Arab World

Rising Numbers of Palestinian Children Subjected to Solitary Confinement (via PRWeb) A new report from Defense for Children International Palestine (DCI-Palestine) finds that in 21.4 percent of cases documented in 2013, children detained in the Israeli military detention system reported undergoing solitary confinement as part of the… ——- Related video: The Guardian: “Cell 36: […]

Arab Spring

Activists in Bahrain denounce anti-Shia Policies

Juan Cole

(By Catherine Shakdam) Early last week political activists affiliated with Bahrain’s opposition groups delivered a letter to UN Secretary General Ban Ki moon calling for his office to take a stand against Bahrain’s systematic targeting of the Shia community. Al Jazeera English Ever since Bahrainis rose against the government in 2011, emboldened by the Arab […]

al Qaeda in the Arabian Penisula

Yemeni anti-Al-Qaeda Campaign gains Popular Support but US Embassy forced to Close

Juan Cole

(By Robert Sharp) As Yemen enters the post-National Dialogue Conference period, theory and practice are colliding; the constitutional referendum will take place in June followed by hopefully credible presidential and parliamentary elections. The promise of a “new” Yemen will be debated formally through the ballot box and the people will decide the future leadership of […]

Arab Spring

The Real Egyptian Divide is between Tahrir Self-Government and Authoritarians of all Stripes

Juan Cole

(By Haifaa G. Khalafallah) Revolutions or coups seeking to change modern Egypt, whether in 1919 or 1952, never challenged the familiar patterns of power relations, that is to say, their political culture. The triumph of a home grown, new political discourse is the real and most significant Egyptian revolution that took place early in […]

Barack Obama

Dear GOP: Here are Some Basic Real Questions to ask about Benghazi & CIA

Juan Cole

(By Michael G. Roskin) With a Congressional committee about to seize on the Benghazi question (as part of the 2014 election campaign), some previously unasked but basic questions should come before the committee: Who was the consul? Yes, the person—a State Department Foreign Service Officer—-in charge of a consulate. (A consul general is in charge […]

Drones

The True Costs of Remote Control Drone Wars

Juan Cole

(By Pratap Chatterjee via Tomdispatch) Enemies, innocent victims, and soldiers have always made up the three faces of war. With war growing more distant, with drones capable of performing on the battlefield while their “pilots” remain thousands of miles away, two of those faces have, however, faded into the background in recent years. Today, we […]

GCC

Saudi-Iran Struggle and the Syrian Proxy War can only be Resolved by Diplomacy

Juan Cole

(By Robert Mason) The current foreign policy tensions between Iran and the countries of the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) pivot around Iran’s nuclear programme, ideology (the relative balance between revolutionary/resistance ideology and pragmatism), sectarianism, territorial disputes (such as over the islands of Abu Musa, Greater and Lesser Tunb) and alliances with state and non-state actors. […]

Israel/ Palestine

Human Rights NGOs Call for Palestine to take Israel to International Criminal Court

Juan Cole

(By Human Rights Watch) (Jerusalem) – Palestine should urgently seek access to the International Criminal Court (ICC), a group of 17 Palestinian and international human rights groups, including Human Rights Watch, said today. In a letter to Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas, the groups said that providing the ICC with jurisdiction could give victims of war […]