Middle East

The history of everyday public resistance on the part of women’s movements in Iran

Yemen still on the brink following coronavirus risks and fragile ceasefire

London (Special to Informed Comment) – As Yemen’s catastrophic war enters its sixth year, the Saudi-led coalition offered a desperately needed ceasefire on Friday, which the current coronavirus pandemic has made more vital than ever. The move came after the UN Secretary General on March 25 called for an end to hostilities in all regional […]

Saudi Arabia

Yemen: Saudi Forces Torture, ‘Disappear’ Yemenis

Human Rights Watch

At Least 5 Detainees from al-Mahrah Illegally Transferred to Saudi Arabia

Epidemics

No Mercy even in a Pandemic: Israeli Occupation Authorities Demolish Makeshift Field Hospital in Palestinian Hamlet

Juan Cole

Ann Arbor (Informed Comment) – Demonstrating that the technologies of settler colonialism never take a break, Israeli Occupation forces have demolished an emergency clinic set up by Palestinians in a small town inside the Palestinian West Bank, according to the Israeli peace organization, Btselem. It writes, “This morning, Thursday, 26 March 2020, at around 7:30 […]

Donald Trump

Why have America and Saudi Arabia Bonded for Decades? Can you Say ‘Oil,’ Children?

Middle East Monitor

By Essam Abdul Shafi | – ( Middle East Monitor) – With its inherent connection to the religion of Islam as the Custodians of the Holy Mosques in Makkah and Madinah, Saudi Arabia’s origins and characteristics were reflected by US policy towards the Kingdom from its foundation. American missionaries based their efforts on providing social, […]

Epidemics

Coronavirus Solidarity: A 13th Century Mystical Persian Poem about Humanity Shows why We need a Global Response

The Conversation

By Arshin Adib-Moghaddam | – Coronavirus is all about human connectivity. From a philosophical perspective, I’ve been thinking about how this virus is forcing us to confront our common fate, highlighting our connections in the process. The novel coronavirus defies geography and national borders. There is no escaping it – exactly because humanity is inevitably […]

Donald Trump

In a Plague Year, Trump Ratchets up Tensions with Iran and Iraq

Reese Erlich

San Francisco (Foreign Correspondent) – While the world focuses on the coronavirus pandemic, tensions between the US and Iran are heating up. The two countries are engaging in tit-for-tat military attacks that threaten a wider war. In mid-March, Washington officials accused an Iran-allied militia of launching rockets at a US military base in Iraq, killing […]

Israel/ Palestine

Palestinians in Gaza Face Coronavirus alone after 14-Year Israeli Lockdown

Middle East Monitor

By Ahmet Alioglu | – Humans never thinks of the blessings they have unless they’re lost or about to vanish. Freedom to move is an unequivocal human right that is taken for granted everywhere except in conflict zones or besieged areas like the Gaza Strip. People living there have been tirelessly calling on the international […]

Featured

5 Years into Saudi War on Yemen, 14 mn. in Acute Need, 1/2 of Hospitals closed, and Coronavirus Looms

Juan Cole

Ann Arbor (Informed Comment) – Five years ago, Saudi Arabia launched its ruinous war on Yemen. In 2020, the oil-rich kingdom has nothing to show for this albatross around its neck. The war was the brainchild of then defense minister Mohammed Bin Salman, who is now the crown prince. Yemen is a country of 28 […]