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Archives for August 2018

Afghanistan
If US Special Ops are Winning War on Terror, why have they lost 1/2 of Afghanistan?

If US Special Ops are Winning War on Terror, why have they lost 1/2 of Afghanistan?

Nick Turse

New York (Tomdispatch.com) – A U.S. drone strike in Yemen. (I could be talking about 2002 or 2018.) Missions by Green Berets in Iraq. (I could be talking about 2003 or 2018.) While so much about the War on Terror turned Global War on Terrorism turned World War IV turned the Long War turned “generational […]

Climate Change
Burning Fossil Fuels risks Tipping Earth into ‘Hothouse’ State: Study

Burning Fossil Fuels risks Tipping Earth into ‘Hothouse’ State: Study

Kerry Sheridan

Tampa (AFP) – The planet urgently needs to transition to a green economy because fossil fuel pollution risks pushing the Earth into a lasting and dangerous “hothouse” state, researchers warned on Monday. If polar ice continues to melt, forests are slashed and greenhouse gases rise to new highs — as they currently do each year […]

Featured
Saudi Arabia bullies Canada with Economic Threats for Criticizing its Horrible Human Rights Record

Saudi Arabia bullies Canada with Economic Threats for Criticizing its Horrible Human Rights Record

Juan Cole

Saudi Arabia is attempting to bully Canada for criticizing the abysmal Saudi human rights record. (That is, if something as non-existent as Saudi human rights can be called abysmal). Riyadh has expelled the Canadian ambassador and has frozen all new purchases and investments in Canada. The Canadian foreign ministry had tweeted on Friday, “Canada is […]

Iraq
Is Wave of Anti-Corruption Demonstrations in Iraq Doomed to Fail?

Is Wave of Anti-Corruption Demonstrations in Iraq Doomed to Fail?

Mustafa Habib

Baghdad (Niqash.org) – There are anti-government protests in Iraq every summer. But the recent batch are different, and in ways that could hinder any resolution. The protests that have been rocking the Iraqi political establishment for almost a month now began when dozens of unemployed young men from the village of Bahila, on the outskirts […]

Iran
Why New US Sanctions on Iran, Russia, will Fail

Why New US Sanctions on Iran, Russia, will Fail

The Conversation

By David Cortright | – Sanctions are much in demand these days as a tool of American foreign policy. Members of Congress want tough new sanctions against Russia for its interference in American elections. Sanctions will remain in place against North Korea, the White House says, until Pyongyang shows progress toward denuclearization. After tearing up […]

Israel/ Palestine
No Deal of Century, Then?  Palestine's Abbas Calls Jared Kushner's anti-Refugee push a 'Conspiracy'

No Deal of Century, Then? Palestine’s Abbas Calls Jared Kushner’s anti-Refugee push a ‘Conspiracy’

TeleSur

Abbas’ office reiterated that Trump’s peace plan is aimed at stripping the Palestinian people of their legitimate rights. Palestinian National Authority President, Mahmoud Abbas’ office on Saturday responded to a report by Foreign Policy, a U.S. journal, which had claimed that U.S. President Donald Trump’s son-in-law, senior adviser Jared Kushner was involved in devising a […]

Featured
Emolument? Saudi Stay in Failing Trump NYC Hotel Boosted Profits 1st Quarter

Emolument? Saudi Stay in Failing Trump NYC Hotel Boosted Profits 1st Quarter

Juan Cole

David A. Fahrenthold and Jonathan O’Connell at WaPo have revealed that the declining revenues at Trump’s hotel in New York City were turned around in the first quarter of 2018, with a 13% bump produced by the stay there of a Saudi retinue in connection with the visit to the US of Crown Prince Mohamed […]

Israel/ Palestine
Deported Swedish Gaza Activist: “The ships will continue to sail until Gaza is free.”

Deported Swedish Gaza Activist: “The ships will continue to sail until Gaza is free.”

Maan News Agency

BETHLEHEM (Ma’an) — Swedish solidarity activist Divina Levrini, one of many international activists who were attacked and detained by Israeli forces aboard the Freedom Flotilla ships last week, talked to Ma’an on the Israeli treatment of international activists inside the Israeli Givon (al-Ramla) prisons. The international activists were deported to their home countries after two […]

Donald Trump
Are Conservatives United Enough to get up an Iran War?

Are Conservatives United Enough to get up an Iran War?

John Feffer

Washington, DC (Foreign Policy in Focus) – Division in the ranks of the conservative movement is a critical sign that a war with Iran isn’t inevitable. Tucker Carlson has impeccable conservative credentials. He started out as a low-level staffer at the Heritage Foundation and now he hosts a popular show on Fox News. In between […]

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