According to the Hebrew calendar, today is the 120th anniversary of the death of Theodor Herzl. Yizhar Hess uses the opportunity to examine this great Zionist leader’s relationship with the physician and philosopher Max Nordau. Hess, like Nordau before him, currently holds the position of vice-chairman of the World Zionist Organization:

They differed in appearance, in temperament, in age (Nordau was more than a decade older than Herzl), and in public standing. Nordau was better known than Herzl when the First Zionist Congress convened. The very participation of the esteemed author and physician in the Zionist movement created a sensation.

Nordau was very serious as well as aware of his own stature. In this sense, he actually resembled Herzl. Neither was petty—nor especially modest. The hierarchy between them should have seemingly been obvious. The publicity, the status, the age. However, something happened to Nordau at that first Congress that caused him not only to overcome his inclination but also to understand that he had the privilege of standing alongside a unique figure in Herzl.

In 2003, the Libyan dictator Muammar Gaddafi, spooked by the American display of might in Iraq, decided to destroy or surrender his entire nuclear program. Informed observers have suggested that the deal he made with the U.S. should serve as a model for any agreement with Iran. Robert Joseph provides some useful background:

Gaddafi had convinced himself that Libya would be next on the U.S. target list after Iraq. There was no reason or need to threaten Libya with bombing as Gaddafi was quick to tell almost every visitor that he did not want to be Saddam Hussein. The images of Saddam being pulled from his spider hole . . . played on his mind.

President Bush’s goal was to have Libya serve as an alternative model to Iraq. Instead of war, proliferators would give up their nuclear programs in exchange for relief from economic and political sanctions.

Any outcome that permits Iran to enrich uranium at any level will fail the one standard that President Trump has established: Iran will not be allowed to have a nuclear weapon. Limiting enrichment even to low levels will allow Iran to break out of the agreement at any time, no matter what the agreement says.

Iran is not a normal government that observes the rules of international behavior or fair “dealmaking.” This is a regime that relies on regional terror and brutal repression of its citizens to stay in power. It has a long history of using negotiations to expand its nuclear program. Its negotiating tactics are clear: extend the negotiations as long as possible and meet any concession with more demands.