Canada

While Iran's regime continues to expand its nuclear facilities and Syrian dictator Bashar Assad's war has caused a half million deaths, the Green parties in North America are bizarrely preoccupied with boycotting the Jewish state. The parties' counterpart in Germany is, however, a vehement opponent of the anti-Semitic boycott movement. The German Greens should serve as a model for Canadian and U.S. Greens to revise their anti-Israel positions.

Last month, the Green Party of Canada became the country's first party to endorse the Boycott, Divestment, Sanctions movement (BDS) targeting Israel.

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Latest Article from Judith Miller

What a difference a year makes -- Trump, Russia and Ukraine

September 16, 2016  •  Fox News

KIEV, Ukraine – What a difference a year makes.

Last year, Donald Trump, the billionaire businessman who was then leading the Republican presidential field in the polls, was all for defending Ukraine against Russian aggression.

In an unusual appearance by satellite last September, Mr. Trump told a gathering of the European elite in the Ukrainian capital that America and Europe should be doing far more to support the struggling country.

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Latest Article from Ilan Berman

Iran And The New Monroe Doctrine

September 2, 2016  •  Foreign Affairs

In Washington, conventional wisdom has long held that Iran's presence south of the U.S. border constitutes little more than an axis of annoyance. In this telling, Iran's activities in Central and South America - from numerous commercial and trade deals with various nations to the establishment of cultural centers throughout the region - are disorganized, opportunistic, and ultimately of little consequence. That narrative has proved remarkably persistent, and - in part as a result - Washington has historically paid scant attention to Iran's presence in the hemisphere. But there is ample evidence to the contrary in the form of Iran's strategic cooperation with the region's anti-American regimes, and in well-documented instances of Iranian-sponsored subversion organized there and aimed at U.S. interests and allies. Now, with the Islamic Republic increasingly unfettered from sanctions as a result of last year's nuclear deal with the West, there are unmistakable signs that it is widening its presence in the Americas in earnest.

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Latest Article from Ilan Berman

Iran's Ahmadinejad Is Betting On A Comeback

August 26, 2016  •  The National Interest

Does anyone remember Mahmoud Ahmadinejad? Until recently, the Islamic radical and former military officer who served as Iran's sixth president could be considered something of a political footnote.

During his two terms in office (2005–09 and 2009–13), Ahmadinejad's anti-Western bombast and political brinkmanship helped transform Iran into an international pariah, while his ruinous economic policies exacerbated the country's mounting fiscal woes. By the end of his tenure, Ahmadinejad was deeply unpopular at home, roundly blamed for a major decline in both domestic prosperity and global standing. He had also fallen out with his one-time protector, Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei, leaving him all but politically neutered.

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Latest Article from M. Zuhdi Jasser

After Qandeel Baloch's murder, is the world finally waking up to 'honor killings'?

August 5, 2016  •  Asia Times

The case of Qandeel Baloch, the "Kim Kardashian" of Pakistan, has rightly captured international headlines. A social media phenomenon, Baloch was known for posts that were provocative in the context of her home culture, even if they would be considered rather benign to many in the West, and certainly in the United States.

Honor-based violence – a type of violence in which families, sometimes with the help of the broader community, punish a victim (usually female) for a perceived social or sexual indiscretion, has long been a plague. This is certainly true in Pakistan – most especially in more insular communities where a more regressive interpretation of Islam is enforced.

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