US President Joe Biden delivers remarks on the economy at the Brookings Institution in Washington, DC, US, Dec. 10, 2024. Photo: REUTERS/Kevin Lamarque

President Joe Biden is pushing US national security agencies ahead of Donald Trump‘s inauguration to devise new strategies to tackle the risky, deepening ties among Russia, Iran, North Korea, and China, according to US officials.

In exchange for Iran‘s help with the Russian war effort in Ukraine, Moscow is giving its ally fighter aircraft, missile defense, and space technology, Biden concluded in a national security memorandum issued on Tuesday.

Russian President Vladimir Putin is giving North Korea fuel, money, and technology, and is recognizing it as a de facto nuclear state. Russia is conducting joint patrols with China in the Arctic, the administration said.

The classified document was described in general terms to reporters, but has not independently been reviewed by Reuters. Russia, China, Iran, and North Korea have disputed similar assessments in the past and accused Washington of destabilizing behavior.

Biden‘s new document orders various arms of the US government to restructure groups currently organized by region to better focus on issues linking the four countries that span Europe and Asia.

The document’s strategies and policy suggestions could be implemented — or rejected altogether — by President-elect Trump, a Republican who takes office on Jan. 20.

“When the new team sort of looks at it, I don’t think they will see anything in it that is trying to box them in or tilt them toward one policy option or another,” said one of the senior administration officials, who declined to be named.

Another official said they want to create “new options so that a new team and Congress can really hit the ground running.”

The officials said the challenges ahead include ensuring that any sanctions and export controls imposed on the four countries are applied in a coordinated way that doesn’t risk blowback from those countries and enabling the United States to better handle simultaneous crises involving several of the countries. North Korean troops are now serving in Russia, for instance.

“We’re now in a world where our adversaries and our competitors are learning very quickly from one another,” said one of the officials.

But there are limits to the countries’ cooperation, another of the officials said, including Russia and Iran‘s failing to assist their ally Bashar al-Assad, the former Syrian president who was toppled over the weekend.

“This realignment sort of raises for China the question about what kind of future it wants to see and if it really wants to be all-in with this grouping,” the person said.

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A pro-Hamas march in London, United Kingdom, Feb. 17, 2024. Photo: Chrissa Giannakoudi via Reuters Connect

The aftermath of Hamas’ brutal assault on Oct. 7th, 2023 — resulting in 1,200 deaths and leaving Israel shaken — has exposed a concerning global trend.

The Jewish State, defending itself against an existential threat, finds itself under fire from well-known adversaries — but also from nations that have long been considered allies.

A troubling shift in rhetoric and policy reveals a prevalent bias against Israel, calling into question the commitment of Western democracies to principles of fairness and justice.

Across Europe, protests and political narratives blur the distinction between valid criticism of Israeli war tactics and outright bigotry. The United Kingdom has seen over 100,000 people march in pro-Palestinian rallies since the October attacks, many which support Hamas and call for violence against Jews.

While these events often claim to advocate for Palestinian rights, chants such as “From the river to the sea” — a call for Israel’s destruction — are alarmingly common, as are acts of physical violence. London’s mayor, Sadiq Khan, has refrained from condemning such slogans despite growing concerns from Jewish communities about a surge in antisemitism.

France has seen a similar spike in bigotry, with hundreds of antisemitic incidents reported in the past year alone. Jewish schools and synagogues have been targeted, further alienating Jewish citizens.

Meanwhile, in Spain, prominent left-wing politicians like Ernest Urtasun have framed Israel as the aggressor, while failing to condemn Hamas’ war crimes, and Hamas’ use of human shields and hostage-taking. Selective outrage, as seen in Spain, underscores a troubling trend in Western Europe, where anti-Israel activism often spills over into antisemitism.

In the United States, a historical stronghold of support for Israel, cracks are appearing, particularly within the Democratic Party. Numerous Democratic lawmakers have pushed for ceasefires without acknowledging Hamas’ use of civilians as human shields — or repeating President Biden and Kamala Harris’ promise that Hamas will not be allowed to retain power in Gaza. Not only that, but some Democrats are blaming support for Israel for their resounding defeat in a presidential election that had nothing to do with foreign policy.

The Biden administration faces mounting pressure from progressive lawmakers to increase humanitarian aid to Gaza, even as Hamas diverts billions into its war effort, instead of civilian needs.

Figures like Congresswoman Rashida Tlaib (D-MI) have refused to condemn Hamas’ atrocities, focusing their criticism entirely on Israel. College campuses, including prestigious institutions like Harvard University and Columbia University, have become antisemitic breeding grounds, with some faculty and student groups openly supporting terrorist attacks, and censoring and assaulting Jewish students.

According to the Anti-Defamation League (ADL), antisemitic incidents in the US increased by 360% in the past year, a rise closely tied to anti-Israel propaganda.

Beyond individual nations, international institutions like the United Nations have amplified this bias. Since 2015, the UN has passed more than 140 resolutions targeting Israel, compared to a mere handful addressing human rights abuses by Hamas or Hezbollah. These resolutions, framed as calls for accountability, fail to acknowledge Hamas’ deliberate targeting of Israeli civilians and its documented use of human shields.

The UN is attacking Israel because it’s a country of Jews — or else those 140 resolutions would also have been passed against Russia, Afghanistan, North Korea, and the countries of the world that actually are committing war crimes and grave human rights abuses.

