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Archives for May 2016

Israel/ Palestine
Israel of Accused of Whitewashing Soldiers' Abuses

Israel of Accused of Whitewashing Soldiers’ Abuses

contributors

TeleSur | = = Human rights group B’Tselem said it will continue to document human rights violations carried out by Israel and to report on them. The Israeli human rights organization B’Tselem announced it will no longer refer complaints of abuses carried out by Israeli soldiers to Israeli military courts because the system is a […]

Democracy
Iran's Pres. Rouhani may have parliamentary backing, but can he remake Iran?

Iran’s Pres. Rouhani may have parliamentary backing, but can he remake Iran?

contributors

By Nader Habibi | (The Conversation) | – – Iranian President Hassan Rouhani and his policies are set to get a boost this week after voters elected a parliament that favors reform. While Rouhani’s reformists didn’t win a majority of seats, it appears likely that the “moderate” independents also elected will side with his faction, […]

Fossil Fuels
Future of Petro-States Dim as Oil Prices sink and Teslas are on Horizon

Future of Petro-States Dim as Oil Prices sink and Teslas are on Horizon

contributors

By Michael T. Klare | (Tomdispatch.com) | – – Pity the poor petro-states. Once so wealthy from oil sales that they could finance wars, mega-projects, and domestic social peace simultaneously, some of them are now beset by internal strife or are on the brink of collapse as oil prices remain at ruinously low levels. Unlike […]

Featured
Iraq's Fallujah: Grand Ayatollah Sistani Calls on Shiite Forces to protect Civilians

Iraq’s Fallujah: Grand Ayatollah Sistani Calls on Shiite Forces to protect Civilians

Juan Cole

By Juan Cole | (Informed Comment) | – – Grand Ayatollah Ali Sistani on Wednesday called on both regular Iraqi army forces and the popular mobilization units (Shiite militias) to avoid killing innocent noncombatants as they close in on Fallujah. An hour west of Baghdad and largely peopled by the Sunni Arab Dulaym tribe, Fallujah […]

Afghanistan
Afghanistan:  New Taliban leader between Drones, ISIL & Negotiations

Afghanistan: New Taliban leader between Drones, ISIL & Negotiations

contributors

By Michael Semple | (The Conversation) | – – The May 21 drone strike that killed Taliban leader Akhtar Mohammad Mansoor was no ordinary assassination; it was an act of armed politics against an acutely political war strategist. The Taliban has already named Mansoor’s successor, Mawlawi Haibatullah Akhundzada, and is reassuring its members that the […]

Israel/ Palestine
Time to end the ‘hasbara’: Palestinian media and the search for a common story

Time to end the ‘hasbara’: Palestinian media and the search for a common story

contributors

By: Ramzy Baroud | (Ma’an News Agency) | – – Merely being in the company of hundreds of Palestinian journalists and other media professionals from all over the world has been an uplifting experience. For many years, Palestinian media has been on the defensive, unable to articulate a coherent message, torn between factions and desperately […]

Books
Trump too Horrifying for Stephen King

Trump too Horrifying for Stephen King

contributors

TeleSur | – – The writers condemn Trump’s appeals to the most violent elements of society, while encouraging aggression, intimidating his opponents and promoting racism. Stephen King, the master of horror, is among at least 600 renowned U.S. writers that have signed an open letter condemning presumptive Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump’s abusive language. Cheryl […]

Featured
US-Backed Kurds begin Campaign against ISIL in Northern Syria

US-Backed Kurds begin Campaign against ISIL in Northern Syria

Juan Cole

By Juan Cole | (Informed Comment) | – – The left-leaning Beirut daily al-Safir (The Ambassador) discusses the beginning of a new campaign by the US-backed Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) against Daesh (ISIS, ISIL) in the northern half of al-Raqqa Province. The south of the province and its capital, also named al-Raqqa, are a base […]

Islamic State of Iraq and Syria
Why total Victory for Russia and Assad is a Pipedream: ISIL strikes in deep in Regime Territory

Why total Victory for Russia and Assad is a Pipedream: ISIL strikes in deep in Regime Territory

contributors

By Scott Lucas | (The Conversation) | – – Months after Russia spectacularly entered the Syrian conflict, [the so-called] Islamic State (IS) is still thumbing its nose at both Moscow and the Assad regime in murderous fashion. On May 23, the group detonated between seven and nine car and suicide bombs in the coastal cities […]

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