Middle East

Daraa (Syria) (AFP) – A string of rebel-held locations in southern Syria passed into regime control Sunday as the government regained more ground under Russian-brokered deals, a war monitor said. Talks involving rebels, local officials and regime ally Russia saw agreements struck for four villages and a strategic town near the border with Jordan, extending […]

Donald Trump

Trump Luminaries at Iranian Jihadi Cult Conference in Paris while Excluding Nice Iranians from Immigration

Juan Cole

Many Trump stalwarts have a peculiar, paid position as lobbyists for the People’s Jihadi Organization (Mojahedin-e Khalq), the Iranian expatriate group aiming to overthrow the government of the Islamic Republic of Iran. Hence we find Rudy Giuliani addressing their annual convention and pledging regime change in Iran. Giuliani only has experience of two kinds of […]

Israel

As Assad Advances on South, Israel Warns Syrian Army away from Occupied Golan

Middle East Monitor

Israel beefed up its tank and artillery deployment on the Golan Heights frontier with Syria on Sunday, reports Reuters, cautioning Damascus’ forces to keep a distance as they sweep rebel-held areas over the border. Backed by Russia, Syrian President Bashar al-Assad launched an offensive last month to regain the southwestern Deraa region, driving thousands of […]

Turkey

Is Turkey headed for Stongman Rule?

Arzu Geybullayeva

Ankara (GlobalVoices.org) – In the latest test of his leadership, President Recep Tayyip Erdogan proved once more why he is Turkey’s most preeminent politician, and its most dominant leader since Mustafa Kemal Attaturk. Simply, he is prepared to do whatever it takes. The June 24 presidential election did not have to go to a second […]

Featured

Report: Trump hopes for Deal with Putin over Iran in Syria, US Exit

Juan Cole

CNN’s sources say that when Trump met with Jordanian king Abdullah II, he revealed his game plan for Syria. Trump is said to plan to discuss this issue with Russian President Vladimir Putin at their proposed summer summit. The plan is apparently for the US to allow the government of Syrian dictator Bashar al-Assad to […]

Syria

As 50,000 Flee Regime Assault on Daraa, Rebels Face Surrender or Death

Layal Abou Rahal

Beirut (AFP) – Facing Russian and regime bombardment and abandoned by international backers Jordan and the United States, rebels in southern Syria are left with few options — all of them unsavoury. – Where’s the outside support? – Syria’s south is a strategic zone bordering Jordan and the Israeli-occupied Golan, and easily accessible from the […]

Featured

Turkey, Iraq and China defy Trump on new Iran Sanctions, Act to Hold Tehran Harmless

Juan Cole

Ann Arbor (Informed Comment) – The Trump administration is unlikely to have the same success in getting other countries to boycott Iranian petroleum as did the Obama administration in 2012-2015, though its officials are making a full court press in that regard. Proof came in the form of statements from the Turkish, Iraqi and Chinese […]

Turkey

Turkey’s re-elected Erdogan, a Hybrid of Putin and Trump, will Change Mideast

The Conversation

By Mehmet Ozalp – (The Conversation) – Recep Tayyip Erdogan, the incumbent president and main political actor in Turkish politics for the last 16 years, has won yet another election with a majority vote of 52%. The election was held in the climate of a two-year state of emergency, Erdogan’s considerable weight on Turkish media, […]

Iran

Trump Admin. Tries to Strong-Arm World into Halting Iranian Oil Imports by Nov. 4

AFP

Washington (AFP) – The United States warned Tuesday that countries around the world must stop buying Iranian oil before November 4 or face a renewed round of American economic sanctions. A senior State Department official warned foreign capitals “we’re not granting waivers” and described tightening the noose on Tehran as “one of our top national […]