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Juan Cole

Democracy
Rare victory for Freedom of speech in Turkey, as Pianist allowed to quote Omar Khayyam

Rare victory for Freedom of speech in Turkey, as Pianist allowed to quote Omar Khayyam

Juan Cole

By Juan Cole | (Informed Comment) | – – In a rare victory for freedom of speech in Turkey, the country’s Supreme Court of Appeals has completely overturned a lower court ruling that sentenced world-famous pianist Fazil Say to a suspended sentence of 10 months in prison. Say’s crime? To tweet out passages from the […]

Featured
Top 5 Things for which We should be grateful to Arabic Writing

Top 5 Things for which We should be grateful to Arabic Writing

Juan Cole

By Juan Cole | (Informed Comment) | – – When a teacher in rural Augusta county, Virginia, decided to expose her students to the Arabic script (a piece of calligraphy writing out the Muslim profession of faith), the backlash from some furious parents so hinted at violence that county schools had to be closed for […]

European Union
Europol: 1% of 2014 European Terrorism by Muslims

Europol: 1% of 2014 European Terrorism by Muslims

Juan Cole

By Juan Cole | (Informed Comment) | – – The Europol* report on European terrorism for 2014 would obviously look different for the horrible year of 2015. So too was 2011 an outlier, when far right wing Islamophobe Anders Breivik killed 77 Norwegian leftists for being soft on Islam. But it is worthwhile considering it, […]

Iraq
Will Mosul rise against Daesh/ ISIL?  If not, who can liberate it?

Will Mosul rise against Daesh/ ISIL? If not, who can liberate it?

Juan Cole

By Nawzat Shamdeen | (Niqash.org) | – – “Everyone says zero hour is coming closer. Some of the politicians – including the Prime Minister – have said that operations to liberate Mosul have already started,” a Mosul man, who still lives in the extremist-occupied city, wrote in a message sent to NIQASH on social media. […]

Featured
Eyes on Mosul next, as Iraqi Army advances in Ramadi in face of Stiff ISIL/ Daesh Resistance

Eyes on Mosul next, as Iraqi Army advances in Ramadi in face of Stiff ISIL/ Daesh Resistance

Juan Cole

By Juan Cole | (Informed Comment) | – – Iraqi prime minister Haydar al-Abadi announced Friday that after the city of Ramadi was recovered from Daesh (ISIS, ISIL), the Iraqi army would go on to liberate Mosul (a city of some 2 million before Daesh took it), 420 km. north of Ramadi. On Friday, the […]

Featured
The Regime Strikes Back: Syrian Gov't advances, Bolstered by Russia

The Regime Strikes Back: Syrian Gov’t advances, Bolstered by Russia

Juan Cole

By Juan Cole | (Informed Comment) | – – Russia’s aerial intervention in Syria is apparently yielding some modest battlefield advances for the Baath regime of Bashar al-Assad. Russia is also resupplying the Syrian Arab Army, training it in tactics, and giving it strategic advice. The big news is that Russia airstrikes on the secret […]

Israel/ Palestine
Palestine: Friday clashes erupt across occupied West Bank as Israeli Occupiers use Lethal Force

Palestine: Friday clashes erupt across occupied West Bank as Israeli Occupiers use Lethal Force

Juan Cole

Ma’an News Agency | – – BETHLEHEM (Ma’an) — Weekly Friday demonstrations took place across the occupied West Bank on Friday, locals said. Locals told Ma’an that clashes broke out between Palestinians and Israeli soldiers in the village of al-Khader south of Bethlehem, where dozens — including elderly residents — suffered from tear gas inhalation. […]

Archaeology
In Iraq’s Ur,  Archeologists Explore History’s Potential to Unite A Divided Land

In Iraq’s Ur, Archeologists Explore History’s Potential to Unite A Divided Land

Juan Cole

By Ahmad Thamer Jihad | (Niqash.org) | – – The best way to combat the damage done to Iraq’s antiquities during the current security crisis is to put more effort into exploring and maintaining the ancient sites that extremists cannot reach, says Abdulamir al-Hamdani , an Iraqi archeologist who was studying at Stony Brook University […]

Arab World
Christmas and Christians in the Middle East

Christmas and Christians in the Middle East

Juan Cole

by Juan Cole | (Informed Comment) | – – Whether Christmas is joyous sad or nervous-making for Christians in the Middle East this year depends very much on the country in which they live. It should be noted that many of them follow Eastern traditions such that Christmas is not celebrated on December 25. The […]

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