Middle East

By Kristy Siegfried | – LONDON (IRIN) – As the Saudi-led aerial bombardment of Yemen intensifies and a full-scale civil war appears increasingly inevitable, there are few immediate escape routes for well over a million African migrants and refugees in the country. Ports are closed and air traffic is largely restricted to evacuation flights for […]

Iran

Will A Nuclear Deal Bring The U.S. And Iran Together?

contributors

By Golnaz Esfandiari | (RFE/RL) – “What should I wear, now that we will be hanging out with the Americans?” It’s a joke that was making the rounds among Iranians after a framework nuclear deal with world powers was hammered out after lengthy negotiations in Switzerland. And it reflects the wish of many Iranians for […]

Featured

Iran: What did Khamenei really say about the Lausanne Agreement, and Why?

Juan Cole

By Juan Cole | (Informed Comment) – Ayatollah Khamenei, Iran’s paramount leader, spoke out on Thursday about the framework agreement for Iran’s negotiations over its nuclear enrichment program with the five permanent members of the UN Security Council plus Germany (P5 + 1). The speech is all over the place and seems to me to […]

al Qaeda in the Arabian Penisula

Yemen War threatens Humanitarian Catastrophe

contributors

By Sophia Dingli | (The Conversation) – Yemen’s humanitarian crisis is by all accounts getting worse by the day, and the city of Aden has become a major flashpoint. Aden is caught in a stand-off between Houthi rebels and forces loyal to the government they are trying to overthrow. On April 5, the Houthis claimed […]

Iraq

ISIL Momentum In Iraq Has ‘Halted’: VP Joe Biden

contributors

By RFE/RL | – U.S. Vice President Joe Biden has said the momentum of Islamic State (IS) militants in Iraq has stalled. “ISIL’s [IS] momentum in Iraq has halted, and in many places has been flat-out reversed,” he said in Washington on April 9. He cautioned, “There’s still a long fight ahead — I don’t […]

Apartheid

Has the World’s Rush to Recognize Palestine come too Late?

contributors

By Joseph Chamie UNITED NATIONS (IPS) – The large majority of countries, and most of the people in the world, already recognise Palestine as an independent state. Among the member states of the United Nations, for example, 135 countries – representing about 82 percent of world population – officially recognise Palestine as an independent state […]

Apartheid

After Israel elected 78 MPs opposed to 2 States, what can Palestinians Do?

contributors

By Alaa Tartir | (Ma’an News Agency) – With Benjamin Netanyahu’s victory, the Israeli electorate made it very clear that they don’t seek a just peace or equality. They voted in 78 Knesset members opposed to the two-state solution, a clear majority, endorsing further colonial expansion in the occupied Palestinian territories and a culture of […]

Houthi

Yemeni Refugees flee to Saudi Arabia as Aden is invaded & Sanaa bombarded

contributors

Reuters | – “Houthi forces fought battles street by street with local militia in Aden as aid workers say the city faces a humanitarian catastrophe. Mana Rabiee reports.” Reuters: “Yemen’s Houthis battle over central Aden, first medical aid arrives”

Barack Obama

Lausanne: Is there really much Disagreement between US, Iran on those Talking Points?

contributors

By Golnaz Esfandiari | (RFE/RL) – There are two sides to every story. When it comes to the framework nuclear deal reached this month between world powers and Iran, there is the account provided by the United States, and there is the Iranian account. Sanctions Relief They differ slightly, including on the timing of the […]