The Qatar satellite channel Aljazeera has gotten hold of some 1600 documents from the Palestine Authority regarding negotiations with Israel, which cast the Israelis, the Americans and the Fatah faction of Palestinians in the worst possible light. The leaked documents were shared exclusively with The Guardian newspaper. The documents could well destroy the Palestine Liberation […]
Archives for January 2011
Bradley Manning and Mohamed Bouazizi
Activists David House and Jane Hamsher tried to visit Pfc. Bradley Manning, who stands accused of leaking classified US government documents, at Quantico on Sunday. They allege that while still outside the base, they were given a run-around, threatened with having their car towed, and then essentially detained for two hours, until the 3:00 pm […]
Thousands Protest Interim Government in Tunis
Signs that the Tunisia story is by no means over emerged this weekend. Protests continued in Tunis and elsewhere against the interim prime minister, Mohamed Ghannouchi and the president, Fouad Mebazaa, on grounds that they were part of the ruling Rally for Constitutional Democracy. The crowds wanted nothing to do with close associates of deposed […]
Olbermann Departs, as Media Consolidate Further
People are blaming the abrupt departure of Keith Olbermann from MSNBC on that company’s merger with Comcast and Olbermann’s loss of the protection and patronage of Jeff Zucker, the former head of NBC programming. MSNBC says that the issue has nothing to do with Comcast. It seems Olbermann is too extreme for US television. But […]
Iranian-American Comedians on Daily Show
Jon Stewart of the Daily Show interviews two Iranian-American satirists, Saman Arbabi and his colleague Kambiz Husseini about their television show, Parazit. The Daily Show With Jon Stewart Mon – Thurs 11p / 10c www.thedailyshow.com Daily Show Full Episodes Political Humor & Satire Blog</a> The Daily Show on Facebook
Iraq’s Civil War Grinds on, with 62 Dead, 200 Wounded in Karbala Blasts
Bombings took the lives of 62 Shiite pilgrims, mostly in the holy city of Karbala, but also in Diyala province. Sunni Arab guerrillas are still attempting to destabilize the Shiite-dominated government of Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki by provoking Shiite-Sunni feuds and spreading a feeling of instability that interferes with investment and reconstruction. On Tuesday, a […]
Beck: You’re Going to Have to Shoot them in The Head
On June 10, 2010, Glenn Beck painted a picture of the Democratic Party as deeply divided into a front group (President Obama, Nancy Pelosi) and a set of radical backers, whom the front group had used and to whom they had made promises. Among the alleged radical backers was Bill Ayers, the former Weatherman whom […]
Tunisia’s Uprising: A Real Shot at Democracy – Cole at the Economist
A podcast interview with me about Tunisia and its wider significance in the Middle East is up at the Economist web site.
Map: Industry by Province in Tunisia
Courtesy Centre Technique du Textile