For Hussein Ibish's latest contributions to The Japan Times, see below:
The new HRW report relies on international legal definitions of apartheid and draws a direct connection between Israeli policies towards Palestinians in the West Bank and inside Israel.
Even if Iran does get rid of its new stockpiles and downgrade its enrichment activities, its nuclear threat will not recede to the level achieved by the 2015 deal.
The goal, it would appear, is to pave the way for broader Gulf Arab re-engagement with Syria, and a concomitant marginalization of Iranian influence.
The best way for the Saudis and other Arab states to respond to an armed Iran is to work with the U.S. to create an effective secondary sanctions regime.
The main strength of the 2002 Arab Peace Initiative for the Palestinians was that it could be presented as an Arab consensus. That is now broken, giving them no leverage.
Tehran is seeking military leverage while Washington wants to capitalize on overlapping crises.
