The best way to understand Armenia is to understand its national church, which is based in a town called Echmiadzin.

Some Armenians are evangelical or Catholic, but most belong to the Armenian Orthodox Church, which makes it the beating heart of the nation.

(thread) The Armenian Church traces its roots back to two of Jesus' apostles -- Thaddeus and Bartholomew -- who preached the gospel to the Armenians, and to St Gregory the Illuminator, a missionary priest who was imprisoned and who later converted Tiridates III to Christianity in AD 301.

If you drive 45 min west from Yerevan you'll find Quba Mêrê Dîwanê, the largest Yazidi temple in the world.

But why are Yazidis, followers of a non-Abrahamic religion, living in this Christian country where they make up 2% of the population?

Good question...

(thread) Yazidis are members of an ancient Indo-Iranian ethoreligious group which practices a monotheistic, pre-Islamic religion that predates Zoroastrianism. Their main divine figure is Melek Taus (personified as a peacock), an angel assigned by the One-God to rule the world

In their fifth election in 3 years, Israelis have shown once again the strength of democracy in the Jewish state. This time Israelis have decided that Benjamin Netanyahu and his partners are the best choice to lead the country.

It's not all good, but it's not all bad
(thread) Bad news is that two of Netanyahu's partners have long records of hostility/incitement against Arabs (and even fellow Jews who disagree with them) which will present a formidable challenge as he tries to unify the country. Will they moderate? Become more radical? Unclear

Only 1% of Palestinians in West Bank/Gaza are Christian (roughly 46,850 people). Last year we commissioned a survey with @KShikaki to better understand who these Christians are, how they feel, and why so many are leaving.

Here are a few highlights:

(thread) Most important problem Palestinians are facing?

Economic problems - 47%
Corruption - 22%
Internal stability/security - 8%
Political/party issues - 7%
Foreign interference - 4%

Have you thought about leaving?

Yes - 36%
No - 64%

Since everyone is interested in Palestinians at the moment, thought I'd share a few facts about what they're feeling these days (from a March 2021 poll from @KShikaki) Conditions in Gaza?

Bad or very bad - 79.2%
Good or very good - 6.3%

West Bank?

Bad or very bad - 56.3%
Good or very good - 19.3%

"Israel is committing ethnic cleansing in Palestine" is an absurd claim totally divorced from anything happening on the ground. Let me explain: Israelis had zero incentive to start fighting Palestinians this week. Things were actually going pretty good for Israel: this past year saw peace treaties with four Arab countries, a world-class response to Covid-19, and growing integration of Arab citizens in society. Onward.

I don't think anyone grasps how bad things are in Lebanon right now. Political stalemate, Iranian domination, Syrian refugees, economic failure, covid -- the country won't survive without dramatic action led by brave people inside and strong support from friends outside. The problem is structural and precedes Hezbollah: a mixed religious population with no clear majority creates political deadlock which is the country's only enduring constitutional principle. I've written about Lebanon's systemic flaw here:
wsj.com/articles/leban…

Seeing conservatives do the "yeah but what about the summer riots??" thing. Difference is this: What happened yesterday was infused with Christian symbols and encouraged (openly or tacitly, doesn't matter) by major Christian leaders who have wholly immanentized their religion. I'm not surprised when unbelievers make power a religion and strip culture of any transcendent check on that power. But Christians know better, or at least they're supposed to. Jesus doesn't need the Senate or the White House. Why are my people acting as if this is all there is?

Lots of chatter about evangelicals these days, mostly portraying them as mischievous imps whose White Nationalist Politics are to blame for all our problems. Somehow they're the one group we're still allowed to hate.

But evangelicals aren't what most people think.

(thread) About 8/10 white evangelicals voted for Trump, but white evangelicals are only 15% of US population. Cf. 64% white Catholics, 57% white Mainline Protestants, 46% non-white Protestants, 24% Unaffiliateds & 20% non-white Catholics who also voted for Trump.

It took a village guys.

Watching today's angsty reactions to the Soleimani hit reminded me once again why Americans keep failing in the Middle East.

Let me explain.

(thread) 1. One common response I see: "Soleimani was bad but taking him out requires a comprehensive strategy. Cycles of violence will solve nothing. We need a path to peace. We must address the causes of terrorism. We need a plan to win this war and achieve a state of lasting justice."

A few thoughts on the Jerusalem announcement.... I don't feel that the announcement was particularly urgent, but I disagree with those who say it was particularly wrong. It wasn't. In some ways it was remarkably unremarkable. No one in the world should be surprised