Europe

“We are indivisible”

Putin: Other Powers will Dump Dollar as Reserve Currency if US goes on With Sanctions

US Making ‘Colossal’ and ‘Typical’ Empire’s Mistake

Russia’s Relationship with Israel hits Rock Bottom as it gives Syria S-300 Air Defence System

By Antoinette Chalaby-Moualla | – Paris (AFP) – From a honeymoon in the years after Israel’s founding, to strained ties after the mistaken downing of a Russian plane in Syria, relations between Israel and Russia have gone through several periods of tensions. These have mainly revolved around disagreements on Middle Eastern issues. – One of […]

Russia

Russia Slams Israeli ‘Adventurism’ for downing of its Military Plane over Syria

AFP

Moscow (AFP) – Russia’s military Sunday blamed “misleading” information from the Israeli airforce for the downing of one of its planes in Syria last week, and denounced the “adventurism” of Israeli pilots. Israel strongly disputed the assertion and vowed it will continue to act against Iranian targets in neighbouring Syria. A Syrian air defence missile […]

Israel/ Palestine

Spain to Recognize Palestinian State, work for European Union Acceptance

Maan News Agency

BETHLEHEM (Ma’an) — Spain has become the latest country to voice its readiness to recognize the State of Palestine and that it will promote a European Union (EU) move to recognize Palestine as an independent state. Spain’s Minister of Foreign Affairs, Josep Borrell, spoke at a conference of EU leaders in Austria, saying that the […]

Algeria

French President Admits Colonial System in Algeria Deployed Torture

AFP

Paris (AFP) – France admitted Thursday that it instigated a “system” that led to torture during Algeria’s independence war, a conflict that remains hugely sensitive six decades on. President Emmanuel Macron is set to acknowledge that mathematician Maurice Audin, a Communist pro-independence activist who disappeared in 1957, “died under torture stemming from the system instigated […]

Featured

Did Trump almost start WW III with Russia with Proposed Massive Bombing of Syrian AF?

Juan Cole

Ann Arbor (Informed Comment) – According to Bob Woodward’s just-released book, “Fear,” Donald Trump had been pressed to use 200 cruise missiles to destroy the Syrian Air Force in 2017. Knowing that the Russian Aerospace Forces personnel were all over Syrian air bases, Secretary of Defense Jim Mattis became alarmed, and shaped a limited response […]

Donald Trump

Trump Gingerly, Politely begs Russia not to Do Syria Idlib Campaign, Pretty Please

Juan Cole

Ann Arbor (Informed Comment) – AFP reports that President Trump is cautioning the Syrian regime against launching an all-out assault on the last remaining rebel stronghold of Idlib Province. He also said that Russia and Iran would be making “a grave humanitarian mistake” to take part. It is hard to take the humanitarian part too […]

Russia

Russian Trolls Tried to Kill Us: Hackers Stirred up anti-Vaxxers to Roil US

AFP

Washington (AFP) – Russian trolls and bots on Twitter attempted to influence the debate over vaccine safety with the aim of sowing discord among the US public on hot-button issues in the run-up to the 2016 election, US researchers reported this week. “Did you know there was a secret government database of #vaccine-damaged children? #VaccinateUS,” […]