* Iraq’s protests hold threat of Shiite internecine showdown, key to Tehran’s control of Baghdad Adel Abdel-Mahdi’s resignation as Iraq’s prime minister on Saturday, Nov. 30, confirmed that Iraq’s 22 million Shiites (out of a 39 million population) are being torn apart by a potential internal Shiite war.
* Trump and the “Settlements”: A Preliminary Analysis The Trump administration’s decision to repudiate an earlier approach that regarded Israeli communities across the “Green Line” as illegal has been praised and condemned.
* Iran poised to strike US/Israeli targets. US forces gear up for action. USS Lincoln carrier enters the Gulf The US and Iran ramped up their preparations for direct military engagement on Monday, Nov. 25: A top Iranian general’s threatened to destroy the US, Israel and Saudi Arabia, and the USS Abraham Lincoln Carrier Strike Force moved into position opposite central Iran’s coastline.
* Iran, Russia, China to Hold Joint Wargames in ‘Message to the World’ Iran, China, and Russia will hold in the coming weeks their first-ever joint war drills, which leaders say are meant to send a "message to the world" about increased military cooperation between the rogue countries.
* The Road to an Iranian Attack on Israel Israeli political and military leaders have warned against the possibility of a major military confrontation with Iran, which wants to deter Israel from disrupting its attempts to build military bases in Syria and Iraq and to construct factories in which Hezbollah can convert its huge arsenal of rockets into accurate missiles.
* Report: Germany to outlaw Hezbollah German magazine reports government plans to outlaw Lebanese terror organization. Interior Ministry spokesman denies the report.
* Iraqi forces kill 28 protesters after Iranian consulate torched Increasing violence highlights growing tension between protestors and Iranian-backed authorities throughout the country.
* Caroline Glick: Israeli democracy at stake as corrupt prosecutors target Netanyahu for crimes invented to destroy him Ever since Mandelblit gave his “recommendations,” he and his comrades have been the only political actors in Israel with any power to speak of.
* NATO Is as Good as Dead When the North Atlantic Treaty Organization was founded some 70 years ago, its first secretary-general, Lord Ismay, famously noted that the purpose of the treaty alliance was “to keep the Russians out, the Americans in, and the Germans down.”
* China Bids to Replace US Influence in the Middle East The confusion among Arab leaders over the Trump administration's policy towards its traditional allies in the region has opened the way for China to intensify its efforts to extend its influence in the Middle East.