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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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The Fatah-led Palestinian Authority “has hit rock bottom and is in its worst political position since the first Gulf War,” said Middle East expert Ido Zelkovitz.
Despite no direct evidence tying Hezbollah to the explosions, Lebanon’s increased instability has the terror group scrambling to maintain the status quo and its position in the country.
“It is no secret that e-commerce is growing worldwide, and that every business owner—big or small—understands that you cannot run a business without an online presence,” says Mordechai Arba, the 29-year-old founder and CEO of Ecomhunt.
While some fear the breakdown of the Palestinian Authority, former senior U.S. officials tell JNS that Israel should promote its end so that a new generation of leaders can take over.
The question is whether Turkey’s increasingly Islamist domestic and foreign policies, coupled with continued negative repercussions from the Hagia Sophia fallout, will cause voters to turn him out of power in the next elections, which are scheduled for 2023.
Turkey is spending millions of dollars a year to gain influence on the Temple Mount in coordination with a branch of the Muslim Brotherhood known as the Islamic Movement in Israel.
Both parties are “showing weakness” and “busy taking themselves hostage” with their reactions to the Israeli move, says former Cheney adviser David Wurmser.
As evidence mounts that China hid the initial outbreak in Wuhan, the question for Israel is whether it will be convinced—or forced—to scale back ties as tensions with America escalate.
“If you ask Israeli Arabs, they will say that part of their identity is Israeli. The younger generation feels more Israeli than Palestinian, but now they feel the state is accusing them of being traitors,” said Rodayna Badir, an expert on Arab society in Israel working on research at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem.
Over the years, public-opinion polls demonstrate that Israeli-Arabs reject trading in their current passports for Palestinian ones.
On the heels of the revelation that another senior Gantz adviser called the U.S. president “Donald Adolf Trump,” tweets surface by Blue and White campaign strategist Joel Benenson, claiming that Trump takes his talking points from the Nazi leader.
Ongoing protests, the death of Iranian Gen. Qassem Soleimani and crushing U.S.-led sanctions may be pushing Tehran to the tipping point, experts say, but the U.S. administration needs to keep up the pressure.