Nicolai Due-Gundersen | (The Conversation) | – – A blockade against Qatar by its Gulf neighbours is now in its fifth month. Saudi Arabia, Bahrain, Egypt and the United Arab Emirates severed socio-economic ties with Qatar as punishment for its alleged support of terrorism and interference in their affairs. As well as hurting Qatar’s economy, […]
Iraqi PM Rebukes Tillerson on Popular Mobilization Militia
TeleSur | – – “Popular Mobilisation fighters should be encouraged because they will be the hope of country and the region,” Abadi said. Iraqi Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi has defended the role of his country’s Popular Mobilization Forces, or Hashd al-Sha’abi, following a statement by U.S. Secretary of State Rex Tillerson that members of the […]
Will China’s New Silk Road jump-start the World Economy?
Shang-Jin Wei | (Project Syndicate) | – – In recent years, many of the world’s most influential countries have turned inward, with politicians promising protectionism, immigration restrictions, and even border walls. But, to achieve stronger economic growth and development, the world needs initiatives focused on building bridges – initiatives like China’s Belt and Road. NEW […]
“Adults” in Trump Admin turn out to be his Clones & Enablers
John Feffer | (Foreign Policy in Focus) | – – The evidence is in: The “adults in the room” at the White House have enabled Trump’s worst impulses, not checked them. < In the middle of September, Harvard University announced that it was inviting two controversial new fellows to the Institute of Politics at the […]
Did George W. Bush commit War Crimes & should he get Awards?
By Erik Edstrom | ( Tomdispatch.com) | – – In George W. Bush’s home state of Texas, if you are an ordinary citizen found guilty of capital murder, the mandatory sentence is either life in prison or the death penalty. If, however, you are a former president of the United States responsible for initiating two […]
Iran Deal: 67% of US Citizens Don’t Want to Pull Out
TeleSur | – – U.S. President Donald Trump said last week he wants to “decertify” the agreement. A CNN poll has found that 67 percent of U.S. citizens don’t want Washington to pull out of the Iran nuclear deal. U.S. President Donald Trump said last week he wants to “decertify” the agreement, which would allow […]
Warm waters melting Antarctic ice shelves for 1st time in 7,000 years
Sev Kender | (The Conversation) | – – The vast expanse of the Antarctic is a region of the world particularly vulnerable to climate change, where ice loss has the potential to significantly increase sea levels. Now, for possibly the first time in 7,000 years, a phenomenon known as “upwelling” (the upward flow of warmer […]
Kirkuk Kurds Anguished about Future of Province
By Shalaw Mohammed | (Niqash.org) | (Kirkuk) | – – People in the northern city of Kirkuk have lived through a lot, including attacks by the Islamic State. But for many, last weekend was the last straw. In the middle of the night of October 16, the people of Kirkuk were glued to their televisions […]
Volcano-driven Climate Change Defeated Egypt’s Ptolemies
By Steven Young | ( The Watchers) | – – Around 245 BCE Ptolemy III, ruler of the Ptolemaic Kingdom in Egypt, made a decision that still puzzles many historians: After pursuing a successful military campaign against the kingdom’s nemesis, the Seleucid Empire, centered mainly in present-day Syria and Iraq, Ptolemy III suddenly decided to […]








