Europe

TeleSur | – – Corbyn also said he would have to consider whether he would authorize a drone strike against the leader of Islamic State group to limit civilian deaths. The leader of Britain’s main opposition Labour Party Jeremy Corbyn said on Sunday he could suspend British involvement in airstrikes against Syria if he was […]

France

Is there such a thing as a ‘Muslim vote’ in France?

contributors

By Fatima Khemilat | (The Conversation) | – – On April 8, the well-known French television show Salut les terriens turned sour when guests discussed the very sensitive topic of the so-called “French Muslim vote”. One panelist, journalist Sonia Mabrouk, argued that Muslims in France are constantly used by opportunists, from politicians to intellectuals, as […]

France

What if Marine Le Pen won the French election? Graphic Novels imagine Fascist Dystopia

contributors

Beatrice Mabilon-Bonfils | (The Conversation) | – – Update: The 2017 presidential campaign in France has been full of surprises, from François Hollande’s decision not to run for a second term to former prime minister Manuel Valls getting defeated in the Socialist Party primary; from the rise of insider-outsider Emmanuel Macron to the standout debate […]

Featured

ISIL Terror-Trolls French Election, Supporting far Right; Will French Fall for It?

Juan Cole

By Juan Cole | (Informed Comment) | – – Thursday’s shooting at the Champs Elysee, left one policeman dead, another gravely injured, a third lightly wounded along with a German tourist shot in the heel. It was carried out by Karim Cheurfi, a French national aged 39, born at Livry-Gargan in Seine-Saint-Denis. He had opened […]

Bashar al-Assad

Russia’s not Leaving: Syria is about old-Fashioned Sphere of Influence, not Oil

Juan Cole

By Juan Cole | (Informed Comment) | – – Russia is not going to yield its sphere of influence in Syria to Donald Trump or anyone else. Russia has all but won the Syrian War as we speak. There is no longer any feasible pathway for the rebels to take the capital of Damascus. The […]

Featured

Russia: US attack on our Sovereign ally Illegal

Juan Cole

By Juan Cole | (Informed Comment) | – – Russian President Vladimir Putin on Friday slammed the Trump administration for its strike on Syria, calling it “illegal” and based on faulty intelligence. The Russians reaffirmed that they will cease sharing their Syria flight information with the Americans. The information sharing had been done to avoid […]

Bashar al-Assad

Has Trump deferred to Russia in Syria?

Juan Cole

By Juan Cole | (Informed Comment) | – – Elizabeth Palmer reported from Ankara last Thursday that Secretary of State Rex Tillerson had difficult and inconclusive discussions with Turkish president Tayyip Erdogan concerning Syria. After the meeting he said publicly, that the “longer-term status of President (Bashar) Assad will be decided by the Syrian people.” […]

Donald Trump

Was Michael Flynn Russia’s “primary channel of communication with the Trump team”?

Juan Cole

By Juan Cole | (Informed Comment) | – – Former National Security Adviser to president Trump, Lt. Gen. (ret.) Michael Flynn, has allegedly offered to testify before the House Intelligence Committee on Russia’s role in the US election, on condition that he is granted immunity from prosecution. This development could be important, because Flynn was […]

Iran

Putin and the Ayatollahs: How Russia’s Alliance with Iran is reshaping the Middle East

contributors

By Clément Therme | (The Conversation) | – – Russian President Vladimir Putin and his Iranian counterpart, Hassan Rouhani, will meet for the eighth time in four years from March 27 to 29. According to the Tehran Times, both sides are “preparing more than ten documents for signing” on various economic and political issues. The […]