Zero Line

Can Israel win in Gaza?

A Hamas-laid trap killed five Israeli soldiers in Beit Hanoun last week, 18 months after the IDF first declared victory in the town. What explains…

Jul 15 • 

Tom Dale

7

May 2025

Fragments #2: Gaza without illusions, Zohran for NYC, Tooze on the Holocaust, 8% beers of MENA, Abundance (resistance style), &c.

The second Fragments – a series with few short, sharp articles about what’s been on my mind over the past week or so.

May 31 • 

Tom Dale

9

1

January 2025

Notes on the ceasefire

Why did it happen? What does it mean? Will it hold? What happens next?

Jan 20 • 

Tom Dale

16

23

December 2024

Why did Assad fall so fast?

The geopolitics of U.S. power, and the Syrian politics of revolution

Dec 31, 2024 • 

Tom Dale

 and 

Tom Rollins

7

November 2024

The tragedy of Yahya Sinwar

Yahya Sinwar has reshaped the Middle East, and his legacy will echo for decades. Who was he? Why did he initiate the 7 October attacks in the manner…

Nov 10, 2024 • 

Tom Dale

334

57

October 2024

Fragments #1: new risk of ethnic cleansing in Gaza, Hezbollah's balance of terror collapses, data on Hamas's war

Hello, and welcome to the first Zero Line Fragments. In these irregular messages, which will appear in between longer essays, I’ll be sharing short…

Oct 6, 2024 • 

Tom Dale

4

1

September 2024

Tragedy: a beginning and an explanation

On the political lessons of personal catastrophe – and a region on fire

Sep 28, 2024 • 

Tom Dale

7

2