Ann Arbor (Informed Comment) – The Israeli human rights organization B’tselem greeted President Biden on his arrival in Jerusalem with a billboard campaign proclaiming, “Mr. President, this is Apartheid.” B’Tselem concluded in a report last year that there is a single governing authority between the Jordan River and the Mediterranean, which rules over 7 million […]
The Family of American Journalist Shireen Abu Akleh, killed by Israeli Sniper, Pleads for Meeting with Biden on Mideast Trip
Ann Arbor (Informed Comment) – The family of slain American journalist Shireen Abu Akleh is asking for a meeting with President Joe Biden during his trip to the Middle East this week. So reports Yasmin al-Qassas at Sada al-Balad. In a letter to Mr. Biden, Shireen’s brother Anton Abu Akleh wrote that the family “feels […]
Why Iran’s Provision of Drones to Russia for Ukraine War is a Diplomatic Failure of the Biden Administration
Ann Arbor (Informed Comment) – President Biden’s National Security Advisor on Monday spoke of the goals of the president’s trip, which begins today, Tuesday, to the Middle East. I’ll have more to say about that tomorrow. But at the end of his remarks, Sullivan dropped a bombshell. He revealed that Iran is sending Unmanned Aerial […]
On Cusp of Biden visit to Saudi Arabia, GAO questions US Accounting for Civilian Harm caused in Yemen by its Weapons
Ann Arbor (Informed Comment) – President Biden is on the cusp of going off to Saudi Arabia as one part of his upcoming Middle East trip. One of the failures of Mr. Biden has been completely disengaging the US from the Saudi-led war on Yemen, which he had pledged to do. Although there has been […]
The Islamic Peace Studies Initiative
The Islamic Peace Studies Initiative – Presentation by Juan Cole at the Conference “Fi Subul al-Salām: Pacifism and Nonviolence in Contemporary Islam” at Manchester University, Tuesday, May 17 2022. Many thanks to Walaa Quisay. “Juan Cole and Samer Ali have directed the Islamic Peace Studies Initiative at the Center for Middle Eastern and North African […]
After the Jan. 6 Hearings: or How Law Enforcement Ignored White Supremacists While Spying 24/7 on Muslim Americans
This golden oldie column appeared at Tomdispatch.com . I’m bringing it back in the wake of the Jan. 6 Committee’s revelations about Trump’s role in fomenting the Capitol insurrection, ( Tomdispatch.com ) – Fox News anchor Tucker Carlson excused one of the leaders of the extremist Oath Keepers organization implicated in the January 6th insurrection […]
UK Conservative Party dumps Johnson, but the US GOP Refused to dump Trump
Ann Arbor (Informed Comment) – By Trumpian standards Boris Johnson is a boy scout, The British prime minister, who on Wednesday said he would resign, was trailed by the sort of scandals that wouldn’t even be noticed in corrupt US politics. Johnson went to a party in 2020 after he forbade the British to hold […]
694 Milllion tons of Rare Earth Metals, Essential to Wind Turbines and EVs, found in Türkiye
Ann Arbor (Informed Comment) – The green energy revolution so far is dependent on certain raw materials, including silicon for solar panels and lithium for lithium-ion batteries. Another group of such primary materials is rare earth minerals, essential to wind turbines. The largest producer of them is China, but Russia, Vietnam and Brazil also have […]
With Highland Park 4th of July Mass Shooting, Supreme Court and Congress have Blood on their Hands
Ann Arbor (Informed Comment) – It is a hell of a note when you can’t have a Fourth of July parade in Highland Park, Illinois, without some gun nut with a military weapon turning the place into Falluja, killing 6 people and wounding 31. The Republicans in Congress, beholden to campaign money from gun companies, […]