Analysis & Commentary - Orde Kittrie
Ireland’s Anti-Israel Stance
Late last month, the Irish Parliament was prepared to pass a piece of legislation that would have made it a crime for anyone engaging in trade with Israel. The bill, which aimed to compliment and support the BDS movement (Boycott, Divestment, and Sanctions), would have sent to jail Irish citizens who bought souvenirs in Jerusalem or Judea and Samaria, or penalized them with a fine of $310,000. more...
International pressure on Israeli settlements renews push for US anti-boycott laws
Pro-Israel groups are doubling down on their efforts to pass anti-boycott legislation in Congress after a string of recent setbacks. more...
Report: State Department Succeeds In Killing BDS Bill
The State Department was successful in its effort to kill a bill in the Irish parliament that would have criminalized trade with Israelis, according to a report from the Washington Free Beacon. more...
Why is Ireland the most anti-Israel country in Europe?
The Irish and Jewish people share a common history of suffering cruel persecution and achieving national redemption against immeasurable odds. But today, modern Ireland is one of Europe’s fiercest critics of Israel. This tension was on display last week as the Irish Senate was considering legislation aimed at criminalizing trade with Israeli settlements. more...
Trump Admin Thwarts Irish Effort to Boycott Israel, Criminalize Trade
The Trump administration played a key role in thwarting a recent effort by the Irish government to boycott Israel and make it a crime for Irish citizens to purchase products made in contested areas of the Jewish state, a move that would have severely jeopardized Ireland's trade with the United States, according to multiple sources familiar with the situation. more...
Irish bill to boycott Israeli settlements runs afoul of US laws
A bill to be considered by Ireland’s Senate on Tuesday would criminalize trade with Israeli settlements. If enacted, it could put leading U.S. companies with Irish subsidiaries to a choice between violating the Irish law or violating the U.S. Export Administration Regulations, which require U.S. firms to refuse to participate in foreign boycotts that the United States does not sanction. more...
Norsk hykleri fanger USAs oppmerksomhet
Vi har lenge ment at oppblussingen av antiamerikanismen etter Trumps valgseier før eller siden vil fange amerikanernes oppmerksomhet og koste Norge goodwill i USA. more...
Trump’s merit-based immigration scheme based on lies
Donald Trump’s recently confirmed secretary of homeland security may have just lied under oath. more...
World’s largest sovereign fund sells out of BAE Systems in ethics push
Norway's massive $1.1 trillion (£777bn) sovereign wealth fund has pulled its investment in UK defence company BAE Systems, as it continues an ethical push. The fund – which has traditionally focused on oil, but decided to ditch oil and gas investments last year – has also sold off its stake in another eight companies as part of its principles drive. more...
Norway oil fund sells out of BAE Systems in latest ethical investment move
Norway’s $1.1tn oil fund has sold out of UK defence group BAE Systems and eight other companies as well as banning them from its portfolios in the latest in a series of high-profile ethical investment decisions. more...
Massive Sovereign Wealth Fund of Norway Sells Out of BAE Systems
The massive $1.1 trillion (£777bn) sovereign wealth fund of Norway has pulled its investment in BAE Systems, a UK defence company, as it proceeds with an ethical push. more...
What’s the Matter With Norway?
President Trump reportedly touted Norway last week, comparing it favorably with Haiti and other countries he described in scatological terms. Though there are surely wonderful Norwegians, the government in Oslo calls to mind the Barry Switzer line: “Some people are born on third base and go through life thinking they hit a triple.” more...
The Jerusalem Post
Despite some recent wins, very few victims of terrorism or their families ever see most of the money from high-profile, big-payout victories awarded in US and Israeli courts from cases against the Palestinians, Iran and others. more...
The Use Of Explosives In Cities: A Grim But Lawful Reality Of War – Analysis
Refugees flowing out of the Middle East pose a serious humanitarian crisis for Europe and the world at large. The indiscriminate use of violence by the so-called Islamic State (IS), the unlawful actions of the Syrian regime, and the conduct of some of the warring factions precipitated and continue to fuel this crisis. Consequent to the indiscriminate use of force and explosives in cities, the flow of Syrian refugees has caused some to call for a complete ban on the use of explosive weapons in cities or urban areas. But to what end? Let’s not learn the wrong lessons from this calamity. more...
The Use of Explosives in Cities: A Grim but Lawful Reality of War
Refugees flowing out of the Middle East pose a serious humanitarian crisis for Europe and the world at large. The indiscriminate use of violence by the so-called Islamic State (IS), the unlawful actions of the Syrian regime, and the conduct of some of the warring factions precipitated and continue to fuel this crisis. more...
How Washington Can Counter the Rise of Hezbollah
Hezbollah, the Lebanese militia and political party, is now the most powerful actor in Lebanon. Since 2006, Hezbollah’s last declared conflict with Israel, the group has amassed military hardware to rival that of a formal standing army and evolved into Lebanon’s most important political power broker. For those who view Hezbollah as a destabilizing force, with links both to terrorism and to Iran, the question is how best to counter this rise. more...
Lawfare: Law as a Weapon of War by Orde Kittrie
With the growing awareness of Russia’s attempts to weaken democratic institutions worldwide, the security practices of democratic nations are facing unprecedented challenges. Arguably, the most significant threat to Western-style democracy at the present moment comes not from kinetic action, but from the use of subterfuge and manipulation to influence public opinion. more...
The John Batchelor Show
FDD senior fellow Orde Kittrie joins the John Batchelor Show to discuss how Norway and other U.S. allies have been undermined NATO. more...
How U.S. Allies Undermine NATO
European countries divest from American defense firms that help protect them. more...
Lawfare 101 A Primer
For many commanders and other military leaders, the role of law in twenty-first century conflicts is a source of frustration. Some think it is “handcuffing” them in a way that is inhibiting combat success. For others, law is another “tool that is used by the enemies of the West." more...