Bigotry against Israel also extends to economic measures, with support for the Boycott, Divestment, and Sanctions (BDS) movement against Israel growing across Europe. This campaign attempts to systematically undermine Israel’s economy and erode its international standing, often disregarding the oppressive regimes and terrorist organizations in the region that perpetuate the conflict.

Israel’s battle is not only against terrorism, but also against an international narrative infused with hypocrisy and bias. Nations that claim to foster human rights must recognize the security needs of the world’s only Jewish state. Defaming Israel undermines its right to defend its citizens and fails to respect a democratic nation.

The international community must move beyond its selective outrage and hold all parties accountable. Criticizing Israel while ignoring Hamas’ atrocities is not advocacy for peace — instead, it is continuing the cycle of violence.

In this climate of rising hostility, Israel stands not only for its survival, but for the principles of truth, justice, and the universal right of every nation to defend itself against terror. The world must resist promoting bias and uphold democratic values before the damage to Israel becomes irreparable.

Gregory Lyakhov has written for The Times of Israel, and is a passionate advocate for Israel. He runs a political blog focusing on elections, law, and Israel.

The post Allies to Adversaries: Waning Global Support for Israel first appeared on Algemeiner.com.

Top rebel commander Abu Mohammed al-Golani speaks to a crowd at Ummayad Mosque in Damascus, after Syrian rebels announced that they have ousted President Bashar al-Assad, Syria, Dec. 8, 2024. Photo: REUTERS/Mahmoud Hassano

The main commander of the fighters who toppled Bashar al-Assad said on Wednesday that anyone involved in the torture or killing of detainees during the ousted Syrian president’s rule would be hunted down, and pardons were out of the question.

“We will pursue them in Syria, and we ask countries to hand over those who fled so we can achieve justice,” Abu Mohammed al-Golani said in a statement published on the Syrian state TV’s Telegram channel.

The world is carefully watching to see if Syria’s new rulers can stabilize the country and avoid unleashing violent revenge, after a 13-year civil war fought along sectarian and ethnic lines destroyed the country.

Syria ran one of the most oppressive police states in the Middle East during five decades of Assad family rule. Golani, whose former al Qaeda affiliate Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS) is now the country’s most powerful force, must balance demands for justice from victims with the need to prevent violent reprisals and secure international aid.

Mohammad al-Bashir, the man installed by Golani‘s fighters to lead an interim administration, said he aimed to bring back millions of refugees, create unity, and provide basic services. But rebuilding would be daunting with little funding on hand.

“In the coffers there are only Syrian pounds worth little or nothing. One US dollar buys 35,000 of our coins,” Bashir told Italian newspaper Il Corriere della Sera.

“We have no foreign currency and as for loans and bonds we are still collecting data. So yes, financially we are very bad,” said Bashir, who previously ran a small rebel-led administration in a pocket of northwestern Syria.

Rebuilding Syria is a colossal task following a civil war that killed hundreds of thousands of people, reduced cities to ruins, depopulated the countryside, and left the economy gutted by international sanctions. Millions of refugees still live in camps after one of the biggest displacements of modern times.

Since Assad‘s fall, Hayat al-Turki has been searching the abandoned cells of Syria’s most notorious prison, the vast Sednaya complex, for any sign of her missing relatives, including her brother who vanished 14 years ago.

“Are these for my brother for example? Do I smell him in them? Or these? Or is this his blanket?” she said, combing through belongings left behind in a cell.

“I was hopeful and optimistic to find someone from my missing prisoners — a brother, an uncle, or a cousin — but I did not find. I did not find. I searched the whole prison,” she said. “I go into a cell, not even for five minutes, and I suffocate.”

ENGAGING WARILY

Foreign officials are warily engaging with the former rebels, although HTS remains designated a terrorist organization by Washington, the United Nations, EU, and others.

The new government must “uphold clear commitments to fully respect the rights of minorities, facilitate the flow of humanitarian assistance to all in need, prevent Syria from being used as a base for terrorism or posing a threat to its neighbors,” US Secretary of State Antony Blinken said.

UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres said: “It’s our duty to do everything to support different Syrian leaders in order to make sure that they come together, they are able to guarantee a smooth transition.”

In addition to terrorism bans in place against the former rebels, Syria also remains under US, European, and other financial sanctions imposed against Damascus under Assad.

Two senior US congressmen, a Republican and a Democrat, wrote a letter calling for Washington to suspend some sanctions. The most punishing war-time US sanctions are up for renewal this month, and the former rebels have told Reuters they are in touch with Washington about potentially easing them.

HAFEZ ASSAD MAUSOLEUM TORCHED

A resident of Assad‘s family hometown of Qardaha said Sunni Islamist fighters had torched the mausoleum of Assad‘s father Hafez over the past two days, instilling fear among villagers from Assad‘s Alawite sect who had pledged cooperation with the new rulers.

For refugees, the prospect of returning home has brought a mixture of joy and grief over hardship in exile. Syrians lined up at the Turkish border on Wednesday to head home, speaking of their expectations for a better life following what was for many a decade of hardship in Turkey.

“We have no one here. We are going back to Latakia, where we have family,” said Mustafa as he prepared to enter Syria with his wife and three sons at the Cilvegozu border gate in southern Turkey. Dozens more Syrians were waiting to cross.

US Deputy National Security Adviser Jon Finer told Reuters Washington was still working out how it will engage with the former rebels. Washington remains cautious.

“We have seen over the years any number of militant groups who have seized power, who have promised that they would respect minorities, who have promised that they would respect religious freedom, promised that they would govern in an inclusive way, and then see them fail to meet those promises,” State Department spokesperson Matthew Miller said.

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