Free Republic

President Donald Trump’s new national security strategy is set to be released on Monday. A copy of the document obtained by The Daily Caller reveals a stark contrast between President Trump’s America First National Security Strategy and former President Barack Obama’s most recent national security strategy in 2015. Renewed Focus On Islamist Terrorism Trump’s new national security strategy places an emphasis on stopping Islamist terrorism and calls it out by name. Obama’s 2015 national security strategy referred to Islam just twice: once because it’s part of ISIS’ name and once to say the administration rejected “the lie that America and...

Quite a banquet will take place Thursday night in London to mark the centenary of the Balfour Declaration. That’s the letter in which Britain announced its support for the establishment in Palestine of what became the state of Israel. The letter was sent a century ago to a leader of British Jewry, Lord Rothschild, from Britain’s foreign minister, Lord Balfour. The nub: “His Majesty’s Government views with favor the establishment in Palestine of a national home for the Jewish people.” Its enormous impact was acknowledgment by the world’s then-mightiest empire of the legitimacy of Jewish claims to Israel. That the...

god-original-land-grant-of-israel-to-abraham by Geoffrey Grider August 17, 2016 The tiny, little fraction of Israel proper that the Jews have at the current moment pales in comparison with how much God says they really have. “For all the land which thou seest, to thee will I give it, and to thy seed for ever.” Genesis 13:15 (KJV) In our day, much is made of the current conflict between Israel and the mythical Palestinians and the seemingly endless battle over who is entitled to how much of the land. People talk about the ownership of the Gaza Strip, the West Bank and the...

Russia has warned the Israel government on behalf of Assad regime that any more air strikes in Syria will be met with Scud missiles. Syria had sent Israel a message via Russia that Scud missiles would be fired towards Israeli targets if Israel carried out any further airstrikes in the war-torn region, Lebanon's Al-Diyar newspaper reported. According to the report, any strikes against Syrian military targets will be met with Scuds launched at IDF bases while any strikes against civilian infrastructure will be met with missiles fired at Haifa's port and petrochemical plant.

Obama is going to use his last three weeks in office to damage Israel in at least one more UN Security Council resolution. ... The Paris resolution will either demand Israel recognize a Palestinian state with borders conforming to the pre-1967 war borders or will do so on behalf of the nations in attendance. It may set a deadline for Israel to do so.

The 9/11 terrorists could have cared less about America’s gun-free zones, former Israeli Ambassador Michael Oren suggested during his conversation with conservative radio host Hugh Hewitt on Thursday morning. The two weighed in on Sunday’s Orlando tragedy, as well as lawmakers’ predictable call for gun control. In his remarks, Oren did accede some points to the gun control lobby, arguing that in Israel few citizens own guns and yet they’ve managed to fight terror for years. Yet, he quickly noted that if a terrorist has plans to murder someone, gun laws are not going to stop him or her. September...

Israel's decision to honor a controversial Greek Orthodox priest at its official Independence Day ceremony is driving a wedge in the country's tiny Christian Arab community as the government recognizes him for his efforts to encourage Christians to enlist in the Israeli military. Father Gabriel Naddaf's recruitment drive has deeply divided Israel's Christian Arabs, who make up just 2 percent of Israel's population. His inclusion in a ceremony tinged with sadness for many of the country's Arabs, along with new allegations accusing him of sexually harassing young people he helped, has only added to the anger and risks overshadowing what...

Now that his administration has reached its final months, and little can be done to him personally, Barack Obama is pushing a harder line against Israel in an upcoming report about the 'settlements.' The report, which is likely to be released in late May or early June, will focus heavily on Israeli construction in Judea, Samaria, and Jerusalem, senior diplomats told AP. The Quartet’s report will also take Israel to task for the demolition of illegal Arab buildings – many of which were built with the support of the European Union. While in the past the US worked to...

They joined to fight Israel in Lebanon, but after multiple combat tours in the Syrian cities of Aleppo, Idlib, Latakia, and around Damascus, Hezbollah reservists tell The Daily Beast that they are no longer willing to die in Syria's unending, bloody civil war. As a result of their refusal to continue volunteering to prop up the embattled government of Bashar al-Assad, they say that the Shia Party of God has cut off the money they were accustomed to receiving: reservist paychecks and permanent family benefits packages. What other consequences there may be remain to be seen. Imad, as we'll call...

