Middle East Brief with Avi Kaner

How did the olive harvest become an international political flashpoint? Avi Kaner examines how Ottoman-era cultivation rules influence West Bank land claims, how organized activist delegations turn the harvest into a platform for political messaging, and what congressional candidate Brad Lander’s "detention" reveals about the battle for headlines. A closer look at the property rights, ec...

Israel heads to the polls on October 27 in its first national election since the October 7 massacre, with major implications for the country's future and the wider Middle East. In today's Middle East Brief, Avi Kaner examines: Benny Gantz's withdrawal and where his voters may go. The latest polling, including major discrepancies between Channel 14 and other surveys. President Trump&#39...

On September 17, 2024, thousands of pagers carried by Hezbollah terrorists began exploding across Lebanon. The following day, handheld radios exploded too. It was the culmination of an extraordinary intelligence operation involving supply chains, shell companies, specially modified communications devices and years of preparation. In today’s Middle East Brief , Avi Kaner tells the full story of Bee...

Israel’s E1 plan has triggered fierce international opposition, with critics claiming it could make a future Palestinian state impossible. But the history and geography are more complicated. In today’s Middle East Brief, Avi Kaner explains what E1 is, why its location between Jerusalem and Ma’ale Adumim matters, what the 2003 Geneva Initiative actually proposed, and why previous peace plans envisi...

What happens when Israeli politics becomes less about who you are and more about what you believe ? In Part 2, Avi looks at what greater political integration between Jewish and Arab Israelis could mean for Israel’s October election. Arab Israelis are roughly one-fifth of the population, yet voter turnout has historically lagged behind Jewish Israelis. Higher participation, combined with Israel’s...

Could Israeli politics be evolving beyond traditional religious and ethnic lines? Yoav Segalovitz, a Jewish Israeli, is reportedly considering joining Mansour Abbas’s Ra’am party, led by an Arab Muslim Israeli. The possibility represents something potentially much larger than one politician changing parties. Modern Israel is approaching 80 years old. Increasingly, Arab citizens are focused on the...

هل القضية القانونية المتعلقة بمرتفعات الجولان بسيطة كما يتم تصويرها عادة؟ في هذه الحلقة من موجز الشرق الأوسط مع آفي كانر ، نعود إلى جذور النزاع: من انهيار الإمبراطورية العثمانية وتقسيم المنطقة بين بريطانيا وفرنسا، إلى حرب 1948 واتفاقية الهدنة بين إسرائيل وسوريا عام 1949. كانت تلك الاتفاقية هدنة وليست معاهدة سلام، ونصت صراحة على أن ترتيبات خط الهدنة لا تحدد التسوية الإقليمية النهائية. ثم جاءت حرب 1...

The conventional argument about the Golan Heights sounds simple: Israel captured Syrian territory in 1967, extended Israeli law to it in 1981, and therefore its sovereignty violates international law. But the history is considerably more complicated. In today's Middle East Brief , Avi Kaner goes back before Israel and Syria even existed as independent countries, examining the Ottoman era, the...

For nearly two decades, Gaza has endured a devastating cycle of war, destruction, reconstruction, and renewed conflict. Can that cycle finally be broken? In this episode of the Middle East Brief with Avi Kaner , Avi examines the newly announced roadmap associated with the Board of Peace , which envisions the disarmament of Hamas, a new Palestinian technocratic administration, international stabili...

President Trump's proposed 30-year civil nuclear agreement with Saudi Arabia is being viewed primarily as an energy and technology partnership. But could it also be laying the foundation for a much broader geopolitical realignment? In this episode, Avi Kaner examines how major Middle East agreements often include quiet understandings that are not immediately visible. He explores Saudi Arabia&#...

For decades, understanding Iran was relatively straightforward. Ultimate authority rested with one man: the Supreme Leader. Today, that picture is far more complicated. In this episode of the Middle East Brief with Avi Kaner , Avi explores how Iran's leadership structure has evolved during the current war and why negotiations with Tehran have become increasingly difficult. Using a compelling a...

A Saudi-owned broadcaster. An Israeli president. A wide-ranging interview conducted in Jerusalem . Not long ago, this would have been unimaginable. In this episode of Middle East Brief with Avi Kaner , I examine why President Isaac Herzog's interview with Melinda Nucifora of Al Arabiya may prove to be one of the most significant media moments in the evolving relationship between Israel and the...

