Middle East

Israeli Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu pledged at the United Nations on Tuesday to attack Iran himself if Washington won’t do it, and in order to stop what he characterized as an Iranian nuclear weapons program: But the fact is that a solo Israel-on-Iran military attack would not remain solo. If Israeli jets managed to reach […]

Gulf

The Other Lobby: Newspapers of Gulf Oil Monarchies Condemn US-Iran Rapprochement

Juan Cole

The USG Open Source Center paraphrases Arabic news items in the newspapers of the Sunni Arab monarchies of the Gulf, many of which express concern about the thaw in US-Iranian relations. These countries are grouped in the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) that comprises Kuwait, Bahrain, the United Arab Emirates, Saudi Arabia, Qatar and Oman. Bahrain […]

Iran

Israeli Nuclear & other Arms compared to Iran’s

Juan Cole

Israeli Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu came to the US on Monday to lobby Washington against a diplomatic resolution of the conflict over Iran’s civilian nuclear enrichment program. Netanyahu insisted that Iran’s “military nuclear” program be completely dismantled, even though the UN inspectors continue to certify that no Iranian uranium has been diverted to military purposes. […]

Egypt

Why US Clout in the Middle East is Gone (Hiro)

Juan Cole

Dilip Hiro writes at Tomdispatch.com: What if the sole superpower on the planet makes its will known — repeatedly — and finds that no one is listening? Barely a decade ago, that would have seemed like a conundrum from some fantasy Earth in an alternate dimension. Now, it is increasingly a plain description of political […]

Iran

Why Israel’s Plan to Bomb Iran is more Dangerous to Israel than Obama-Rouhani Diplomacy

Juan Cole

Israeli Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu has made no secret of his dismay that the Obama administration is entering into what look like serious negotiations with Iran over the latter’s nuclear enrichment program. Israeli hawks such as Netanyahu want the US to bomb the Iranian nuclear enrichment facilities in Natanz near Isfahan and in Fordow near […]

Iran

Is Iran out of the US War Queue? The Twilight of the Hawks

Juan Cole

The short telephone conversation between US President Barack Obama and Iranian President Hassan Rouhani on Friday may or may not lead to a successful diplomatic resolution of US-Iranian conflicts, especially over Tehran’s nuclear enrichment program. But if it does, how will the hawks in Washington survive? The US is an unusually war-like country. Since 1963 […]

Syria

Where did Syria get its Chemical Weapons in the First Place? (Brühl)

Juan Cole

Jannis Brühl writes at ProPublica In the wake of a recent Russian-U.S. deal averting American airstrikes, Syria has begun to answer questions about its chemical weapons stockpile. One thing inspectors don’t have the mandate to ask is where those weapons came from in the first place. But evidence already out there suggests Syria got crucial […]

Climate Change

With a Solar Minimum and La Nina’s, Why isn’t it Really, Really Cold?

Juan Cole

2013 is witnessing another year of very low sunspot activity, showing that we are in a years-long solar minimum. It may not last much longer, but something is going on more than just the usual drop in solar activity every 11 years. Even that 11-year cycle affects the weather. But we’ve seen remarkably low sunspot […]

Afghanistan

Dear President Obama: Some American Exceptionalism is nothing to be Proud Of (Engelhardt)

Juan Cole

Tom Engelhardt writes at Tomdispatch.com “But when, with modest effort and risk, we can stop children from being gassed to death, and thereby make our own children safer over the long run, I believe we should act. That’s what makes America different. That’s what makes us exceptional. With humility, but with resolve, let us never […]