Mustafa Habib | Baghdad | (Niqash.org) | – – Nobody in Iraqi politics appears to like Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi much anymore. Some dislike him for his proposed reforms, others for not reforming enough. It’s a no-win scenario. How long can he last? PM Haider al-Abadi: The senior politician may have run out of friends […]
Archives for November 2015
In ‘Spectre,’ James Bond becomes Edward Snowden
By Juan Cole | (Informed Comment) | – – The latest entry in the Daniel Craig reboot of the James Bond film franchise, Spectre , turns Bond into more muscular version of Edward Snowden, as he takes down a vast 9-nation attempt at electronic surveillance and information-sharing that would also benefit a criminal cartel. Tooling […]
How Climate Activists derailed Keystone XL Pipeline: Lessons for the Future
Luis Hestres | (The Conversation) | – – Contrary to predictions from energy industry insiders, President Obama has rejected TransCanada’s application to build the Keystone XL pipeline across the United States-Canada border. The president downplayed the pipeline’s contribution to carbon emissions, but he did say that approving it would have undercut America’s role as the […]
In Palestine’s Hebron district Israeli Occupation troops impose ‘draconian’ measures
Ma’an News Agency | – – HEBRON (Ma’an) — As Hebron remains at the center of violence in the occupied Palestinian territory, Israeli rights group B’Tselem on Friday condemned Israeli actions there as “immoral” and “awful.” At least 22 Palestinians have been killed by Israeli forces in the Hebron district since the beginning of last […]
Keystone XL Cancelled: 8 yrs Later Obama finally moves against Tyranny of Oil
National Sierra Club | (Video Clip) | – – “ VICTORY! President Obama just announced that he will reject the Keystone XL tar sands pipeline.. After more than seven years of hard work and amazing dedication, we achieved a monumental victory in the fight to protect our planet from the disastrous effects of fossil fuels […]
Obama gives up on Israeli-Palestinian peace during his Administration
Ma’an News Agency | – – BETHLEHEM (Ma’an) — United States president Barack Obama concluded that a peace treaty or direct talks between Israel and Palestinian leadership would not be carried out in his time left in office, a White House spokesperson said Thursday. With thanks to FreeOnlinePhotoEditor Israeli media reported that Obama’s senior adviser […]
Putin’s Dilemma: How To Respond If A Bomb Caused Sinai Air Crash
By Steve Gutterman | ( RFE/RL ) | – – Mounting evidence that an onboard bomb brought down the Russian jet that crashed on Egypt’s Sinai Peninsula, killing 224 people, poses a tough new dilemma for President Vladimir Putin: how to respond. If the theory of a terrorist attack is borne out, it will look […]
Netanyahu taps Squatter who called Obama Muslim hate sympathizer, as he demands $5 bn./yr. from U.S.
By Juan Cole | (Informed Comment) | – – Israeli Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu appointed West Bank squatter Ran Baratz to be his director of communications on the eve of his procession Monday to Washington to demand a vast increase in annual US aid to Israel, which includes civilian as well as military grants of […]
Russian Branch of Syria’s al-Qaeda appeals for Funding from Russian Muslims
By Joanna Paraszczuk | ( RFE/RL “Do you think you’re safe from the fires of hell? Give yourself a chance — help mujahedin on the path of God!” Thus reads a new fund-raising advertisement published on the VKontakte social network this week by the Russian-speaking battalion of Al-Qaeda’s Syrian affiliate, the Al-Nusra Front. “Do you […]