Israel Up Close
My travels through a demonised democracy.
Israel & Antisemitism
A collection of 296 posts
One Hundred Days of Ineptitude
Even those of us who sounded alarms before the November election underestimated just how unhinged the second Trump presidency would turn out to be.
Israel’s Perfect Failure
Israeli intelligence and the Hamas attack on 7 October 2023.
The Druse Connection
The ongoing Arab–Israeli war appears to be entering a new escalatory phase, in which the eye of the storm has shifted to Syria and Yemen, as well as back to Gaza.
The Settlers: An Incomplete Portrayal
Louis Theroux’s new documentary suggests that he is unfamiliar with the complex history behind the Israeli occupation of The West Bank, and does not understand the political and ideological factors at stake there.
Liberalism as the Shining City on a Hill
Why we all need to read Benny Morris.
Podcast #283: Free Speech in Australia
Iona Italia talks to Alan Davison about censorship, self-censorship, the Online Safety Act and other threats to free speech in Australia.
Against the Tyranny of Opinionated Ignorance
Let us not confuse the freedom to speak with the freedom to mislead.
Trump Versus Harvard
The cure may be worse than the disease.
A Cartoonish View of History
Joe Sacco’s graphic works provide vivid and moving depictions of the terrible suffering in the Strip. But his accounts of the causes of that suffering are simplistic and one-sided in the extreme.
Fania Oz-Salzberger on Israel’s Current Turmoil
Israel is a struggling, desperate, deeply flawed liberal democracy.
From Gaza to the Ivory Tower: The War on Israel
An honest conversation with the hard-hitting Israeli historian Gadi Taub.
How Hamas Exploits the West
Pamela Paresky speaks with Israeli political scientist Dr. Dan Schueftan about Israel’s resilience after October 7th, the moral imperative of defeating Hamas, and the shifting alliances reshaping the Middle East.
Domestic Troubles in the Jewish State
While hostilities between Hamas and Israel continue, Benjamin Netanyahu’s government faces renewed protests at home.
Making Israel Great Again?
The apparent abandonment of Ukraine and Adam Boehler’s negotiations with Hamas have raised serious doubts about Donald Trump’s commitment to Israel.