Ann Arbor (Informed Comment) – Iraqi Prime Minister Mohammad Shia’ al-Sudani called Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan on Tuesday and read him the riot act about the lightning conquests in northern Syria of Sunni rebels. Al-Sudani cautioned that “Iraq will not be a mere spectator to the grave repercussions of the events taking place in […]
Archives for December 2024
Truce in Lebanon: Can Diplomacy Rise from the Ruins?
( Code Pink ) – On November 26th, Israel and Lebanon signed an agreement for a 60-day truce, during which Israel and Hezbollah are both supposed to withdraw from the area of Lebanon south of the Litani River. The agreement is based on the terms of UN Security Council resolution 1701, which ended the previous […]
Bankrupting the Planet: The Trump Tempest
( Tomdispatch.com ) – Give him credit. As a start, for that first surprise victory in 2016. No, I didn’t fully get it at the time, but I kind of get it now (since, like the rest of us, I’ve lived through it all, including his close loss in 2020). Still, twice? Him? A convicted […]
“Trump is the one to Blame” for Current Iran Crisis: An Interview with Gary Sick (Pt. 2)
This is part II of Fariba Amini’s two-part interview with Columbia University Political Scientist and former National Security Council Adviser (to President Jimmy Carter) Gary Sick, among America’s foremost Iran specialists. Part I is here. Gary Sick. Courtesy Columbia University. Fariba Amini: How do you see Trump’s internal and foreign policy agenda in the coming […]
US Arms Used in Illegal Israeli Strike on Lebanese Journalists, raising Questions of American Liability
Three Killed, Four Injured in Apparent War Crime
How Hayat Tahrir al-Sham evolved from Radicalism to ruler of Northern Syria
By Sara Harmouch, American University A major offensive has seen rebel groups in Syria retake the country’s second city, Aleppo – and demonstrated the growing prominence of the Islamist group Hayat Tahrir al-Sham in the 13-year-long civil war. The surprise advance was led by members of Hayat Tahrir al-Sham, fighting alongside Turkish-backed groups opposing the […]
Why is Iran so Central to US Policy? An Interview with Doyen of US Iran Experts, Gary Sick (Pt. 1)
Gary Sick was the national security advisor to President Jimmy Carter. He was present at the White House during some turbulent times- the Iranian revolution, Camp David Accord and more. He had served previously under President Ford and, for a short period, under Reagan. Later, he taught at Columbia University and for nearly 30 years […]
Israel Committing War Crimes, Ethnic Cleansing in N. Gaza: Former Minister of Defense Moshe Yaalon
( Middle East Monitor ) – Former Israeli Defense Minister Moshe Ya’alon accused the army on Sunday of committing war crimes in the northern Gaza Strip and attempting to hide these crimes from the public, Anadolu Agency reports. “I speak on behalf of the commanders who serve in northern Gaza. There are war crimes being […]
Trump’s Second Coming: “I never realized before that men hate us so much.”
( Tomdispatch.com ) – “I never realized before that men hate us so much.” That was the lesson drawn by one of my fellow organizers in Reno, Nevada, the morning after the 2024 general election. She’d turned 21 during the campaign, a three-month marathon she approached as a daily opportunity to learn as much as […]
© 2025 All Rights Reserved