The amendment to eliminate U.S. security assistance to Israel failed decisively in the House of Representatives, 314–104 . But the real story isn't that it failed. It's who voted for it. For decades, support for Israel was one of the few truly bipartisan issues in Washington. Yesterday's vote suggests that consensus may be changing. In this episode of Middle East Brief with Avi Kaner ,...

What if one of Israel's greatest enemies suddenly became part of a plan to reshape Iran? A remarkable report from The New York Times claims that Israel and the United States explored the possibility of former Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad playing a role in a post-Islamic Republic transition. In this episode of Middle East Brief with Avi Kaner , I examine: Why Ahmadinejad, a Holocaust d...

A few weeks ago, I introduced what I called "The Bazaar Strategy" - the idea that President Donald Trump's negotiating style mirrors the bargaining culture of a Middle Eastern marketplace: maximum pressure, strategic unpredictability, and always leaving room for a deal. Has that strategy now reached its limit? In this episode of Middle East Brief with Avi Kaner , I examine President...

Nearly three years after the October 7 massacre, Israel still has not established a truly independent national commission of inquiry. Instead, the Knesset has advanced legislation to create a politically appointed commission. Should a government investigate itself? In this episode of Middle East Brief with Avi Kaner , Avi argues that the victims, the hostages, the families of fallen Israeli soldie...

On July 6, 1938, representatives from 32 nations gathered in Evian-les-Bains, France, to address the growing refugee crisis as Jews desperately sought to flee Nazi Germany and Austria. The world expressed sympathy. But when it came time to act, almost every nation refused to open its doors. In this episode of Middle East Brief with Avi Kaner , we examine one of history's greatest diplomatic fa...

For decades, hundreds of thousands of Israelis and Palestinians interacted every day - not across battle lines, but in workplaces. Before the First Intifada, nearly 40% of the Palestinian workforce in the West Bank and Gaza was employed inside Israel. By the late 1990s, 140,000 Palestinians worked in Israel, contributing to both the Israeli and Palestinian economies. So what changed? In this episo...

Israel and Lebanon have signed a historic framework agreement that could eventually end nearly eight decades of conflict. But what does the agreement actually say? In this episode of Middle East Brief with Avi Kaner , we walk through all 14 clauses of the agreement, explaining what each provision means, why it matters, and what it could mean for the future of Israel, Lebanon, and the broader Middl...

For nearly eighty years, Israel stopped short of officially recognizing the Armenian Genocide, despite broad historical consensus that approximately 1.5 million Armenians were systematically murdered by the Ottoman Empire during World War I. In this episode of Middle East Brief with Avi Kaner , Avi explores the history of the Armenian Genocide, why Israel delayed recognition for decades, and what...

A new United Nations report accuses Israel of deliberately targeting Palestinian children and committing some of the gravest violations of international law. Within hours, the allegations spread across global media outlets, political circles, universities, NGOs, and social media platforms. But how was the report compiled? Who supplied the information? What role did Hamas-controlled institutions pl...

One of Israel's most remarkable success stories is unfolding inside its hospitals, medical schools, clinics, and pharmacies. In this episode, Avi Kaner explores the extraordinary role Arab citizens play in Israel's healthcare system. Topics include: • Why approximately one in four Israeli doctors is Arab • The growing role of Arab nurses, dentists, and pharmacists • Half of Israel's ph...

Why is the legitimacy of Israel still debated when the legitimacy of the Islamic Republic of Pakistan is rarely questioned? In this episode, Avi Kaner explores one of the most fascinating comparisons in modern history. Both the Islamic Republic of Pakistan and Israel emerged from the collapse of the British Empire. Both were created in the late 1940s. Both were founded on the principle that a vuln...

Today we remember and honor one of Israel's greatest cultural figures. Yaacov Agam, the pioneering Israeli artist who transformed the world of kinetic and optical art, has passed away at the age of 98. In this episode, Avi Kaner reflects on Agam's extraordinary life, his deep Jewish roots, and the revolutionary artistic vision that challenged people to see the world differently. Topics inc...

A new U.S.-Iran framework agreement has been announced. In this episode, Avi Kaner examines the central question: Should the Iranian regime receive blockade and sanctions relief, access to frozen assets, and an end to economic restrictions before it demonstrates compliance? Topics include: • Why verification must come before rewards • The proposed 60-day nuclear negotiation period • Whether "...