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Iran sanctions will be ‘toughest’ ever, Bessent says  

Peloni:  FDD’s Cliff May provides a clear overview of what is currently known about the situation regarding Trump’s Economic D-Day policy with Iran.  If Sec. of Treasury Scott Bessent’s depiction of this policy is accurate, it will leave the US in a position of sanctioning any friend or foe willing to offer Iran any outlet of sanction relief.  Closing all economic loopholes acting as lifelines to Iran is indeed something that has never been pursued before, but real actions must follow the significant rhetoric being raised by Bessent and Trump for this policy to have the effect we are being told it will have.  Details on this policy will be released on Monday, and of course, the Devil lies in the details as the saying goes, so we will see.

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August 22, 2026 | 10:49 am | Comments »

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Two contradictory US foreign policies in the Middle East spell doom  

Peloni: Amb. Tom Barrack raises a rather revealing window into his vision of the Middle East when he argues “How is it going to go away if you don’t have Hezbollah and Iran involved?”  The simple answer to this puzzle is that the solution to Iranian control over Lebanon can not be solved in Lebanon, but instead must be riddle out in Iran.  Indeed, Hezbollah and Iran are not at the table in Lebanon because they have no right to be at the table.  They are a terrorist proxy and a state sponsor of terror, respectively, and that is the only basis of legitimacy which either of these organizations hold over Lebanon.  Despite this being true, Barrack calls for these unrelated parties to play a decisive role in deciding the fate of Lebanon, when the better solution would be to eliminate the influence which  these non-Lebanese players have in deciding Lebanon’s future.  Notably, Lebanon today stands as a vassal state of Iran, and so long as Iran is ruled by the IRGC and the Mullahs, Lebanon will be controlled by Iran, yet the solution to this quandary is not to validate Lebanon as Iran’s legitimate colonial possession, but rather to eliminate the regime in Tehran which simultaneously holds dominion over both the peoples of Iran and Yemen, while funding proxy wars across the Middle East and promoting a terror cascade across Europe and North America.  Indeed, instead of surrendering to Iran that which decisive roles over lands which are not Iranian, the Iranian regime, which is today threatening American positions and allies in Europe after having made war on America’s positions and allies in the Middle East, must be brought to a state of collapse, not containment, and certainly not expansion, the latter being what would follow from offering Iran any role of negotiating for its control in Lebanon.  

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August 22, 2026 | 10:35 am | 1 Comment »

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Albany woman charged with plotting to attack New York Capitol in support of Islamic State  

Will Selber | FDD’s Long Journal | August 21, 2026

Jessica Bowie allegedly taking photographs near the New York State Capitol in preparation for a terrorist attack. (FBI/DOJ)Jessica Bowie allegedly taking photographs near the New York State Capitol in preparation for a terrorist attack. (FBI/DOJ)

On August 19, the FBI’s Joint Terrorism Task Force arrested Jessica Bowie, 35, of Albany, New York, after she allegedly took possession of what she believed was an explosive device that she intended to use in an attack on the New York State Capitol, according to the US Department of Justice. The following day, Bowie was charged with “attempting to provide material support to a designated foreign terrorist organization,” the Islamic State.

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August 22, 2026 | 9:46 am | 3 Comments »

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From Israel: The Ghastly Bungle That Is Gaza!!  

Arlene Kushner | August 21, 2026

Khalil al-Hayya in 2022. Photo by Tasnim News Agency, CC BY 4.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=154207874Khalil al-Hayya in 2022. Photo by Tasnim News Agency, CC BY 4.0, Wikipedia

This past Sunday, Jared Kushner, Trump’s trusted advisor and son-in-law, met in Egypt with Khalil al-Hayya (pictured), the Hamas political bureau chief replacing Sinwar. Jared was accompanied by Nickolay Mladenov and Tony Blair, of the Board of Peace, as well as diplomats from Egypt, Qatar, and Turkey (all identified as “mediator” states).

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August 21, 2026 | 6:30 pm | 5 Comments »

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Oh My God, I’m Still SHAKEN by What I Just Discovered…  

Peloni:  Rabbi Pesach Wolicki discusses the returning remains of Yehuda Katz after 44 years being held by terrorists.  Wolicki also discusses the devasting battle in which Katz and Zachary Baumel and Zvi Feldman were all taken captive, as well as how this all relates to Wolicki himself when he first made Aliyah to Israel.

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August 21, 2026 | 4:23 pm | Comments »

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Welcome News From Saudi Arabia  

Peloni:  Regardless of MBS’ refusal to join the Abraham Accords, this is how peace might be achieved.  The great failure of those who are so interested in chasing peace is that they are looking for instant gratification on a subject which will take generations to actually support.  As I have noted before, maintaining security preparations and military capabilities far beyond that of the neighboring feifdoms is how the visage of peace might be achieved, but changing the long held stance of weaponizing education is how the outlook of the people might change to that visage in a substantive way.  So, Bravo to the Prince of Arabia, and may he sometime find the strength to pursue the peace which today he is creating an actual foundation on which to see such a peace be erected upon.  Even in the absence of peace between Israel and Saudi Arabia, this change within the Kingdom will see many positive outcomes in the region far more likely.  But first the Saudis need to find the means by which to set aside their proclivity for supporting Muslim Brotherhood objectives outside their borders.

