War Crimes

RT | – A Palestinian man stands at his makeshift shelter near the ruins of his house that witnesses said was destroyed by Israeli shelling during a 50-day war last summer, on a rainy day east of Gaza City February 19, 2015. (Reuters/Suhaib Salem) Palestine’s first complaint against Israel’s alleged war crimes will be filed […]

Displaced and Refugees

AP Investigates: Bulk of Gaza Deaths Civilians

contributors

Associated Press | – “AP Exclusive: High civilian death toll in Gaza house strikes during Israeli conflict with Hamas militant group during the summer of 2014. Over 60 percent of those deaths were children, women and older men, all presumed to be civilians.” AP: “AP Investigates: Bulk of Gaza Deaths Civilians”

Iraq

Just when you thought they Couldn’t be Worse: ISIL trafficking Human Organs

contributors

RT | – The Islamic State is harvesting human organs to finance its blood-driven caliphate, according to Iraq’s ambassador to the United Nations, urging its Security Council to investigate the issue. Envoy Mohamed Alhakim called on the 15-member body to look at allegations of organ removal by the Islamic State (formerly ISIS) as bodies with […]

Apartheid

Israel earmarks vast area of Palestinian Hebron/ al-Khalil land for annexation

contributors

HEBRON (Ma’an) — Israel has earmarked around 2,000 dunams (500 acres) of private Palestinian land for annexation in the Hebron district, local activists say. Muhammad al-Halayqa, an activist in the village of al-Shuyukh northeast of Hebron, told Ma’an that Israel’s Civil Administration has posted warning notices on the land slated for confiscation. The land belongs […]

Bashar al-Assad

Syria: Dear Bashar al-Assad: Barrel Bombs Are No Laughing Matter

contributors

By Philippe Bolopion | (Human Rights Watch) | — It speaks volumes when the leader of a country feels emboldened to respond with humor when asked on television about a deadly weapon that is responsible for the deaths and maiming of thousands of his citizens. In a BBC interview broadcasted today, a confident Syrian President […]

Christianity

Why Obama is Right to avoid double standard about Modern Christian Atrocities

Juan Cole

By Juan Cole | (Informed Comment) – President Obama, speaking on Thursday at the National Prayer Breakfast, condemned religious extremism in the Muslim world, noting that it is the work of twisted individuals rather than being intrinsic to the religion. He then added, “And lest we get on our high horse and think this is […]

Iraq

ISIL Militants Burn Three Iraqis Alive

contributors

By RFE/RL’s Radio Free Iraq | – Officials and eyewitnesses say Islamic State (IS) militants have burned at least three people alive in Iraq’s western Anbar Province. The victims, residents of an area near the town of Hit, some 200 kilometers west of Baghdad, were suspected of informing Iraqi security forces about the militants’ movements. […]

Bush

Is ISIL’s ‘Shock and Awe’ more Awe-ful because One Victim?

Juan Cole

By Juan Cole | (Informed Comment) – The Daesh (ISIL or ISIS) burning of a captured Jordanian pilot alive produced justified revulsion globally, resulting in the terrorist organization being termed “barbarous” and similar epithets. Why did it behave this way? Because it wants to terrify its opponents into submission and underline that it is too […]

Apartheid

As Gaza Refugee Babies die of Cold, Underfunded UN Agency Halts Rebuilding Aid to 400,000

contributors

By Charlie Hoyle | – BETHLEHEM (Ma’an) — A massive shortfall in the $5.4 billion pledged for Gaza’s reconstruction by the international community last October is exacerbating an already dire humanitarian crisis for Palestinians displaced by Israel’s summer offensive. On Tuesday, the UN agency for Palestinian refugees, the largest service provider in the Gaza Strip, […]