Arab World

By Juan Cole | (Informed Comment) First, the new left wing government in Sweden cancelled an arms sale to Saudi Arabia, even though Prime Minister Stefan Lofven favored it. (He had been a union rep friendly to the Swedish arms industry). Foreign Minister Margot Wallström put her foot down, however, and won the argument. She […]

Featured

Ghosts of Saladin, Saddam & Khomeini: Tikrit Campaign’s Historical Meaning

Juan Cole

By Juan Cole | (Informed Comment) – The Iraqi forces (one-third army, two-thirds Shiite militias) that are surrounding Tikrit 80 miles north of Baghdad are not just Iraqi forces. They are mostly Shiite, though some Sunni irregulars have joined them. More important, the Tikrit campaign is being directed as to its strategy by Qasim Sulaimani, […]

Lebanon

On Int’l Women’s Day, Lebanese Anchor stands up to Sexist Sheikh

contributors

Elliott Hill and Mark Sovel | The Lip TV | – “Sexist Islamist scholar Hani Al-Seba’i told Lebanese television host Rima Karaki to shut up in an interview on Lebanon’s Al Jadeed where he was discussing reports of Christians joining ISIS. The sheikh went on to claim it was beneath him to be interviewed by […]

Iraq

From Iraq’s Next big Front: Kurdish Fighters Closing in on Mosul

contributors

VICE News | – “With the timeline unclear for a forthcoming US-led coalition assault on the Islamic State (IS) stronghold of Mosul, Kurdish peshmerga fighters continue to man the trenches at the strategic junction of Keske, just outside the northern Iraqi city. VICE News traveled to Keske to meet with peshmerga fighters and to learn […]

Education

Bombing Iran: What would Happen if the Hawks got their Way?

Juan Cole

By Juan Cole | (Informed Comment) – Some of those who believe that Iran’s civilian nuclear enrichment program is inevitably dual use (that it can be used to produce a nuclear weapon) are alarmed at the prospect of a diplomatic deal between Washington and Tehran that will allow Iran to continue enriching under inspections. After […]

Apartheid

Families See Hope for Justice in Palestinian Membership of ICC

contributors

By Khaled Alashqar | – GAZA CITY (IPS) – “I have lost all meaning in life after the death of my child, I will never forgive anyone who caused the tearing apart of his little body. I appeal to all who can help and stand with us to achieve justice and punish those who killed […]

Israel

Palestinian from Occupied E. Jerusalem injures 5 Israeli Police in Car Attack

contributors

JERUSALEM (Ma’an) — A Palestinian ran his vehicle into a group of Israeli officers in the Sheikh Jarrah neighborhood of East Jerusalem on Friday, Israeli sources said. The driver was Muhammad Mahmoud Abd al-Razeq al-Salaymeh, 22, from the Ras al-Amud neighborhood in East Jerusalem. Israeli police spokesman Micky Rosenfeld told Ma’an the man was driving […]

History

Iraq: What is the meaning of the Assyrian capital ISIL just demolished?

contributors

Channel 4 News | – “[So-called] Islamic State [group] militants looted and bulldozed the ancient Assyrian city of Nimrud in northern Iraq, government officials say.” Channel 4 News: “ISIS militants demolish ancient Iraqi city of Nimrud” For more on the Assyrian palace of Nimrud see Klaudia Englud at the Cuneiform Digital Library Initiative Nimrud, Northwest […]

History

ISIL vs the Graven Idols of History

contributors

By Elliott Colla | (Baghdad Central) – ISIS’s destruction of antiquities at the Mosul Museum and the ancient city of Nimrud has generated a lot of discussion and disgust, all of it well deserved. But much of what has been said fails to adequately contextualize these attacks in two ways. First, in the history of […]