Middle East

2 Years since Killing of Issam Abdallah; Attacks on Civilians, Media Continue Human Rights Watch – (Beirut) – Lebanon’s announcement on October 9, 2025, that it has tasked the Justice Ministry with assessing the legal measures that may be taken following Israeli attacks on journalists during the last war offers a fresh opportunity to achieve […]

Featured

Rashid Khalidi on the Gaza Ceasefire: The veil that has hidden the true nature of the Zionist project was shredded for good

Fariba Amini

Fariba Amini interviews Rashid Khalid, Edward Said Professor of History Emeritus, Columbia University on the Gaza Ceasefire

Feminism

Iran’s Streets ‘Transformed’ As More Women Shun The Mandatory Hijab

Radio Free Europe Radio Liberty

By Fereshteh Ghazi and Farangis Najibullah ( RFE / RL ) – Iranian journalist Zeinab Rahimi has refused to wear the mandatory hijab for over two years, despite the risk of arrest and imprisonment. She is among a growing number of women and girls who have stopped covering their head in public, in direct defiance of […]

Israel/ Palestine

Daring to Dream after Two Years under Fire: Life in Gaza

Open Democracy

For two years, our lives have been on hold amid constant air strikes and fighting. Now, we finally have reason to hope By Hassan Herzallah ( OpenDemocracy.net ) – Growing up in Gaza, my friends and I often heard older relatives’ stories of the Nakba; learning about the homes that Israeli troops forced them out […]

Democracy

Syria’s Parliamentary Election Results look Alarmingly like Iraq 2005, which produced a Civil War

Juan Cole

Ann Arbor (Informed Comment) – Syria’s parliamentary elections on October 5 raised alarm flags for me on several grounds. First, they were not conducted on the basis of a direct vote. Sixty “constituencies” were established to elect 121 members of the People’s Assembly of Syria (only 119 were actually elected). Another 70 members will be […]

Israel/ Palestine

A Gaza Ceasefire Is Not Enough: We Must Choose Life and Freedom

Shamai Leibowitz

( The Times of Israel ) – As we wait anxiously to see whether the ceasefire agreement between Israel and Hamas will take hold and become permanent—ending the massacres in Gaza and bringing the hostages home—we find ourselves in the midst of Sukkot, the festival of fragile dwellings [or “Feast of the Tabernacles”]. During Sukkot, […]

Authoritarianism

We Must Not Look Away from Palestine: Resisting Oppression and Pursuing Justice

Roy Eidelson

Roy Eidelson Note: This essay is adapted from the author’s August address at the American Psychological Association annual convention and from a webinar he presented in early September. The webinar includes many visual depictions of the topics discussed here. ( Counterpunch ) – Welcome everyone. I’m Roy Eidelson, president of the Society for the Study of Peace, […]

Corporate Surveillance

Israel/Palestine: Microsoft Should Avoid Contributing to Rights Abuses

Human Rights Watch

Further Due Diligence Needed After Suspension of Some Cloud and AI Services Human Rights Watch — (New York, October 10, 2025) – Microsoft should suspend business activities that are contributing to grave human rights abuses and international crimes by the Israeli military and other Israeli government bodies, Human Rights Watch, Amnesty International, Access Now, and […]

Featured

Israeli Government Votes to Implement Trump Peace Plan for Gaza as Hamas Pledges to Uphold it

Juan Cole

Ann Arbor (Informed Comment) – According to the Israeli newspaper Arab 48 , the Israeli government on Friday approved the ceasefire in Gaza and the hostage exchange, and agreed to begin withdrawing troops from the west of the Strip. The approval came after the arrival of President Donald Trump’s Middle East envoys Steve Witkoff and […]