Middle East

By Scott Lucas | (The Conversation) | – – Months after Russia spectacularly entered the Syrian conflict, [the so-called] Islamic State (IS) is still thumbing its nose at both Moscow and the Assad regime in murderous fashion. On May 23, the group detonated between seven and nine car and suicide bombs in the coastal cities […]

Alawites

ISIL hits Syrian Regime in Shiite northwest, killing 150

Juan Cole

By Juan Cole | (Informed Comment) | – – The leftist Beirut daily al-Safir reports that security in Syria broke down dramatically on Monday, as seven bombs timed to go off simultaneously hit soft targets in the Syrian Mediterranean cities of Jebleh and Tartus, killing some 150 persons and wounding 225 , the vast majority […]

Israel/ Palestine

Israel: Netanyahu reiterates opposition to French peace initiative

contributors

Ma’an News Agency | – – BETHLEHEM (Ma’an) — Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu reiterated on Monday his rejection of a French initiative for an international peace conference to solve the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, stating once again that he would only consider “direct negotiations” with Palestinian leadership without Palestinian preconditions. “Peace just does not get achieved […]

Kurds

As they Liberate Villages from ISIL, Kurds drawing Syrians into Feminist Democracy

contributors

By Rahila Gupta | ( OpenDemocracy | – – Rojava is a fast moving, dynamic place where things change by the minute. What are the material conditions which support this woman-centred revolution ? Part 5 of 50.50’s series Witnessing the revolution in Rojava, northern Syria. There is a real sense of a people responding to […]

Featured

US Centcom Commander in Syria to Coordinate Kurds, Arabs against ISIL

Juan Cole

By Juan Cole | (Informed Comment) | – – Robert Burns of AP reported on the visit inside Syria of the head of the US Middle East Command (Centcm), Army Gen. Joseph Votel, to assess the progress in US training of the Syrian Democratic Forces division. It is said to comprise 25,000 Kurdish fighters of […]

Authoritarianism

New Turkish PM Firmly Behind Erdogan on Executive Presidency

contributors

TeleSur | – – Binali Yildirim was unanimously selected by members of Turkey’s ruling party to be the country’s next prime minister. Turkey’s incoming prime minister says his government’s top priority will be a new constitution to create an executive presidency, a move that would give President Tayyip Erdogan the broad powers he has long […]

Israel/ Palestine

Palestinians Capture Israeli Extremists Who Attacked Farmers

contributors

By IMEMC | – – Palestinian members of local neighborhood watch committee, in Talfit village, south of the northern West Bank city of Nablus, managed to capture two armed fanatic Israeli colonists, who invaded the village and attacked farmers. Ghassan Daghlas, a Palestinian official in charge of Israeli settlements file in the northern parts of […]

Dissent

Baghdad on Lockdown not from fear of ISIL but of poor Protesters

Juan Cole

By Juan Cole | (Informed Comment) | – – Baghdad was a ghost town on Saturday,, as security forces fanned out, blocking key roads into the Green Zone, the area downtown, closed off by blast walls, that houses parliament and foreign embassies. On Friday, over a hundred protesters were wounded and at least 2 died […]

Featured

Egyptians “shocked” at Lieberman Appointment, note Barak’s accusation of “fascism” in Tel Aviv

Juan Cole

By Juan Cole | (Informed Comment) | – – What do Israel’s Arab neighbors think about the political earthquake that struck PM Binyamin Netanyahu’s cabinet on Thursday and Friday? Netanyahu invited into his government the far right Yisrael Beitenu ultra-nationalist party and offered the minister of defense position to extremist Avigdor Lieberman. He appears to […]