Blogs

Pressure Points

Elliott Abrams discusses U.S. foreign policy, focusing on the Middle East and democracy and human rights.

Latest Post

Why All the Criticism of Qatar?

Qatari-owned "news" media like Al Jazeera and Al-Quds Al-Arabi are not independent news sources, and continue to show deep hostility to the United States in their biased reporting. Read More

Civil Society, Markets, and Democracy Program
At the Community of Democracies Meeting, the Biden Administration Downgraded Its Support for Democracy
By sending an acting deputy assistant secretary of state to represent the United States at the recent Community of Democracies meeting that the United States chaired, the Biden administration showed a lack of commitment to democracy.
Venezuela
Will the United States Boost Maduro in Venezuela’s Election?
A forced sale of CITGO oil company just days before Venezuela's July 28 presidential election would be a propaganda bonanza for the Maduro regime, and should be delayed by the United States government.
Diplomacy and International Institutions
International Criminal Court Prosecutor Threatens United States Senators
The prosecutor of the International Criminal Court has threatened 12 United States senators for their criticisms of his effort to arrest Israeli leaders.
  • Israeli-Palestinian Conflict
    On "Outside Agitators" and Gaza Protests
    Half of those arrested during disruptive Gaza protests on U.S. campuses were not students or faculty members. 
  • Terrorism and Counterterrorism
    The Spanish Inquisition, Part Two
    Spain, a country where antisemitic attitudes are the highest in Western Europe, is taking the lead in trying to deprive Israel of the arms it needs to defend itself.
  • Israeli-Palestinian Conflict
    UN Halves Its Estimate of Women and Children Killed in Gaza
    Between May 6 and May 8, the UN cut in half its estimates of the number of women and children killed in Gaza. The estimates were based on Hamas numbers and are a reminder that all fatality estimates coming from that source are unreliable.
  • Venezuela
    Will the Biden Administration Abandon Democracy in Venezuela?
    Biden administration policy toward Venezuela has abandoned concern about democracy and human rights, instead placing oil prices, migration, and presidential politics above them. Will it change?
  • United States
    Joseph Lieberman, R.I.P.
    The late Sen. Joseph Lieberman was a model of how public life should be conducted, and an important figure in American Jewish history.
  • Human Rights
    The Human Rights Industry
    The two largest human rights NGOs, Human Rights Watch and Amnesty International, dominate the field despite deep problems of bias and inadequate oversight.
  • Israel
    Schumer 's Attack on an Ally at War
    Sen. Schumer's call for Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu to be pushed out of office is an unprecedented attack on a democratic ally at war and would turn Israel into an American colony.