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Ariel Ben Solomon: Middle East Political Analysis and Commentary | JNS

Ariel Ben Solomon

Explore Ariel Ben Solomon’s analytical pieces on Middle East politics, Israel, and international relations at JNS.org.

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Partly driving the shift “is the weakness the United States is showing towards Iran in its efforts to reduce its presence in the Middle East and bolster its position in the Far East against the growing Chinese challenge,” said Bar-Ilan Professor Hillel Frisch, a Middle East expert at the BESA Center.
Jonathan Spyer tells JNS, “What is happening in Lebanon is what happens when a country allows itself to be taken over by a franchise of the Iranian Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, with all the corruption and eventual collapse and impoverishment which follows.”
“The United States knows that the Iranian government cares first and foremost about staying in power. If that means sacrificing its non-Iranian allies—Lebanese, Iraqi, Syrian and Yemenite Shi’ites—so be it,” said former U.S. Department of Defense official Harold Rhode.
The demise of the Soviet Union mirrors the collapse of the Ottoman Empire following World War I and the development of separate independent states in the Mideast.
“The fragile government does not have a mandate from the public to deal with the peace process,” said Ido Zelkovitz, head of the Middle East Studies program at the Max Stern Yezreel Valley College and a research fellow at the University of Haifa.
Refunding their coffers and warming up to their leaders have effectively proven not to advance peace in the region, according to Mideast analysts.
Clashes between Jewish and Arab Israelis in towns throughout the country were worse than the public believed, bordering on anarchy, said Border Police Commissioner Maj. Gen. Amir Cohen.
“The signs at this stage are positive, but more than just nice words will be required,” says Simon Henderson of the Washington Institute for Near East Policy.
“This has nothing to do with the Arab-Israeli conflict, but is about money and power. Why are no Arab politicians in Jerusalem protesting? It is because they are focused on gaining power and prestige,” said Rodayna Badir, an expert on Arab society in Israel.
The terror group that runs Gaza “created a new equation by bringing the issue of Jerusalem and the holy sites into the public discussion and showing itself to be their defender,” said Kobi Michael, a senior researcher at Israel’s Institute for National Security Studies.
Experts argue that Arabs are tired of slogans and looking for a change; their voters want to see a party that has influence and not just sits in the Knesset without achievements for the Arab sector.
Behnam Ben Taleblu, a senior fellow at the Foundation for Defense of Democracies, also noted that the recordings “underscore what has long been known about the Islamic Republic: The foreign ministry is not where foreign policy is made.”