Ann Arbor (Informed Comment) – Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian, during his first appearance at the annual UN General Assembly meeting, met on the margins of the conference with Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi. He elicited from the Chinese one of the strongest statements of Chinese support we have seen. According to the UAE’s al-Khaleej, Wang […]
Israeli Campaign against Lebanon could Push Poverty Rate to 50%
Ann Arbor (Informed Comment) – UNICEF Deputy Representative to Lebanon Ettie Higgins reported from Lebanon on the effects of Monday’s massive attack by Israeli war planes on southern and eastern Lebanon. She said that the airstrikes had left 35 children dead from violence, more than in the previous 11 months combined. (Israel and Hezbollah have […]
Iraqi Shiite Militias Pledge Aid to Lebanese Hezbollah, Target Israel with Cruise Missiles, Drones
Ann Arbor (Informed Comment) – Tamim al-Hasan at the al-Mada newspaper in Baghdad reports that at a time when an imminent announcement is expected of the withdrawal of US troops from Iraq, Iraqi paramilitary groups have declared their solidarity with Lebanon’s Hezbollah in the struggle with Israel. Moreover, they are putting their drones where their […]
Hezbollah Targets Israeli Airbase as Lebanon-Israel Attacks Escalate; Americans told to Flee
Ann Arbor (Informed Comment) – Al Jazeera reports that Hezbollah escalated its rocket attacks on northern Israel and Syria’s Golan Heights occupied by Israel. Some of these rockets targeted the Ramat David Air Base near Haifa. The Israeli military said that most of the Hezbollah rockets were intercepted. The barrages went on Saturday and began […]
The Sphinx and the Sultan: How Biden’s Bear Hug of Netanyahu Caused Washington’s Near East Policy to Crash and Burn
I’m reprinting here my most recent Tomdispatch essay for The Nation Institute, on the possible emergence of a centrist Sunni bloc that aims to offset Israeli power in the region. Check out, as well, Tom Engelhardt’s essential introduction, here. At least one thing is now obvious in the Middle East: the Biden administration has failed […]
25% of 95K Injuries inflicted by Israel in Gaza are “Life-Changing;” Require Medical Care that Israelis Destroyed
Ann Arbor (Informed Comment) – On Monday, Israeli bombardments killed 38 people in Gaza. Based on past experience, we can expect a majority of those killed to have been women and children — at least 21 and maybe more. Photographs and video coming out of Gaza show dead children being carried in burial shrouds. For […]
Trump-Vance are doing to Haitians what the Israeli Right has done to Palestinians — Demonize a Whole People
Ann Arbor (Informed Comment) – The vile and disgusting tactic of J.D. Vance and Don Trump of spreading false, racist charges against Haitians of eating the pets of suburbanites is nothing unexpected. The MAGA wing of the Republican Party thrives on finding poor, weak victims and demonizing them. First they manufacture an imaginary threat, then […]
International Pressure on Israel averted Widespread Gaza Famine this Summer, but the Danger is Back: RI
Ann Arbor (Informed Comment) – Refugees International has issued a new report about hunger in Gaza. The authors say, “Contrary to the official Israeli pushback, research and analysis by Refugees International has corroborated evidence of a severe hunger crisis in Gaza and found consistent indications that famine-like conditions occurred in northern areas during the first […]
The Morass of U.S. Middle East Policy was visible in the Harris-Trump Debate
ABC provided a transcript of the debate between Donald Trump and Kamala Harris. I have some thoughts on the Middle East dimension: On Gaza, Harris said, “Well, let’s understand how we got here. On Oct. 7, Hamas, a terrorist organization, slaughtered 1,200 Israelis. Many of them young people who were simply attending a concert. Women […]
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