Monday, January 24, 2022, at 3 p.m. (Israel time), 8 a.m. (EST)
The May 2021 conflict between Israel and the terrorist group Hamas generated headlines around the world. However, much of the reporting ignored the history, funding, political dynamics, and other key components of the story. Hamas initiates conflict every few years. But the reporting rarely improves. Social media has only further clouded the picture. Hamas is rarely held responsible for its use of "human shields," blindly firing rockets at civilian areas in Israel, or diverting aid that should benefit the people of Gaza.
The Islamic Republic of Iran, a state sponsor of terrorism, has been the primary patron of Hamas since the group's inception in the late 1980s. Hamas has received additional assistance over the years from Qatar, Turkey and Malaysia. These countries are fomenting conflict, while others, such as Egypt, the United Arab Emirates and Bahrain, have tried to minimize it. Gaza is therefore ground zero in a struggle for the future stability of the Middle East.
The Biden administration has important choices to make. Its intent to re-enter the Iran nuclear deal could have significant consequences, given that sanctions relief to Iran will likely yield a financial boon for Hamas, along with other Iranian proxies. The Biden administration must also come to terms with "The Squad," a small but loud faction of the Democratic Party that seeks to undermine the US-Israel relationship.
Zoom webinar link: https://us02web.zoom.us/j/88945987196
Amb. Dore Gold
President, The Jerusalem Center
will interview
Dr. Jonathan Schanzer
Senior Vice President, The Foundation for Defense of Democracies
in honor of his new book
About the Author
Jonathan Schanzer is a veteran writer and speaker on Middle East affairs. He is senior vice president for research at FDD, a nonpartisan think tank that analyzes national security and foreign policy. For 11 years, he has overseen the work of the organization's experts and scholars. Jonathan previously worked as a terrorism finance analyst at the US Department of the Treasury, where he played an integral role in the designation of numerous terrorist financiers. He has held previous think tank research positions at the Washington Institute for Near East Policy and the Middle East Forum.Jonathan has written hundreds of articles on the Middle East, along with more than a dozen monographs and chapters for edited volumes. His three previous books have made unique contributions to the field of Middle Eastern studies. State of Failure: Yasser Arafat, Mahmoud Abbas, and the Unmaking of the Palestinian State (Palgrave Macmillan, 2013) argues the main roadblock to Palestinian statehood is the Palestinian Authority's political dysfunction and mismanagement. Hamas vs. Fatah: The Struggle for Palestine (Palgrave Macmillan, 2008) is still the only book on the market that analyzes the ongoing Palestinian civil war. Al-Qaeda's Armies: Middle East Affiliate Groups and the Next Generation of Terror (Washington Institute for Near East Policy, 2004) was the first to explore the al-Qaeda franchises in the Middle East.Jonathan has testified often before Congress. He has appeared on television channels such as Fox News, BBC, and CNN and on Arabic-language television channels such as Al Arabiya and Al Hurra. Jonathan has traveled widely throughout the Middle East, including to Saudi Arabia, Bahrain, the United Arab Emirates, Iraq, Yemen, Egypt, Morocco, Kuwait, Qatar, Oman, Turkey, Jordan, Israel, and the Palestinian territories.Jonathan studied Middle East history in four countries. He earned his Ph.D. from King's College London, where he wrote his dissertation on the US Congress and its efforts to combat terrorism in the 20th century. He speaks Arabic and Hebrew.