Trump’s Gaza Plans Are Profoundly Unserious My latest for ⁦‪The Atlantic‬⁩ www.theatlantic.com/internationa...

When quickly debunked rumors in the Israeli media that the UAE was seeking to manage postconflict Gaza were widely welcomed in Israel, it demonstrated both the trust the UAE has built among Israelis but also their lack of understanding of Emirati policies and interests. @ibishblog.bsky.social

I explain to the excellent ⁦‪Mark z Owen of France 24 TV‬⁩ that neither Israel nor Hamas is sincerely interested in “Phase 2” of Trump’s non-existent ceasefire, but are both preparing to cement the very real partition and ongoing war in Gaza. www.france24.com/en/neither-i...

Peter Gabriel is still THE MAN, bringing it here with a stunning new track: Put the Bucket Down (Bright-Side Mix) youtu.be/WmXXYjOs4LU?... via @YouTube

With the US poised for attack, what a 'Venezuela scenario' could like in Iran My latest for The National‬⁩ www.thenationalnews.com/opinion/comm...

With the US poised for attack, what a 'Venezuela scenario' could like in Iran My latest for The National‬⁩ www.thenationalnews.com/opinion/comm...

Video – Outlook 2026: Prospects and Priorities for U.S.-Gulf Relations in the Year Ahead with @alfoneh.bsky.social, Tim Callen, Kristin Smith Diwan, @ibishblog.bsky.social, Abbas Kadhim, Amb. William Roebuck, Amb. Douglas Silliman, and Raymond Karam. agsi.org/events/outlo...

Peter Gabriel is still THE MAN, bringing it here with a stunning new track: Put the Bucket Down (Bright-Side Mix) youtu.be/WmXXYjOs4LU?... via @YouTube

This was arguably the best panel we’ve held in the ten year history of @gulfstatesinst.bsky.social

Don’t fuck with the amazing Richard Byrne stage-write.ghost.io/not-so-wonde...

"In the end, the big news was the extent to which the Arab countries put their differences aside and decided to back the same ideas. This is a very important inflection point in the ability of Arab states to work together." @ibishblog.bsky.social agsi.org/events/after...

Saudi Arabia has long sought a formula for clarifying the regional security role of the large-scale U.S. military facilities in the Gulf region, especially the significant air base in Qatar and naval headquarters in Bahrain. @ibishblog.bsky.social

VERY excited to be discussing “The US-Saudi Partnership Ahead of the MBS’s Washington Visit tomorrow morning with @HeshamAlghannam, @kdiwaniya,@BernardHaykel, and F. Gregory Gause, lll. It’s another best of the best panel, for ⁦‪@GulfStatesInst‬⁩ of course. agsi.org/events/the-u...

But ever since the ceasefire was agreed, Trump couldn’t miss the many clear signs that the Israeli leader has been looking for an excuse to resume fighting. Playing on the PM’s famous nickname, Israelis have been referring to this as “Bibi-sitting”. www.thenationalnews.com/opinion/comm...

The downside of his exuberant boasting and demands for the Nobel Peace Prize is that, while Trump deserves credit for having helped organise the desperately needed ceasefire, both the truce and a potential return to war are now inexorably linked to him. www.thenationalnews.com/opinion/comm...

More than 170 Americans have been detained by ICE since Donald Trump took office. Dozens have been incarcerated for days, including approximately 20 children-4 of whom were held for weeks Citizens have “been dragged, tackled, beaten, tased and shot by..They’ve had their necks kneeled on”

It’s difficult to parse the words and deeds of these two highly unreliable and non-credible actors. Both Israel and Hamas have contributed heavily to the devastating Gaza war, and neither appear fully convinced that ending the conflict is preferable for them. www.thenationalnews.com/opinion/comm...

Among the many casualties of renewed fighting, especially if it spirals back into full-blown warfare, will be the claims and credibility of US President Donald Trump. My latest for ⁦‪The National www.thenationalnews.com/opinion/comm...

This is an excellent explanation of a highly significant agreement formally linking the Saudi and Pakistani defense structures — and thereby redrawing the strategic landscape of the Gulf and Indian Ocean areas. From AGSI, naturally.

I don’t typically recommend podcasts, but the Ari Aster interview with Marc Maron is worth hearing! Aster would appreciate that you laughed.

Of course

I was alone in laughing last night in a packed cinema throughout a screening of Hereditary. I found it hilarious, and strongly reminiscent from the outset of Rosemary’s Baby, and films that turn out to be uproarious on 2nd viewings. I didn’t need a that. It was hilarious from the outset anyway.

