Author: Omer Kayaci
In early 2022, when Russia invaded Ukraine, it was nearly impossible to find a building across European capitals that did not in some shape or form have on its façade the blue and yellow colors of the Ukrainian flag. In London, virtually every bookshop had in their front displays books describing how inherently evil and maniacal Russian President Vladimir Putin was and how the invasion of Ukraine was entirely due to his imperial ambitions. It was almost the complete reversal of the 1940s when, as George Orwell wrote in his proposed preface to “Animal Farm,” “what (was) demanded by the…
Last week, the International Criminal Court (ICC) finally issued arrest warrants for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and former Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Gallant for “the war crime of starvation as a method of warfare” and “the crimes against humanity of murder, persecution, and other inhumane acts.” The accusations are doubtless shocking, yet perhaps not as shocking as the fact that the reactions of world leaders to them can still diverge after more than a year of genocide in Gaza. Some remain firmly committed to following a pragmatic path, as when a spokesperson for German Chancellor Olaf Scholz expressed his…
In the Oval Office at the White House, a reporter asked U.S. President Joe Biden if he thought he could cut a “hostage deal” by the end of his term, to which he replied: “Do you think you can get hit in the head by the camera behind you?” This happened on the day when Biden met Israeli President Isaac Herzog, as we learn from the former’s recent video statement where he reaffirms, once again, his “ironclad” commitment to Israel. His party’s election loss, which eliminates any fear of political risk he might have previously had, seems not to bother…