“I can’t imagine bringing my child into this world without being able to provide him with a bed to sleep in,” the woman tearfully explained to an EFRAT volunteer. The volunteer was horrified. “It is unthinkable,” she said, “that a life will be lost for lack of a crib.” On Saturday, in synagogues around the world, the weekly portion from Exodus will be read. This portion features the incredible dedication of the first recorded Jewish midwives, named Shifra and Puah. Driven by desperation, Pharaoh commanded the two women to kill all the newborn Jewish boys. Displaying remarkable personal commitment they...

n another slap in the face for Israel and its Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, President Obama pulled Secretary of State Kerry and U.N. Ambassador Samantha Power out of the General Assembly during Netanyahu’s powerful address. A large number of delegations walked out of the General Assembly for the speech,

Excerpts: The Chinese aircraft carrier Liaoning-CV-16 docked at the Syrian port of Tartus, accompanied by a guided missile cruiser. (snip) Our sources report that the Chinese will be sending out to Syria a squadron of J-15 Flying Shark fighters, some for takeoff positions on the carrier’s decks, the rest to be stationed at the Russian airbase near Latakia. The Chinese will also deploy Z-18F anti-submarine helicopters and Z-18J airborne early warning helicopters. In addition, Beijing will consign at least 1,000 marines to fight alongside their counterparts from Russia and Iran against terrorist groups, including ISIS. (snip) ... just as Russian...

Iran's enemies unsettled by its deal with the West, but Bashar al-Assad of Syria says it is 'a great victory' The nuclear deal with Iran caused fury in Israel and consternation around the region at the likely increase in influence and resources of a newly enriched Iran. Most telling was the loudest expression of support. "I am happy that the Islamic Republic of Iran has achieved a great victory by reaching an agreement," President Bashar al-Assad of Syria said in a message to his Iranian opposite number, Hassan Rouhani. "In the name of the Syrian people, I congratulate you and...

For a head of state to visit the White House and not pose for photographers is rare. For a key ally to be left to his own devices while the President withdraws to have dinner in private was, until this week, unheard of. Yet that is how Binyamin Netanyahu was treated by President Obama on Tuesday night, according to Israeli reports on a trip seen in Jerusalem tonight as a disastrous humiliation. After failing to extract a written promise of concessions on Jewish settlements, Mr Obama walked out of his meeting with Mr Netanyahu but invited him to stay at...

Sen. Rand Paul (R-Kentucky) is the only major Republican likely 2016 presidential candidate who hasn't weighed in on the controversy over Indiana's "religious freedom" law that erupted this week — and his explanation for avoiding the issue is questionable.

The project involves three years of exploration for conventional oil, north of Nahal El Al near Moshav Natur, a former kibbutz on the southern Golan Heights. Drilling was set to begin at a Golan Heights oil exploration site in the late night hours of Monday, the company announced that evening. The project, which is being implemented by Afek Oil and Gas, involves three years of exploration for conventional oil using up to 10 wells. The company chose site No. 5 out of 10 to start with, located north of Nahal El Al near Moshav Natur, a former kibbutz on the...

A damning report by Palestinian legislators, which has been seen by the Telegraph, concludes that Mr Arafat did nothing to stop the deals although he publicly condemned the structure as a "crime against humanity"... The report reveals that the cement originally came from Egyptian companies which supplied it at a huge discount of $22 (£12.50) a ton to help rebuild dilapidated Palestinian houses or buildings bulldozed by the Israelis. Between September 2003 and March this year, 420,000 tons of cement were allegedly sent to three big Palestinian companies. According to the report, however, only 33,000 tons were sold in...

Israeli report says developments violate agreements; guards say the chief security officer is establishing ‘a militia’ The US Consulate in Jerusalem is training a force of 35 Palestinians from East Jerusalem to serve as armed guards, particularly for consular trips to the West Bank’s Area A, which is off-limits to Israelis, it was reported on Wednesday. The arrangement violates a 2011 agreement between Israel and the consulate, the Hebrew daily Yedioth Ahronoth stated, whereby only IDF combat veterans would be authorized to carry arms as consulate guards. “The consulate was authorized to keep roughly 100 handguns for security staff, on...

As new details are revealed in the investigation of the Islamic State (ISIS) terror cell in Hevron, security officials estimate that hundreds of Hamas terrorists are leaving the “moderate” terrorist group in favor of ISIS to wage war on Israel—and the Palestinian Authority (PA). The leader of the Hevron ISIS cell, Ahmed Wadah Salah Shehada (22), admitted under Israel Security Agency (ISA, or Shin Bet) investigation that he switched from Hamas to ISIS in recent years because it was too “moderate” for him, in that Hamas didn’t compel Sharia Islamic law, reports Channel 2. Reportedly the security system assesses that...

Shai Galili, Likud's comptroller, disqualified Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu from running for the party leadership in the December 31 primary, a move that Netanyahu disputes and is likely to appeal. Galili says that Netanyahu must answer claims that he improperly used party resources in his leadership primary run.