GREAT! Might go…

“The needs of children haven't changed since a ceasefire,” said Rachael Cummings, humanitarian director for Save the Children in Gaza. “We’re still seeing malnourished children in the clinic, children with diarrhea, pneumonia, with skin infections.” www.cbc.ca/news/world/h...

UN Human Rights in Occupied Palestinian Territory: 1001 Palestinians killed in West Bank since 7 October 2023 - one in five are children reliefweb.int/report/occup...

I just watched a video of a mass of young Israeli women doing a Zumba like class to a chant of “We will raze your village!” shared by an Israeli pro democracy activist. The world has gone goddamn mad. Mad, I tell you.

One wants to throw up or scream or something but it’s no good: ICE tickets Chicago man with legal residency $130 for not having his papers on him: ‘It’s not fair ... I’m a resident’ www.chicagotribune.com/2025/10/13/i...

The October 17 edition of the Ali Alfoneh’s Iran Media Review for AGSI examines Iranian media analysis of the Israel-Hamas cease-fire deal. agsi.org/analysis/ira...

DHS is scouring social media for “antisemitism” by all foreign nationals, looking for anyone who opposed the war in Gaza, falsely equating that with antisemitism. State Department canceled the visas of 6 people who wrote negative things about Charlie Kirk. gizmodo.com/border-patro...

The video, which included the lyrics “Jew me” and “kike me,” was deleted from the platforms on Wednesday morning, though it’s not clear whether the offensive content was taken down by Border Patrol or Meta. gizmodo.com/border-patro...

‘I love Hitler’: Leaked messages expose Young Republicans’ racist chat: They referred to Black people as monkeys and “the watermelon people” and mused about putting political opponents in gas chambers. They talked about raping enemies and supported slavery. www.politico.com/news/2025/10...

“Gaza needs leadership called in by the people themselves, not appointed from the outside,” Sundos Fayyad, a journalist in Gaza, told me. “Rebuilding what’s been destroyed may be impossible, but any future worth living begins with that right for representation.”

Congratulations on having your husband murdered? This is a little strange. It doesn’t really bother me, but it just seems a little odd.

So, David Brooks‬⁩ keeps saying this again and again and again, and he’s right, right, right, right, RIGHT!!!! America Needs a Mass Movement—Now For ⁦‪@TheAtlantic‬⁩ www.theatlantic.com/magazine/arc...

BRILLIANT article by Mohammed R. Mhawish: “Survival is the most meagre inheritance. To call us resilient is to praise the caged bird while ignoring the cage’s latch. Surviving destruction is not the same as defeating it. There’s cruelty in this praise.” www.newyorker.com/news/essay/g...

They are indeed

“Uttering, promoting, and in some cases even tolerating anti-Israel rhetoric that crosses the line into anti-Semitism does double damage,” @ibishblog.bsky.social argues: both fueling violent attacks and tarring the pro-Palestinian movement.

Important and urgent: “Uttering, promoting & in some cases even tolerating anti-Israel rhetoric that crosses the line into anti-Semitism does double damage: It can help fuel violent attacks & it creates the impression that the broader Palestinian & pro-Palestinian community supports such action.”

Exactly right

Truly it was a magical experience for two young teenagers from Ain Mreiseh in Beirut. Never to be forgotten. That’s why I just took my eleven-year old boy to see David Byrne at The Anthem In DC a few days back, 6th row, center. Such opportunities are rare. Carpe diem!

Lishay’s last post before putting the girls to bed: “For two years now, every night we go out under the moon and say, "Good night, Daddy Omri," hoping he hears, hoping he feels. Today, for the last time. Tomorrow, Roni and Alma will say it to Daddy himself 🎗️ “ Credit: Ofir Berman

This thread nails it completely

I was very glad to write this article and I hope people pay attention to it. It’s very important.

This is the gibberish you get from a bot

Of course

Hints of authoritarianism BEFORE Trump’s current rampage: FBI spied on Republican lawmakers many of the fools supported: The intercepted "data shows when and to whom a call is made, as well as the duration and general location data of the call." reason.com/2025/10/10/f...

No

What a wonderful story! In music terms, one of the best telegrams ever ☺️ I've never seen Led Zep but I'm thrilled that you were able to be at Knebworth. Rock 'n' roll! Gotta love it ❤️ xx

I’m excited to be going to see “One Battle After Another” by one of the group of brilliant auteurs working in cinema today, Paul Thomas Anderson. It’s reportedly an anti-fascist movie in a fascist era in America. I guess maybe that’s why it’s so hard to go see it here in DC!