Syrian forces renewed their heavy bombardment of the Baba Amru district of Homs on Tuesday morning, in the fiercest attack in days. The attack is producing a humanitarian crisis, with food shops closed, electricity knocked out, and people fleeing (some to Jordan). The brutal Baath regime’s determination to subdue the rebellious city, even if it […]
Greek Lessons for the Arab Spring: Majid
Anouar Majid writes in a guest column for Informed Comment Greek Lessons for the Arab Spring As the Arab Spring enters its second year and the whiff of democratic possibilities hovers in the air of many an Arab nation, a question that continues to be left unanswered is whether an Islamist worldview and democracy can […]
Omar Khayyam (79)
79 Mix together wine, song and heavenly lover if you can, and sit on the bank of a purling stream. Don’t look for anything better, don’t speak of a forgotten hell; for, really, there is no other heaven than this. trans. Juan Cole
Tomgram: Noam Chomsky, Hegemony and Its Dilemmas
Significant anniversaries are solemnly commemorated — Japan’s attack on the U.S. naval base at Pearl Harbor, for example…
Omar Khayyam (29)
My heart, your fate is so bloody– and every second your condition must change again. My soul, what business do you have in this body of mine?– Since, when your business is done, you’ll just be out of it. trans. Juan Cole from Whinfield 28
Indian Investigators do not Suspect Iran in Israel Embassy Blast
India has suffered from both Hindu and Muslim terrorist groups. So the attack on an automobile outside the Israeli embassy in New Delhi could easily have been carried out by an Indian group. Israel’s government, a master of spin and propaganda, immediately blamed the bombing on Iran and Hizbullah. But there is no evidence for […]
Sternfeld: Will Iran’s Elections Provoke a New Green Movement?
Lior Sternfeld writes in a guest column for Informed Comment Two important realities about Iran are obscured behind the smokescreen of the “Iranian threat” which US politicians and even the US government have created. The first is that the Iranian people are highly politically engaged, and have been throughout the past century. The second is […]
Omar Khayyam (28)
Since today is the time of my youth, I drink what makes me happy. Don’t speak badly of it– although it is bitter, it is good. It’s bitter because it is my life. Trans. Juan Cole from Whinfield 28
Tomgram: Nick Turse, Prisons, Drones, and Black Ops in Afghanistan
Despite all the talk of drawdowns and withdrawals, there has been a years-long building boom in Afghanistan that shows little sign of abating. In early 2010, the U.S.-led International Security Assistance Force (ISAF) had nearly 400 bases in Af…
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