US: Israel Not at Heart of Middle East Turmoil
The Fellowship | December 18, 2017
In a speech today on America’s National Security Strategy, Donald Trump’s remarks included those about America’s greatest ally, Israel. The Times of Israel reports that Trump noted that the U.S. and Israel “have increasingly found common interests,” while blaming Iran and jihadists for the Middle East’s instability:
US President Donald Trump’s first National Security Strategy asserts Israel is not the root of Middle East turmoil, while also pillorying Iran as the world’s leading sponsor of state-sponsored terrorism.
The document — designed to serve as a framework for the Trump administration’s approach to the world — says that while the Israeli-Palestinian conflict has long “been understood as the prime irritant preventing peace and prosperity in the region,” the rise of jihadist terror groups and Iran “are creating the realization that Israel is not the cause of the region’s problems.”
“States have increasingly found common interests with Israel in confronting common threats,” the document says.
The hard-hitting text released Monday also says the US “remains committed to helping facilitate a comprehensive peace agreement that is acceptable to both Israelis and Palestinians.”
The document — which has been 11 months in the making — is required by law, and is designed to form a framework for how America approaches the world…