Middle East

TeleSur | – – The U.N. resolution, which angered EU countries, says certain companies and enterprises are helping the expansion of illegal Israeli settlements. The United Nations Human Rights Council will vote Thursday on adopting a resolution that would establish a database for businesses and enterprises with financial dealings and involvement in illegal Israeli settlements […]

Syria

In wake of Brussels attacks, Europe demands negotiated Settlement of Syrian Civil War, Now

contributors

By EurActiv with AFP The EU’s foreign policy chief Federica Mogherini met with Syria’s regime and opposition… (23 March) to underscore the urgency of a political solution in the country, especially in the wake of the Brussels attacks. Staffan de Mistura and Federica Mogherini in Geneva on 23 March[European Commission] Mogherini came to Geneva, where […]

Featured

Dear Trump & Cruz: Muslim Turkey arrested Brussels Terrorist & Gave him to European Authorities

Juan Cole

By Juan Cole | (Informed Comment) | – – The paroxysms of hatred and bigotry spewed by the two GOP frontrunners in the 2016 presidential campaign probably do not need any pretext, since Trump and Cruz are clearly sadistic and unfair individuals. But the Brussels airport and metro attacks gave them another excuse to blame […]

Iraq

Remember: Refugees are fleeing ISIL; they aren’t ISIL

contributors

Kamal al-Ayash | (Niqash.org) | – – Getting from Turkey to Europe was a cakewalk compared to escaping the [so-called] Islamic State-run city of Fallujah, says one Iraqi. Fleeing families must cross a reservoir, in a ten-passenger boat, on an active battlefield. “Life had become impossible in the city of Fallujah,” Hamid Abu Ziad says. […]

Israel/ Palestine

Israeli decision to ban Palestinian products ‘racist’: Palestine PM

contributors

Ma’an News Agency | – – RAMALLAH (Ma’an) — Palestinian Prime Minister Rami Hamdallah on Sunday slammed the recent Israeli decision to ban Palestinian food products from entering Jerusalem as “racist.” “Israel is moving forward with attempts to isolate Jerusalem from its surroundings and erase its identity,” Hamdallah said during an opening of a Palestinian […]

Israel/ Palestine

Will the Int’l Criminal Court charge Israeli PM Netanyahu with war crimes?

contributors

TeleSur \ – – The cases, brought to the court by several legal and activist groups, include wide-ranging charges of war crimes against Israel[i officials]. A Palestinian delegation presented documents to the International Criminal Court to try Israel[i officials] — and possibly Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu — for war crimes. The delegation, acting on behalf […]

Saudi Arabia

Is Saudi Arabia’s ‘Islamic’ Coalition against Terrorism a Paper Tiger?

Juan Cole

By Frud Bezhan | ( RFE/RL ) | – – Saudi Arabia made a splash when it announced the formation of a 34-country "Islamic" alliance against terrorism in December — and followed it up with a massive military exercise that ended last week. The mainly Sunni Muslim coalition — which includes regional power and NATO-member […]

Bill of Rights

How Bush-Cheneyism made Mideast in its Image: Wars, WOT, With us or Against Us

Juan Cole

By Juan Cole | (Informed Comment) | – – Thirteen years after the illegal US invasion of Iraq, it is worth considering its full impact on this country and on the region. Bush-Cheneyism had a number of key pillars, among which these were prominent: 1. Aggressive unilateral warfare, with the domestic advantage of making the […]

China

The New Interventionists: It isn’t just the Yanquis any more

contributors

Mark Leonard | ( Project Syndicate ) | – – In the 1990s, after genocides in Rwanda and the Balkans, Western countries developed a doctrine of so-called humanitarian intervention. “The Responsibility to Protect” (colloquially known as “R2P”) held countries accountable for their people’s welfare and compelled the international community to intervene when governments failed to […]