By Sukru Cildir | – The relationship between Saudi Arabia and Iran, both oil-rich states in the Middle East, has oscillated from co-operation to conflict throughout history. Alongside a range of factors that shape their rivalry including sectarianism and nationalism has been the politics of oil. Oil is a strategic international commodity, and its use […]
Did Ancient Iraq’s Huge Assyrian Empire Rise and Fall on Climate Change?
By Ashish Sinha and Gayatri Kathayat | – Ancient Mesopotamia, the fabled land between the Tigris and the Euphrates rivers, was the command and control center of the Neo-Assyrian Empire. This ancient superpower was the largest empire of its time, lasting from 912 BC to 609 BC in what is now modern Iraq and Syria. […]
Since Trump Dumped the Paris Climate Agreement, is it Game Over?
By Henrik Selin | – Editor’s note: On Nov. 4, the Trump administration formally notified the United Nations that it planned to withdraw the U.S. from the Paris Agreement on climate change, which 196 countries adopted in 2015. The pact is designed to keep global temperatures from rising more than 2 degrees Celsius above pre-industrial […]
Saudi Oil Giant Aramco’s $1.5 trillion IPO flies in the face of our Climate Crisis Reality
By Mark Shackleton | – The largest oil and gas producer, Saudi Aramco, is due to become the world’s most valuable publicly listed company. The Saudi government is planning to sell a small fraction of the firm’s shares on the Riyadh stock exchange before seeking a listing for 5% of the firm on an international […]
At a Time of Rising US Anti-Semitism, Remembering the Nazis’ Night of Broken Glass is More Important than Ever
By Wolf Gruner | – Every November, communities around the world hold remembrances on the anniversary of the Nazis’ brutal assault on the Jews during “Kristallnacht.” Also known as “the Night of Broken Glass,” it’s one of the most closely scrutinized events in the history of Nazi Germany. Dozens of books have been published about […]
If Global Heating Exceeds 3.6° F., Antarctica’s Melt could Raise Seas 60 Feet over Time
By Georgia Rose Grant and Timothy Naish | – We know that our planet has experienced warmer periods in the past, during the Pliocene geological epoch around three million years ago. Our research, published today, shows that up to one third of Antarctica’s ice sheet melted during this period, causing sea levels to rise by […]
Donald Trump’s populist presidency is the real coup, not the impeachment inquiry
By David Edward Tabachnick| – U.S. President Donald Trump and his defenders have repeatedly referred to the ongoing impeachment inquiry as a “political coup” led by Democrats and “progressive left-wingers.” Trump himself has called it a coup attempt. Trump and his supporters claim the inquiry runs the risk of undermining the rule of law and […]
Gaza: what life is like under the continuing Israeli blockade
By Yaser Alashqar | – In his latest update to the UN Security Council in late October, Nicolay Mlandenov, the UN’s special coordinator for the Middle East peace process, warned that as the occupation of Palestinian land continues and a two-state solution moves further away: “It is a multi-generational tragedy for the peoples of this […]
11,000 scientists warn: Climate Crisis Could reach Point of No Return
By Thomas Newsome and William Ripple | – Exactly 40 years ago, a small group of scientists met at the world’s first climate conference in Geneva. They raised the alarm about unnerving climate trends. Today, more than 11,000 scientists have co-signed a letter in the journal BioScience, calling for urgently necessary action on climate. This […]