I’m reprinting here my most recent Tomdispatch essay for The Nation Institute, on the possible emergence of a centrist Sunni bloc that aims to offset Israeli power in the region. Check out, as well, Tom Engelhardt’s essential introduction, here. At least one thing is now obvious in the Middle East: the Biden administration has failed […]
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Saudi Arabia
Saudi Crown Prince fears Assassination if he Recognizes Israel without getting a Palestinian State
Ann Arbor (Informed Comment) – Nahal Toosi at Politico reported on Wednesday that Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed Bin Salman, the de facto ruler of Saudi Arabia, has emphasized to the Biden administration that the “grand bargain” they want him to make with Israel could result in his assassination. She says he instanced the late Egyptian […]
Ancient Arabian “Standing Stone Circles” show a Complex and Thriving Society
By Jane McMahon, University of Sydney | – (The Conversation) – To date, little has been known about people living in north-western Saudi Arabia during the Neolithic – the period traditionally defined by the shift to humans controlling food production and settling into communities with agriculture and domesticated animals. The piecemeal evidence available hinted traditional […]
No Accountability for Saudi Crimes as US Mulls New Defense Pact
By Nadia Hardman, Researcher, Refugee and Migrant Rights Division | – Joey Shea Researcher, Saudi Arabia and United Arab Emirates ( Human Rights Watch ) – Less than a year after Human Rights Watch found Saudi border guards had committed widespread and systematic killings of Ethiopian migrants on its border with Yemen, the US […]
Climate Emergency strikes Islam’s Holy Ritual, with nearly 600 dead of Heat stroke at 124.24° F. in Mecca
Ann Arbor (Informed Comment) – As the temperature in Mecca reached 125.24° F. (51.8° C.) on Tuesday, word leaked out that nearly 600 pilgrims had died of heat stroke and 2,000 have been hospitalized for treatment. A virtual clinic treated more thousands remotely. Some 324 of the dead were Egyptians,, while dozens were from Jordan. […]
U.S. Seeks Shift In Iranian ‘Decision-Making Calculus’ Through Saudi-Israeli Normalization
By Kian Sharifi ( RFE/RL) – The United States wants to force a gradual shift in Iran’s “decision-making calculus” by signing a defense deal with Saudi Arabia and securing the normalization of relations between Riyadh and Israel. “We continue to work with allies and partners to enhance their capabilities to deter and counter the threats […]
The Middle East Ranks at the Bottom of Gallup’s Happiness Index, except for Rich Oil States; is the US to Blame?
Ann Arbor (Informed Comment) – The annual Gallup report on happiness by country came out this week. It is based on a three-year average of polling. What struck me in their report is how unhappy the Middle East is. The only Middle Eastern country in the top twenty is Kuwait (for the first time in […]
Saudis Contradict Blinken: Want Actual Palestinian State now, not Vague ‘Peace Process’
Oxford (Special to Informed Comment; Feature) – On Tuesday afternoon (6 February 2024), U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken took part in a joint press conference with Qatari Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al Thani in Doha. The press conference was mainly about the war in Gaza and the possibility […]
New York Times’ Friedman hits new Low with Animalization of Arabs and Iranians
Ann Arbor (Informed Comment) – Calling people animals is a way to dehumanize them, and probably helps convince individuals that the other people around them approve of treating the animals badly. In ways that aren’t entirely clear, this way of speaking is certainly wrought up with violence and even genocide. Israel’s Defense Minister called the […]
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