Sheldon Kirshner

Apply for a Blog

Apr 29, 2025, 5:53 PM

Apples And Oranges

Foreign volunteers flocked to kibbutzim before and after the 1967 Six Day War. Hailing primarily from Europe, the United States, Canada and South Africa, they were eager to experience the novelty of collective living. By one estimate, 6,000 foreigners...

Apr 27, 2025, 5:52 PM

Trump’s Betrayal Of Ukraine

Donald Trump, in a geopolitical betrayal of seismic proportions, appears to have switched sides in the three-year-old Russia-Ukraine war. Until Trump's return as president on January 20, the United States backed Ukraine unequivocally. Joe Biden, Trump's predecessor, condemned Russia's brazen...

Apr 25, 2025, 6:50 PM

The Ronen Bar Affair

Benjamin Netanyahu's attempt to fire Ronen Bar, the director of the Shin Bet internal intelligence agency, discredits the Israeli prime minister, leaving him open to legitimate concerns that he values political survival more than democracy and the rule of...

Apr 23, 2025, 9:30 PM

The Endless War In Gaza

Israel's longest war since its creation drags on interminably, with no end in sight. Speaking of the 18-month-long conflict in the Gaza Strip a few days ago, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said he has no intention of finishing it...

Apr 21, 2025, 4:44 PM

Trump’s Iran Policy Seems Unclear

After two rounds of mostly indirect talks in Muscat and Rome over Iran's controversial nuclear program, the United States and Iran have expressed optimism that progress is being made. The "constructive" atmosphere is such that Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas...

Apr 19, 2025, 9:36 PM

Polish Jews In The Soviet Union, 1939-1959

Germany's invasion of Poland in 1939 and of the Soviet Union in 1941 set off mass migrations of Polish Jews eastward. Precise figures are hard to come by, but hundreds of thousands of Polish citizens participated in this desperate...

Apr 17, 2025, 6:22 PM

Trump Wages War Against Elite Universities

Donald Trump's ideologically-driven administration has taken aim at elite American universities in what is shaping up to be a concerted campaign to transform higher education in the United States. The ramifications of his policy may be felt for decades if...

Apr 15, 2025, 6:12 PM

The US-Iran Nuclear Negotiations

Donald Trump is trying to fix what he broke. In 2018, during his first term as US president, Trump unilaterally pulled out of the 2015 Iran nuclear agreement, denouncing it as a terrible deal and imposing crippling sanctions on Iran's...

Apr 13, 2025, 5:35 PM

McGill Cracks Down On Palestinian Protesters

McGill University has finally cracked down on Palestinian students and their supporters who create chaos on campus. Earlier this month, the Montreal university terminated its contractual relationship with the Students’ Society of McGill (SSMU) following a three-day anti-Israel strike that...

Apr 11, 2025, 6:41 PM

Israel And Turkey Are At Odds Over Syria

Israel and Turkey have taken the first concrete step to reduce tensions over their respective interests in Syria. Yesterday, Israeli and Turkish delegations conferred in Azerbaijan for talks to head off incidents that could degenerate into full-blown clashes between Israel...

Load more

About Me

Sheldon Kirshner is a journalist in Toronto. He writes at his online journal, SheldonKirshner.com