Submitted by Brad Hoff via The Libertarian Institute,
A newly declassified CIA document explored multiple scenarios of Syrian regime collapse at a time when Hafez al-Assad’s government was embroiled in a covert “dirty war” with Israel and the West, and in the midst of a diplomatic crisis which marked an unprecedented level of isolation for Syria.
Submitted by VicturusLibertas via The Burning Platform blog,
A Senate committee has been urged to carefully consider Donald Trump’s nomination for ambassador to Israel, saying that he is an “extremist” who is unqualified for the job. In a letter sent to the Senate foreign relations committee, five former US ambassadors said that Trumps pick, hard liner David Friedman, had presented “extreme, radical positions” on Israel, supported illegal settlements and opposed a two-state solution for the Palestinian conflict.
US President Donald Trump said he would support the peace agreement that Israel and Palestinians “like the best” in a joint press conference with Benjamin Netanyahu . When asked about the Israeli-Palestinian peace proces, Trump “I’m looking at two state and one state. And I like the one that both parties like” He did however call on Israeli Prime Minister to pause settlement expansion in order to reach a peace deal. “I’d like to see you hold off on settlements for a little bit,” he told Netanyahu.
The much anticipated meeting between President Trump and Benjamin Netanyahu did not provide significant insight into the new administration's policies vis-a-vis Israel and the middle east. While Trump expressed optimism in a "great peace deal", he urged his Israeli colleague to "hold back on the settlements a little bit", and while reiterating his support for a move of the US embassy to Jerusalem, he was non-committal: "we'll see what happens."