Middle East
The top U.S. diplomat proceeded to highlight the Trump administration’s accomplishments in the region in that “we’ve learned from our mistakes. We’ve rediscovered our voice. We’ve rebuilt our relationships. We’ve rejected false overtures from our enemies.”
Egypt is one of eight countries that Pompeo is scheduled to visit on a weeklong trip that may also include stops in Israel and Iraq.
The Arab Spring period featured large-scale civil wars, uprisings and the involvement of external elements in failed states, as old orders fell apart. But new developments depict a different scenario, according to an ex-senior intelligence officer.
The Bedouin residents of an illegal outpost have begun to cultivate a huge tract of land, using heavy equipment, in an attempt to establish facts on the ground that will be very difficult to reverse.
Avigdor Lieberman divulged details on U.S. “deal of century” before resigning, Al-Hayat reports • Plan calls for Palestinian state in the Gaza Strip and expanded powers for Palestinian Authority in Judea and Samaria • Lieberman: “The report is false.”
In Brazil, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu says the Trump administration plans to present the “deal of the century” at a time “they believe would be the most conducive to its success” • U.S. agrees that presenting plan during election cycle would undermine its chances.
IRGC deputy commander Mohammed Reza Naqdi: Israel must be wiped out, Zionists annihilated; “We can destroy KSA, U.S. bases in the region.”
They are also banking on France and its small presence in Syria to bolster the Kurds against a possible Turkish attack.
U.S. Ambassador to Israel David Friedman and other officials have warned against releasing the plan during the Israeli election season, so that the vote is not a referendum on the American proposal.
Still, the Israel prime minister cautioned in a meeting closed to the media that “there are no guarantees, and we will have to fight mightily.”
Norway-based jihadi scholar Mullah Fateh Krekar: “New groups will emerge after Al Qaeda and ISIS are gone because the Koran and Sunnah are permanent.”
Some excitement—and perhaps a lot more doubt—has been swirling in political and academic circles about the ongoing nature of Jerusalem’s Gulf-oriented approach to diplomatic, and hopefully, economic relations.
