Jerusalem Institute for Strategy and Security (JISS)
Abstract:
The collapse of the Assad regime weakens Iran and the CRINK Axis, but Islamist radicalism and rising Turkish influence demand Israel’s military vigilance and diplomatic engagement.
Topic:
Diplomacy, Islamism, Bashar al-Assad, and Regional Security
Jerusalem Institute for Strategy and Security (JISS)
Abstract:
Analysis of Google searches shows Israel has greater freedom of action than it may imagine in view of the focus on the potential regional ramifications of the conflict between Israel and Iran over the Palestinians and Gaza.
Topic:
Public Opinion, Geopolitics, Humanitarian Crisis, and 2023 Gaza War
Jerusalem Institute for Strategy and Security (JISS)
Abstract:
The IDF is battling Hezbollah in Lebanon to enable Israel’s 85,000 displaced citizens to return safely to their homes. Less known is the significant security challenge Hezbollah poses to Israel and the United States in Africa. Hezbollah, with Iran’s backing, has steadily expanded its financial and operational presence across the African continent, establishing networks that could be weaponized against Western interests. This development represents not only a direct threat to Israel and the U.S. but also to the stability of fragile African states where Hezbollah has built strongholds.
Topic:
Security, Non State Actors, Hezbollah, and Proxy Groups
Political Geography:
Africa, Middle East, Israel, Palestine, and Lebanon
Jerusalem Institute for Strategy and Security (JISS)
Abstract:
Europe borders the Middle East, and the continent cannot insulate itself from events in this region. Its options, however, are limited: Europe is hardly a strategic actor with the political will and requisite capabilities to intervene. Moreover, the Middle East is not easily amenable to foreign intervention. Nevertheless, Europe cannot ignore developments that impact its national security and if it concentrates its efforts, it may have a modest input in ensuring that pro-stability forces gain the upper hand.
Topic:
Foreign Policy, Diplomacy, Humanitarian Crisis, and 2023 Gaza War
Jerusalem Institute for Strategy and Security (JISS)
Abstract:
For years, the Gaza Strip has been of secondary importance, with the General Staff focusing primarily on the northern front and Iran. This focus has come at the expense of intelligence gathering, building operational plans, and operational attention to Gaza.
Jerusalem Institute for Strategy and Security (JISS)
Abstract:
Against the background of Hamas' ongoing war with Israel (and the expressions of support for it among Palestinians and Islamists in Jordan), the Iranian regime has intensified its efforts to subvert the Hashemite monarchy. The arrests in March 2024 of Iranian agents involved in smuggling arms to Muslim Brotherhood elements in Jordan are part of a campaign to counter the role of Tehran in bringing both drugs and weapons over the Syrian and Iraqi borders into Jordan. Tensions rose further over Jordan's supportive role in foiling the Iranian attack on Israel on 14 April 2024. For the Iranian regime, the destabilization of Jordan is a vital precursor for the strategic goal of turning Judea and Samaria into "another Gaza", as Supreme Leader 'Ali Khamenei suggested back in 2014: hence the importance of American and Israeli support for Jordan. The stability of the Kingdom (and thus the need to reduce economic and social strains) is a vital interest of both Israel and the West.
Topic:
Foreign Policy, Islamism, Muslim Brotherhood, and Regional Security
Jerusalem Institute for Strategy and Security (JISS)
Abstract:
With the world divided between a U.S.-led order of democracies on the one hand, and a cartel of aggressive autocracies – China, Russia, Iran and North Korea – on the other, that is challenging America and its allies, Europe has an important role to play in Israel’s war against Iran and its proxies.
Topic:
National Security, Autocracy, Proxy Groups, and Regional Politics
Political Geography:
Russia, Europe, Middle East, Israel, and Palestine
John L. Esposito, Archit Mehta, and Mobashra Tazamal
Publication Date:
05-2024
Content Type:
Special Report
Institution:
The Bridge Initiative, Georgetown University
Abstract:
May 2024 marks over seven months of Israel’s bombardment and siege of the Gaza Strip, home to over two million Palestinians. UN experts and rights organizations have described Israel’s military actions in Gaza as a genocide, and the death toll now stands at over 36,000 Palestinians dead, with over 80,000 injured.
Israel’s establishment in 1948 led to the forced expulsion of over 750,000 Palestinians from their homes and villages, an episode that Palestinians refer to as the Nakba (catastrophe), as well as numerous incidents of Israeli settlers engaging in massacres of Palestinians. Since its establishment, there have been a number of wars between Israel and Palestinians and the surrounding Arab countries, and following the 1967 Arab-Israeli war, Israel began its occupation of the West Bank (including East Jerusalem), and the Gaza Strip. This control of Palestinian territories involves “policies of land confiscation, illegal settlement, and dispossession,” rampant discrimination, and settler violence, all of which deprive Palestinians of their basic rights. Israel’s 50+ years of occupation of the Gaza Strip and the West Bank have resulted in what Amnesty International describes as “systematic human rights violations against Palestinians living there.” In a 2021 report, Human Rights Watch concluded that Israel’s occupation of Palestinian territory amounts “to the crimes against humanity of apartheid and persecution.”
When it comes to the Gaza Strip, in 2007, Israel imposed a blockade on the territory after the Hamas group came to power. Following the October 2023 Hamas attack, Israel “imposed a total blockade on the Gaza Strip on October 9, cutting its supplies of electricity, food, water, and fuel.” Since Hamas came to power, Israel has launched several military assaults on Gaza in an effort to eradicate Hamas.
Topic:
Genocide, Elections, Social Media, Islamophobia, Donald Trump, and Joe Biden
Political Geography:
Middle East, Israel, Palestine, Gaza, and United States of America
The toing and froing of proposals and counterproposals for a ceasefire in Gaza has been going on for months now. The talks between the Israeli government and Hamas, however, have never really been about numbers: how many hostages to release, which ones, in return for how many and which prisoners, and how many days of truce. The sticking point is another: Hamas calls for the end of the war, and the Israeli government for the end of Hamas. This means that, in reality, the stand-off is all about the “day after”. How can a government be established in Gaza that ensures freedom and development on one side, and security on the other one?
And yet, that’s what no one has been working on. While most mediators admit by now that Hamas will not be destroyed, in the ceasefire talks the issue of the “day after” continues not to be factored in.
The Palestinian reconciliation agreement signed in Beijing on 22 July[1] did not attract much attention. It is easy to understand why. Many agreements like it have been signed between Fatah and Hamas since the 1980s and have not been implemented. What is different about this agreement? The difference does not lie in the prospects for reconciliation, which may materialise or ultimately fail like its predecessors, but rather in the contents to which the Hamas movement has agreed. In other words, the novelty is not in the reconciliation but in Hamas’s modified positions.
Topic:
Treaties and Agreements, Hamas, and Reconciliation