Latest Articles

Why Qatar and Turkey Can't Solve the Crisis in Gaza

July 23, 2014  •  The National Interest

With Washington desperate for a cease-fire between Israel and Hamas, and with Egypt having flamed out as a broker of calm, two of Hamas's top patrons are about to be rewarded with a high-profile diplomatic victory. U.S. and Israeli media are now reporting that the White House may be looking to Qatar and Turkey to help negotiate an end to the hostilities. Qatar, in fact, held a high-profile cease-fire summit in Doha on Sunday that included Palestinian Authority president Mahmoud Abbas, UN Secretary General Ban Ki Moon, the Norwegian foreign minister, and Hamas leader Khaled Meshal.

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Friendless in the Middle East

July 15, 2014  •  Politico

One week after the start of Israel's "Operation Protective Edge," also known as Hamas' "10th of Ramadan War," Washington is looking on helplessly. President Barack Obama offered to mediate a ceasefire last week, but the move fell on deaf ears—on both sides. Secretary of State John Kerry then made a surprise visit to Cairo on Monday in a bid for calm. Egypt soon announced a ceasefire, which was to have taken hold this morning at 9 a.m. The Israelis agreed to the terms, but Hamas balked, claiming it was never even consulted. Rockets continue to fly out of Gaza, and Israeli warships continue to pound targets in the Hamas-controlled enclave.

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The Teenagers' Revolt

July 8, 2014  •  Foreign Policy

SHUAFAT, East Jerusalem — The Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine dropped hundreds of incendiary leaflets on Shuafat Road on Friday, July 4, calling for renewed conflict with Israel. The hard-line Palestinian organization's fliers were scattered amid the rocks, rubble, and spent tear-gas canisters from the clashes that have occurred daily with Israeli border guards since the gruesome murder of 16-year-old Mohammed Abu Khdeir on July 2.

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An Unhelpful Ally

June 25, 2014  •  Wall Street Journal Europe

The Middle East is aflame. The rapid march of the Islamic State of Iraq and al-Sham, or ISIS, from Syria into Iraq has rattled Washington and Brussels. The Palestinian-Israeli conflict is also heating up, as the Jewish state searches frantically for three teens kidnapped in the West Bank. And the world powers continue to wrangle with Iran over its nuclear-weapons program.

None of these crises are easy to solve, and all three have been exacerbated by policies crafted in Europe's backyard by Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan's Turkey.

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Iran spawns new jihadist group in Gaza

June 18, 2014  •  Long War Journal

Out of the Palestinian unity deal forged between Hamas and Fatah earlier this month, a new splinter has formed. Hesn is a shadowy Iran-backed jihadist faction in the Gaza Strip. The group's name is an acronym for Harakat as-Sabeereen Nasran li-Filastin, or "The Movement of the Patient Ones for the Liberation of Palestine."

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Books by Jonathan Schanzer