political Islam

Aljazeera Top Stories | – Aljazeera Top Stories: “TURKEY MAYDAY PROTEST” See also: AJ+: “May Day Protest In Turkey Goes Ahead Despite Ban” For more see Turkey marks tense May Day as police enforce lockdown in central Istanbul

Iraq

“We had to destroy Tikrit to save it from ISIL”: Recovered Iraqi City a Ghost Town

contributors

By Mustafa Habib | Tikrit | (Niqash.org) – It’s been almost a month since the Islamic State group was expelled from Tikrit. NIQASH went there and found a graffiti-covered ghost town ruled by opposing groups of gunmen, none of whom trust one another. In Basha Street in the centre of the Iraqi city of Tikrit, […]

Iraq

Iraq: Shiite Gov’t faces Mammoth Task in taking Sunni al-Anbar from ISIL

contributors

By Mustafa Habib | Baghdad | (Niqash.org) – Only a few hours after the start of the next big military campaign against the Islamic State group in Iraq, things [went] wrong. Anbar will not be like Salahaddin – there are social, political, military and geographical obstacles to overcome first. Last week the Iraqi government, buoyed […]

al Qaeda in the Arabian Penisula

Juan Cole: Syria, Yemen Conflicts only seem to be about Sunni-Shiite from 30,000 Feet

Juan Cole

David Speedie | (Carnegie Council for Ethics in International Affairs) | – David Speedie of the Carnegie Council for Ethics in International Affairs interviewed me in New York on Monday. Below is an excerpt of the transcript, but the whole thing is at their web site. Also below is the video of the interview. DAVID […]

Iraq

Iraq: ISIL was Chased from Tikrit, other Towns: But Gov’t still AWOL

contributors

Mustafa Habib | Baghdad | (Niqash.org) | – A wave of victories against extremists should have seen civilian life slowly return to Iraq’s liberated cities. Instead there’s chaos and nobody knows who’s in charge. What kind of forward planning does the government have in mind? The cities from which Iraq’s pro-government forces have expelled the […]

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”

Displaced and Refugees

Iraq: Tikrit Civilians caught between Shiite Militias, ISIL Terrorism

contributors

VICE News | — “Days before the US launched airstrikes on Tikrit in late March, VICE News traveled to the front lines of the northern Iraqi city, where Iraqi government forces and volunteer militiamen are continuing to battle the so-called Islamic State militant group. The presence of the volunteer militiamen Hashd al Shaabi, also known […]

GCC

Saudi Arabia’s intervention in Yemen is Morphing into Major War

contributors

By Paul Rogers Since it was first announced, the Saudi Arabia-led war in Yemen has developed very rapidly. Air strikes have already hit numerous targets, resulting in many civilian deaths. Clearly, the Saudis are not prepared to watch Yemen’s long-running domestic turmoil become a full-blown collapse. Ever since a rebellion led by the Shia Houthi […]

Afghanistan

Lynching Farkhunda: Birth of Gender Equality and Accountability in Afghanistan?

contributors

By Solaiman M Fazel | (Informed Comment) The brutal murder of a 27 year old Afghan female student, Farkhunda, at the hands of an angry mob in front of the Shah-e Do-Shamshira Mosque near downtown Kabul was not only a heinous crime, but it also reveals the collective irresponsibility and ineffectiveness of the police officers […]