April 21, 2023 | The Dispatch
Jordan’s Threat to the Middle Eastern Order
The kingdom has made a tradition of inciting unrest with Israel during the holy month of Ramadan.
April 21, 2023 | The Dispatch
Jordan’s Threat to the Middle Eastern Order
The kingdom has made a tradition of inciting unrest with Israel during the holy month of Ramadan.
Excerpt
The month-long Muslim holiday of Ramadan ends today, and the Middle East appears to have narrowly averted a war. Just days ago, the Islamic Republic of Iran threatened to wipe the Israeli cities of Haifa and Tel Aviv off the map. This came in wake of statements by Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei touting his coordination of terrorist groups that recently attacked Israel. Iran-backed violence was reported this month in Gaza, Lebanon, Syria, the West Bank and Jerusalem.
Amid these heightened tensions, the United States dispatched the USS Florida nuclear submarine, equipped with more than 150 tomahawk missiles, to deter Iran from further provocation. Pragmatic Arab states like the United Arab Emirates and Egypt were working overtime to defuse tensions.
Jonathan Schanzer is senior vice president for research at the Foundation for Defense of Democracies. Mark Dubowitz is the chief executive of the Foundation for Defense of Democracies. Follow them on Twitter @JSchanzer and @mdubowitz. FDD is a nonpartisan research institute focusing on national security and foreign policy.