Arab World

Ann Arbor (Informed Comment) – In the past week, Linah al-Saafin at Al Jazeera English points out, an Israeli drone hit a Hizbullah target in Lebanon, Israeli fighter jets bombed a base in Syria with Iranian personnel, and Israel somehow hit bases of a Shiite militia in Iraq, including one on the Syria-Iraq border, killing […]

Yemen

Saudi-led coalition in Yemen undergoes emergency repairs after Internal Faction-Fighting

Brian Whitaker

( Al-Bab.com) – The Saudi-led coalition waging war on Yemen’s Houthis is undergoing emergency repairs following last week’s armed clashes between rival anti-Houthi forces. The whole of Shabwa province is now said to be under the control of government forces after a failed attempt by southern separatists – trained and supported by the UAE – […]

Featured

Former Iraqi PM Threatens Military action against Israel after Tel Aviv Bombed Shiite Militia Base

Juan Cole

Ann Arbor (Informed Comment) – Former prime minister of Iraq, Nouri al-Maliki, responded to news that Israel had bombed Shiite militia bases in Iraq with threats that if it continued, Iraq would take strong defensive measures and would carry the fight to Israel itself, forming a multinational coalition and backed by Iran. Al-Maliki has been […]

Yemen

Yemen: fierce fighting as UAE-Backed Separatists & Saudi-backed Gov’t clash over oil fields

Brian Whitaker

(Al-Bab.com) – Intense fighting broke out in Yemen on Thursday as southern separatists and pro-government forces battled for control of the city of Ataq. Both sides in the conflict are officially members of the Saudi-led coalition against the Houthis who control the capital, Sanaa, and much of northern Yemen. The separatists are backed by the […]

Egypt

How Forms of Political Islam failed in Egypt and Turkey

The Conversation

By Ahmet T. Kuru | – Mohammed Morsi, Egypt’s first-ever democratically elected president, died unexpectedly during a trial in June 2019. He was a member of the Muslim Brotherhood, an almost century-old Islamist group that rose to power after the Egyptian Revolution of 2011. Its political tenure was short. Morsi was deposed by a coup […]

Yemen

The UAE Remains the Main Player in Yemen, and could Split the Country Up

Middle East Monitor

By Stasa Salacanin | – At the beginning of July, the UAE started to reduce its troop numbers in Yemen, signalling a shift in its military engagement. The move has been interpreted as a sign of the Emirates trying to distance itself from its main coalition partner, Saudi Arabia. Despite the troop drawdown, though, the […]

Featured

Saudi Woman dissident Refuses to Make Video exonerating Saudi State from Torture Charges

Juan Cole

Ann Arbor (Informed Comment) – The family of jailed Saudi dissident and women’s rights activist Loujain Hathloul has announced that the Saudi authorities offered to release her if she would record a video statement saying that she had not been tortured while in government custody. Her sisters say that she refused the offer, and they […]

Yemen

Yemen’s Southern Separatists Seeking International Recognition

Brian Whitaker

(Al-Bab.com | – Last Thursday Yemen’s southern separatists sent a letter to the UN Security Council and to the foreign ministers of all EU member states. Written in flawless English, it set out their grievances and demanded “credible southern representation” in political processes aimed at ending the four-year-long war. With hindsight, the letter can be […]

Archaeology

Thousands of Years of World’s Heritage Endangered in Syria, Cradle of Civilization

The Conversation

By Lubna Omar | – I used to be a Near Eastern archaeologist working in Syria. Nowadays, I am stuck in academic purgatory, observing from a great distance as the country burns, unable to help protect its history or its present. Syria sits within what’s known as the cradle of civilization. It’s part of the […]