Syria

The rocket attack on the Shrine of Sayyida Zaynab in the suburbs of Damascus on Friday has intensified the sectarian overtones of the Syrian civil war and exacerbated Sunni-Shiite tension in Iraq and elsewhere. Shrapnel killed the venerated caretaker of the shrine. ( Sayyida Zaynab [d. 682 AD] was the granddaughter of the Prophet Muhammad). […]

Syria

Remembering Syria: Homs ‘Ghost Town’ Under heavy Regime Bombardment

Juan Cole

In winter of 2012, the world was mesmerized and horrified as the Syrian Baath regime drew up artillery pieces and its tanks and fired on non-combatant civilian districts. Now, non-combatantants are under artillery barrages, and it seems as though the world is paying no attention. In Homs, according to the official newspaper al-Watan, there was […]

Egypt

Feminist Revolutionary Narratives from Egypt and Syria: Hopes and Disappointments (cook)

Juan Cole

miriam cooke writes for ISLAMiCommentary * *REVOLUTIONARY NARRATIVES: NAWAL EL SAADAWI AND SAMAER YAZBEK ISLAMiCommentary Editor’s Note: This paper was written by miriam cooke and presented at the international forum—“Mediterranean Women’s Rights in the Aftermath of the Arab Uprisings” — on June 21, 2013 in Fez, Morocco, and shared with ISLAMiCommentary and TIRN. Note, that […]

al-Qaeda

The Syrian War comes to Lebanon as Sidon Explodes into Violence

Juan Cole

The Syrian civil war spilled over onto Lebanon dramatically on Sunday and again on Monday morning when violent clashes broke out between the Salafi militia of Sheikh Ahmad Asir in Sidon and the Lebanese army and Shiite Hizbullah fighters. The army maintains that the Salafis (hard line Sunni Muslims influenced by Saudi Arabia’s Wahhabism) attacked […]

Syria

Obama’s New Syria Strategy is Nixon’s Vietnam Negotiation Tactics Redux (Meyer)

Juan Cole

Carlyn Meyer writes in a guest column for Informed Comment For better or worse, Obama came of age well after the Vietnam war. Had he lived through the daily body counts, he may have stood strong against arming the Syrian opposition. The President’s new ‘strategy’ is to get enough arms to the ‘right people’ in […]

CIA

Syria, NSA Spying, Popular Mobilization and History: Cole Interview in La Prensa (Ricky Martinez)

Juan Cole

Interview with Juan Cole by Ricky Martínez (These are the English notes of the interview rearranged in pyramid form; they were translated and published in a different sequence in Spanish at La Prensa of Panama City). Many thanks to Mr. Martinez for a wide-ranging conversation! RM: How is Syria different from Libya? Syria is different […]

Egypt

Egypt’s Morsi Calls for No-Fly Zone over Syria: A step toward regional Sunni-Shiite War?

Juan Cole

Egypt’s President, Muhammad Morsi, called Saturday for a no-fly zone over Syria authorized by the UN Security Council. At the same time, he cut off diplomatic relations with Syria. It was the Arab League demand for a no-fly zone that led to the UNSC resolution on Libya and hence to the overthrow of the Gaddafi […]

Syria

Obama Isolated at G8 on Arms for Syrian Rebels

Juan Cole

President Obama met with British Prime Minister David Cameron on Friday in advance of Monday’s G8 summit. The 8 leaders meeting in Northern Ireland, will likely focus in a big way on the Syria crisis. Obama’s recent decision to become more active in Syria, at least sending light weaponry to the rebels, will have a […]

Syria

Obama should Resist the Clintons & Europe on Syria

Juan Cole

Former president Bill Clinton criticized President Obama on Thursday for his inaction in regard to Syria. This step seems extraordinary and surely has something to do with positioning Hillary Clinton to run as a more hawkish New Democrat against anyone in the Obama circle in 2016. As Secretary of State, Hillary Clinton appears to have […]