Michael Wahid Hanna, US programme director at the Crisis Group think-tank, said the Middle East appeared to be in a “new, open-ended phase of regionalised conflict” as Israel “senses an opportunity” to reshape the region to its liking.

Israel is hoping Donald Trump’s return to the White House will lead to more cooperation in the Middle East, both on diplomacy and climate issues, an Israeli official said.

One Arab writer takes issue with a noted scholar who assigns the lion's share of the blame to the establishment of the Jewish State. Israel has excelled, not only, because of its military strength and Western allies,