By | Aug 20, 2026

The official portrait of His Royal Highness Crown Prince of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, Mohammed bin Salman bin Abdulaziz Al Saud, issued by the Saudi Press Agency, Saudi Press Agency (Saudi Press Agency), Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 4.0

It seems that the Saudis have rewritten their textbooks to squeeze out every last drop of antisemitism. I don’t know why the Saudis are doing this, though I will speculate below on possible reasons. I’m sure the religious establishment is furious with Crown Prince Mohammad bin Salman, the onlie begetter of this change, but in Saudi Arabia, MbS calls the shots, and this good news deserves to be disseminated. More on this change can be found here: “Saudi Arabia Removes Virtually All Antisemitism From School Curricula, New Report Finds,” by Dion J. Pierre, Algemeiner, August 17, 2026:

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August 21, 2026 | 4:06 pm | Comments »

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You Are With Us Or Without Us  

Peloni: This should have been the policy pursued since the outset of the war, and of the subsequent period of negotiations over the past several months.

August 21, 2026 | 2:02 pm | Comments »

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U.S. Missile Stockpiles Are Low. Fine. Now Draw the Right Conclusion.  

John Spencer | Aug 20, 2026

Nobody outside a small circle in the U.S. government knows the size of America’s missile stockpiles. The numbers are classified for a reason. Anyone claiming to know the exact totals is either using leaked classified information, inventing a number from incomplete public data and analysis, such as comparing every missile launched to two interceptors, or dismissing every statement from the Trump administration as false. None of that is a sound basis for military analysis. I hate the potential for leaking operational secrets the most. It doesn’t “speak truth to power.” It hands adversaries information that can put American service members at risk.

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August 21, 2026 | 8:56 am | 3 Comments »

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Fake News ‘Journalists’ Love the Deep State  

The Fourth Estate is constitutionally illiterate.

J.B. Shurk | Am Thinker | August 19, 2026

On Sunday morning’s Meet the Press, NBC News hack Kristen Welker pressed newly sworn-in Attorney General Todd Blanche to “pledge that the Justice Department will always act independently of the White House.”  The fake “journalist” performed this bit of moralizing theater with her “very serious” face, as if to suggest that the nation’s survival depended upon Blanche’s answer.  Blanche calmly swatted Welker’s solicitation away, while pointing out that no competent, law-abiding attorney general should ever make such an absurd pledge.

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August 21, 2026 | 6:41 am | 1 Comment »

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October 7: The Judea and Samaria Edition  

Peloni

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The following interview provides a deep dive into the threat that has been rising in the Palestinian Authority as it systematically builds the territorial, military, and ideological foundations vital for the establishment of a Palestinian state.  In this report, Channel 14’s Judea and Samaria Correspondent Eliya Aviv describes this threat in interviews with members of the Regavim movement as well as Captain (Res.) Binyahu Mellet, HY”D. It should be recalled that Mellet was recently murdered by a terrorist who utilized training that enabled him to steal a weapon from a member of the Jewish defense forces after the defender hesitated to fire while being attacked.

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August 20, 2026 | 11:30 pm | Comments »

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Israel will not tolerate threats to its security  

Peloni:  Avi Abelow provides an important context to the Israeli strike on Syria to prevent Turkish expansion southwards towards Israel.  Israel established a Red Line regarding Turkey directly expanding and incorporating Syria.  Unlike the Red Lines established so often by others in the region, Netanyahu acted to demonstrate that there was in fact absolutely NO flexibility on this Red Line.  His comment warning Erdogan “Don’t” served to make this point even more clear, and not just to Turkey.  I am honestly impressed with the strength and earnestness with which Netanyahu responded in Syria, and as Abelow explains below, it gives me great hope for the future, as this is the model by which Israel must respond when its stated Red Lines are tested.  Erdogan knew full well what he was doing when he made plans to take over the base in Syria, but what he failed to appreciate is that October 7 changed everything, including how Israel might respond when being challenged on stated Red Lines.  The fact that Erdogan felt at ease in crossing that Red Line was in no small part due to the American effort by Amb. Tom Barrak and others to embolden Turkey and its Muslim Brotherhood chieftain Erdogan.  So a deconfliction mechanism will now be established to prevent similar challenges in the future.  It is concerning that such a mechanism was not already considered a necessity by Washington given the raising rhetorical threats coming from Turkey and increasing in tone and significance even in recent weeks.  I only hope that when the deconfliction mechanism is soon to be tested that someone more impartial to the advancement of Turkey in the region answers the phone in Washington or things could quickly spiral out of control.

Avi Abelow

Ambassador Tom Barrack and President Recep Erdogan. Image via AIAmbassador Tom Barrack and President Recep Erdogan. Image via AI

Israel just did something in Syria that represents one of the most positive and important changes in Israeli national-security policy since October 7.

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August 20, 2026 | 10:48 pm | Comments »

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