By Kay Armin Serjoie and Marc Jourdier | – Tehran (AFP) – The victory of the Islamic Revolution in Iran was an earthquake that upended the political order in the Middle East, and the aftershocks are still being felt 40 years later. When Shiite cleric Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini ousted the shah’s last government in February […]
Trump says ‘it’s time’ to end Afghan war – can he?
By Thomas WATKINS | – Washington, DC (AFP) – After 17 years, countless thousands of civilian and military deaths, and more than $1 trillion in US cash, President Donald Trump has declared that “it’s time” to end the Afghanistan war. Touting talks with the Taliban, Trump in his State of the Union address on Tuesday […]
Iran Politics a “Powderkeg” of Corruption and Repression as Revolution Turns 40
By Kay Armin Serjoie and Eric Randolph Tehran (AFP) – Iran’s main political parties are on rocky ground as the Islamic Republic marks its 40th birthday, with reformists in disarray and conservatives seeking a new identity. Even though key reformist leaders have been forcibly sidelined, Mohammad Ali Abtahi, a former reformist vice-president in the 1990s, […]
Congress Toughening toward Saudis amid Report Prince Threatened ‘Bullet’ for Khashoggi
By Shaun TANDON | – Washington, DC (AFP) – US lawmakers threatened Thursday to take tougher action against Saudi Arabia over the killing of journalist Jamal Khashoggi amid a new revelation that the kingdom’s powerful crown prince spoke of going after him with a “bullet.” President Donald Trump faces a Friday deadline set by Congress […]
US must probe if Saudis gave US Weapons to al-Qaeda in Yemen: General
Washington, DC (AFP) – The US must examine whether American-made military gear in Yemen is being transferred to unintended recipients, including Al-Qaeda and Iran-backed rebels, a top general said on Tuesday. General Joseph Votel, who heads US Central Command covering the Middle East, expressed concern to senators about a CNN investigation that found weaponry and […]
2/3s of Himalayan Glaciers to Melt by 2100, Threatening Water for 2 Billion People
By Paavan MATHEMA | – Kathmandu (AFP) – Two-thirds of Himalayan glaciers, the world’s “Third Pole”, could melt by 2100 if global emissions are not sharply reduced, scientists warned in a major new study issued Monday. Even if the most ambitious Paris Agreement goal of limiting global warming to 1.5 degrees Celsius (2.7 degrees Fahrenheit) […]
Pope Francis, Muslim Rector of al-Azhar, Call for Religious Freedom & Full Citizenship
by Catherine Marciano with Rene Slama in Dubai | – Abu Dhabi (AF) – Pope Francis and a top Muslim cleric Monday issued a joint call for freedom of belief during the first visit by the head of the Catholic church to the birthplace of Islam — the Arabian Peninsula. Francis, who has made outreach […]
Greece’s Muslim Minority Complain of “Marginalization”
Komotini (AFP) – Outwardly, Komotini looks like other Greek cities, but there is a major difference: it has nine mosques whereas there are none in Athens. The northeastern city has existed from the second century and was captured by Ottoman-era Turkey in the 14th. It was an important hub connecting the capital city of Constantinople, […]
Paradoxes of Women and Iran’s Islamic Republic: More Education but a hundred Glass Ceilings
By Amir Havasi and Eric Randolph | – Tehran (AFP) – Saba was just 25 when she left her design job in New York to work on a project renovating an art gallery back in her hometown Tehran. Within months, she won three more contracts to do up galleries and the lobby of an apartment […]
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