Trump's statement about 'protecting' MbS [based on Woodward's interviews and new book] (9/10/20)

 https://www.businessinsider.com/trump-woodward-i-saved-his-ass-mbs-khashoggi-rage-2020-9 

"I saved his ass," Trump had said amid the US outcry over Khashoggi's killing, according to Bob Woodward's new book. "I was able to get Congress to leave him alone. I was able to get them to stop." [...] 

After Khashoggi's murder, Trump bypassed Congress to sell roughly $8 billion in arms to the Saudis and the United Arab Emirates. He vetoed a trio of resolutions blocking the sale, as well as a resolution to end US support for the Saudi-led coalition in Yemen.

Does Islam Need a Reformation? - Muslim Millennials Podcast Episode 1

Trita Parsi: The Israel-U.A.E. Deal Puts the “Forever” in “Forever War” (8/20/20)

 https://newrepublic.com/article/159010/trump-israel-iran-mideast-forever-war

NYTimes: "Netanyahu Privately Condoned U.S. Plan to Sell Arms to U.A.E., Officials Say" (9/3/2020)

 https://www.nytimes.com/2020/09/03/us/politics/israel-uae-weapons.html

The Emirates and Saudi Arabia have a close relationship with the White House. Jared Kushner, the president’s son-in-law and senior adviser, views the two nations as important in efforts — which thus far have failed — to broker a peace deal between Israeli and Palestinian leaders. Moreover, Mr. Trump has embraced them as significant buyers of American weapons despite resistance in Congress over the killing of thousands of civilians in the Saudi-led air war in Yemen, often with American bombs.

Some Pentagon and State Department officials are uncomfortable with the influence that the Emiratis wield within the White House and National Security Council, and they were unhappy that Emirati military officials received a classified briefing about the F-35 in July.

Some members of Congress and their aides have expressed similar worries, pointing to the Emirati military’s role in the catastrophic Yemen war. The Emirates withdrew most of its forces last year, but it has deployed jets in the Libyan civil war, raising new concerns among American lawmakers.

Kristian Coates Ulrichsen: "Using Religion for Geopolitical Ends in the Gulf Disputes between Abu Dhabi and Qatar" (8/31/20)

 https://berkleycenter.georgetown.edu/posts/using-religion-for-geopolitical-ends-in-the-gulf-disputes-between-abu-dhabi-and-qatar

David Warren: "The Modernist Roots of Islamic Autocracy: Shaykh Abdullah Bin Bayyah and the UAE-Israel Peace Deal" (8/27/20)

 https://themaydan.com/2020/08/the-modernist-roots-of-islamic-autocracy-shaykh-abdullah-bin-bayyah-and-the-uae-israel-peace-deal/

"Tunisian parliament slams UAE-Israeli deal" (8/18/20)

 https://www.aa.com.tr/en/africa/tunisian-parliament-slams-uae-israeli-deal/1945036

https://english.alaraby.co.uk/english/news/2020/8/18/tunisian-parliament-condemns-uae-israel-deal

Aaron David Miller for CNN: "What Pompeo and Kushner are up to Aaron David Miller" (8/25/20)

 https://www.cnn.com/2020/08/25/opinions/pompeo-and-kushner-opinion-miller/index.html

Murtaza Hussain at The Intercept: "Civilian Deaths in U.S. Wars Are Skyrocketing Under Trump" (10/9/2019)

Since his emergence as a political figure, Trump has promised that if he ever attained power, he would use the U.S. military to inflict a massive bloodletting on others, including noncombatants. Unlike other campaign promises, Trump has delivered on this one. Since taking office, he has presided over skyrocketing rates of civilian casualties in America’s many foreign conflicts. [...]

IN THE POST-9/11 era, the U.S. military has made a point of not publicizing the civilian death tolls from its operations. But studies by independent researchers and nongovernmental organizations conservatively put the number of civilians killed in places like Iraq, Afghanistan, and Pakistan into the hundreds of thousands. The real figures are likely even higher. Trump, it is worth noting, is not the only one responsible for these deaths. The wars began long before he came into office, after all. But under his watch, and with his assent, they have been waged with more brutality and less apparent regard for innocent life. [...]

Even if Trump never shoots anyone directly, he and his administration are responsible for deaths on a scale that screams at us to take notice. 

 https://theintercept.com/2019/10/02/trump-impeachment-civilian-casualties-war/

"Trump’s brand of war is killing more civilians than before" (9/8/2019)

After 18 years of grinding wars on distant battlefields, Americans are understandably eager to bring the troops home.

But even if most are pulled out, the Trump administration plans to stay involved in these conflicts — through airstrikes, special operations, intelligence sharing and other aid to “partner forces.” Paradoxical as it may seem, civilian casualties may continue to increase.

We will be tempted to declare that our wars are over. They won’t be.

 https://www.latimes.com/politics/story/2019-09-07/trumps-shameful-rules-of-engagement-are-killing-civilians