Tag: Jared Kushner

Secret Meeting in Desert Between Israeli, Saudi Leaders Failed to Reach Normalization Agreement

Tina Marie (Ms. Cat)

Secret Meeting in Desert Between Israeli, Saudi Leaders Failed to Reach Normalization Agreement

In the weeks before the U.S. election, Prince Mohammed’s side privately expressed willingness to accept most elements of a peace plan laid out publicly by Mr. Trump. Under the plan, Israelis would receive much of what they have long sought, including immediate expansion of Israel’s permanent borders into occupied territory. It also required steep concessions from the Palestinians, like demilitarization and Israeli control of all security arrangements from the Jordan River to the Mediterranean Sea.

White House Weighs Pardon Blitz Before Trump’s Exit

Tina Marie (Ms. Cat)

White House Weighs Pardon Blitz Before Trump’s Exit

So far, Mr. Trump has granted 28 pardons, which wipe out convictions, and 16 commutations, which reduce prison sentences. The combined total is the lowest so far for any president since at least William McKinley, who took office in 1897, according to an analysis by the Pew Research Center.

Related:

Trump Says He Pardoned Michael Flynn, Ex-National Security Adviser

What Biden owes the Palestinians

Tina Marie (Ms. Cat)

What Biden owes the Palestinians

Fortunately, there are promising signs that Biden will take a very different approach from his predecessor. Resolution 2334 passed because U.S. President Barack Obama’s administration, then in its final days, decided not to veto it. The order came from Susan Rice, Obama’s national security adviser at the time, who is now said to be on Biden’s short list for secretary of state.

Of course, Biden himself was vice president in the Obama administration, and in 2014, he told Netanyahu, “I don’t agree with a damn thing you say.” Other projected Biden administration appointees — including incoming chief of staff Ron Klain — all oppose illegal Israeli settlement activity.

[2018] Spread of Wahhabism was done at request of West during Cold War – Saudi crown prince

Tina Marie (Ms. Cat)

Spread of Wahhabism was done at request of West during Cold War – Saudi crown prince

The Saudi-funded spread of Wahhabism began as a result of Western countries asking Riyadh to help counter the Soviet Union during the Cold War, Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman told the Washington Post.

Speaking to the paper, bin Salman said that Saudi Arabia’s Western allies urged the country to invest in mosques and madrassas overseas during the Cold War, in an effort to prevent encroachment in Muslim countries by the Soviet Union.

He added that successive Saudi governments had lost track of that effort, saying “we have to get it all back.” Bin Salman also said that funding now comes mostly from Saudi-based “foundations,” rather than from the government.

Abraham Accord: Experts Warn Trump Peace Deal a Precursor to War with Iran

Tina Marie (Ms. Cat)

Abraham Accord: Experts Warn Trump Peace Deal a Precursor to War with Iran

The Abraham Accord, as it is known, is likely to expand the power of Gulf dictatorships and increase the number of devastating high-tech weapons in the Middle East, fueling further instability and bloodshed, a welcome prospect for neoconservative hawks and religious zealots who see the deal as fulfilling ancient prophecies about the end of the world. Above all, the deal can be seen as an attempt to present a united front against Iran for any potential future war — a conflict that would likely make Iraq and Afghanistan look mild by comparison.

Did Melania Trump Use Personal Email for Government Business?

Tina Marie (Ms. Cat)

Did Melania Trump Use Personal Email for Government Business?

The government’s failure to preserve its emails dates all the way back to January 1989 – beginning with an attempt by the outgoing Reagan White House to destroy its email backup tapes. This destruction was only thwarted by the National Security Archive’s lawsuit, which first established emails as federal records. Read more about the Archive’s decades-long battle to preserve White House email here.