Author: Jonathan Spyer
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Is Israel Preparing to Strike Iran’s Nuclear Sites?
In a soon-to-be-published article in Middle East Quarterly magazine, Colin Winston, a 30-year veteran of the CIA and former head of research at the American-Israel Public Affairs Committee (AIPAC), lays out a succinct case for an Israeli attack on Iran’s nuclear facilities. “Hezbollah and Hamas no longer pose a threat to Israel,” Winston writes. “The…
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As Iranian Power Recedes, Turkey and Its Sunni Allies Are Filling the Vacuum
Hay’at Tahrir al-Sham’s victory in Syria was a result of the strategic acumen and Islamist commitment of Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, above. Ankara’s domiciling of the Syrian rebels in the northwest of the country made possible the HTS offensive. Shutterstock Last year was a historic year for the Middle East. It began with Israel…
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Israel’s War Efforts Made Great Strides in 2024, but Much Remains Ahead
An Israeli Merkava tank fighting against Hamas in Han Yunus city, Gaza; Feb. 7, 2024. Shutterstock Israel entered 2024 still in the first stages of a war on several fronts, fought against a loose alliance of Islamist forces aligned with the Islamic Republic of Iran. This war had been triggered, of course, by the Hamas…
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Iran, Hezbollah Strongholds Make Syria a ‘Hunting Ground’ for Israel
Syrian President Bashar Assad, pictured here in a poster in Damascus in May 2023, has been portrayed in regional media recently as a weak link in the Iranian-led war effort. Shutterstock With Israeli forces in daily action in Gaza and south Lebanon, and intermittent drone and missile attacks continuing from Iraq and Yemen, one front…