Forward.com

Israel Stuck Between a Rocket and a Hard PlaceThe only thing separating Israel from an invasion of Gaza — a full-scale assault that its political leadership does not want to launch and its military commanders are reluctant to wage — is the notorious inaccuracy of the makeshift Qassam rocket.…Read more

They Love Him, They Love Him NotThe Path to Geneva By Yossi Beilin RDV Books/Akashic Books, 297 pages, $22.95 —Yossi Beilin commented recently on the ongoing turmoil in Gaza, saying that a strong Palestinian Authority was in Israel’s best interest. It was a relatively benign and quite anticipated remark, but nonetheless one that drew a torrent of insults and abuse…Read more

New Zealand Ups Ante in Spy AffairSYDNEY — The left-leaning government of New Zealand has imposed a series of sanctions on Israel in the wake of the bungled Mossad-passports affair, and the diplomatic rupture is likely to be “long lasting” unless Israel “explains, apologizes and reassures” the Wellington government, said the island nation’s foreign minister.“We are…Read more

Terror Plots Strike Fear in Community Down UnderSYDNEY, Australia — The Australian Jewish community is a “prime target” of Al Qaeda and other Islamic terrorist groups operating in Southeast Asia, according to intelligence analysts and Jewish officials in Australia. An attack on the Jewish community here would serve a dual purpose for the terrorists, the experts say, striking at an…Read more

Scandal Turns Sabras and Kiwis Into a Prickly PairSYDNEY, Australia — A job title like “Treasurer of the Jewish Agency for Israel” may sound prestigious in New York, but in remote New Zealand it seems to conjure up a shadier image — moneyman, perhaps for a covert organization. Small wonder, then, that Shai Hermesh, whose official Israeli passport carries just that title,…Read more