Coronavirus Delivers Another Devastating Blow to the Iranian Regime

Yaakov Lappin
March 27, 2020
Paper No. 1507

The coronavirus pandemic has hit Iran hard, and not only on the health front. The virus is the latest in a succession of blows to the Iranian regime’s domestic status, fractured economy, and already low credibility level at home. The virus also appears to be slowing down the regime’s malign activities across the Middle East.

Has Syria Reactivated Its Chemical Weapons Program?

Yaakov Lappin
March 26, 2020
Paper No. 1506

Syrian media reports of Israeli airstrikes, allegedly launched early on March 5 in central and southern Syria, may be a sign that Damascus has renewed its chemical weapons program.

Turkey and Russia: Not Friends After All

Burak Bekdil
March 26, 2020
Paper No. 1505

After a three-and-a-half-year marriage of convenience, Turkey and Russia have come to realize that they are fighting on opposite sides of two proxy wars: one in Syria and the other in Libya. This comes after Russia sold Turkey $2.5 billion worth of S-400 air defense systems, won a multibillion-dollar nuclear plant contract, signed up for a lucrative natural gas pipeline, and widened the gap between NATO and its part-time member Turkey.

Coronavirus, God, and Science

When PM Benjamin Netanyahu said, in a March 21 TV interview, that “with God’s help we’ll get through” the coronavirus crisis, the interviewer interrupted him with these words: “With the help of the Weizmann Institute…The modern Temple of Zionism is at the Weizmann Institute.” This exchange reveals the gap between the modern state’s promise of efficient management even in the face of great adversity and the elements of randomness and surprise that can render the most powerful and advanced states helpless.

The Coronavirus Pandemic: Israel Is America’s Friend In Deed

When President Donald Trump and other medical professionals touted the decades-old antimalarial drug hydroxychloroquine as a possible means of fighting the coronavirus pandemic, the Israeli generic drug giant Teva (the most popular big pharma stock on Wall Street) immediately announced that it will provide 10 million doses of its hydroxychloroquine drug to US hospitals free of charge. Rep. Rashida Talib and her fellow American detractors of Israel who claim that Israel does nothing but take from the US owe Israel an apology.

Saudi Arabia and Iran Both Persecute Religious and Ethnic Minorities

A series of recent measures in Saudi Arabia and Iran that gravely violate the rights of religious and ethnic minorities call into question their moral claims of adhering to core faith-based values of mercy and compassion.

Turkey and Coronavirus: Devout Muslims Will Defeat the “Jewish Plot”

Burak Bekdil
March 24, 2020
Paper No. 1501

Turkey appears to be handling the coronavirus crisis relatively well, although its low case numbers reflect the low number of tests being administered. Pious Turkish Muslims are blaming dark anti-Turkish forces and, of course, the Jews for unleashing the virus on the world.

Iran Looms Large in Central Asia Despite Sanctions and Saudi Financial Muscle

After years of tension, relations are warming between Tajikistan and Iran—a development that bodes ill for Saudi Arabia and its relations with that country as well as others in Central Asia.

Coronavirus in the Eyes of Muslim Clerics

Dr. Edy Cohen
March 23, 2020
Paper No. 1499

The devastating onslaught of the coronavirus is being exploited by some Muslim clerics to instill fear in their followers and compel stricter religious observance. At the same time, parts of the Arab world are looking to Israel and the Jews to find a cure.

50 European Political Has-Beens Oppose Trump’s Peace Plan

Fifty former senior European politicians have published a letter against the Trump peace plan in the Guardian. Many signatories can be characterized as veteran anti-Israeli inciters. Some can even be labeled antisemites. All have held positions in countries where antisemitism is endemic. In 2019, even before the Trump plan was published, a similar letter was published by former EU officials.

Perspectives Papers