By Juan Cole | (Informed Comment) | – – Former Israeli prison guard at the notorious Ktzi’ot Prison camp for Palestinians and now editor-in-chief of the Atlantic, Cpl. Jeffrey Goldberg, breathlessly reported that Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed Bin Salman told him that both the Jews and the Palestinians have a right to their own state. […]
Shooting Protesters in Cold Blood: How Israel became a Typical Middle Eastern Dictatorship
By Juan Cole | (Informed Comment) | – – The Israeli army snipers who were ordered to shoot unarmed Palestinian protesters last Friday at the Gaza border, killing 17 outright and wounding hundreds of others, were acting according to the contemporary script of Middle Eastern dictators. The Israeli army initially admitted in a tweet that […]
Saudi Prince: War with Iran in 10-15 Years w/out new Sanctions
By Juan Cole | (Informed Comment) | – – The Arabic press is reacting to remarks of Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman to the Wal Street Journal warning of war with Iran unless more severe economic and military sanctions are applied to that country. Bin Salman’s analysis, as usual, is both incredibly self-serving and […]
Israeli Snipers Murder 17, wound dozens of Trapped Refugee Protesters at Gaza Border
By Juan Cole | (Informed Comment) | – – Palestinians in Gaza staged an unarmed protest Friday, part of a planned multi-week event, near the Israeli line of control. They are demanding the right to return to their homes. The Israeli army indiscriminately opened fire on the protesters with live ammunition, killing at least 17 […]
Trump: “US out of Syria ‘Very Soon'”– Quip or Policy Reversal?
By Juan Cole | (Informed Comment) | – – Trump in the course of a speech on infrastructure in Ohio, yesterday, observed that the US was near to completely defeating the ISIL “caliphate” and that the US would be withdrawing from Syria very soon. CBS News: “Trump says U.S. to pull out of Syria “very […]
Can’t get Fooled Again: Trump Appointees make him look like Bush 2.0
Via Otherwords.org By Peter Certo | (Otherwords.org) | – – The president once distanced himself from the Bush legacy. Now he’s brought back the architects of its darkest moments. Political reporters have a saying: There’s always a tweet. That is, for nearly every political moment or presidential decree, there’s an uncannily on-point comment buried somewhere […]
Jesus wasn’t white: he was a brown-skinned, Middle Eastern Jew: & why that matters
By Robyn J. Whitaker | (The Conversation) | – – I grew up in a Christian home, where a photo of Jesus hung on my bedroom wall. I still have it. It is schmaltzy and rather tacky in that 1970s kind of way, but as a little girl I loved it. In this picture, Jesus […]
Ultimate Hypocrisy: Saudi Crown Prince touts Religious Tolerance in NYC
By Juan Cole | (Informed Comment) | – – Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman’s charm offensive in New York allegedly involved meeting Oprah Winfrey, which may be the only canny thing I’ve ever heard of him doing. He also had some religious leaders over to his condominium in NYC to stress the importance of […]
China met Carbon Intensity Goals 3 Years Early, but it Isn’t Nearly Enough
By Juan Cole | (Informed Comment) | – – I am not a fundamentalist in any other area of life. But I am a carbon dioxide fundamentalist. Well, you can add methane and some other gases. The point is that CO2 emissions is the only issue that matters in speaking of climate change. It is […]