By Juan Cole | (Informed Comment) | – – The warmongers in the Trump administration (you didn’t fall for that isolationism scam did you?) have been exploring ways to blow up the Iran nuclear deal, which Trump has repeatedly castigated as “a very bad deal.” One ploy they’ve fixed on is to demand inspections of […]
Turkey-Backed fundamentalist Militias attack US Troops in Syria
By Juan Cole | (Informed Comment) | – – US troops in Syria operating north of Manbij have been fired on twice in the last couple of weeks. The attackers are fundamentalist remnants of the Free Syrian Army, backed by Turkey. The US has tried to persuade rebel groups to concentrate their firepower on ISIL […]
China smashes 2020 solar power target, leaves US & Europe in Dust
By Sam Morgan | ( EURACTIV.com) | – – China eclipses Europe as 2020 solar power target is smashed. China has reached its 2020 solar power target three years ahead of schedule, after installed capacity topped well over its 105GW target. Europe has been urged to show similar ambition. New figures published by solar industry […]
The Criminals who amplified Harvey: Trump & Cabinet must Resign
By Juan Cole | (Informed Comment) | – – The whole Trump administration should resign in shame, since they have lied to the American people about the disaster of burning fossil fuels. The policies of climate change denial made Hurricane Harvey far worse than it would ordinarily have been, some scientists say by as much […]
20,000 Civilians Trapped in besieged ISIL capital: “The Worst Place on Earth”
By Roshni Majumdar | (Inter Press Service) | – – UNITED NATIONS, Aug 28 2017 (IPS) – The battle to reclaim Raqqa, the de facto capital of the Islamic State of Iraq and Levant (ISIL/Da’esh), has raised concerns among top UN officials as at least 20,000 civilians remain trapped under heavy fire in the city. […]
Is Israel’s Netanyahu preparing for War on Iranian Special Ops in Syria?
By Juan Cole | (Informed Comment) | – – Israeli prime minister Binyamin Netanyahu filled the ear of visiting UN secretary general Antonio Guterres with complaints about Iran and Hizbullah on the latter’s visit to the region. He complained that the UN border patrol, UNIFIL, in South Lebanon, has not reported the thousands of rockets […]
Top 5 ways Man-made Climate Change made Hurricane Harvey much Worse
By Juan Cole | (Informed Comment) | – – The images from Houston and its environs are heart-breaking and we at IC wish all those affected a speedy and safe return to normality. Extreme weather events are associated with climate change, and whenever they occur, they raise the question of their relationship to that process. […]
Iraq: Trump slams Iran, but Iran-backed Militias are key to taking Talafar from ISIL
by Juan Cole | (Informed Comment) | – – Shiite popular mobilization units (Iran-backed militias) have played a key role in taking of the northern city of Talafar from ISIL. The ninth armored division of the regular army and the military’s counter-terrorism brigandes have also played an important role. A government spokesman said that only […]
Trump Exploits Harvey Victims in Stealth Pardon of Arpaio
By Juan Cole | (Informed Comment) | – – Eminent climate scientist Michael Mann of Penn State noticed not one but two horrible things about Friday evening. You never want to see a Hurricane that looks like this at landfall.I fear #Harvey will take a heavy toll. Be safe folks. pic.twitter.com/1r0CXvhghm — Michael E. Mann […]