A recently announced proposal by Secretary of State John Kerry to closely coordinate American military activity in Syria with Russia is coming under growing criticism from U.S. officials, European allies, and moderate rebels fighting Syrian President Bashar al-Assad, Reuters reported on Sunday. The deal involves sharing intelligence with Russia to help target the...

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The speaker of Iran’s parliament said that his nation must confront the United States and prepare “a plan for the launch of a nuclear plant for enrichment,” Iranian media reported on Wednesday. Speaker Ali Larijani said that his parliament “is warning the US administration and its House of Representatives and...

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The $25 billion aircraft deal that Boeing recently struck with Iran could be jeopardized by Tehran’s continued support of Syrian dictator Bashar al-Assad, the Associated Press (AP) reported Thursday. Boeing’s jets will be sold to the state-owned Iran Air, which was sanctioned by the Treasury Department in 2011 partially due to its transport of “potentially dangerous...

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Israel signed an agreement on Tuesday to join an American initiative that helps countries and major companies share cyber defense and intelligence information automatically. Representatives from the U.S. Department of Homeland Security, who were in Israel for Tel Aviv University’s annual International Cybersecurity Conference, signed the agreement together with Israeli government officials. “One of the lessons we learned...

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David Hazony’s attempt to enter the mind of the president is gripping all the way through, well-structured, and as persuasive as it’s possible to be given the limited evidence and the space constraints. But it is not the only plausible way to interpret the evidence. I have no theory about...

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A $1.7 billion payment by the U.S. to Iran that coincided with the release of American hostages in January is helping Tehran boost its military budget by 90 percent in the next year, Eli Lake of Bloomberg View reported on Thursday. The $1.7 billion payment was transferred from a taxpayer-funded account called the Judgment Fund, which is used to pay...

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In a major development for Israel’s arms export industry, the United States Army chose an Israeli-made “active protection system” to secure its armored personnel carriers (APCs). The American military will use Israel Military Industries’ Iron Fist Light Configuration system to protect its light- to medium-weight APCs. Iron Fist employs a combinations of radar and electro-optic...

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The election last week of 89-year-old Ayatollah Ahmad Jannati to head Iran’s Assembly of Experts, which will choose the country’s next Supreme Leader to replace Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, shows that “whoever follows the increasingly frail Mr. Khamenei as Supreme Leader is unlikely to alter the regime’s core anti-Western philosophy,” The Wall Street Journal editorial board wrote (Google link) Monday. Jannati...

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June 1-2 is the 75th anniversary of the Farhud, the 1941 pogrom by pro-Nazi Arabs attempting to exterminate the Jews of Baghdad. Hundreds were murdered and raped, and many Jewish homes and business looted and burned during a two-day orgy of hate and violence orchestrated by the Grand Mufti of...

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Sanctions and national security experts urged the United States to reject Iran’s demands for further economic concessions and ramp up pressure on Tehran in response to its regional aggression during a Senate Banking Committee hearing on Tuesday. Iranian leaders have complained of not receiving enough sanctions relief, blaming the U.S. for the continued...

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